New whipper-snapper to the forum.

[BrianK 58]

Gentlemen,

 

Just stopping by for an introduction and maybe a short story...my name is Brian, married and father to 1 son a mere 18 months old. I'm a 33yo mechanic/electrician and a part time police officer of the small town I reside on the far western, corn-fielded suburbs of Chicago. (unfortunately, haha) 

 

Just got into tractors this year but I tend to go full throttle sometimes with newfound hobbies. Got a buddy who has owned a Gravely 430 restored, 2 123 Cubs and now a 125 hes almost done with but has been using. His neighbor has 3 or 4? Pre 70 wheel horses restored so that has helped propel me to my current situation. I bought a simplicity tractor from the 80's with a single stage blower for my fairly good size drive this year. Its too small and I want a 2 stage.   With lots of research I narrowed down a few models from 3 brands Cub, Gravely, and Wheel Horse. Here I am, I'm a proud owner of a (not sure of the year, was told 73 but im thinking 76) C-160. I bought a package from a gentleman somewhat close to me and all of the stuff I got is in darn good shape, but I did buy the tractor with some trans issues that ill save for another thread.  I already love that horse and ive only had it for a few days. This web site is great, ive only been lurking for a couple weeks but I have learned so much already. Of all the 20+ forums ive joined over the years I can honestly say this one retains the most class. So many google searches have brought me here and ive yet to see any immature nonsensical ramblings or bickering among this group, already feels like home. My goal is to get this tractor in 100% working condition, whether with the trans in it or with a donor trans, work it, restore it and pass it to my son 30-40 years from now. Much to learn, I have, but im willing and eager...its good to be here. 

[benji756 341]

 to

[BrianK 58]

Thank you, sir!

[AMC RULES 37,133]

 

[SylvanLakeWH 25,617]

 

And you are correct - the people on this site are knowledgeable, polite and willing to share / help at the drop of a hat.

 

And they are gonna want pictures!

Edited December 11, 2016 by SylvanLakeWH

[BrianK 58]

Haha I see they're already calling for them!  We're getting dumped on but ya know...you guys probably deserve em...brb, unless I get stuck walking to the garage. 

[Walt 339]

 

[BrianK 58]

Here she is in pieces. 175 original hours before the PO lost movement and lift while tilling.  Tiller, original snow cab, blower/vac deck and monstrosity of a snow blower. Oh and an extra set of original wheels and (I think) painted original weights. 🤘🏻

Edited December 11, 2016 by BrianK

[AMC RULES 37,133]

Quite the  haul you got there.  

[BrianK 58]

Indeed, blessed to be in the right place at the right time.

[oliver2-44 9,787]

Nice haul & welcome

C-160's are great tractors, they will do everything imaginable.

Good luck with the transmission.  As you;ve already probable read, a transmission oil change with the correct filter is a good place to start.  

When you change the oil  jack the front of the tractor up to drain it well.  

Also remember what seems like transmission problems could be a loose wheel hub , a weak belt idler spring, or even a loose drive pulley.

[Ed Kennell 38,326]

                                                                                              

                                                                     to the  

[BrianK 58]

Thank you, Oliver. I will admit getting pile of parts and an unknown trans issue is a little scary. I did read filters can cause issues if not designed for hydraulics. Thank you for the tips and places to look for the little things, every single one of those helps tremendously.

 Ed!

[jackhammer 546]

Welcome  BrianK and your 18 month old son,   Let us know your progress with your 2 horses

 

Edited December 11, 2016 by jackhammer

[953 nut 55,392]

10 hours ago, BrianK said:

I can honestly say this one retains the most class.

   We have a great group of folks here and our Moderators keep us in line.     

[JC 1965 1,530]

Hello Brian and             The C 160 is my favorite model  . I don't have one but still my favorite. Looks like you got some nice equipment there. Some TLC and you'll be is business. Those old tractors are really tough. I hope you can get your trans problem fixed without having to swap it out. There are several trans repair videos on here but like someone stated earlier it might be something pretty simple. I sure hope so.  

[rjg854 11,392]

 a c160 or 120 are on my wishlist

[Sparky-(Admin) 21,352]

 

 Looks like you scored a machine ready for all four seasons! Well done 👍 .

  Post up the specifics on the tranny issue in the Transmission section and these guys will be all over it with suggestions and great help! If you do end up needing to replace it scroll right down to our classifieds where we have a list of vendors with all sorts of WH stuff for sale including Sundstrand Hydro's.

  Good luck with your new addiction hobby  .

  Mike......

[WHX?? 48,851]

Brian .....Los of horse experts here and darn good people who are ALWAYS willing to help when yor horse gets sick!

[KC9KAS 4,741]

@BrianK 

The C-160 is a nice choice!

[clueless 3,006]

175 hr, no lift, no movement,sounds like a pump problem, trans is probable fine, nice find. 

[BrianK 58]

4 hours ago, JC 1965 said:

Hello Brian and             The C 160 is my favorite model  . I don't have one but still my favorite. Looks like you got some nice equipment there. Some TLC and you'll be is business. Those old tractors are really tough. I hope you can get your trans problem fixed without having to swap it out. There are several trans repair videos on here but like someone stated earlier it might be something pretty simple. I sure hope so.  

 

Thanks! It sure is nice. A lot of the reason I went with that model was, I really didn't read anything negative about them other than people preferring manual over auto, and I cant say that as a negative just personal preference. A lot of threads on here listed the C-120/160, the 312-8's and the 520's as the cream of the crop. Of course that's all subjective but I don't have much to go on for experience so I went with the law of averages and the majority. It was interesting to see people on here recommending the C series and 3 series and admit in the same post that they didnt even own one...thats honesty if I ever saw it. I still might end up with an 8 speed in the 3 series but the C series won in the looks department for me. Plus I was having a hard time finding a 312-8 that didn't have TORO plastered on the side. I've owned Toro products, and while I know Wheel Horse still made their products, just under the Toro name for quite some time, I just wanted an original for my first...and I wanted something a bit older than I am, similar to what my grandfather used in design. I'm an old soul I guess. 

 

I too hope its simple. I troubleshoot mechanical, electrical, and to a lesser degree, hydraulics on a daily basis at my full time job so I think I have some good fundamentals down but ill be the first to admit, hydros I do not know. From what I can tell they're a different animal but im excited to learn, I love it. I will be all over the repair videos on this forum, that's for certain.

 

3 hours ago, Ranger13148 said:

 a c160 or 120 are on my wishlist

I'd tell you that you oughta get one but you already know that!   Too bad you aren't closer to me, I called a guy in Rockford the other day who has a 160 and a 120 that need some tlc but both run and drive and he only wants 600 obo. For BOTH. The 160 would already be in my garage for parts but he didnt want to separate. Ill keep calling him and wearing him down. 

 

 

2 hours ago, Sparky said:

 

 Looks like you scored a machine ready for all four seasons! Well done 👍 .

  Post up the specifics on the tranny issue in the Transmission section and these guys will be all over it with suggestions and great help! If you do end up needing to replace it scroll right down to our classifieds where we have a list of vendors with all sorts of WH stuff for sale including Sundstrand Hydro's.

  Good luck with your new addiction hobby  .

  Mike......

Thanks Sparky!  I will head over to the trans section and start a thread. I will probably just have to start a thread with some preliminary info and then have to revive the thread as I get work done. I'm not sure if it would be better to put it all back together and start troubleshooting from there or to start with it in pieces. My work experience is telling me to put it all back together so I can start with the simple stuff first. It's more work but I know Ill learn more and I could probably avoid more work and money out of the pocket down the road. 

 

 

2 hours ago, WHX9 said:

Brian .....Los of horse experts here and darn good people who are ALWAYS willing to help when yor horse gets sick!

Thanks!  It's always good to know you have people to turn to. It alleviates any potential for buyers remorse or that feeling of helplessness you get when you have no clue what to do.  Piece of mind is priceless. 

 

 

1 hour ago, KC9KAS said:

@BrianK 

The C-160 is a nice choice!

Thank you KC!  I sure hope I feel the same way if I have to tear into her rear end! 

 

 

46 minutes ago, clueless said:

175 hr, no lift, no movement,sounds like a pump problem, trans is probable fine, nice find. 

Thanks for the tip! Yea I didn't get a ton of info on the issue but the PO said he replaced the pump and the issue remained. While the PO did admit he was in over his head, the short time I spent with him gave a lasting impression that he was quite intelligent. If its one thing I learned troubleshooting over the last decade its to never trust the work the guy did before you as a rule, even if you do.  Not as a slight in any way to the other person, but you just never know. We're all guilty of overlooking, especially when frustrated. When I hand off a problem at work, I tell the guy to start like I didn't even work on it, who knows what I missed.   

[WVHillbilly520H 10,373]

This is what it'll look like with that "lil" blower attached, was working on getting this 1 but a day late and $ short,Jeff.

[BrianK 58]

Looks like a beast Jeff! That thing is gonna mess up some snow, I can't wait.

[T-Mo-(Moderator) 4,507]

Welcome, Brian.  I see you're in Somonauk, Illinois.  I was an Army recruiter in that area back in the 80s.  I was stationed in Dekalb and Somonauk was one of our recruiting areas.  We had Somonauk, Sandwich, Waterman, Shabbona, and other small towns to our south, and to our north, we had Malta, Sycamore, Genoa, Kingston, Kirkland.  We also had Kaneville, Maple Park, Sugar Grove, Elburn.  That is a nice area, but I bet there have been some changes in the last 30 plus years since I recruited in that area.