Leaderboard

One of my biggest fears.... When I take that long dirt nap, Mrs K. sells my guns, boats, fishing gear, and tractors for what I told her I paid for them.

I was reading a local newspaper article this morning and it appears as though Covid has struck the lawn tractor market with shortages. So, along with toilet paper and chicken wings we can add lawn and garden tractors. On the bright side I was able to convince my wife that my forward thinking has perched us upon a veritable goldmine.....😂😂😂

I haven't done a tractor in a while and don't have near the time I did when in PA. I used to use the winter to do restorations. Down here with the weather being warm all the time, I have too many other things going on. BUT I did see a nice old GE fan (1934 era) at a local flea market. It worked and had all the parts so I gave her a new life. Before After During

When I first started at the shop I bought a 5 drawer US General roll cart, and it served me well for a long time, but with my tool buying habit it didn’t take me long to outgrow it. So I sold it to a coworker and bought my service truck, figured I’d just work out of it at the shop, as well as have everything I need around the farm. And that worked well for a while, but it was getting to be a hassle working out of it at the shop, really needed another shop box. So today I bit the bullet, hooked on to the trailer, and made the 120 mile trip to Harbor Freight. Picked up a blue 44” top and bottom chest, as well as the 14” side cabinet. Really bummed me out that they have discontinued the side lockers, but the store manager told me the rumor is they may be coming out with a bigger 18” locker in the US General line, so keeping my fingers crossed for that. I also bought some of their new Icon line today. I bought their 1/2” long handle flex head ratchet a while back and absolutely love it, so I figured I’d expand on that line a bit. I’m gonna have to work out of both the new box and the truck for a while until I get them both fully stocked again. I’m going back over to the shop I’m the morning to finish organizing things, so will get some pics of the setup then, but here is my haul for the day

No Horse building going on here today. Just putting one to work. Hiram has been standing proud around the yard way to long. Time for him to do something. Hay duty. Thanks to the town cutting the shoulders of the road the other day, our ducks have free hay for there run.

Thanks to the advice of the friendly folks here, my 656 is done. Currently has a 6.5hp Predator engine with a golf cart starter generator and a small ATV battery. Drive pulley increased to get a maximum speed of about 8mph. Last week I installed a Delco copy mechanical voltage regulator and mounted an inch thick steel plate for the front weight. Here's a pic from this morning. That's a homemade 35 gallon tank traiker. I sprayed two tanks yesterday and three this morning in our 25 acre orchard. ZERO problems. Used less than 2 gallons of gas too!

I got a penny jar just waitin on her call Ed!

Mrs Rules and I had the Senior out celebrating my best buddy Morgan's 5th birthday today. By providing some Wheel-Horse tractor rides to all the kids attending his party at our local horse farm, at least 20 kids there today, I am pretty confident a great time was had by all. Thanks to Mrs Rules for all the wonderful picts to share here too.

'Round here the BBT has been busy all day as usual. Her and her Mom spent some time moving seasoned wood from the front yard to the basement. Then from the woods to the front yard. Maybe 14 to 16 small loads total. Also split up a little more. Action shot:

When you are six feet under it won't matter anyway unless that's all you left for her to live on. Mrs. M says it's all going to the highest (maybe the first) offer.

The only way you'll see a ZTR on my lawn is when I'm unable to mow it my self and I have to hire somebody. Kind of a funny story. At my son's house in Buffalo. Everybody has a tiny yard. I can mow my son's yard in less than 15 minutes with a pusher and that includes getting it in an out of the shed. We're sitting on his front porch and this landscaping truck pulls up to mow the yard across the street. This guy fires up the 0 turn and starts mowing. The other 2 guys go grab the trimmers. The guy on the 0 turn is done and has it back on the trailer before 1 of the other guys gets his trimmer started!

Now, I heard a rumor that the small green machines at one of those home improvement chains were made by <insert name of yuuge lawn tractor manufacturer here> under license, and that the transmissions contained plastic parts good for the life of the warranty only. If that’s true, then a well preserved or shiny “new” Wheelhorse will one day become much more appreciated and sought after than they are now. They’re America at its best fer cryin out loud! Hat’s off to all you guys keeping them alive. We’re not hoarders, we’re curators!

I bought a 607 today, but the towing vehicle is in the shop so I am picking it up later this week. So I guess to answer the thread title, built my collection.

I think that is a valid comment....... seemingly to get a lawn & GARDEN tractor you have to go the recent? terminology of "SCUT & CUT" tractors. With SCUT being 'small compact utility tractor' (I think thats right?) and CUT "compact utility tractor", Which of course puts you in the 10K range and up! And, with the popularity of the 'ZTR's' I wont be surprised if a tractor type LAWN mower will slowly disappear. We are already seeing the cost of the ZTR's coming down to the 2-3k range. But, at my - quite advanced - age and having 3 big D horses and an MF tractor, 3 with decks and one for towing, etc, I wont have to worry about any of that.......

Was trying a few different kid haulers on for size here today.

Very interesting thread, Cas. Thanks. I'd just like to mention. When I was at school a good few years back and when I started my apprenticeship. It was drummed into me that rulers, ruled countries etc. A rule was for measuring.

Maybe @pullstartshould get a pair of these. Steel toe flip flops. Yes they do exist.

Interesting tidbit on this metal tag for an SML-506 Wheel Horse Sickle Bar Mower. ANCO BREAKAWAY. Tag ! Not on later tags but interesting that this company made these for Wheel Horse! ANCO may have been the Anderson Company in Gary, Indiana as they made Anderson Wiper Blades for vehicles. They made many metal display and distribution items for their wipers. History ANCO was founded as The Anderson Company by John W. Anderson in South Bend, Ind., in 1918. Initially, it developed, produced and marketed a range of automotive products, including "Hot Spot" manifold gaskets, ball thrust bearings, and timers, all for the original Ford Model T. Eventually, the company began experimenting with wiper blades, and by the early 1930s, were producing replacement wipers and arms at large volumes, including for military applications. Federal-Mogul Motorparts' parent company, Federal-Mogul Corporation (now Federal-Mogul LLC), acquired the ANCO brand in 1998.

Super cool to see that Mike!

Thanks! I got the wiring, grommets and felt from this guy on eBay. That fan you have is a good candidate for a resto! I love having something unsafe I can still jamb a finger into if I'm feeling adventurous (or after watching network news)

2 days heating and hammering hitch pin finally came out.started out using center punch to get pin out but ended up just hitting pin itself so I could get a good hit mushroomed pin a little.once it was loose I filed end of pin down a little to get it out.have to doctor clip grove a little but it'll be ok. 90 deg.in garage 70% humidity not getting alot done right now.

I took the carb and breather off the Tecumseh 10 this afternoon. I was planning on cleaning up and rebuilding the carb but I have the wrong parts kit. New parts ordered. I'll get it soaking for a few days anyway. The breather was leaking like a sieve out the bottom. Any idea why?? Look at the compression marks in the gasket at the top right corner. On the engine that was the bottom right. Some bright pile of sunshine PO actually left 1/4 of the old gasket in place the last time this was apart. The whole bottom of the breather was seeping oil.

Very nice work! Hmmm. I think I have one of those in the attic from my college dorm room days. I'm gonna put looking for it at the end of my to-to list and I'll get back to all y'all sometime in 2024.

Thanks Mike, I'll sleep much better now.

Does the fuse blow when you turn the key to the RUN position? or Does it blow when you turn the key to the START position? You can replace the fuse with a test light or voltmeter to test. This saves blowing fuses. Each test lead goes to the terminals the fuse occupied. When the test light is lit or a voltage reading appears the short is present. The object is to determine what circuit is causing the problem. The wiring is fairly simple on this model. Garry

Most companies stop selling Garden Tractors long before Covid struck. You could get look-a-like Garden Tractors made with sheet metal put together with sheet metal screws With engines that they keep changing the names of every couple of years because of the bad rap people give them. They have some tractors that will talk to your phone but that doesn't do much when you need to plow the garden or snow or mow the yard. So not much lossed if Covid is the cause. That my opinion, you didn't ask for it but got it anyway!

I'll be sure to share this with my own local war department. She has 3 tractors. I have 2 done, 2 projects. There's another that's ownership has been undecided as of yet. We should be doing well.

GOOD NEWS: I just talked to the guy, I am going to pick it up Tuesday. It was in very nice condition. The paint is a little faded but nothing major. Pictures to follow. Thanks to everyone that helped me determine the value of such a nice piece of equipment.

Do you load an unload them with flip flops on ?

Crusty with new tires and wheels.

Very nice. You are going to love that Predator. Had mine for years and it still starts on the first pull every time. I upsized the pulley too and it has tons of power and torque and easily pushes heavy snow at 8 mph as it sips fuel. It easily pulls my 700lb lawn roller too.

I have a c101 8 speed. I am in Nc and you don't find many horses in this area. I have had some trouble with my local shop being able to cross reference belts and so forth. Is there an easier way to handle this?

I see you're just south of Raleigh, so there are several folks on the forum that live near you. Plus, any questions you have- somebody here will have the answer. I didn't promise it would be the correct answer, but you'll likely have several to choose from! In all seriousness, the folks here are great. Many of us have been playing with these tractors for decades. Welcome to the forum! Post pictures if you can with your questions, because we like pictures!

I do not see a problem with this as all. When I have my meet and greets we do the same. I would suggest you keep it in the same meet and greet thread tho. 👍

LOL! That's a new one for me, thanks. My long passed father-on-law was always mindful of his language. He would have called this PO a "chucklehead".

This place has a lot of vintage stuff as far as wiring. https://vintagewireandsupply.com

He isn't just another pretty face. 😁

Nice work, Zeek! I have one similar on my workbench that I should do that to… Is the braided wire new? It looks to be cloth covered. Mind telling me where to get it?

Probably. Maybe 👟 sneakers. But we don't drive them on or off the trailer while in the seat so it's nice and easy to run our toes over.

Oh ok so this will fit my 1988 212-5 lawn tractor ID # 3212050 , thanks for the help once again .

Yep. Got it! Thanks guys. I'm probably going to get things soaking, and then hang up the wrench for the weekend. Will update this thread when the adventure continues!!

How can you stand to have the things staring at you all the time. Would drive me bonkers.

One of the members used "bronze 70's-80'sGMdoor hinge bushings. If they can hold a 100lbGMdoor" I plan to use them on my C-Series Hoods.

Yeah I'm going to do exactly the same thing. Show it occasionally but first and foremost it has to work

That's a nice tractor. I might have to make my wife want one

You can get a reproduction steering wheel from a few places, Steiner's, Dennis Carpenter's, Just8Ns, etc. The good thing about the N-Series Fords, parts aren't hard to find, new or used. https://www.just8ns.com/ https://paulstractors.com/?fbclid=IwAR3af5gvYCFbUAmyZjX0XJGLCx9XrnqHKhZo2cjix6jEvj3F-ksxf0yN9TY https://redrockmfg.com/products/miscellaneous/ https://www.crosscreektractor.com/ https://www.dennis-carpenter.com/free-catalogs https://www.stevenstractor.com/home/shop-brand/ford-1939-1964.html

You need to open that up Cas. Pull the pan. Either the bearings have slop between the inner and outer races or the outer races are moving back and forth in the plate and rear bearing boss.

Fits 200 series tractors

I've got the choke and throttle cables wired to the dash and so I can still reach down and pull start it without leaving the seat. I wanted a battery and S/G because the sprayer has an electric pump that pulls 5-7 amps and lights pull another amp. The small charging system on the regular electric start models only outout 2-3 amps. I did contemplate a large deep cycle battery as a front weight instead of a S/G. .. 😂 😂 Here's a picture of the S/G while work was in progress. The S/G is bolted to the Predator tank location and the tank was moved to the original Wheel Horse spot. Since then I've downsized the S/G pulley.

Well today I saw a set of tires and wheels for sale on CL. The rears are like new and I needed something for the crusty 856 I pulled out of the weeds. It sat so long in the dirt that the rims just disintegrated. Oddly enough the tubes are still loaded and holding what ever fluid is in there. I got this one with the 500 Special. Not sure what my plans for it are yet but I can at least roll it around now.