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Last weekend I finally gave my granddaughter the Lawn Ranger I bought for her birthday months ago.

I had some left over brake parts from my VW and thought I could put them to use as wheel weights. A lot of recycling / re-using going on here! The buckets used to be recycling buckets from before the days of 'single stream' automated collection. BY THE WAY... for anyone thinking of doing this... You MUST leave some clearance between the bucket and the wheel. I used a strip of corrugated cardboard between the bucket and the wheel while I was fabricating. This gave me about 1/8" clearance. You don't want these so tight that they have to be forced in and out of the wheel. ALSO... I noticed that the buckets 'ovaled' a little bit after pouring the concrete. It's probably a good idea to add the 'fillings' while the bucket is still in the wheel WITH the cardboard spacer. ESPECIALLY if you are using the thinner 5 gallon pails as your casings. The buckets I used are quite a bit heavier duty than drywall compound or paint buckets so it didn't deform enough to cause a fitting problem. Started by cutting down some old plastic buckets. Added a bunch of pop rivets to hold on to the concrete later. There were also pop rivets in the bottom but didn't get a pic of that. Cut some 1/2" copper pipe for the bolts to pass through. Yeah, I know... could have gotten by with just two. Ran a bead of hot glue around the bottom (not shown in pic) to hold them in place until filled with 'crete. Bent up the handle from the bucket to embed in the 'crete. Make sure they're high enough to leave some knuckle room. Had to notch out the discs and drums I embedded in the 'crete in order to clear the bolt tubes. Easiest way I found to do this was to use cutoff wheel to make radial cuts and score the 'horizontal' part and whack it with a hammer to break out the notch. Drum went in on top of a bed of concrete. Hadn't poured the 'crete in this pic, still test fitting... Disc gets embedded on top with surface flush with top edge. Here it is shown for test fit purposes. And finally, the 'almost' finished product. Still need to cut the copper tubes flush with the top surface. Use a flat washer under the bolt in order to put the pressure on the brake disc rather than the end of the copper tube. I also added some more metal scrap inside between the drum and the disc since steel/iron weighs a bit more than concrete. They came in at 40 lb each. Adequate for my needs. The only money I spent was for the bag of concrete. Everything else was 'in stock', recycled / re-used. Not bad, 40 lb wheel weights for under 10 bucks! If I did this again, the only thing I would do differently is to make them 8" tall rather than 6". I could have gotten to at least 50 lb and added more scrap iron inside. But I'm happy with how they turned out.

Here is an article from the very first issue of Lawn & Garden Collector Magazine (now known as Lawn & Garden Tractor Magazine). Hope you enjoy! Kate G.

I picked this up today from an interesting gent who is a CC and JD guy. I was pleasantly surprised at the tour of his mancave, if that’s appropriate wordage. He did have a couple of Wheel Horse dealer signs from local businesses. He won’t sell them yet. 😂 But man even though it was the wrong color for me it sure was a treat to see this collection and talk with the man who amassed it. What I want to ask from some of you who have done it is how you set yours up. Mine came with a mounting plate although I’m not sure if it’s factory. Are your set ups more a permanent set up or can you easily take the genny on and off? Any pics would be much appreciated as well. Thanks

Yep, I got another. I wasn't really planning on adding another member to the heard, but here we are. A garage kept 1995 520H with just shy of 700 hours. The deck is toast but everything else is very clean and the bagger functions just fine (anyone need one?). One of the headlights had a broken terminal on it so I soldered it back on, it worked for a few seconds and now none of the lights work yet no fuses are blown. Gotta love electrical gremlins. Other than that, everything works great and purrs happily along. I think I may replace the tires after I service it out and this will be my main mowing machine.

Strait pipes are only beneficial when running wide open throttle. Something that a small engine rarely does under normal operation. Turbulence in the exhaust pipe benefits the performance of an engine through 95% of the operating range Below is a pic of the baffle for the stack that I made for one of my tractors. . Looking down the end of the pipe shows the louvers that causes the exhaust turbulence Finished product installed. Yes it's tall, keeps the fumes out of my face.

4th option Uncle Jim… is a Cherry Bomb of course!

The heat didn't seem to bother the garden and the berry crop. The pears are also looking good. Sadly, the apple and plum blossoms didn't survive the late frost. Mrs K made one of my favorites tonight. Layers of venison burger, squash, onions, peppers, green beans, and tomatoes covered with cheese and baked 30 minutes in the Micro.

There is still another „Therapy“.... Perfectly preparation if you planed a new Garden...👍

Several things come to mind. Kinda hard to see exactly what your pointing at but the 3 that pop into my mind are: That corner of the head is at the exhaust valve and the most heat. Did you resurface the head? All of the heads I have done that area is the worst spot. Did you use new head bolts? I always do. Did you re-torque after it had warmed up and cooled down? ( Aluminum Expansion) I have seen the governor shaft leak on many Kohlers. There is no seal there. A lot of people say synthetic oil will find a leak faster than conventional oil. I have never seen it or believe it but it is something to think about. A breather assembly installed wrong can increase the internal crankcase pressure and force oil out where ever it can. Nice job on the paint!

Put on a Bllack Talon seat from Northern Tool. Model 355000BK. Fairly easy install. First adjusted tracks on new seat so they were 7.5" apart CTC to match the original flip bracket. Used 5/16" coarse thread x 2" bolts with 1" space sleeves, 1/4" flat washers and the thinner type of hex nut. Slid the tracks off the new seat and installed the bolts through from the inside of the sliding tracks ( technically downward once seat is installed) and then added the sleeve, washer and nut on the other side of the track pieces. The tracks were slid back on the seat and then these "studs" that were created this way then went through the slots in the factory flip mount. I used the set of round holes on the tracks that were 8 inches CTC.

I'm going to follow this along and see how it gets solved. The first thing that comes to my mind is a breather with the Reed installed the wrong way.

Funny store about the axle puller slide hammer. Had a few Saturn SL1 and SL2 sedans over the years - straight forward and relatively easy to work on. My 2001 had a bad rear ABS sensor when I got it. The sensor unfortunatly is part of the rear wheel bearing assembly. One Sunday I am working to remove the bearing with the puller, but it was rusted in place - it pilots into a thru bore in the knuckle. I gave it a good spraydown with penetrating oil, but it was still stuck after a few blows with the slide hammer.. My son sees me having a hard time and says "Step aside, Old Man, let me show you how it's done". I told him to watch out and not get your other hand caught behind the slide - Too Late!! - pinch point - he gave it a good wallop and got the skin between the thumb and index finger really good. He gets up and is dancing around in pain. I said "Step aside, Sonny, I'll finish up here now that you knocked it loose!!!"....Kids!!!...

So, this thing followed me home today. The count is back up to 5. I am clearly infected with the SARS-WH (Wheel Horse variant) virus. $400, runs great, deck is in great shape, tires good, seat needs some help. More on this tractor as I get a chance to check it over more...

If you get rid of them bill Murray won’t have anyone to take for a ride in his jeep gladiator

That is a very well executed Thingamabob.

This is it. Been avoiding deadly force for years but I can’t take it any more. In one particular spot under paving blocks I must have reconstructed that walk no less than 20 times over the years . They always come back to same spots and dig in the most critical areas such as next to sheds piers. I am now on a mission to wipe out every single ground hog here. Located all the holes and will plug them at night leaving just one open for the bomb and the blower nozzle.

It works on moles.

Also put on a new clevis hitch and rock shaft kit to be ready for field plowing in the fall.

Kate: Excellent article. As you are aware, the Ride-a-way Seniors were the "Belle of the Ball" at this years Show. Always good to remind folks where we were, and how we got to here over the years... Two thumbs up on Cecil signing that one - put a price on that piece of history...

Ducks Unlimited canning jar lid.

I don't think it had been repainted, just a mix of RED paint and surface rust. If allowed to age to perfection this is the color it will eventually achieve.

@jimkemp makes a great muffler, I have one on a 953 and love the mellow tone. I used a 1" X 1/2" X 1" black iron pipe "Tee" with a 1/2" pipe plug drilled out to 1/4-20 to support that muffler. Another 953 I had a Harley muffler on, it is a bit heavier and slips over a 1 1/4" pipe, very mellow and looks good. My GT-14 has a Tractor Supply IH muffler (one inch) with a rain cap on it, when you throttle down it backfires, sort of cool for an old hotrodder like me.

This is the order of assembly:

Guess I need mine painted eh? 😂

The Mrs. is quite empathetic and supportive of my (ailment, addiction, disease, etc.). She jokes that when I'm on this forum, I am mostly looking at "Tractor Porn" and not looking at other kinds, or trolling much more questionable forums for women to chat with, so at least she approves of my tractor activities to that extent. And she sees that it makes me happy, which (not in jest), she approves of. Regarding storage space - I mentioned somewhere else that I have dragged my daughter's boyfriend's project car out of the barn and made room for at least 3-4 tractors I like him a lot and am helping him with his project, but he's been in Germany for a few months and.... I need the space, sorry.

@Jeff-C175 interesting idea, local bone/ scrap yard near me always has piles of brake rotors near the front of yard. .might have to do some snoopin and planning , pete

@Cee245 agree with @ebinmaine and @Snoopy11 on the possibilities, personally super lube that governor shaft to insure its easy function. maybe its the reed tube installation , hope its easy ,BTW HORSE IS LOOKING SWEET ! , also looking at that perfect front engine shot , and fuel hose to carb straight vertical run , nice spot for a fuel check valve , evilenergy 5/16 ". when I see something I refer to it . holds fuel for faster starts , good luck with your find , pete

Not to be confused with the Do-Hickey or the seldom seen Affis-Straffis... Bill

Not the widow recently deceased but the daughter who I bought it from. I invited her and family to come that day but unfortunately they were away on vacation. I did send her that video and others. It’s always very emotional for her and she really appreciates being involved on it. They can come and visit any time they wish. They are on the next town over. As I mentioned in the original post about tractor, I got much more than a tractor.

Wow. I picked up the tool from our member yesterday and, when I got home, the bearings had arrived. Here are a couple of pictures of them together. I have a bit more work to do before I insert the bearings but I'll get images of that. I'm thinking it'll be fun to use this! The quality of the work on the tool is amazing and it is to the exact specs that the bearing maker recommends with the proper clearances for the ID's of the bearing and the bore to assure proper alignment and clearance as well as the proper angle on the pressing edge to apply the force at the outer edge of the bearing cage and not near the roller ends. A couple of extra thoughtful details are: - the threaded hole in one end and the wrench flats at the other end--these let you pull a bearing into place using a bolt and plate from the opposite side--no press needed - the two holes through the body--in conjunction with the metal rod, each one stops the tool at a correct depth into the bore that the bearings and seal require for the RM-type decks (additional holes could be made for other depths)--no measuring required - it can work for removing bearings as well as setting them, where there is a through bore, such as with the RM deck bearing housings It was made by @ri702bill and anyone should feel free to contact him directly about a purchase. (You may recall, that he's also created a hitch pin with an interior grease channel and zerk to prevent the dreaded "frozen in place" syndrome--I saw one and they are really neat!)

Still MY mirror, but I’m delivering this one…

Perfect! I hope the PO’s widow gets to see Hanna riding her new tractor too… and that she enjoys it as much as we all do too!

Take it to your local TSC and compare it to a Huskee 5/8X83

Ahhh OK.. stack you mean then. Far as those go only three types I would go with. One is one of Jim Kemps... member here & 1st & 2nd pic. His are 1 inch but you talk to him bet he could make one 3/4 thd if asked or use a reducer coupling and leave a strait pipe for a tink tink. Second is make my own. I have a bromance with @Achto that has a baffle press. Close third is a Cub stack. All over fleabay, affordable and have a nice mellow tone but need to cut off a mounting tab. Here again would need to bush down to 3/4. ... 3rd pic. The one on my avatar got round filed .... It just didn't fit the look. Store bought and a bit loud and tall. Same tractor with one of JK's and happy as a clam. 4th pic.

I set my tablet down on the sofa and went to the kitchen for a beverage. When I came back, our cat was poking her nose on the screen. She was looking for "Kitty Porn" !!! BAD KITTY!

Thanks Kate! Every time I read about or see another Lever Steer, or Ride Away Senior for that matter, it makes me grin, knowing Cecil and Elmer had their hands on ‘em and we get to care take ‘em for just a little while…

Especially so... if you plan on going the custom route.

I had a good friend back in high school whose father was kind of a character. He used to tell us... I'm never wrong. I thought I was wrong once waaaay back in 1974, but it turned out I was not wrong. I was mistaken.

VERY cool. Thanks for posting this! Love the Lever steers.

See he needs a buddy to have with him

Well I figured it was either a Thingamabob or a Whoosywhatsitt. It just had more characteristics of a Thingamabob. Not enough pieces for a Whoosywhatsitt.

Lookie what followed me home today. I hear you may have been looking for this guy?

Hey, campers need tractor tires too!

Great video and love the unicorn hood ornament. Happy Birthday Hanna!

https://www.google.com/search?q=windlace+trim&rlz=1C1CHBF_enUS731US732&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjk_uTxwKr5AhWOk4kEHdYvDdYQ_AUoAnoECAEQBA&biw=1536&bih=756&dpr=1.25

Lucky kid! Lucky Grandpa!!! (Just a suggestion. Maybe put C style floor boards on it that go up to the fenders. Protect those little feet from a foot getting caught by rear tire or an accidental roll over…)

Make the most of it, Cas. Doesn't seem that long ago I was doing the same with grandsons 2 and 3. Both are as tall as me now and we don't see them that much.

Nice find. I just brought home another 520H but the deck is past the point of saving.

S/G is mounted below the frame. You can see it right below the belt guard. You can also see the black plastic battery box behind the rear fender mounted to the rear of the trans. Not filled and not set up with fish here as they were picking it up. I left that up to her to decorate it however she liked. Acrylic tank. Had to seal the top and get creative to vent it so it wouldn't splash water out.