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Today’s letter is “E” and we will examine a company that engineered a good tractor but fell victim to economic extremes. Eagle Tractors The Eagle Mfg. Co. began as the Eagle Fork Company in 1881. The new Appleton, WI, company was headed up by Richard Miller, a blacksmith by trade, John Kanouse and William Polifka. They had 6 employees, and the product line included hay tools, horse power sweeps and saw mill frames. Horse power sweeps are used to drive machinery. A right-angle gear transforms the horse’s circular motion to a driveshaft to operate a machine connected to it. The Eagle Mfg. Co. was becoming a diversified company, manufacturing many different products. A sales catalog talked about their extensive line of equipment including: single cylinder gasoline engines, engine/saw combinations, silage cutter/blowers, horse-powered sweeps, power jacks, saw rigs, burr mills and grain grinders. Gasoline engines and tractors became the primary focus. In 1899 they produced their first stationary gas engine. They then entered the tractor market in 1906 with a two-cylinder design for a 32 hp tractor. The first model was closely followed by a range of four-cylinder tractors in 1910, producing 16-30, 25-45 and 40-60 hp. These were still relatively heavy machines, and in 1913 Eagle introduced the two-cylinder Model D series to meet farmers' demands for a lightweight tractor. In 1930 they entered production of a row crop tractor utilizing a Hercules QXB-5 6-cylinder engine, Clark 185F 4 speed transmission and a Timken-Detroit differential. The post World War One agricultural depression and the great depression of the 30's fell hard on many small companies and Eagle Mfg. was no exception. They were plagued by declining sales and high operating expenses, even though they built a good quality 6 cylinder, standard or row crop tractor. 1938 was the end of production for the company. In 1941 the company was sold to the Four Wheel Drive Auto Co. of Clintonville, Wisconsin, ending the 60 year history of operation for the Eagle Manufacturing Company.

Well we got some good ol'Oklahoma storms last night and had some high wind damage. My In-laws across the street had a good size branch come down so I got to put the 312-8 with wood chipper into service

I'm not getting involved in this "older than" conversation. I'm overqualified.

Oh yeah? Well I’m younger than @squonk’s darned socks, @elcamino/wheelhorse’s ripped underwear elastics and @stevasaurus’ blue striped shirt!

That truck sat for 12 years before PO called the junk yard to come get it. It had 17,000 miles on it. My nieces husband's family owns the junk yard. My mom paid the 350 dollar scrap fee that they paid to the PO. My nieces husband changed brakes and brake lines, fuel lines, some electrical issues were squirrels had chewed wires. Put those wheels and new tires on it. Then they surprised me with it when I was in hospitol for 4 and a half months battling cancer. Gave me something to look forward to. So to say I got it cheap is not correct. I fought hard for that thing .

From the look of the dead man type coiled lead to cut the engine this thing leaves the driver sitting in mid air as it takes off, like a wil-e-coyote cartoon. Acme rocket powered garden tractor... BEEP! BEEP!

I've got more scars then Pullstart !!

I bet my puller is older than you!

Is steering necessary ?

I saw the other day about pulling a flywheel or pulley, but I can’t find it. This is how I do it.

We cut a deal on another vehicle for our fleet today. Got a 2022 Pacifica mini van. Came out of a rental fleet. Is very clean and straight, and appears to have ALL of the options. We are going to be at least a month figuring out all of the switches, buttons, and menu levels on that cursed touch screen. Plan is to use it for car camping on longer trips, making it easier to travel with the dog.

I got shoes and boots older the pullstart.

Jumping in for the ride. Looking forward to this girl coming back to life.

Thanks to both of you…..I’ve read through both of your rebuild threads, watched your videos, and learned just enough to pretend I might know something. Wheel Horse parts and more was already on my list. I haven’t given the side plate bearings a good look yet, but at a glance, they look clean and un damaged. Either way, I will pull them and check them out individually once I get my next few minutes of free time. Of course, looking at the condition of the rest of the tranny, I should probably just toss the original bearings in the trash and pony up for the whole rebuild kit. I’m assuming Jake is Jake’s small engines? I’ve seen him have a ton of good used parts for sale over the years. I’m not familiar with Keith or Ratpack. I do see a guy currently selling reproduction axles and heat shields for RJ’s right now. Goes by the name Johnisawesome69. I think that’s my only option that makes sense for axles. New repros are about the same cost as “ok” used ones. This thing will only ever be babied after this, but I don’t want to open it again. I appreciate all the advice, please keep it up. Gonna be quiet for a few days with work and crazy kids sports schedules.

OoPEZoO when you get the list of gears you need for your redo I know two Red Square members you should check with. Jake Kuhn in South Haven , Michigan and Keith Jones in Sunbury, Ohio. Ratpack on EBay makes RJ parts ( or at least he did). For new axles, spindles, etc. i have redone four or five of these RJ transmissions with new bearings, bushings and oil seals. Wheel horse parts and more sells the RJ rebuild kit and the transmission side plate paper gaskets. i have had two of those RJ transmission cases with no date code. I like to think that those were RJ’s Mr pond gave to new dealers to sign up to be a Wheel Horse dealer .

With the front wheels in the air turning the steering wheel isn't going to do any good anyway.

like my friend's Kawasaki KZ 1000 I rode once. Grabbed a hand full of throttle and took 3 or 4 blocks to catch up to the bike before I could close the throttle..

Is the game of baseball really that old?

No I am the brother of the kid who ate dirt.

Aren't you the guy who invented dirt?

@Keaton the 58 & 59 RJ's came with a foil sticker on (I think) the left side of the dash tower. Those stickers did not last long. I think it is a conspirency to mis-represent RJ's into rare and not rare. If someone is selling an item...saying it is rare seems to mean something or more money, even though it is BS. The only true way I know is the date code on a trans that is from an original owner with paper work. In esence, the 1959 RJ is just as rare as the 1958 RJ. Think of this...a buyer (in those days) was buying an RJ garden tractor...what was the dealer actually selling him?? Same Horse, built for 2 years. I do not know what else to say here. Go get the horse...it is worth it whatever year it is. I'm 75 now and have a few parts that make me not original...I'm still a 1949 horse. My sticker is gone also. Dang, do I wish I was a 1963 Powder Blue Split Window Corvette.

Mike, if no one has bought it I will take the lighter. Never know when @stevebo may want to light one up.

A good string trimmer can have a lot of oomph, for sure! An organization I help with their mechanical equipment did manage to wreck a nice strong Stihl string trimmer--ran it on regular gas (no oil) for several hours and seized it up. New cylinder and piston are available, but with regulations to ban gas-powered trimmers and blowers on the near horizon in our area, plus thoughtless users, it’s time to go battery for them.

My butt dyno would say around 75 lbs.

I filed the new profile onto the worn gear and the seem to mate much better now. I will refit the axle tomorrow and see how it drives.

Thanks for saving this one!

@stevebo that engine was clean as a whistle inside! I removed the balance gears while it was out, and it runs great! Note to self. Balance gear removal. Much easier to drive the second pin out and remove the gear, than fish the c-clip off and try to finagle the gear out.

Somehow I don't think that was built for stopping

Excellent project !! In looking at the pictures, I would try to find the newer style mushroom gear (11/44 tooth) and the coresponding differentiial gear that goes with that. Your trans will thank you and run much better. Those parts interchange. I would also change out the spyder gears in the differential...get the ones that fit the 5025 trans. I (without looking at the above thread) think they are 11 teeth spyders. They fit fine as long as you replace all 4.

Took the 1075 out of the garage today for the first time in a while. It fired right up. This is the closet thing I have to a hot rod. Big block, short frame, stack exhaust, baby moons, custom decals, nice petina. What's not to like about it ?

Thanks....I've read that 4-5 times in the past week, plus a few others. It was great being able to tear into this thing and not being surprised by anything. That was only possible because of the people who took the time to document the work they have done on these transmissions in the past and I'm very grateful for having access to that info. All of the pics and videos posted in the past have been fantastic. I'm currently trying to collect all possible part numbers and combinations of parts that I can find that will work together, Then make a plan of action

I also saw a little damage on the spider gears. I think these are "OK", but through researching it appears I can replace all 4 with newer ones for a reasonable price. I'll probably go that route, but not sure yet The brass bushings/bearings in the side plates and center hub are all shot. The outer ones are severely scored, and the inner ones are worn all the way to the carrier Of course, the worst of the damage is on the bull gear and mushroom gear. I don't think I could bring myself to put this back in a transmission unless it was going to be stationary the rest of its life The bull gear has a bunch of weird wear on it as well. It almost looks as it was "repaired" at one time by someone who can't weld and then ground down. There is a lot porosity in the teeth, along with what looks like poor penatration and undercut. This is the only one I've ever looked at, so I have nothing to compare other than pictures. It still looks like it may be usable, but I have this idea bouncing around in my head that this "repaired" bull gear is what tore up the mushroom gear so much. Hard to say, and I will never get any proof either way. So that's where I'm at currently. Still assessing and looking at what my options are to get this transmission back together.....and that is the desired result. I think it is definitely in good enough shape and worth a rebuild, especially since its not on a timeline.

theres pictures, and the tires look good and it had decent patina, i also wanted to put 1 more thing, the discription says "Wheel horse rj. Runs and drives comes with a cultivator. Transmission does have some noise but shifts through all the gears." so may need a transmission rebuild or bearings? i am guessing that is what the noise is, that would be a fun summer project

Its gonna be a ballad.....because he's been neglected, needs quite a bit of attention, and I'm assuming its going to take me just about forever to get him rolling again. I don't know much about RJ's other than I always thought they looked great and I wanted to pick one up at some point. So this is very much a learning experience for me trying to research what is original, and what has been modified on it. That being said, I'm committed and in it for the long haul. He has been hacked up just enough that I don't feel obligated to keep him 100% original, but will do my best to keep from making any permanent modifications. A few links to get everyone up to speed. Sir Wally was dropped at Ed's house by a friendly neighbor Ed decided he had too many projects, but decided to do the hard part of disassembling him. Once again....THANK YOU Ed!!. It made picking him up easier, and also meant that I could immediately start to assess what he needed instead of getting shoved to the back of the garage waiting for a rainy weekend. Here is how he looked when I picked him up I had a little free time last week, so I decided to tear into the Briggs motor that was included. It was in rough shape, but I believe I can make it run again. I'm not sure if it will end up back on Sir Wally, but it was/is something fun to tinker with. I currently have it all torn down, case split, and trying to figure out if I want to try replacing the rings as I have no idea on the actual identification of the motor. Here is that adventure The next step I thought should be the transmission. My thought process here was that if the transmission was completely shot, I might as well cut my losses and part him out. As luck would have it, the transmission spun freely, shifted into all the gears, and didn't appear to be sloppy. I also wanted to get on it ASAP due to the big show looming and it being the best chance of sourcing transmission parts if I need them.......AND it turns out that I do. So here we go, I wanted to put it all here so I can document things as best I can. The transmission. It has no casting marks next to the shifter, so I believe that makes it an "early" 58 5003? I started off by swearing at this roll pin for the clutch/brake for about 4 hours......broke a few punches, but eventually got it out I also had to work on the rear hitch quite a bit, as it was rusted solid in place. That took some heat, AeroKroil, and patience, but I got it out. The side bolts all came out easily and all of the threaded bosses are still intact, so that's a bright spot. Popped the side cover and got met with the wonderful combo of water and milkshake I turned it over and let it drain over night to get as much gunk out as possible It was pretty nasty, but I was initially encouraged that I didn't see any obvious damage. That changed once I get things completely torn down an cleaned up You can see the axle wear/scoring in the pic above. They could possibly be flipped, drilled, and reused, but It may be a smarter decision to source replacements. There are a few chipped teeth on the axle gears you can see in the pic above as well. There are a few broken off, and a few more with cracks that look ready to break off

Ah, good one! To me, a lot depends on thickness and the precision required for position. Thin metal with no need for precise position? Any of the above Thick metal or precise positioning needed? Drill press or milling machine with the workpiece well clamped For the front pivot pin, the axle is thick but the frame flanges and attach-a-matic body are relatively thin. Alignment of the holes in these parts matters so care is needed, but the if the axle is slightly offset on the pin (up, down, sideways) it won’t make a discernible difference. I’ll throw in a caution about using bolts in place of pins. For pins, the forces and wear get distributed over a large surface. Threads are sharp and small at the edges and will themselves wear quickly while speeding wear on the opposing surface. High grade bolts (5’s and 8’s) are very hard and friction with them will nearly always be faster on the other part!

It took a little digging but I found it. It’s a 2 cylinder CB 500 on a 8 speed c-120! I can pop wheelies with a stock 16hp 8 speed, imagine the wheelies when you drop the clutch.

And... the visuals... let's not forget the visuals...

I picked up this non running string trimmer for cheap at the auction a few weeks ago. I found a broken wire that needed soldered and it had spark and ran but died when I opened the throttle. Took the little Walbro off and stripped it down and soaked it for a week. Today I put it back together with new fuel lines and filter. She runs strong and is a beast. I think I could till the garden with this thing.

Clean up the other end of those axles. Give them a little polish and they are very usable. I've flipped 3 sets.

This could be a quote from a fabricator friend. He often asks how long I’m planning to live to use whatever thing I’ve made or am repairing.

Took out my first set of balance gears yesterday. They say the second gear (closest to the piston) can be removed with the crank in the perfect position. I’m pretty good at figuring things out, but fought it long enough. I drove the pin into the case, cleaned everything up and drove it back in from the outside. Easy peasy!

I’m jealous too, and it used to be my loader!

Electric start

@PWL216 I believe I saw those that you have. Lots of good info to have. Keep them and enjoy them for years. Always handy to have info like this on hand.

I agree. The dies for the wheels on that trucks were one of my engineering projects before I retired. We drove up to our summer quarters in Michigan yesterday. Got Morgan the 14-8 out to do some cart work cleaning the winter debris out of the yard today. He was still wearing his snow blade, so I took the opportunity to push some gravel back into the street that was deposited on the lawn by the road plow last winter.

Welcome to Red Square We do not have an operator manual but start here. Your model number is Y1-16OE01 Everything we have in no particular order. https://www.wheelhorseforum.com/search/?q=Y1-16OE01&quick=1&type=downloads_file Perhaps a 1990 manual will work

Took @WheelHorse_Kid’s c-121 out in the dark last night and dragged the 14-8 up to the garage. Started working on it and determined the starter was junk. Swapped it out, cleaned the points, cleaned the giant mouse nest out of on top of the flywheel, removed the junk muffler to get to the points, cleaned the carb. Starter solenoid is junk so I bypassed it and went straight to the starter and ran a jumper wire to the coil. Took a little cranking and fiddling with the choke but got it to run for a few minutes. Need to dial it in. Shoots flames from the exhaust pipe. But at least it runs and didn’t sound to bad.

Year end price increase

I have ridden motorcycles for the past 61 years, if someone cannot ride thru or around some grass on a level straight road, they need to park it. With the retards on open pipe V-twins making an effort to annoy me while cutting my grass, they will get zero respect from me. Yes, that too has happened. If one wants to turn their back to the traffic, be my guest, Charles Darwin is waiting.