New 1257

[jla1257 2]

Growing up my grandfather had a big red tractor sitting in his garage whose seat was serving as a catch basin. It never ran because he always chose to cut his yard with a walking mower. Several months back I told him that if he ever wanted to get rid of it I would gladly take it off of his hands. Well, my wife and I were preparing to move from New Jersey to Mississippi and I received a phone call. Earlier that day my grandfather broke down and purchased a new Husqvarna and was calling to tell me I could pick up my tractor. I knew it was a Wheel Horse, but did not know what model it was until he handed the keys over. What he was handing over was his old 1257.

After moving I quickly found out that I now own the only Wheel Horse in the state of Mississippi (I think). My wife and I have numerous friends and co-workers and the only person who has ever heard of Wheel Horse was a co-worker of mine who formerly worked in a tractors parts store, but he only knew of Wheel Horse tillers. I have come to learn that Johnny Reb only knows one thing, the bigger the better. Most of the guys I work with never knew that a small garden tractor was anything more than a riding lawn mower. When I showed them the list of garden implements that could be handled with my lowly Wheel Horse 1257 they were floored. For now I will use it to cut the lawn but I hope to do a full restoration on it and start showing it at local tractor shows, possible with a 12

[bell 11]

AWESOME!!! There's nothing better than a tractor passed down by grandpa or dad...

:thumbs:

[cwilson 0]

From what I have found, the northern states had much more access to the Wheel Horse brand than those of us down here in the South. I assume that is due to where they were manufactured, but mainly because their snow handling capabilities. I have found only 1 former Wheel Horse dealer in South Carolina and recently I found out that mine came from Nags Head NC and that owner was a retiree from out of state. Honestly I have seen only 1 other WH in SC in the past year and that was another retiree from PA. His 1964 1054 is on ebay right now....They're out there. But they're hidden.

[bitten 134]

Hello and

Great story

[Suburban 550 28]

:thumbs: Great story and good luck with your tractor. :notworthy:

[Indy w h 5]

Hey, I love WH stories

[rickv1957 72]

hello the 1257 is great tractor,you will be hooked,Rick

[jla1257 2]

rickv1957,

Out of curiosity you said that the 1257 was a

[whfan74 2,066]

Congratulations Jeff and

Like the others have stated you will now be hooked like the rest of us. Show it proudly down south and you might find out where others might be located near you. They are sure good conversation starters!

[rickv1957 72]

Jeff,the model 1257 was produced only in 1967 along with a 1277 automatic,the 12hp models were largest models made in 1967,still going 42 years later,that is what make them great!,Rick

[MRM 4]

:notworthy:

[Buzz 502]

:notworthy: Before you made your move south, where in NJ did you live? Enjoy your snow free winter. :thumbs:

[jla1257 2]

I grew up in Bridgewater (Somerset County), when I got married my wife and I bought a house and moved to High Bridge (Hunterdon County). I am not sure how I feel about the snow, but what I miss so far is the fall. Most of the trees are still green down here. Some have started to change, but they turned brown and there is no autumn smell in the air. To be honest the only thing I think I will truly miss is the autumn.