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I have been very busy lately and have let a few issues that I have needed to address go by the wayside. Sorry for that. First, I want to thank @ACman (Jeff) for buying and sending me an official T-shirt from the Big Show. I owe you Mate and Thank You Very Much. I have one from all the years I have been there, and I did not really want to miss this year's. Jeff, I apologize that it took me this long to acknowledge your gracious gift. Second, I got a PM from Squonk a few days ago telling me to look for a package on Saturday. I did get a package from Mike on Saturday. My wife brought it down to the "Man Cave" and asked if I was expecting a package...I said "yes" and she produced it and said "here ya go". I told her it was from Squonk...she rolled her eyes and said..."not more dinosaurs?". I was in the dark...had no idea what was in the package. Opened it up...3 more dinosaurs...one of them lights up, and a plaque (which I collect) from the 57th Pagent of Steam show in New York. Thanks Mike I have quite the collection of dinosaurs now...I think I should take a picture of the entire collection at this point.

Nice orignal c100 -cleanest original I've see. 854 with factory headlight and tail light kit http://pho.to/AmgxX

Spent a lovely weekend at our annual tractorfest show with a few Wheelhorse's and a special guest. heres a few photos i took over the two days.

I had another project I had to finish before I could get back to this one, but that one is now done and the weeds are getting tall so I have been chomping at the bit to get this working. It seems like all of these need the self-aligning bearings replaced on the front frame bracket. One of mine was totally locked up. Thanks to the tips on here, I was able to get the 7/8" bearings to fit the flanges and the bronze bushings to fit the 3/4" shaft. The bearings I got had a locking collar instead of set screws into part of the bearing itself, so with the added width of the assembly I needed 2 bushings per bearing, one on the inside and one outside. I wasn't sure how well, or if this would mount on my mid-frame B100 Auto, but fortunately that wasn't an issue. The only thing I had to do was make sure the steering stop was in place on the RH front wheel. I had turned it out of the way after I took the mower deck off, but the RH wheel would have gotten into the pulley at full turn without it. Since this sickle wasn't originally installed on this style PTO system, and I didn't get the original engagement pulley with the sickle, I had to get a little creative with the drive belt. I ended up using the pulley from the deck that came with my 854, and running a spring back to the belt shield bolt. With a 1'2" x 41" belt, this seems to work pretty well. So far, so good without too many difficulties, but now for the fun part... I could see the input shaft on the wobble box was missing it's seal, so I ordered an SKF 9815. I may have jinxed myself by also ordering an SKF 12330 for the bottom just in case. I initially installed just the input shaft seal hoping to not yet need the bottom one, but after filling the box with oil I found it all leaked out through the bottom the next morning. Replacing that seal wasn't too bad, but it gave me my first look inside the wobble box. I could tell there was a little bit of play in the system, but it didn't seem like anything was too bad. Inside the wobble box, the first thing I noticed was a big weld across the base of the outside yoke ear. It looked like a good weld and it was holding just fine. Peering deeper into the box, I noticed some excessive play on the inside ear of the yoke. Further disassembly revealed the issue. the inside ear was cracked all the way through. Fortunately, it looked like there really wasn't any collateral damage from it being broken, and the pieces were all there. This may yet prove to be a mistake, but I gave welding it back together a shot. The weld looked pretty good (for one of my welds), so I reinstalled the bushing and put it all back together. I finished installing the sickle on the tractor. I had to fabricate the lift rod, which fortunately there were great drawings on here of. Instead of making the travel hook and bracket, I opted for an eye-bolt and chain. I wish I had gotten some pictures of the cutting. I only ran it about 1/3 throttle so it didn't go too fast. The teeth on the sickle aren't in perfect shape, but I was impressed with how well it cut. Unfortunately, before I got any pictures of the cutting I noticed an increase in the amount of vibration coming from the sickle. Rather than risk it, I shut the sickle off and pulled the tractor back to the garage. I took it apart again, and sure enough the yoke broke again. It was only broken on one side, but I'm sure it wouldn't have been long before it was broken all the way through again. I plan to take the yoke to a weld shop tomorrow and see if they can do anything with it. It looks like the yoke might be a standard size, so worst case I think I could get something machined to replace it. I will keep you all posted.

Well the US postal service seems to have misplaced a couple of my shipments and it's slowing my project a bit. Took the opportunity to do some odd jobs in the shop and then figur d why not install the 3 point. At least it clears the parts off the bench for a while. Pretty sure I installed cylinder incorrect but for mock up it is fine. @19richie66 handwork is in one of the pics.

My Mrs Rules was able to catch some of those crescents... Jeff(ACman) was talking about, coming through the trees at work today. Plus, this one...through the little hole on her work ID badge.

1:18 PM today. Dusk to dawn light came on, cars going by with head lights on, and sun totally eclipsed by the moon. And the second photo, the camera's flash came on.

Totally cool to see. It sure got eerie looking but not dark. A co-worker had a pair of the cheap glasses and we just passed them around to take a look.

Just about done. Still a few odds and ends.

We set up the lawn chairs in the shade of the walnut tree about 1:00 PM and from time to time went out to check the progress until 2:30 when it darkened remarkably, then move the chairs out. The wife used the auto-darkening helmet set at 13 and it worked fine until just prior to totality, as expected it didn't have enough light at that point. At that point she switched over to one of my old standby # 12 hoods. I was using another # 12 hood the whole time. They worked just fine. The all to short 2 1/2 minute total eclipse was well worth the wait. A light cloud drifted across the sun as it was approaching total coverage which added some movement, but it was past by time totality came. My wife took a couple of pictures but they weren't worth showing. I use a Verizon hot spot for internet access and with so many extra people in town there was no service from mid morning until after 6:00 PM.

@chris suttonThank you for the photos. I am assuming the WH tractors are yours? Very nice looking tractors. Glad @stevasaurus could make it to your show!

I was a bit disappointed. At almost 90% I expected it to get darker but it did get eerie. Our daughter stopped by to get the baby and brought some viewing glasses they used at the school. It was almost over but they sure did work good.

Tried using my digital camera with different filters...not what I thought I could get. We actually had just a sliver of sun across the top that kept it from being total. Pretty cool...we had some light cloud cover, but the eclipse shown through. I took some pictures with different lenses and here they are. they do not really show the eclipse as such, but they show the solar fares...wrong filters. Check these out, and remember we were at about 90% total when these were taken. They do not show the sun as missing, but it was. These shots just had a slight crescent across the top of the sun. This is my favorite...look at the flares. Sun is actually blacked out here.

Well I didn't see anything here. Went out and put on the welding goggles, looked up and didn't see a thing. But now when I close my eyes I can see all those circles you guys keep talking about.

This is the extent of what we saw in the Baltimore area But what was more interesting was the leaves on the trees made a kind of pin-hole viewer, displaying hundreds of images of the sun/moon in the ground.

I won't claim to be an expert on this particular small engine type, but I do know my way very well around most other engines. That being said, this would be my engineering take on it, not based in real life experiance, and without being to rocket siency: Flow and timing optimisation on a 2 stroke system has a profound effect! BUT, this being 4 stroke, the effect is much less profound, and perhaps minute on this engine type I would guesstimate. Yes, if done absolutely correct, you can pull extra out of an engine, doing the fine tuning correctly. BUT, compared to the negatives you can add if you do not know what you are doing, the gains are probably minute. I will give you these tips for making an exhaust that do not add negative, and will perform better than any kind of restrictive system, albeit not being a system tuned work of art. -Do not use to small or too big pipe diameter. Follow the size you have in the exhaust port, and do not go bigger either. -Avoid turbulens in the exhaust gas. Make the pipework flow nicely, without sharp bends and obstacles. The more smooth and laminar you can make the flow the better. -Make the silensor big enough to flow your volume without creating resistanse, and still be abel to bring the DB's down. Put the silensor as far away from the engine as possible. - Use heatwrap on the pipe for a stretch after the engine, perhaps all the way to the silenser -Get the heat load away from the engine area. Now you have taken care of the exhaust. I would suggest taking a look at the intake too. Engines love cold air that flows freely. Make sure there is no restrictions in that end also, and it will probably reward you more than the exhaust work, and all together, your engine will have a better life............ Now go find some good 5w40 fullsynth oil too, and it will thank you in the long run.............. that's what I use, and in a little while there will probably be a shitstorm for that comment Sorry for the grammar oopsies:-)

Made up this shop sign, gonna find a place to hang it up tommorrow.

While maintaining over 70 miles of range roads at work.... keeping material in place is one of my specialties. Post up a pict here, let's see what your working with.

Make it Wednesday Jeff...got to be at my Mom's tomorrow.

I really can't believe you guys did that to/with me. You know how much I want to come over there. Now I am going to have to make good and really be there. Too much fun and Thank you. Excellent pictures and thanks for sharing.

Great pics Chris and looked like a great turnout . You invited Steve-on-a-stick and not me ? If were where to show up you could build a contraption that works me like a marionette ... just think of the fun you could have with me being your puppet !

Missed it here... I got abducted by aliens....they saw some guy sitting on a tractor staring at them through some strange mask ... they figured we was too weird a species and they kicked me off their ship. ...

Not much of a blackout here North of the Mason Dixon. The partial coverage did drop the temp. around 10 degrees. Best seat in town. 1:45 2:15 2:45

That Stevasaurus kept popping up all over. Supped me beer and ate me sausages. He even nicked off with the Black Horse when I wasn't looking.

Thanks for the great photos. Steve 's first female friend did not appear too happy with him setting so close. Wonder if it was something he said ?

Fully understand and looking forward to your progress when the Sun, Moon and Earth are all in perfect alignment. Hold on, that is today!

Had a bit of a shock on my way to a show over here in the UK when i looked in my mirror

Come and git it fellas...'fore I change my mind

A sickle mower has been on my want list for a while. Our yard backs up to a waterway and field, and along the edges is too rough to mow with a regular mower so we end up with a 2 foot or so swath of weeds that grow up tall. It has always seemed like a great opportunity to use a sickle. I've come across a couple the last few years but either hesitated and missed out on them or decided I didn't want one that bad to pay what they were asking. Today I finally found one and pulled the trigger. The sickle itself is free and seems to be in pretty decent shape. The seller said he used it 20+ years ago but it has probably been unused the last 15 years or so. He also had the Charger 12 that he said his dad bought new with it, but I couldn't convince myself I needed another tractor. That, and he his asking price was pretty strong for a straight, all original, but non-running tractor. So far, the only significant issue I have found is I am missing the tensioner/idler pulley. I'm hoping I can figure something else out for that part and get this unit to work in short order.

Its gonna be quite the chore finding the wheel covers & shroud, maybe the Next Big Show will have them, the man who has the C175 emailed me & apologized for emailing me the way he did, the 175 is mine, just have to drive to NY, 4 hour ride 1 way, going Sunday, 2 in 2 Dayz, Whats a Man to do ? The Corral will be full tilt, need 2 more feed bags

Great stuff from the UK!!! Thanks for sharing. When is the Queen scheduled to knight Stevasaurus???

I think It had something to do with what was on the grill! Great pics and loads of laughs!

There's a guy in the flea market every year at the same spot at the pageant. He has bins of smaller toys. One is filled with Dino's. No price on them so I grabbed 3 of them plus a lttle plastic bear my son had when he was born and a "Winne the Pooh" Piglet dude to go next to my Marvin the Martain. He says is $3 too much? I say no and pay him. Then he asks me to help him with his canopy.. Took 5 min to get it up.. He was so thankful I probably could have gotten another dozen dino's. So tell Chris she dodged a bullet!

Enjoy the little things in life!

Here's my Anniversary 520H I bought new in 1998 when she still looked mostly new, Good luck with the new acquisition, Jeff.

The display stuff, the 2 RJs, the 400 and the trailer are mine along with the van and caravan. Everyone had a laugh with Steve and all wanted to hold him, hope he enjoyed himself

You're welcome buddy anytime . Just make sure you have some Rock-N-Rye next time we see one another ... wait that's one thing he never forgets along with his trusty mug ! How about some pie tomorrow later in the afternoon ...I'm sure it'll be good .

@WHX12 & me have some thing in common ! i was sitting on my snap on stool, hoping for darkness so i could steal a nap, saw a small bright light across shop , And it was my young helper playn tricks on the old man, thought they were coming to get me

Used my hobart auto helmet set at 13 (paper said 14 but mine only goes to 13). Worked just fine.... Wife and neighbor shared it with me. Saw the last one will not be around for the next....

There is a fella that is selling kits but they are not cheap. I think I saw them on EBay. The fact is, Steel and labor are pricy these days.

Don't forget guys, we want of the raid...haul...rustle, or hustle.

Hey Guys, just wanted to drop in and say I didn't forget about you all. This year has just been very busy at work and I haven't had the time to get back on this tractor restoration. I'm very sorry, as I know what it's like to follow someone's post and then the poster just seems to disappear without giving the finished results. That's not my method, and I'm not deserting you guys. Somethings are just a little more important right now and from the way things looks, time won't be on my side anytime soon. I will get back to this tractor eventually, and rest assured, when I do, I will continue to post my progress. I hope you all can understand and will continue to watch for updates as time allows. Thanks Guys!!

Work has been slow and I got a lot done lately. It's almost finished now. Little Kohler removed My supervisor checking my work All cleaned and painted New vs old. I can't believe how heavy duty that swept axle setup is. Shorter reduction rock shaft vs stock. Still had to grind a little off so it would clear the steering gear. welded 1/2" thick plate under the dash so I could use a flange ball bearing instead of the cheap stock unit. steering and axle done Finally set her in her new home

Inspired me to make up one of them "pin hole" viewers today... I mean, you want to talk about trippy...check this out.

The only thing I see missing is the wheel covers and PTO belt guard, amazingly it still has the grass chute attached to the deck, I like those thick running board mats over the earlier glue on ones and the thick soft grip steering wheel also, but all that is a matter of personal preference, Jeff.

Sounds like the short may be at the ammeter or in the ammeter. Garry

I had to do the same when installing the Kohler commander in the GT

I meant to upload these a year ago,I really will scan the original brochure soon.I previously posted that this belonged to my father who bought it new in Belfast in 1974.Briggs and Stratton failed and a 12 hp Kohler installed Built in Belgium under licence apparently..Galvanised the deck along with two 42 inch decks about 25 years ago and they are still perfect.I bought a 512d on ebay the other day,I still have to organise collection,I hope its not junk.

Heard 10 different ways to keep the finish.....Pshaw......I gave her a good degreasing, blew it off with compressed air and greased all the zerts.....hit it with a good coat of Trim Shine and I'm done.

Well there ya go! You just answered your own question. Mike....