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My youngest Grand daughter likes tractors. They were at a Lowes in Dallas. Hence the JD. They were at my house this weekend. Hence the WH. Ya'll decide. Kids do the darndest things, the JD pic was totally unscripted! Dennis

Got the engine mounted today as well as the belt guard, right foot rest and a few of Terry's decals. Gonna go thru the carb and fuel pump next then work on wiring, plumbing and painting the hood. Gettin close. I bought a stack from Jim Kemp a while back, sorta want to hear what this thing sounds like.

I just picked it up and he threw in a free rototiller that I could possibly use for mad max 2 like @Ed Kennell built!

Been working on a bridge demolition project - we've been doing pre-cut work on the main beams, torching out the flanges and setting up places for the explosives team. For the past week or so - this has been my view... Shot the first two spans today, detonation starts around 2:17 in the video. Sorry for the lack of quality, I'm over 800ft away and sitting 40' in the air in a man lift, with it running. Never thought about my arm resting on the console - evidently, its vibration was fighting the phone's video stabilization. Sometime in the next week the rest of the main spans will go down, the largest being the center one over the Illinois River, right in the navigation lane. The demo company will have a crane staged to immediately start retrieving those sections out of the water. In the meantime, back to burning iron to prep the rest of the last two north spans. Sarge

Got this thing moving under its own power for the first time last night. Kids had a blast cruising around the yard. It needs about 43 things to be right...but it ran well, so that's a plus

Craig, Still around. In late Feb my Wife was diagnosed with breast cancer. March began the chemo, 16 treatments, decreased the tumor by 75%. Surgery last week, this weeks post surgery checkup was great news. Pathology report indicated no cancer in the lymph nodes.. We spent a lot of time between the house and MD Anderson in Houston. The Lord does indeed answer prayers!. Awesome doctor's, surgeons and nursing staff.

Just a quick update. I bought new coil and points and now I have excellent spark. The carb is in need of replacement. Looking for Briggs part number 99876. If anyone has one let me know. Until one pops up on eBay or elsewhere this unit will be put up and aside. I decided to build a corner shelf in the barn to store and display it. I was able to get the frame done and still need to install 5/4 t&g decking, bleach the wood so it matches the rest and install wood plugs. Last thing I want to do is get some of the paperwork out in a frame and hung next to it so the history can be displayed.

I'm feeling I'm feeling very lucky to find a clean Wheel Horse. We had two as I was growing up, and I always thought they were the coolest lawn and garden tractor going. My latest is a1998 312 8 with a 42" rear discharge deck. This baby has 452 hours on it, I'm hoping will be the last tractor I need, not that I may not by other Wheel Horses in the future LOL. Anyway, just wanted to drop in and say hi, my name is John. Looking forward to navigating your site soon.

I was talking to my colleague the other day and I knew he had a wheel horse tractor. He was having issues with the transmission leaking fluid and there is a bad hub. But other than that it is in decent shape considering it has 2100+ hours on it. Needless to say he bought a new zero turn and no longer needs his horse so he gave it to me for FREE! He was the original owner and has all the original paperwork. It is a 1991 520h and I am still shocked how quiet it is compared to my Raider 12. Anyway the good stuff...the pictures.

Steve has given up on those old "basket case" tractors... seems he's only committing to them easy restorations these days.

David Bradley?

YES... I used a bare frame as a DEMO of what to do...how to prefab the angle iron by size and shape. I can't lay on my back to get the pics...I'm not 27 anymore....lol. It is easy enough to install this onto a working tractor...just work on and complete one side at a time. because, the tractor MAY drop if you take out all four mounting bolts at the same time.

We have a hawk and a falcon in our area. They help control the squirrels, mice, and rabbits. We would be overrun with vermin if we didn't have the hawks. We also see some Bald Eagles, and sometimes a Philadelphia Eagle in the fall. Jim

Add a little love, some time, and effort... that old "beaten" 312 will look just as good.

Id buy them in that condition all day long for 150, but they're kinda hard to find around here

Hate to say it, but I put almost 3 quarts in my truck when changing the oil and looked down and saw a caramel river running toward my feet😊! We've all done it before, just hard to admit our own mistakes, but easy to laugh at other's mistakes!

My honey says that's adorable! What you got right there is a smart little girl.

Got some time today, put in all new bearings, did a dry assembly to make sure i had it correct with the 8 pionion differential in it. All was good, so i put the gasket in and sealed it up. Filled with oil, oh and when you do this put the drain plug in first .

Thanks everyone. Every reply has been extremely helpful. Glad to be part of a great group of people.

Run Forrest, Run...........................

I'd buy it for the deck alone if it is in good shape.

More photos of paperwork

So after a long weekend sat down and pop up Craigslist and low and behold was listed “Pond” walk behind tractor... all original 1953 purchased from the second owner who has been using it for the last 20 years to turn his small garden until this year he found the flywheel was cracked. He had ALL the original paperwork from the original owner who was his neighbor. It came with front snowblade and rear one bottom plow. These machines are still out there gang!! I love the fact it is all original and untouched.

This is a very subjective decision. Obviously my choice would be a 953, but that may not be your cup of tea. A lawn Ranger would be a good choice when grandchildren come along. They are much safer than a RJ and just about as cute.

I recently spoke to the owner of a Lever Steer tractor that has been in his family since 1947 or 1948, his dad purchased it from the original owner. It has been in storage for the last 40 years and in the last few months cleaned up and running. the 83 year old owner plans to take it to a few shows. This makes the 22 Lever Steer on the registry and one no one has ever seen. They are still out there !!!

It all depends on what your going to use the tractor for. If just mowing welding the crack would be fine. If using ground engaging equipment a solid 1/4" plate welded in place with longer transmission bolts to allow for the thickness difference. My frame was not cracked but I added some reinforce to keep from cracking it.

Welding can make the metal brittle, and subject to future cracking. Here is a way to repair AND reinforce the corners to preclude cracking. Use 2" x 1/4" (or 5/16) angle iron about 6" long. When bolting up, use Nuylok nuts. You'll need 4 bolts 3/8"--1/2" or so longer than original 4 bolts holding the end plate to the trans case ...but not too long.

I’d seal up the carb real good and take that to a car wash with a gallon of degreaser

Were you wearing a mask when you picked it up?

Hahaha..... Well, Silver Lining, at least it is not 44 things. You know. Because. That would be a lot.

Looks like a hawk to me. See them frequently around my area. I was watching a ski-show in northern WI this summer and saw this guy come gliding across the lake and perch up high for the show. Stayed for probably 20 min of the show, then took off again. Getting to be more and more common up here in the northern midwest. The national eagle center is in Wabasha, Minnsota if you ever get the chance.... and you can grab lunch at Slippery's just down the street where they always have Grumpy Old Men playing!

I’d say if it’s just a crack anyone who is competent with a welder should be able to make the repair, if it is then plated it will be better than original.

Worth that in my neck of the woods.

If you NEED it or if you want to get into the parts business it would seem like a good deal. If you are only buying it because it has a low price then you will have more in it than it is worth in no time.

Long overdue... the state of our infrastructure is a mess.

@prondzy it sounds like @Terry M is planning on attending what do you think???

Let’s hope things stay dry... 😎

See...there is hope for the future. Long time no see Dennis.

Try backing off the adjustment at the brake band 1/2 a turn at a time till it will latch. I find it is too easy to get the brake set too tight and the latch won't lock. Garry

It all depends on your situation. I would not think about buying it unless I needed a parts machine. Pretty beaten to me.

I haven't used eastwoods products but your paint is only as good as your prep. You should wipe it down with paint prep type product, you can find them in many places. Take it to the car wash and use the engine degreaser mode on the whole thing, rinse it off well. Wipe it down with paint prep before you sand and right before you are going to paint. I would use a primer sealer before paint, they have this in a rattle can. I do work in a body shop, but real paint is damn expensive these days even if you work in the industry. I use rattle cans on workers. Also, tape off as much as you can, the more time you spend, the better your paint job will be. Randy

Here's a thought. If you buy it for $150, and the deck is in good shape, I will give you $150 for the deck. Net cost ZERO. PM me if interested.

It's all about dedication. The love of the machines.lm into my fourth one and each one becomes more exciting! I just picked up a 312-8 from a guy that was going to turn it into a toaster. I just couldn't see that happening brought it home runs and drives great. Tuned it up and cleaned it up . I also picked up a 520 Hydro which I really didn't need but the price was so good I couldn't turn it down. It all depends on how much time do you want to spend on them .

In my area, seems like any running tractor is 300-500 and up. I sold a 42” RD deck for more than that a couple weeks ago and thought compared to CL ads in the area, I was giving it away. I’d jump all over it for that!

Here in Maine that's a gold mine but I don't know where you're located, what the market is. Transmission alone is worth $175. Rear wheels are worth 40 bucks a piece. Deck is worth at least a hundred bucks. Like the other guys said though. You got to put work into it to get it running. As it sits, bucket of parts. Up to you whether it's worth separating to get your money back if you need to.

Thanks, Richard. Building this for my grandsons has sorta got me hooked on these little Rangers. With a one year old granddaughter I just recently got another Ranger for her that I'm starting to collect parts for. Of course hers will be a slightly lighter shade of red.

Did some clean up and pm on it today. Got flywheel off and ordered a good used one off eBay.

Add oil every 5 hrs. That's a lot of oil!

Wow that's a great find, with all the paperwork. Not sure what's better the tractor or the paperwork.