Leaderboard

This is a bit of a long story but I have to tell it. Back in June at the big show I ran into a woman who I recognized but wasn’t exactly sure if it was her. She was selling a few items so I stopped to talk to her. As we were talking she said “Aren’t you Don, from Long Island?” And I said “Aren’t you Pam from Ohio?” We both were happy to meet again after many years. I first met Pam and her husband Mark at the first Wheel Horse show I attended, which was the second or third show. Mark’s C-125 that he restored inspired me to do my future restorations. When I asked Pam where Mark was she very sadly informed me that he passed away in December. Mark and I had become good friends at the show and I couldn’t wait to see him each year. He was the kind of guy that was a genuinely nice person. I was truly saddened by this news. In 2006 Mark came to the show with a 420-LSE that had 2 yes 2 hours on it. It was pristine and I was jealous! That year Cecil Pond was there and signed it for Mark. So after talking with Pam for a while I asked her about the LSE, she told me that she still had it. She also informed me that it wasn’t really for sale but she would consider selling it to me because she wanted it to go to a good home. Pam told me what she’d like to have for it and I agreed that was a fair price, however I didn’t have that kind of money at the time. She graciously said that she would hang on to it and not sell it to anyone else until I came up with the money.Four months later my wife and I made the trip to Ohio. We made a road trip/vacation out of it driving over 1900 miles round trip in seven days stopping at many beautiful places along the way.I must admit Pam and I were both a little emotional as I loaded up the tractor. So Mark Klingler I sincerely hope that you are looking down and are happy with what has transpired. Your beautiful tractor is in good hands and I promise to cherish it as much as you did for years to come.God bless. Thank you folks for reading this story.

Hehehehehe @JCM

I think they were made to compete in the lawn tractor category at a lower price point than the full sized horses. Here is mine. 54 years old and still used year around. She is my favorite Horse and my chore tractor. (When you get older you find that getting on an off her is a lot easier that her big brothers) Father bought her new in May 67 .. I added electric start because I am lazier than Father...

Happy Birthday Kid! I love ya!

I accidentally got into the hobby of fixing and rebuilding Lawn Boy mowers. I use to pick them up from my small engine guy for 20 bucks a pop. I was over there one day and there was a Wheel Horse tractor in the shop. I loved the look of that tractor. He assured me it was not for sale. It belonged to a Dr. in an adjoining town. I started watching CL for Wheel Horses, but nothing ever showed up, until finally a C-141 came up for sale about 25 miles away.It ran, and the guy drove it onto my trailer, and I brought it home. That was in Oct. of 2020. This was the first time I ever put a wrench to a Wheel Horse. I was bit ! The rest, as they say, is history. I am one of those guys who prefers bright and shiny over patina. It's just my way. After the 141 I found the 656. Then the 876 Then the C-125 And finally the C-175 That's it, that's all I got. I don't have room to store even one more tractor until I sell off about 15 more Lawn Boys. The market seems to be a bit slow on them. If I were to find the RIGHT Wheel Horse, at the right price, The Lawn Boys would go, one way or the other. Until that happens, I am resigned to rebuilding motors for Horses I don't have yet.

I saw this nicely done Lawn Ranger on marketplace and wondered why it seems I don’t see them that often here. Definitely in a class by themselves. Post em if you have em.

We are all just temporary custodians of our stuff. Extremely glad to see this tractor go from good hands to good hands.

That is a great story. Glade to see you are the caretaker of that nice machine now. At some point we will all pass these machines along.

In 1991, my lawn had expanded to the point that the 8HP AMF Dynamark was no longer practical, so I went tractor shopping. I knew little about garden tractors, so I looked at green, yellow, orange and red ones, compared specifications and made my choice. Using the weight, twin cylinder and hydraulics as the most important criteria, I thought that the 416H was the right one but the dealer talked me into a 520H. The rest is history.

Just over 9yrs ago I was walking the dogs in my avatar, down the lane past a field a man kept a microlight in a poly tunnel. I'd seen him mowing a runway on a ride on. I was using a Lawn Flight to mow the green and lane verges by our property. I'd not seen the man for some time and it turned out he'd had an accident and it was found he'd a heart condition. That put paid to his flying. I noticed the double doors to the tunnel were open and a car and trailer were there. So walked in just incase it was some one up to no good. Turned out it was him and he was clearing everything out. His ride on was standing to one side, a Wheel Horse C-125 with a 42" deck. I'd no knowledge of WH's and he said it wouldn't start and he couldn't sell it till it did. I had a look and managed to get it running. A deal was struck and the following night after parting with £70, I drove it the 1/4 mile home. Since then I've acquired two more horses. '78 C-121 12hp the Black horse. '79 8hp C-81 and a '79 Sears GT16 with a B&S twin. C-125 rebuilt last year. C-121 modified for ploughing. C-81 with sickle bar. Sears GT16. Bought of a friend who rebuilt it from a complete wreck.

I am up early on a Saturday because I had a nightmare about mice and rats raiding my place!! Now I see this😳

Thank you...I have gained a lot of knowledge here already, just being a lurker, reader, and using the files section. My current machine is a Quicksilver MX ( red, white, blue ) my buddies Weedhopper is in the background. They are both flying with 2cyl Rotax engines. Mine is 35hp and his is 40hp.

Little mouse in my pocket told me it's my niece's b day today Pullhosen @Pullstart. Happy Happy Rylee the big 12 but next year it's the terrible teens! Keep growin gal! Got a little pic heavy here.... I'm not sorry!

@ebinmaine must be sleeping or something must have happened because he has not responded to this thread or my latest thread about my LSE! He’s usually right on it. Getting cold up there,maybe he’s getting the wood stove going?

Wow, just wow! Beautiful machine and great story. No doubt in my mind you will treat that 420 the way Mark did

My Father "slightly" sold the Wheel Horse in the '60s. I say it that way because, although he had a license, or whatever it took to have the sellers opportunity, he had it. I don't ever remember him selling one though, although he may have. He had 3 during the course of my upbringing on his 2 1/2 acres in Southern Ohio. His last Wheel Horse is STILL at the house where I grew up, and is still used, along side a Cub Cadet. I am looking to re~buy that home, will be my last.......... if the Lords willing......& the current owner finds kindness. A friend down my street called just September 7th, last month, & said a man had 3 riding mowers on a trailer for sale, & he knew I favored the Wheel Horse, said, "GARY, HE HAS A WHEEL HORSE", I said. I'll be right there!! Minutes, & $140 later, it was mine! Its a 1974 B-80, which hasn't run yet, partly taken apart, mostly all there, but its fun because, I'm sure, it is my Fathers wish, for me to have one again. It'll be running one of these days. Grandpa, again, used in my life's story as well, was my mentor. He spent time with me, had patience teaching me, taught me how to plow his 50 acres using rows/squares with an Allis Chalmers, & using that method to mow acres of grass as well. I learned an awful lot from him, and I cherish that I have the aptitude to learn new mechanicals. He had 2 Wheel Horses, which were electric starters, as we pulled our guts out starting Dads. I am looking forward to 2022, HOPEFULLY living in my 2 1/2 acre childhood home, with a RUNNING B~80, & enjoying the Biglerville show in June, looking there, to find another deck to replace this rusted out version.. I was member/supporter of this forum HOURS after buying my Wheel Horse!

@Stormin : A deal was struck and the following night after parting with £70, I drove it the 1/4 mile home. Everybody having killer deals on their first horses. HAHAHA, that wasn't the case with mine. €600 non running, not the original engine, busted axle bearings, but with a 42" side discharge. Stuck in a mudhole. hahah, Oh well, I love My raider 10.. M12. I think the C175 is my cheapest horse.

AS a kid my grandpa owned a C160 Auto with mower deck and snowblower. I was always fascinated with the thing. He still owns the machine and it still runs. now as an adult, i bought my own wheel horse

A modern update on the classic RJ "Nut Roaster"???

One of my earliest memories of my Grandpa's WH (C-120?) was mowing his "back 40". They lived up on a mountain between Albany and NYC. They had this 2-3 acre strip of grass in the backyard, with a pretty steep incline going down the mountain. Maybe 50-75 yards wide by the rest of the mountain long. And Grandpa asked me to mow it. He knew I mowed at home with my Dad's '62 Alice Chalmers B-10. So, I'm going down the hill and realize I can push in the clutch and now I'm FLYING! (We didn't have a mountain handy at home for me to try that out with the Alice!) Grandpa's got his steel rake, attending to the clippings, watching me. When I was done, I told him, so proudly about my discovery of the clutch. Grandpa looked at me sternly and said, "You should never let the clutch out going down a hill. You might speed out of control and crash. Or worse, burn out the bearings on the wheels, the transaxle..." Edit: I should maybe point out that Grandpa knew the whole time. He let me go and then later told me where I might have gone wrong. Helluva guy Grandpa was.

I've said it before, I'll say it again- if the Ponds knew just how much these little tractors do for us, above and beyond the work- they would be proud. Don, your story is both sad and inspirational. Without being in your shoes, I can absolutely relate to a very small part of why your tractor now has so much sentimental value. Great story, and thank you!

I've always had an interest in mechanical stuff and anything that had a motor. When I was 17ish i worked at a lumber yard/hardware store and i cant remember how i got to talking with one of the regular contractors but he had an old tractor that ran great but wouldn't move and hed give it to me free. I took it knowing nothing about it. It was a 69 Alice chalmers b112. I started taking it apart and ended up replacing a 90° "T" box and it moved once again. My pride was immeasurable. I had a lot if fun with it and even made a plow for it and fitted it with a pneumatic lift via an air tank mounted behind the seat. Sadly I got rid of it when an aunt gave me a beast of a troy bilt with a hydraulic lift deck and plow. FF a couple years after I had moved into an apartment and sold all my lawn equipment. I thought I'd like not having to mow but it actually drove me insane. After my last move in 2018 I got the itch for a project and after seeing a bunch of YouTube videos of wheelhorses I was fairly sold on my target. This forum sealed the deal for me though and alleviated any technical concerns that may arise. Bought a pair of them off marketplace and a third one later on. I thought I might sell one of them but I'd rather die.

As usual I have the typical fall issue of mice moving into my shed and tractors. But I think something bigger like chipmunks are in now. Fired up my plow tractor with a Mag10 and the horizontal exhaust and these acorns shot outa the muffler like small cannon balls!!

3 48" decks?!? I really like my 417. Looks like you got a real haul there!

Thank you guys for all your kind words. I honestly couldn’t be happier. This expense almost caused a divorce 😂😂 but luckily my wife understood how much this all means to me. @stevasaurus the lift table is also making my back happy doing any repairs or service work!

I've got tears in my eyes...just excellent!!

Here's mine resting after a hard 30 minutes work regrading a friend's driveway.

@Gregor... Casper is one of the most beautiful horses I have seen yet. Don

Hhhmmm…

Same here, unless I am outside for an extended amount of time, shoveling or plowing snow for example, or sitting around it’s always T-Shirt weather. We don’t even turn our heat on until after thanksgiving, and today one year ago we already had snow. Boot on one foot, flip flop on the other.

Yup, correct sir. He does a lot of trailriding. His buddy, moweroutlaw has a 312 for off-roading. The stuff I was planning to do with my lawnmower and later my Wheel Horses. But in almost one year I have only went out once for a light trail ride. I love my horses to much to put them trough harsh off-roading. I stay on the trail. Oh yep forgot to mention this, but probably have more money in my horses now then I would have if I bought an ATV

That's a fella named Todd from right here in Maine. Haven't spoken to him directly but to those who have. Seems like a good guy. He's also one of my own influences towards the rugged Wheelhorse.

I think it was around 2017 when I went over to a coworkers house to do a chore that she needed done. I saw the 1994 520H sitting out in the yard...at least 2 flat tires. There was a leave vac trailer set up nearby. In the shed was a 36 inch Wheel Horse rototiller. I asked her what was her plans for the Wheel Horse and she said " If you want it, I'll sell it to you". She had no idea what the package deal was worth, and neither did I. I told her the 520H, rototiller, and leave vac, was probably worth more than I could give her, but I would give $120 or $140(can't remember), and we had a deal. Brought it home and rolled it in the shed. Found RED SQUARE ! I HAD BEEN BITTEN ! In 2020 I decided to see how bad of shape the 520H was and decided to "refresh" the old tractor. Finished the refresh in spring 2021. I WAS IN LOVE ! In the spring of 2021 a friend gave me a 1984 Work Horse GT-1600 8 SPEED and I am working on refreshing it, and restoring the 48 inch SD deck that goes with the 1994 520H right now. LOVE AFFAIR ONGOING !

They are being very quite, I think they have already gave us a wrong direction as to where they came from. I also see a bucket full of duct tape, I think they went North.

Can't wait to hear the story about them!!

You guys just picked up four from one location?

Casper is one I have never heard of yet, it is a VERY hot looking tractor !!!!!!!!!

In a nutshell , a lowered round hood aimed a suburban homeowners for grass cutting. Cecil Ponds idea for Wheel Horses own grass cutter.

Yesterday’s wood hauling chores…

@xstang77 just asking on this , have you done anything to enhance battery to frame / engine grounding ? while I do not have a later 520 , have found grounding to be a major help in electrical issues. did a main line ground increase from battery ground point , with 4 ga cable , to engine corner , then added another ground to the rectifier bolt point , and from there to my hood head lights . the multiple plug connectors you have have a bad history of corrosion and mount splitting . just an idea that stopped my electrical issues , btw , this is not in the book , pete

Update on this 8N. It's sort of a Frankenstein tractor. From certain features, it's a 1947 8N, which the 8N came out in late 1947. By 1948, Ford had made some minor changes that this one does not have, so it's a 1947. What gets confusing is, everyone thinks it's a mid-50 to 52 due to the side distributor. Up to then, the 8N had a front mount distributor. To further muddied the waters, the serial number on the engine block, makes the engine a 2N engine, which also should have a front mount distributor. Somewhere in it's life the front mount distributor has been replaced with a side distributor. To get that to happen, someone had to change out the cam gear and timing cover, and make brackets to move the generator ( in this case, an alternator) to the left side. To get the alternator on the left side, they had to push the oil filler tube against the engine block. A true side distributor 8N engine will have the oil filler tube mover back to make room for the generator or alternator. It will also have an access cover on the right rear of the engine to see timing marks. A front mount engine does not have that since there is only one way to put in a front mount distributor. This engine does not have that access to the flywheel timing marks. When I got this 8N, it ran, but ran poorly due to being out of time. The previous owner put in a new distributor, points, distributor cap and coil ( which is also mounted behind the dash since there is no place to mount it where it should be, this being a 2N engine). After fiddling around with it and putting in new spark plugs, it now runs a lot better. I bought a new radiator as this one is shot, ordered a new thermostat, and the tractor will get a new coat of gray and red paint when it's finished. For now, a temporarily gas tank it's on it, to run it and drive it around a bit.

I took a different approach and built a puller that uses a two piece bearing separator so you apply pressure to the inside of the hub, not the flange. I already had the Snap on fine thread jacking screw from an old 2 jaw gear puller. Works well. Dave is absolutely correct about shocking the screw with a dead blow hammer after each turn - helps persuade it along... Bill

These things happen. Have you started building a bigger barn yet?

This has never failed me...

Well, I had my Horse sitting in the shop for a while. It came to me to work on it, and see if I could get it working after some pretty horrible deaths in my family. Originally, it was a complete rust-bucket, had a massive hole in the hood from someone putting a battery on the hood, which leaked out and ate a hole in the steel. The hood was broken, cracked, etc. The transmission was full of water... thus, I had to disassemble it. I cleaned and scrubbed every component, put it all back together. Then, I took a look at the Tecumseh which was sitting on my bench. I took it apart... it was a complete mess. Broken rod, scorred crankshaft... broken cam... etc... So, I decided to put a crate engine that I had, Massimo engine, on it, just to see if it would run. Keep in mind, it had no seat... So I literally sat on the metal underneath where the seat should be. I bolted the motor down, put the original STOCK belt back on, which had age cracks, etc... and sure enough, it moved! After riding around with the old girl, even doing a little work with her, moving some brush piles, I took the engine back off, and began sanding 1/4 inch of rust off. I literally spent a full week sanding and repairing body panels. I cut a square out of the hood where the battery ate a hole, and fixed the rest of the hood. I began thinking what exactly I could do for the square I had cut in the hood... then the light-bulb came on... a fuel tank, which fit perfectly in the square hole I had cut. As I was working on the body, I ordered the nicest seat I could find, and began deciding what color to paint the old girl. I thought about going with red, but my neighbor told me that it could only be a Wheel Horse if it was red... so I decided to spite him and go retro with black and white. I then bought some nice, expensive tires, had them put on my a local shop, and painted my rims which had 1/4 inch of rust of them as well... I then began ordering engines. First, I ordered a Tillotson 212, which I heavily modified out to 25 horsepower. That engine was outrageous, but I wanted to fill the entire space under the hood, so I ordered a 457, and heavily modified that. I began talking to a farm machinery place by my home, and they told me that for my tractor to be valuable, it needed to have an implement. So... I paid the piper, and bought a 600$ snow/dozer blade for the front. Along the way, I have modified various things, including pulleys, front wheels, battery box, etc... I love my Horse more than anything else I have. It is really something when you build a Horse through your pain and grief. Sometimes you break-down and have to stop for the day, sometimes you get so involved in the build that your pain actually let's up. I feel like God gave me this tractor for that time in my life, and even now, it puts a very big smile on my face every time I start it up, do work with it, or even just ride it to feel the breeze. Some people wonder why I have Woodstock smiling and Snoopy blowing a rasberry on the back. I'll leave that to you guy's imagination. Don

In my mirror is a 420-LSE with 17 original hours and signed by Cecil Pond. I’m now the second owner.