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When I was a kid back in the mid/late 60's my brother and I mowed a few local cemeteries and Dad bought this 14" push mower that we used to trim around head stones. I ended up with it when Dad passed and used it to trim my yard once in a while until the engine gave up, it's been just sitting in the shed for the last few decades. Now that I'm retired I'm back to mowing one of those cemeterys so I decided to fix this old friend up and use it again, mowing the same grass I mowed with it almost 50 years ago. A new engine, a set of wheels and a little paint and it's good to go.

Put a foot feed on the 520 hydro and use it as a worker....you'll luv it. Switch a couple pulleys on one of those gear drive tractors if you wanna go fast.

On the second weekend in a row I went to Iowa to pick up some NOS implements. I woke up in the morning on Saturday and saw a post for NOS implements. My son had two varsity high school baseball games on Saturday so I was a little bummed I couldn't leave right away. I told myself I would call them on my way home from the games but figured they would be long gone....NOPE. I got home and left immediately for the 3.5 hour drive. Included are 2 NOS 37" side discharge decks, 1 NOS 48" dozer blade, 1 NOS cultivator set, and 1 NOS row planter. Never been assembled....this stuff is awesome!!!! I'll probably sell at least one of the decks, but will probably keep the other stuff unless I get an offer I couldn't refuse. The stuff is super dusty but wipes off easily.

Been working on it again. Will be finished by end of summer. Progress may be slow with my 3 week old daughter. And mainly all NOS sheet metal

jellyghost, Once in a while I trim around the house with this one, it gives the neighbors something to talk about. lol

Made 2 trips to Iowa on two consecutive weekends. First trip I bought 6 tractors... Qty (2) 654's 312-8 Commando 8 1267 C-81 8 speed I couldn't get the C-81 loaded so I'll have to go back and pick it up later. Can you tell me a little about the 654, Commando 8, and the 1267 like how rare or desirable are they, what (if any) other machines do they share parts with.

Hope to be bringing my '57 RJ35, a '56 RJ35 that I'll be picking up shortly, my early '58 RJ, my 1964 854, and another '56 that I'll be picking up down at the show!

Here's the Carlisle Tru-power 23x10.50-12s on a 520H and that is the factory stock size, I'm sure the Firestone aren't much different, Jeff.

I purchased a 416-8 last year. Seller said it runs. I got him down to $225. It did run .... on one cylinder! I sold enough engine parts to pay for the tractor and kept the rear ag tires, new front tires and actually the whole tractor for parts. Total $0 . So I suggest if it runs make sure it is on 2 cylinders!

Better get those goggles out...

The black one is a crash helmet. The OD one is Airborn Army parachute. Either one will rearrange your doo. I may also install a pilot ejector which may give you a spikey.

Website devoted to them: http://www.sensation-mowers.com/ Cementary mower: http://www.sensation-mowers.com/node/14

LOL !! I can picture a nicely edged drag with inward angled end blades to smear out a seal coat on a drive -- pour the stuff out , back the horse up to the puddle and drive forward...a few passes and you'd be done . Gives yet another reason to add another Horse...or get a divorce . Sarge

After thinking about it for awhile, I am going to jump in here again - if you are wanting a tractor like this, then look elsewhere - there are 416H WH tractors in far better shape ( this one looks like it was ridden hard and put away wet) for a few hundred more -don't saddle yourself with a headache..get what you want..( just an old man giving out "oldman advice")

As long as we are confessing......When our 312s won't start, we check the battery, check the wiring, then find the problem. Some jerk left the PTO engaged....again.

Don't you guys get more scratches from the scraper of the blower or plow more than the tire chains? At least that's my experience. If the wife ever gives me grief about some scratches on the driveway, I'd hand her a shovel.

The key should be the same as your '78. If it runs and you can do a basic test on the hydro tranny and the hyd. lift, I would pay $5-700. The deck looks fair with some rust thru Is worth $200. The axle brackets are $50. If it doesn't run, and you can't test the hydro, then the risks skyrocket making it a $3-400 crap shoot with a possible part out to recover your investment. Rear lift hitches (sleeve,slot,clevis) can be had for $100. Can't believe I opened this hitch name can-o-worms again.

The superior Onan engines were designed, engineered and manufactured to an industrial level. Made to be repairable. They were also designed to be rebuildable. Onan engines built in the 60's, 70's, 80's and 90's are still on the job. Why? Because Onan never made any cheap disposable throw away engines. When an Onan is repaired or rebuilt correctly it's a long term investment. Key word: "Correctly". Crappy repairs or rebuilds = crappy results. Here is a picture comparing an "old" outdated Onan and a "Modern" Kohler OHV V-Twin. Onan oil pump is made of steel and cast iron. Kohler oil pump made from aluminum and plastic/nylon. Onan engines have replacable cam and main bearings. The "modern" Kohler? Where are the bearings? Oh! The aluminum engine block is the bearings for both cam and mains. If worn beyond tolerances or damaged what do you do with that "Modern" Kohler engine? Scrap it out, that's what! Disposable! Toss it in the dumpster. Bust off or damage the Kohler oil filter mount? Replace the complete timing cover! Do that to an Onan? 2 bolts and just replace the adapter. If you want to be happy for a day: Drink. If you want to be happy for a year or less: Repower. If you want to be happy forever: Repair/Rebuild your Onan.

I got my front and rear wheel weights on today and also my front weight mount. Then I decided to put the new stack on.

Here is a picture I took when the resto was almost done. I have since installed the proper seat pan and a genuine RM324 mover deck. I enjoyed every minute of the restore. My Dad bought this same tractor used in 1966, and it was the tractor I grew up on. Thus, the sentimental value.

Hopefully this which is in larva stage: Or possibly this, also has some assembly required:

Take two sensations & call me in the morning

Now I want one of these. Bummer. This is an addictive hobby.

MY RAT ROD WENT 38 MPH. UP HILL.

Cute Denny & nice work but I do have to bust your chops on the deck ...you know our favorite color!

No adjustment on mine. It took me a while to make sure I got the holes aligned. I used transfer punches. The hard part of this project was getting the piece to fit the auger gear box. I used a piece of cardboard and kept trimming until it fit as I wanted it to. Then I made the upright. And finally the angle bracket. Last holes to drill went into the blower housing. I did support the gear box as I did this. I put a bottle jack under it and moved the box to the neutral position with no sag in the auger shaft. Hope that make sense.

Judging from the rust on top of the hood, muffler, clutch linkage and pulleys along with the deck pulleys its been sitting for quite a while and outside. Probably hasn't been run for quite a while. $500 tops without knowing how it runs.

I'll go against the grain here Jelly but looking kinda rough to me and past care might be an issue...350 - 400 tops for me if I was in the market but pics can be deceving? Should have the same 1100 Eaton and rock shaft for attachments as a 520 jus not the bells & whistles on the dash.

I was 4 Ponys Short couldn't see the BIG BLOCK from that angle by the way!!! Brother I love that Tractor but that YELLOW TURD HANGIN OUT FRONT HAS TO GO!

Yes, I also believe this would be the case John. I may buy another set of straps and double up the straps on my 4 link rubbers and see if they are less effective. If they are, I'll remove them and make another 4 link set. I have plenty of side chains. The really big advantage I see in the rubber straps is the traction on a recently plowed driveway. With the steel chains, I could not get up my steep driveway with the plow or blower raised. I had to detour around to the stone road to get to the top and then plow down. With the rubbers, I can plow doth directions. Steel chains just do not grip on a hard smooth surface , they need to penetrate the surface to get a bite. The rubber straps are probably not as good as steel 2 link VEE bar chains on gravel roads and ice, but they are a close second. The prices I see are $110 - $130 for new rubbers. I think it really comes down to preventing the damage to the paved driveway.

My 953 and 1054 out pull my c160 with ease. They weigh more. My 1054 has filled again tires and it will pull a single bottom plow through anything. For pulling I'd take the 953 overthe c120

Well I won't pull the John Deere with a horse but I will with the cub! I really enjoy taking pics of a few of my favorite things in life... my kids and tractors

Happy wife, happy life. . I think I might try a set of rubber for next winter. I snowblow off road too so I hope they will be effective in grass as well. Every time I get stuck in the yard there are lots of choice words yelled. The driveway does look ruff after that storm and it's definitely the chains not the blower. The silver lining here is I can justify buying more parts for the horse!

Okay great! I'm aware that the internal seal was done away with shortly after the rj58 went into production and was replaced by the cap seal, and that the later models could not accept the internal seal (mine is an earlier 5003 that will take the 9815 seal). HOWEVER, why I asked about this was that from reading your thread last night I saw that you were "double sealing" one of the transmissions, which sounds like a good thing to do to me, and I have found some for around $2 a piece.. so why not? And thanks for clarifying about the internal seal (9815) and how it was accepted into the axle tube.. I will be ordering a couple today. So I found 2 other bearings, one with motion industries and one with MSC. Not very sure if they are interchangeable yet, but I have a good feeling about the one from MSC: 1) Motion Industries part #: 00105193, Nice Part #: 412-35 V BRG, (my gut tells me this won't work but there are no specs on MI's website). Link - https://www.motionindustries.com/productDetail.jsp?sku=00105193 2) MSC part #: 59145128, Nice part #: SRM125208BF18, (I got ahold of a rep from here and he is looking into this for me, I'll let you know if he gets back to me) Link - https://www.mscdirect.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/product/details/59145128 Thanks for letting me know where I can find these bearings. I actually just ordered something from Jake Kuhn yesterday, I need to PM him and see if I can get him to throw in those bearings with my other stuff. Hope he hasn't shipped yet! Lastly, I clicked on the link you posted for locateballbearings. There are a whole bunch of numbers and letters I don't understand. I'm guessing that any of these are interchangeable? and do you suggest one over the others? I'm not a fan of China stuff!

Shoulda put a V-Twin on it!

OK John...checked on a few things. I happened on this link and ended up in a chat with this guy (Larry) in California. He says he has the NICE 412-35 bearings and you can buy either 1, 2 or 3 at a time. Kelly Supply has them also, but you had to buy them in lots of 10. The bearings from below are priced at $7.95 ea and shipping is $13. If you want to get these, I talked with Larry at 1-800-409-3632 ext. 7014. If you found this bearing on Motion Industries site, can you find it again and give me the catalog number? http://www.locateballbearings.com/Results.aspx We also have @Jake Kuhn ( a vendor on RS) who sells these bearings and the bronze and the S8K bearings and all the seals and the gaskets. I think you are going to have to get the axle seals from him. The axle seals are a TORO only seal. You are correct that the bronze bearing is 1 1/8" OD...1" ID. The seal that Wheel Horse went to on these RJs is a "cap" seal. It goes on the outside of the axle housing. I should have a picture of it in my files. I think you want to use the "cap" seal either with or without the # SKF 9815. BTW, to answer your question of the #9815 fitting...if you look at the end of your axle tube, you will see that a place was widened for the 9815 seal to fit with it's 1 1/4" OD. If you do not have that ridge in there, then you have to use the cap seal. #83-2840. Just so you know, those cap seals are in the $20 apiece range. Here is a pic that shows the ridge for the 9815 to fit.

I would start with an older Lawn Boy 2 cycle push mower as they're more readily available and some parts can still be had through Toro or through ebay.

As long as I have been operating a wheel horse, there are some things you would think I would learn... nope. As far as forward/backward, you will probably need to adjust the hydro linkage/cam. There are directions in the service manual (not owners manual) about propping up the rear and adjusting it so the tires dont creep and your fwd/rev speeds are correct.

That's part of Ed's Darth Vader costume he wore for last Halloween. Now it doubles as a full face racing helmet. I would bet he's got it fitted with one of these for those NHRA sanctioned events.

Drain plug back in? I would guess so or you might have noticed that mess. So if I did my math right you should be I/2 pint over what the book says and well up on the stick. . Somebody double check me on the math...I didn't take my shoes off. Have you got the right dipstick? Check it with a long rod or screwdriver to see how far up in the pan it is and let us know.

The 23* Firestone tires were used on nearly every brand of the older farm tractors for a reason - they just work . The low attack angle means straight ahead traction - but side slip can be an issue compared to something like the Deestone . The Carlisle Tru Power was sort of an in-between of the two styles with a slight curve at the outer part of the Vee to help with forward bite compared to straight bar wedge 45* tread such as the Deestone and others . In comparison - the Firestones when turning can do some damage to turf in a hurry and tend to run big on standard sizes - better look deep into the specs on overall height/size . The Carlisle seems to be a nice balance , great traction and doesn't tear up turf nearly at all - I run them year 'round on nearly everything I have for Horses....some with chains to boot . Sarge

Lol. Jim, I wanted to paint the deck as close to the original color as I could. Back in the day it had a white engine and handle but all the new B&S engines are black so I just went with that.

After I had gone through my first 3 piece I was worried that I couldn't push the tractor by hand with out the tires skidding while my other tractors you could push with one finger. After some seat time the axles nested into the bushings just fine and good to go for another 50 years.

Its been many years since I've had a set of these Firestone's but I will say they are the best pulling ag tire I've ever had...

Racinbob knows...You wont find rhe perfect fit John but any brake cylinder hone available at one of the popular auction sites work......most are 220 grit and will take abit with a cordless drill motor but just hone away till you get a snug fit & rinse the the stones often. They do get plugged with grit. They will be smoother than a baby's bottom when done. Flip your axles if they are rough, I would tell you how but @Racinbob might sue me for patent infringement!

Hopefully others will confirm this, but the engine block looks like it's painted gray. Factory engines were red or black. I've read that kohl er factory replacement short blocks and complete replacement factory engines were gray. It has a tow hitch on the rear. A clevis hitch for rear attachments could be added. it also has a hitch under the rear axle for attachments like a dozer or grader blade.

I have a set on The Machine I know it's not a 520, but for pulling a plow they pull, no wheel slippage. So far probably best investment on The Machine to date.

More done today. Staked in the seats, cool trick wish I'd heard about it years ago. Torqued the heads down. Cleaned up the battery area, pulled out solenoid, maybe it works but i doubt it so I swapped a good one in from a 2nd donor tractor. Mounted the engine, that was good. All new hardware. Pulled the electric clutch. I'm gonna keep that it works not sure if I could make it work with the horse. Painted parts of the engine and just about all the frame and rear. Also removed fan and pulley from hydro. Also able to free up the choke and throttle linkage. Going smooth so far. Electrical for tomorrow

My Onans are 20, 21 and 26 years old. I guess that I should have done about 120 rebuilds by now, but I haven't done even one.