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I just finished making my front weights. 70lbs, not the most but sufficient. No idea where they are from but I made a fast mount to be use by the attach a matic. It allows me to have 400lbs on the back and still be rideable.

Friends of ours have a family member who's getting up in years and wants to start selling off a collection of both garden tractors and farm tractors. I posted here a few pictures of some of the garden tractors. Any information whatsoever that you can contribute would be much appreciated. I realize that the value is kind of a regional thing but if there's anything that sticks out like a sore thumb as being particularly rare please let me know. The two in particular that I would be interested in are the Minneapolis Moline and what appears to be a Panzer with a loader? Thanks in advance.

https://www.thedrive.com/news/42635/this-twin-engine-six-wheel-steer-truck-was-supposed-to-replace-semis-after-wwii

Not all of them together. May have to do that. I try not to be a hoarder and I gift a lot away to family and friends. I probably only have around 20 or so at this time in my possession. Similar to wheel horses and box store mowers... I cringe when someone buys a box store axe. Vintage USA or Euro is the way to go!

The next one is a nice 4lb military Warren axe that I would guess is probably Vietnam era or maybe even WWII. Both will be great additions!

Another hobby item I enjoy is saving old axes. And I had some great luck at the antique store again. First one is an axe pattern I have been looking to come across for a decade. A cruiser axe. This one is a Collins, probably from the 80's, weighs 2.5lb. cleaned up. I like leaving a patina look to them. Mostly just remove rust with wire brushes and wet sand paper. Then clean and rub oil into them

The work I'm doing on the125 I just got is very similar in scope to what Newbie is doing. I consider it a "stabilization". Mostly a 'deep cleaning' and repainting the parts that are really rusty. And servicing anything I discover that's worn out.

Nah, I respectfully disagree. We've all had discussions about what a resto is. By definition a restoration is just bringing something back to a previous working condition. I've restored several tractors without going into the transmissions or the engines, beyond the occasional seal or service. If the engine is good without a total rebuild, then I leave them as they are. Sometimes opening up a perfectly good engine takes more away than it improves. Same with a transmission: some are tight with no leaks, so if it's mine, they just get a service. Maybe it's all about what some folks consider a restoration. Some think it's rebuilding it as it was on the day it was manufactured, but I think that isn't realistic. Plus, none of my tractors are going in a museum. Even if I babied one (which I don't), they are gonna get used. I just want them to a point where taking proper care of them keeps them going another 30-40 years. Maybe my son will know if I succeeded... Less than one hour after I got the Charger home this weekend, it was nastier than most tractors after a year of use. My FIL kept apologizing for getting it dirty. I told him tractors are like kids- they are happiest when they get dirty, so he needed to keep right on working it! Had I done a "complete" museum-level restoration, it would've been all for nothing. And he wouldn't have had use for the tractor if it just looked pretty.

OK as promised, even if it's a day late here are the pics of the 1981 C30 I picked up from the impound sale. Sorry for the dark pictures, the sun was just going down by the time I finished bolting down the welder, air compressor, and all the toolboxes. Still have to get my racks built for my bottles and transfer the welding leads from the trailer over on to the truck, but so far I'm very pleased with how its turning out. The old truck is no cherry by any means, but it should work just fine for a farm welding and repair truck. The 454 in it starts right up and runs well, the 4 speed transmission shifts smoothly, but the brakes need a little attention and the whole truck is an electrical nightmare. We drove it to town last night for Tasha's company Christmas party. Ran great there and back but when we got home I couldn't get it to shut off. Turn the key off but it would still stay running. We finally discovered that for whatever reason you cannot kill the truck if the headlights are still on, once I turned the lights out the ignition worked as it should so it definitely has some wiring issues that need addressed. Gonna have to have 6 new tires in the near future as well, but first I have to locate 4 16" wheels that will fit, the two on the front have already been changed over to 16s but the 4 across the back are still 16.5s

This whole tractor looks kind-a like graphite.

Can't remember who said it- but similar to the theory of relativity: as time passes gravity increases or something? What was I talking about?

The other half is done. It's resting in its forever home now. Maybe some mounts later today along with some shock relocation brackets.

I should add: You should be able to find setscrews at any hardware store. 3/8 x16 thread.

Had to move some stuff around to put my Peco leaf vacuum away so out comes the LSE and the GT-1800

Theory of too much Relative-ity: As more time passes with relatives, the need for baked beans increases, until they succumb to the fumes and leave. At which time you can resume talking about ‘s.

All mine get used. I didn't restore mine I did a lot of repairs with new parts all electric except for a new cam and camp plate, one used front wheel. As for paint I treated the rusted areas with AgriGuard and patched painted them with Sunrise Red that didn't match. I also treated the back side of the hub caps with AgriGuard as they were rusted. 4 new tires 24x9.50x12 and 18x6.50x8.

A 1/16" clearance between pulley and block should be sufficient. There are two set screws on the pulley hub to hold it in place.

Time to start getting the rear tires ready. 26x12x12 tires going on.

400# hanging on the back, and it doesn't look like the tires even know it.

Baked beans?

That may be regional or state law differences. Here the smaller ones are referred to as 20 lbs and the bigger ones are referred to as 30. Of interest is the fact that I've known for years and 30 lb tank as we call them, weighs a heck of a lot more than that... also seem to get heavier as I get older. 😂

The 2 and 4 cylinder Wisconsins were also used on a ton of all brands of hay bailers. In high school Ag shop we had about ten 4 cylinder Wisconsins that we disassembled and reassembled and had to make them run. Fairly simple engine. Very heavy for the HP, but lots of torque.

Happy Birthday Mark! That ticker says you’re 70?! Unlike @squonk, you don’t look it!

With all my bumps and bruises, that’s just about right to bury a short guy in….

You have to wonder if there were cooling system issues with having 2 engines. The 235 inline six was the base engine for Chevy from the forties, maybe late thirties, up until 1961. Yanked a few out of mid fifties Chevys to do a small block V8 swap.That 235 was so bulletproof that both Toyota copied it for their FC40 Landcruiser and Volvo for their 50's and 60's sedans.

Need sunglasses to look at that 420 , very nice Don, both of them. Now put them away before a seagull spots that louvered hood !

I was about to type the same. The amount of time and effort going in to this tractor is more than many many folks have claimed on a restoration. BBT and I have done 3 full frame off every single nut bolt and washer off, restoration/build/whatever you want to call them. I've have the cylinder head off but no further in any engine. All the transmissions we have needed wheel bearings so they were split and gone through. IMHO... Which doesn't mean much... You're doing a restoration. And a good one.

I drove from Michigan to Missouri today. Got a contractor showing up in Mo. on Monday to get the porch project moving along again. Want to be there for that. Stopped by for a short visit with @Pullstart on the way. Picked up some parts out of his chop shop for my C195. I also put some fingerprints on his Seniors .

And most important a cupholder

And here's the gearbox using a single stage internal gear reduction. Problems: 1) It would require similar dashboard butchery to fit. 2) Main gearbox body is around 4" in diameter.....possibly make this smaller if I use a smaller input gear. 3) Not shown is the large top bearing which fits into the cross sectioned housing on the top of the gearbox. I'm thinking of a double taper bearing something similar to a vehicle wheel bearing...but smaller. Hopefully this would support the top half of the shaft well enough. 4) It requires a bespoke internal ring gear. 5) The steering wheel would be off the steering column axis by approx 18mm (which is nearly 3/4") and that doesn't sound bad to me. Obviously the basic gearbox construction is trivial by comparison with the previous design but requires a very difficult to machine ring gear. Additionally, the whole gearbox is only approx 3" tall so should fit under the wheel fairly easily. Clearly I have some more work to do!

A 'mostly' side shot of my new to me C-125 just off the jack stands and out for a joy ride: @Tach-a-matic

Seems I remember somewhere saying 1/4 inch space on the drive pulley...

As a former Army pilot, I can say no one can tell in the dark what color the aircraft is...

Paul I am not the original poster here, but I wanted to thank you for the detailed information on how to adjust the tension - your instructions are much more detailed than what is found in the owners manual. My C-160 that I got from my father was very touchy as well and I assumed my father lubricated the mechanism years ago..I adjusted the tension today following your instructions and it is much much better. I also checked for the broken tab and mine is ok. jeff

This is really the max, and wouldn't dare to ride it.... Still quite surprised the front end is still down. Around 400 pounds on the back!!!

I think my bolts are backwards too! GOOD LORD!!!

Rattle can black gloss, Eric. No clear coat.

The 1045-A was just a continuation of the 1964 1054 run. We have no production numbers and the decal on the hood sides was 1054 so it is hard to say how many were produced. The only difference I am aware of is the wider rims and tires. If the established Wheel Horse numbering system had been used on this model it would have been a 1055 but that number was used on the new square hood ten horse power tractor being introduced. Garry @gwest_ca has compiled serial numbers for various models but we can't be sure that all numbers in a sequence were used exclusively for that model. if they were then there were 1,000 first generation 953s, 850 second generation 953s, 600 third generation 953s, 7,000 1054s and 1,000 1054-As This is total speculation and we have no factory production figures to back it up.

Tony, I bought a tractor one time the tie rods were held on by zip tie. Now that is innovation!

You may also want to consider filling your rear tires with a non-freezing liquid like RV antifreeze, winter winshield washer fluid (as mine are) , or @ebinmaine's favorite - Rim Guard beet juice - IF you have a vendor for that near you. The first 2 weigh about 7-1/2 lbs per gallon, Rim Guard is heavier, around 10 lbs or so per gallon. My 23x8.50x12 turf tires hold about 5 and a half gallons each. You need to use tire tubes with the first 2 choices also - Rim Guard, as the name implies, is safe to use with painted steel wheels.

THAT'S interesting!!! Looks like a good solid truck overall. Well worth repairing.

Nice score Slim . Never ceases to amaze me what with a bit of tickling one can get these girls to run and even drive. I picked up two 953' a couple of years ago and hope to get one out of them someday They do make for just an awesome plow mule you get her set up tuned proper. Hosen @Pullstart and Tom @Shynon can attest to that. Kev set his daughter on Tom's one year and couldn't get her off! Next year Hosen showed up with a couple of 953/1054's. That didn't turn out so hot. Well actually it did turn out hot! Wiring short ended the fun real quick.

Excellent! Mine was a “field find”, no spark special… $50. Got it running, tuned up, fluids etc. and ran great for few weeks… then the piston daylighted along with the rod… broke case in 3 spots… Predator works great… we’ll see how it plows snow this winter… it’s backup to my C 105.

I'm a believer on the primer bulbs for any WH with the fuel tank under the seat. If nothing else, they save your battery. No sense needing 30-45 seconds of crank to get fuel in the carb... Primer bulbs let me know immediately if an engine isn't starting for a legitimate reason, because they crank on the first turn if nothing is wrong.

I use the original pumps and never had one fail. If a tractor with the original pumps aren't started regularly, they do take some time to fill the carburetor. An electric pump or a primer bulb will eliminate the slow starts.

If you put a small amount of fuel down the carburetor and you have new spark plugs sparking, then you should have at least some putts when you crank it. You need to crank it immediately after pouring in the fuel. I said new spark plugs because fouled ones may not spark under compression. My Onans need full choke till they fire, then the choke needs to come off immediately, followed by a quick jab on if the engine falters. All my Onans work like this, always did.

Had my two plow tractors out yesterday for front end and side pics

Agree, and if there using them on small planes, I trust them on a tractor...