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Lesser-known tractor brands, good tractors with a short lifespan. Innovative engineering and a strong intrapleural drive resulted in some great tractors and agricultural equipment, Strong market competition, economic conditions and corporate buy-outs left some brands as a footnote in history. Here are a few you may have heard about but have faded away. Somehow this seemed like an appropriate day to post this. Ground Hog Tractors of Tacoma, Washington For a brief period of time, during the halcyon days immediately after WWII, numerous small companies focused on the design and construction of small tractors suitable for a five-acre farm. One of these manufacturers, Olympic Machine and Welding Works, began assembly of the ‘Ground Hog’ in September 1945, to capture their share of the Puyallup River Valley farm market. Located at 1856 E. 28th Street in Tacoma, Olympic Machine and Welding Works was led by owner R.W. Thomas, key staff members John Proehnke, blacksmith; and Kenneth Graham, welder, and up to eight sales people traveling the Northwest circuit, Utah, California, and British Columbia. This small shop had turned out 634 tractors between Sept. 1945 and October 1947. There were two models of the Ground Hog: the smaller one was powered by a 6 HP Wisconsin air-cooled engine while the larger one was driven by a 10 HP Onan motor. A news article noted that a diesel version could be special ordered, as a full day’s work would cost about 10 cents in diesel fuel. Tractor features included: high clearance, chain drive in an oil bath, low driving wheels, and extreme maneuverability. Proehnke, a German-born blacksmith, was responsible for the creation of all the smaller fittings. Source: Tacoma Sunday Ledger-News Tribune, October 19, 1947

Good cloud cover this AM in PeeAaaa. No shadow to scare Phil back to his burrow for six weeks. An early spring is coming.

I could have dropped this in with the post that I have on my pulling tractor but I thought that it may be more useful here. I used a piece of unpolished stainless to make a new dash for my tractor. Well the unpolished was just not to my liking so I wanted to clean it up. I will add that polishing stainless is nothing like polishing aluminum. It takes a lot longer. A pic of the back of my new dash so you can see what I had to start with. I worked on this dash a little each night after work. Day 1 - I started by working it over with a black rouge and a buffing wheel on a drill. This took most of the dull off from the metal. Day 2 - I switched to a gray rouge and a new buffing wheel. This started to bring out a better shine from the metal. Sorry no pic. Day 3 - Start with a new buffing wheel again but switched to a green rouge. Now the dash really pops. After roughly 5hrs of buffing I'm quite happy with the results. Other than the deep scuff that I put in it with a slip of the grinder when I was making it. But I'll live with that. Materials used. https://www.harborfreight.com/4-inch-buffing-wheel-34743.html https://www.harborfreight.com/1-4-quarter-lb-black-polish-compound-96779.html https://www.harborfreight.com/1-4-quarter-lb-dark-grey-polish-compound-96769.html https://www.harborfreight.com/1-4-quarter-lb-green-polish-compound-96778.html Hope this post is of use.

Punxsutawney Phil's accuracy rate over the time period was 36%. Overall, the Stormfax Almanac says, Phil has only been right 39% of the time going back to his first recorded prediction in 1887. The only saving grace for Phil is that he is more accurate than our local weatherman.

We got this tractor back in the fall of 2018 thanks to our friends @buckrancherBrian and his wife Jo. Of course being a mid 60s square hood short frame it was destined for BBT/ Trina. Brian had already rebuilt the carb and fuel pump. Trina and I did a few other things back then too. Wiring. General cleanup. New transmission seals. HD rear hubs. Cleaner gas tank. Etc..... After running it nearly problem free for 5 years we pulled Pigpen aside for some much needed maintenance. Here's a few pics to start....

At the M & G here in Maine in 2022 my daughter came to visit so I surprised her with a ride in the 86 Chevy K-20 something she hadn't been in for many years. She has a liking for Owls so I headed to a few back roads from the house and when she spotted this she was thrilled. It amazes me how much talent some people have to create something this magnificent. This stands all of 8' tall , stump included, would be a fair guess. Enjoy

Ground Hog Day is fun, regardless of the accuracy. The Milwaukee Groundhog bit the mayor one year. Loved it.

my first WH was a 312-8 I bought new in 1989 when we had few $ -- it was the first significant expense our young family spent $ on -- We still have and use the 312 tractor and is still my "favorite" if perhaps mostly for nostalgia reasons --------- so a couple years go I wanted to be sure the mower deck was going to be a long term item - - for me and down through my children and grandkids -- So I went the extra $$ and took it to the pros and had it sand blasted and painted "properly" at an Auto Body shop - happy I did and not something I would spend $ on for just any tractor -- but with continued care this 37 s.d. will last another 30 plus years - mowing grass and collecting leaves with its bagger

I thought Phil would have been a lot more gray for the amount of years he's been doing this .

Now let’s eat! Phil get back here!

I am Russ's 70 year old nephew-in-law who is devastated by this loss. I live only a mile or two away and spent many hours learning from Russ about all things Wheel Horse, not to mention automobiles, motorcycles, boating, and more. The most knowledgeable and helpful person I've ever known. RIP Salty!

Phil has a line of deserts to go with that entree.

Anyone/anything even my weather rock is more accurate than the TV meteorologists.

Tookie Tookie birds were singing Wed. morning. Blue Jays pitchin a fit yesterday morning. Bella my coonhound rousted a cat out of my wife's garden yesterday afternoon. It's raining all the time. Feels like spring is already here!

Pretty sweet GT14 loader I grabbed.

Going to MN tomorrow to pick up a free C-145. and go see @Shynon. I bought a nice orginal 867 from him a few years ago and trading him for a HF tool chest. I just don't use it enough. He is going to put a deck on it and a daily mower. Went to load and going up the ramp snubbed her out. Went to restart and let some smoke out from behind the dash. Ignition switch switch fried. Coulda swore I had one on the shelf! Guess I didn't @Mike'sHorseBarn Call to Mr Brown in order.

He is probably using "just for groundhogs"! A couple years ago the weather guys put out this alert of a mega snow fall coming overnight. Big accumulations predicted of show stopping proportions. Got up the next day and there was nothing. Nada Nothing not even a dusting. Turned on the news and checked the weather and they said there was the phenomenon of a thing called a dry pocket that moved into a three county area causing all the snow to dry up before it hit the ground. WTH..... dry pocket, they explained how it did snow but was not on the ground.

We spend literally millions on weather forecasting over here. Some of the most powerful computers on earth crunch numbers to try and predict what nature will do. My verdict, its modern day snake oil.... Every forecast I see changes minute by minute. That's not forecasting, its just reacting. So many forecasts say it might rain, but you could stay dry, it just depends. I can do that just looking out the window. Formula 1 teams spend fortunes on weather radar and forecasters. But what is the only thing that works? Guys stationed around the race circuit sticking their paw out and calling up to say "it's raining" I get the science behind weather recording but I cannot subscribe to the belief that any accurate predictions are possible. But an industry has built up around it and we're stuck with it. I'd rather ask your groundhog or just poke my head out the window.

A little elbow grease and she could shine a bit! Mine:

Mighta figured you to throw Phil in the crock pot. 'Chuck shanks anyone?

Not a new world record yet but the words amp and volt haven't been used for over a dozen responses to this post. If we try real hard may be able to establish a new record for the most replies to a single post. Come-on, we can do it, I know we can!

Would just end up a pile of sawdust at my feet if I attempted anything like that

I'm actually going to find one of those add on gas tank kits for a 500 and rig it up to a Commando and head that way starting on the 14th... should be there by noon on 20th doing 60 miles a day!! Can't wait for the show and I'm praying for 75--80 and clear skies Tony

867 resto project is coming along great! I don’t usually like restorations (I much prefer patina tractors) but I’m having a lot of fun with this one.

This is the To-do list as of 1-31-24: Clean and vacuum front to rear. check valve clearance. Rebuild carb. Check/ clean fuel pump Replace pump to carb fuel line. Remove/clean breather. Change engine seals/ gaskets as needed. Install new fuel line and filter TIGHTEN Starter Generator belt. Diagnose engine oil leak Change engine oil Change transmission fluid Check all 4 transmission seals: Wheel seals OK, brake shaft seal leaks. Install new rear tube Install new front tires and tubes Fluid fill four tires Check transmission F plate. It IS CRACKED. Build and install F plate brackets. DONE: Check base of steering tower for cracks. LOOKS OKAY. Add 2 front and 3 or 4 rear lights. Add frame hole side lights. Fasten and secure wiring harness. Add second weight, front or under by mid hitch. Bolt something to rear hitch for more weight.

There was a Toro Z locally on marketplace, paint on the tires, decals, belts, pulleys, seat, handles...and a big red glow to all the ground around it. The audacity to say in the ad "recent pro paint job".

Nice to see another color Blind Person when it come to Garden tractors

Sunny & in the 40's today, brought one of the C-81's into the shop, she fired right up, gotta love that REC fuel. This one will be going to my son's new house this spring, she'll have new gear & engine oil, get greased up, sharp blades & a new mule knob.

Pull the cores out of the tires it'll fit... Actually shouldn't laugh @Achto and I had to do just that to @dclarke s 520 when we picked it up. Cleared the enclosed spring trim by 1/4"!

Well ... ladeda... I know a guy who can make a RJ out of toothpicks!

When I had one, it just fit under my 6' overhead door. I had the cab on a C 160.

And no Band-aids - unlike others.......

867s were somewhat few and far between 10-15 years ago. Now they seem to be more common. Even so, still a personal favorite of mine. I can't wait to see what you guys come up with!

I've used the @buckrancher diaphragms before and usually keep a few on the shelf. In fact I used one this week on my 854 pump and now I only have one left so it may soon be time for another order lol As far as using a lever style pump I believe the cams have the lobe no matter if your engine has a vacuum pump or not. I only know that because I tried it on an 855 and I found one that worked. You have to use a pump with the offset lever.

Jimmy the groundhog same thing. Very overcast. Sun Prarie @Red-Bovine They claim Jimmy has 80% accuracy.

Before I retired, I took care of 13 ice machines in the hospital. PM's every 3 month's. Complete tear downs and cleaning. When ever I showed up at a machine I was put off by the way the stainless looked. The cleaning staff had stainless polish and it pretty much left a mess. Looked like crap. So I experimented. I had an old parts unit and I tried different cleaners on it and they all looked lousy. Finally I wiped ice machine cleaner along the grain of the metal. Even though the label said " DO NOT USE ON STAINLESS STEEL" looked fantastic.

The Demystification Guide can be a big help, here it the simplified diagram of your starting circuit: As you can see the three safety switches need to pass current. I would start by checking for 12 volts at the light blue wire on the PTO switch while sitting on the seat and trying the ignition switch. Work up or downstream depending on the results of the test.

Oh come on sally it's not that bad... Is this the famed Tractor?

Or the classic “Let me hit this with the garden hose so it looks shiny!”

I agree with everything said…I’ll add… I spray bombed my 1994 520H and my 1984 Work Horse GT-1600… I put a little effort into them. Are they perfect ? No Could I have done better ? Maybe Was I excessively lazy ? No Am I happy with the results ? Yes And I do appreciate a quality spray gun paint job…

The gear is part of the input shaft. Get a bearing and gasket set from Wheelhorsepartsandmore. If you need gears, A-Z tractor is a good source.

Thanks Mikey ... the gorilla tape don't count as we is figuring you is gonna have some on you when you get that old... Well that just shoots my research on the correct seat for any '67 - 6/8 speed down. Three different 867s three different... maybe more ... orginal seats found. I give up I'm going bald... Mine is the same but does not have the . Got any extra tape ? Tom is gonna need some!

I took my spare plow/tiller mount and welded the broken bar, cleaned it up, put some thin rubber pads on the axle mounts so i don't mar the paint during fitting. It went on fine. I had an aluminum bar thats too small but perfect for proof of concept. This will work for lower pivots. Now i need to get some plate for the top section and some bar, longer bolts for the underseat upper support. Then ill bring down a kicker to the axle brackets from the plate for lower supports, welding that in, the 3pt arms can be removed by unpinning the rod underneath, and unpinninf the lift arms. The whole assembly could be removed by unbolting the seat mount and dropping the axle brackets. Once i get the 5/8" bar/rod ill weld washers to locate it in the axle brackets so id only need to drill the ends for a pin.

EB's fault he ALWAYS goes off topic ... yah that's it... EB's fault... OK so back on. I have two of these now and love them. Not exactly orginal but both on customs. Seem to be fairly accurate and holding up well. On a 602 ... a 502 with a H60 repo...the Tecky two diode charging system will run battery voltage up to 16 volts and this gauge monitors it nicely. Just flip on the bug eyes when it does and voltage drops down to 13 volts. Had to relocate the bug eye switch.

Beautiful. Where do you find these deals?

Shoulda brought it over I have a buff on a bench grinder with a stainless wheel. Did a bike build with polished SS hardware... never again!

My favorite "good grief" spray bomb is when you see the tractor or implement listed and the picture shows it sitting there with not only the over spray on tires, etc but lots of over spray on the ground all around the item....just painted and ran the ad...

People like that have had nothing to cherish in their life......

Making some progress on the trail tractor.