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I rebuilt the mower deck and painted it. Wasn't easy as I had to have a spindle shaft remade from scratch.

Okay here’s my take on this. I have around twenty running ready to use Wheel Horses. How I got so many, I don’t know! Each one has its own story, some of them I know the history since new and some I don’t. It kind of became an addiction, but a harmless one and one I still love. My affection for these tractors is well known in my area. So much so in fact that I have had one willed to me after the owners passing. I’ve also inherited two from my family and had three straight up given to me by older gentleman who wanted to see their tractors go to a good home and be properly cared for. So we are not the first ones to be worried about this! Of course I have purchased quite a few over the years since I first purchased my Work Horse brand new in 1984. When I bought my 420-LSE from the original owners widow, it wasn’t even really for sale but she too was concerned about the future of something her husband so cherished. This tractor and a few others I hope will someday go to a museum. I definitely wonder what will become of all these machines? I’ve given a few to my son in law, and he appreciates them but he’s not addicted like me ( or some of you reading this! ) Honestly I don’t know any local kids that have any interest in this kind of thing. I wish I did because I probably would pass some of them on to keep the hobby going. I try not to think about the day when I’ll have to part with them because like the gentleman that gave them to me I want them to go to a good home. Hopefully when the time comes I’ll know where that is! In the meantime I’m going to keep enjoying them as much as possible and I hope everyone here will do the same! 🙂

It would be easy if it isn't rusted. That'll be the kicker. Not to discourage you but please be careful and use great patience. Soaking overnight can easily turn into a week or more. Make sure you get ROLL PIN punches. Regular round punches often won't stay lined up. Also make sure to get a good set. Cheap box store tools may not be hardened enough to tackle this one. Sometimes removing the steering wheel is the most challenging thing about disassembling the whole tractor. Follow the pics by @JCM and definitely set yourself up with a board going from the steering shaft to the wall or other good strong support.

Here's mine

For those who don't know, I suffered a stroke on June first while visiting our granddaughter in Florida. I spent seven weeks in the hospital and rehabilitation before we were able to return home to North Carolina. Over the past couple weeks I have had some in-home PT and the progress has been amazing. I am able to do so many simple things we all take for granted like having a shower and caring for myself without being a burden to my wife. I can stand for brief periods without hanging onto anything. My ability to concentrate on tasks like typing this update has improved immensely, I am only taking a few medications rather than over a dozen and I know that the side effects of the meds was holding me back. I never was one to exercise for the sake of exercising but after so much time in a hospital bed I am pumping Iron (although it is only five pounds) and doing resistance exercise to regain some of what was lost. It will be some time before I can get out to the shop and do some Horsing Around but I know that it will happen. Thanks to all who have prayed for my recovery, please keep praying, God hears all of us and has been so good to me.

My dad had been "liquidating" all of his belongings over the past couple years and moved into a condo last summer. He had LOTS of stuff. Woodworker for decades, industrious and knowledgeable of most trades. He said his with snow thrower, dozer blade, deck, tiller, etc. which had been meticulously cared for sold the afternoon he listed it on Marketplace. I'm sure it did. He more or less let his tools, equipment, and those things we never want to live without go for pennies on the dollar to folks who had an appreciation for it. He passed away in April and I'm glad he let his stuff go. I know that wasn't easy for him but he rests in peace for a lot of reasons, but to some extent because he believed that he put his stuff is in the hands of folks who sought it out and will likely cherish it in their own way. I believe there will never be a shortage of enthusiasts for these machines.

MoPo eye candy.

There are very few WH tractors still in existence with the first owner. The majority have had multiple owners. My kids may have zero use for my machines, but maybe someone will find a use for them. I have no problem with that.

Takes a pretty hefty amount of force to do that. Airbags indeed?! Son and Daughter used to have a pretty sturdy lawn tractor at their camp. One day a “guest” driver caught a front wheel on a tree while going at a good clip. Tie rod and spindle both bent and the steering arm on the spindle ripped off. We got it repaired but it never worked the same after that. When the transmission started being balky I was able to convince them to invest in a Wheel Horse. Last time I was at the camp, the WH towed the “other” unit ½ mile out to the main road where we put a “Free” sign on it. It was gone in two hours!

Finally got to the 656. Got it running awesome. Cleaned it up and put a seat on him. 88 degrees can kiss my ass though! 😂

Got a chance to get him running. Old Tecumseh runs pretty damn good once it’s dialed in. Cleaned it up. Degreased the wheels. Changed the fluids. Got the hitch pin out. Put a new seat on him. Pull starts on the first pull even when cold. Starter works good. Crappy paint job the PO did. It won’t be hard to make it look better than it does now. First two pics are before I washed it up.

I don't have any pictures. but I had to remove the steering wheel on my 1267. roll pin was going no where and I have removed plenty of roll pins in my time. I ended up getting a couple of different bearing separators from Harbor Freight. One big one small. I put the small separator under the steering wheel su it would pull on the hub. Then put the large separator under the small one. I got a very large 2 jaw gear puller from work and a 24" Crescent wrench. I got the gear puller on the large separator and the center screw on the steering shaft. a small pipe on the end of the wrench and sheared the roll pin into 3 pieces and got the wheel off. Chunk of broken pin fell out of the steering shaft

The later 300, 400 and 500 series use a 1/4" punch to remove the pin. When installing the pin put a bit of never seize on it and it will come out easy next time.

Oh I definitely patted myself on the back.

Let it soak for a couple days. Use the proper size roll pin punch. here is a picture of what you need.

If the wheel isn’t spinning on the shaft, the pin is in there. From your picture, it doesn’t look like it was all the way centered. A roll pin (or Spirol pin) isn’t like a bolt. It expands outward to press against the sides of the hole nearly all the way around and for its entire length. That is why when they rust in they can be extremely hard to remove. Better for you, then, if the other side isn’t protruding so you’ll be able to get the correct size roll pin punch to seat right on the pin with the hole in the steering wheel shell to help guide it. Too small a punch will mess up the pin or break. Too large will jam in the hole. You NEED the right tool to be sure to do this right. Friendly warning--haste in this matter will frustrate you. This is where patience pays.

After the passing of my grandparents, wife's grandparents and few other relatives I learned the following and hope you guys see the point of these because I now have different thoughts on material possessions. Don't put guilt on your kids or grandkids expecting them to open a museum in your name to keep your "stuff" and maintain your possessions. I got stuck with 3's and 4's if not more of tools, tractors, equipment, house hold items etc... Relatives excepted us take things because they used to belong to so and so. Yes I kept things that meant something to me or I had a use for. Do your future heirs a favor if they don't want it, accept it and sell to someone who wants it and appreciate it's more.

With that attitude, you have allready won the battle Dick.

Hi everyone. I'm new obviously. I bought a 1974 c-100 last year. I had an older wheel horse that my dad bought when I was in high school and I missed it. Looking forward to the conversations.

I like putting those on the FEL machines. I use trailer grade tires too.

The K341 is possibly THE best engine out there (course I'm a bit partial) Its got the power, durability, easy work on, still lots of parts....... They are just great engines!!

Yep and they work well at a good price. You can see from the pic how tough those standard ends hold up. Maximum abuse for sure. The updated hem joints do reduce drag and will ease steering especially some of those newer ones with internal bushings. Though the years I have found out when beefing up one area it transfers a problem to another. Sometimes harder and more expensive to repair.

If things look good with compression next would be a good carb cleaning.

It appears that a bit of the steering shaft is exposed just below the wheel where he could back it up with steel. A heavy steel weight against the side opposite the hammering will do much for the pin movement. A weight could be made up from a piece of angle iron clamped or welded to whatever scrap you might have. Backing up the soft wheel with a piece of softwood wrapped with a soft towel will have only a small effect, of course if there is no option it is better than nothing.

42" SD

as you can tell, we’re not very friendly here!

It is likely that you’ve mushroomed the end of the roll pin using the flat-ended punch. Now it’ll be that much harder to move it and probably easier from the other side. You can be lucky, like @Evguy, but most of the time there is no shortcut. @JCM’s way is THE way--this is the way that worked for me after a week of letting it soak with penetrant. At least one other member has simply cut the steering shaft, dealt with the wheel on a press, and then welded the shaft back together. As I noted earlier, take some minutes to search the site and read others’ approaches and experiences. There are around 15 years of useful knowledge posted here by folks who know their stuff.

Heims joints is the only way to go if you plan to keep the tractor. Your not saving anything by going cheap, I'm still running the heims joints I put on the C-120 in 1989 and they are still tight.

Brace makes quite a difference. Different tractor, same procedure.

The Kohler Courage line was a huge failure for Kohler…so much that they changed the lines names to “hide” the fact that you were still buying a Courage. The Kohler K series and Magnum series (not sure what you’re looking at) are in no way on the same low level as the Courage motors. And if you buy this tractor you’re talking about we are here to assist you should a hiccup happen.

I was lucky. My Grandfather was a carpenter/mason. I didn't learn any of those skills. But it taught me a work ethic and appreciation of tools. When I was 4 my Dad bought a brand new 604. I started to work on it at a young age (Tecky powered) Again I was lucky that less than a quarter of a mile away was a small engine shop run by an old man much like my Grandfather. He taught me how to work on mowers and engines. I'm sure my tools of 50+ years will be sold off . I hope I reach an age where I realize I can't use them anymore and can liquidate them so my wife isn't burdened with that task

Look like decent stock replacement types. I've switched over to using McMaster Carr HEIM JOINTS on ALL our builds now. Extra heavy duty.

I really don't have a collection, more like a bunch of stuff. Daughter ask a while back what are you going to do with all that "stuff"? The kids got their machines and more so they won't need it so......I can be a final PIA and they can sort it out. Not much on material things but have a lot of memories going out an getting the machines (aka stuff) and meeting people. Every tractor has a story.

Too much Kissing. I'm going home.

You get her a few. My Trina has 5 that are HERS. She..... isn't exactly like most other female woman people though. 🥰

Thanks. When I got it. It had a hole by the deck height lever. I had to weld a patch. Redrill mounting holes, jb weld and bondo the outside of it where it was uneven. It's not perfect, but it is way better. The spindles were really wobbly. Took all 3 apart. One shaft was so worn down that someone tried using jb weld to fix it. I had my dad make a new shaft on his lathe but his lathe isn't true, so then I had my machinist friend take it to work to make it true. Bought new bearings. I try to keep things as original as possible. Replaced some bolts, used some of the original bolts. New deck wheels. Spray cans for the paint. No clear coat because I plan to restore the rest of the tractor as some point and I will repaint the deck again so the color matches. I am currently using it to cut my yard and I love it. My wife thinks I'm a dork hahaha, but I love these tractors as well as others.

And that is why I went away from using 1/2" round stock and now use 5/8" mild hex stock. Three beffits - stronger to resist tweaking like the picture. Hex shape makes it MUCH easier to die cut the male threads. The hex flat gives a built in spot for an open end wrench to hold the tierod and tighten the joint and jamnut......

I'm willing to try pretty much anything, it's in rusted in there pretty good.

Another way to do this is to get a c-clamp and notch the foot portion and weld a portion of a punch to the screw on the c-clamp. This would press the roll pin out.

It's a survivor. I did repair and repaint the deck. It was missing the belt cover. I am still looking for the chute extension for it. I would like to tear her down and clean and repaint and rebuild. Not sure when I will be able to start that project. I dont have a garage, I'm working outta my basement.

first off, Put the juice down and let’s do some troubleshooting! Starting fluid is terrible on these little engines, and shouldn’t be used if at all possible. Second, I’d suggest pull the plug and stick your thumb over the hole. When you roll it over, does it pop your thumb off or is it free spinning?

@peter lena Yep, been using a face shield forever.

I have both a 70's C-160 and a newer 416-8 both with the K 341 and have nothing but the utmost respect for those beasts. I specifically wanted the 416 with the single Kohler, not the Onan, and mine does not have all the idiot lights. I'm a KISS guy and the K-341 does NOT disappoint.

Thank you all for the warm welcome! I'm looking forward to getting to know the 312 and participate in the forum. #ebinmaine I've been on enough forums, motorcycle and Jeep, to know enough not to be "that guy".

Another positive vote for the Kohler single K341.

those and some high grade 7/16 threaded rod work pretty good.

I own this seat: https://www.farmandfleet.com/products/334639-concentric-international-deluxe-high-back-seat.html It’s the coolest seat ever! Doesn’t have that plastic molding that holds the seat cover on (and always comes off). The bolt pattern works for my WH . Even the backside is padded

Call me an optimist- but I think "kids" reach an age where what didn't matter yesterday begins to do just that. At least this is how it happened with me. I thought old stuff was neat when I was 20, but had no real interest until my grandfather passed. Then suddenly all the old stuff that he constantly spoke of as "don't make 'em like that anymore" reminded me of all the memories of him. He never owned a Wheel Horse, but he always worked on stuff and built stuff. Even today when I get greasy or covered in red paint, it makes me smile remembering him. So I don't enjoy this hobby only because of him, but he influenced me greatly. I believe that some kids today will gain interest in the future. And the collectors of the past are why we still have so many of these tractors today as well. Of course the build quality contributed too...

Well I am back from the retina specialist. A U-shaped tear at the 7 o'clock position. I was first treated with a laser. 185 total pulses. All were extremely bright, but 3 out of 10 were painful. After that, he was not finished. Off to the cryotherapy room where I got the lidocaine needle in the eye, then 10 hits with the freeze probe. That's a total of 10 brain freezes. When he finally said "we're all done", I could have cried, which I think I actually did while he was probing. But after a couple of hours, I was okay. My eye feels bruised, but my sight has not been affected So my advice to anyone over 60. Get an opthomolic eye exam once a year. Have them specifically look for tears in the retina. It happens with age as the fluid in your eye starts to decrease. If not treated, a tear turns into a detachment which can lead to blindness.