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Sort of. I FOUND them in one of the older local hardware stores - on the side of the road. This place is the hardware store is the go to when I need something unusual.

Here too!!! The old furnace is getting a workout.

Thanks Don for the thoughts on the bolt. It was handy (like your avatar) and I’m on a time constraint (I leave for Israel on Monday). This upcoming summer, I’ll get a custom rod made up. Today’s project was to clean up the hood and fender pan, then load the tractor, and head to Caleb’s house. This tractor is in such good shape (the seat notwithstanding) and so I felt that the chalky hood would shine up nicely… I wasn’t wrong…I only spent about 20 minutes on it for now but was excited with the results! Not bad for 37 year old paint! my little 5’x8’ trailer was “just big enough” to fit the tractor with blower attached. Caleb got off work about an hour early so that he could be the one to clear his own driveway for the first time! For those of you that have known him for a decade—can you believe that he is now a first time homeowner??? unfortunately the throttle cable is not functioning well. We are going to need to outsource a good used one or find something better. however, even at about half throttle, that Ber-Vac was handling the snow with ease and the torque of that Onan is impressive! For those of you that enjoyed reading the Iron Horse thread, this picture is also there. This is my dad in 1975 clearing the snow at his first house with his 1965 875. 50 years later, his grandson is clearing his driveway at his first house with a 1988 520HC! Wheel Horse—a generational experience for the Stertz household (like it is for many of you!) Job well done for the old machine! using the bagger frame to hold some weight (about 100 pounds) may not be the prettiest situation, however it works just fine. Caleb has a full rack of suitcase weights but no bracket. I suppose that next spring/summer we can fabricate something to hold those. At least, he can now clear any accumulative snow moving forward this winter…

Balmy... Trail cam at @ebinmaine's place this morning...

Carlisle 9.5's Right - about 8 years old Left - about 4 years old One made in USA, one not... Unfortunately, not a new problem.

What did you do today... Here? What did I do? 🥶🧊🧥

Love those old stores...

Here’s my White-Oliver 2-44 converted into a road grader. I can’t remember who makes the grader part? I want to say Massey-Ferguson, but I’m not sure. I donated this machine to the Long Island Antique Power Association a few years ago.

Normally I would say between these the Kohler is superior. A Kohler Magnum engine is nearly bullet proof with decades of longevity built in. The engine in your pic is unfortunately not suitable for Wheel Horse in any way due to the stubby PTO shaft. No adapter made will make it capable of supporting the side loads generated on these machines. If you made it work, it would eventually fail and likely damage things even possibly the operator. If the Briggs has at least 2 and 3/4 inches of PTO shaft it will work better in this case. If you have to sleeve it to 1.125, it is still a safe option. I'm a huge fan of Briggs Vanguard v-twins. I have several of them. That being said, I do not expect them to last like a cast iron Kohler will.

Proof positive you only need 5 horse power to turn a single bottom plow...

The rest of these folks izz good people. Me?...... Remains to be determined....

Watched this 13yo lad operate this 10,000 lb. plow machine. He plowed from 8AM to 4PM with an hour lunch break(for the Belgians). He turned about 5 acres.

@stevasaurus

Yeah, but a box of crackers isn't advertised as being a particular size. Tires with a given size rating not being that size could be grounds for false advertising lawsuits. It happened to Lowes a while back because all their lumber was listed at the common sizes and not the actual sizes.

Greetings Red Square community, I am new to all things "Red". I was born and raised about 30 feet above sea level in eastern N.C. on a small farm. Our main tractor was an Oliver Super 55 and it was "abuse-proof". We never had need of anything like a WH. With Farmall Cubs and 8n's a plenty all of our tractor needs were met. For the last 15 years I have been living in Mechanicsville, VA where I pastor a small church. I'm married with two children, one of whom just graduated high school two weeks ago. My wife is my favorite person with whom to hang out and we have recently begun to garden again. I am a hobbiest blacksmith and I have been known to wet a hook frequently. In the past couple of years that we've been growing veggies, in our reasonably sized back yard (about 125 feet square), we've agreed that a garden tractor would easier on our aging bodies than a tiller. I have for years hoped to acquire a Wheel Horse some day. My real desire was for a 3-point model but figured the clevis hydro would suffice. We recently decided it was time to get serious about finding a garden tractor. So I just purchased a C-175. It is in pretty good shape for a 30+ year old machine with unknown hours. But there are a few issues I will need help figuring out. Of course this is how I came to join your group. I am grateful for being accepted in and hope that, in some small way, I may be able to contribute as I benefit from the knowledge and experience found in this community.

I have bulk cable & sheath in stock. If the throttle lever is in good shape, I can hook you up with the parts for a new cable.

Another example of "shrinkflation"..... I noticed the other day there has been a lot of food packaging getting smaller too. Just an example a box of Ritz crackers is not near as tall as it used to be .

Now that is funny right there. Good job whoever took the pictures.

Great thread for modifications as well as the family and generations points! Definitely some of the things here that drew many of us to these machines and this hobby!

Just thought I'd toss this thought out there. I have a GT-1848 that was re-powered by a previous owner with a Honda GX610 V-twin. Apparently this is/was a "sanctioned" re-power by Wheel Horse back then, but I know it's a very expensive engine. One downside is that the stock muffler requires a cut-out in the right side of the hood. I took that muffler off and put a stack on it, so now I'll be putting an original un-cut hood back on it. These engines are used a lot in generators and pressure washers, so maybe a good used one of those could be a donor? I love this engine, would not have loved buying it new. Got the tractor for $200 a few years ago, put new tires on it, and it is a beast. Good luck with your search for a new engine.

to the forum. As others have said, there is a bunch of good folks here. Between the folks on this forum, I'm going to guess we've broken and repaired just about anything on a Wheel Horse that can be broken and repaired. The best part? We all like to talk about what we did, or are planning to do, or give others 'advice' about what they should do.

I have been using a GE hybrid water heater for 15 years, the only issue was a factory fault that was fixed for free. Installation is the same as a standard water heater but clearance around it is necessary so it can move air and a provision for the condensate water is needed.

You just FIND these on the side of the road??!!??

Glad you found us and thank you for the great introduction. Rest assured any questions you may have will be answered. Sometimes we even give correct answers.

Like the high efficiency natural gas furnace we have in our Mo. property. I had not considered that. Back into research mode. Last night, I was reading about hybred heat pump water heaters. They operate like a refrigerator, except they take heat out of the room air and put it into the water. The hybred part means that it also has conventional heating elements to kick on when the heat pump part isn't keeping up. One of these would be a much easier install than LP fired tankless unit. I checked both elements in the sick water heater with a VOM. They checked OK. That pointed at the thermostats, so I picked up upper and lower replacement thermostats while I was out walking the dog today. I replaced the upper thermostat- only because it was easier than replacing the lower thermostat. It passed the smoke test, and the water has been at 125 degrees for several hours now. Looks like it is back up and running - for now.

Welcome to the nicest group of people on the internet. We will help you in anyway we can. We’d love to see pictures of your C-175!

Wait till you get to see my formerly Tecumseh horse, future Briggs horse. That thing has 24-12-12 on it.

What's faster than a Ferrari? Raceinbob on his birthday!

I used a piece of 1/16" thick angle iron cut to the shape of the broken piece. Cut out the damaged part and welded the new part in place. Oops, Bill types faster.

Or .... remove the entire top piece with the 2 holes, replace it with thin gage angle mounted from under the inside, Weld, bond, or screw it together.

Our tankless LP water heater has two 4" PVC pipes going to and from it, one for combustion air, one for exhaust. You can place your hand on the exhaust PVC pipe and feel a slight bit of warmth. Our water from a deep well enters the unit at an average of 42* and leaves at 120* and will continue leaving the heat exchanger at 120* as long as there is water flowing. When the fow stops the burner shuts off and stays off until the next time you call for hot water, just that simple. We heat water, cook, heat the home and occasionally use the Gas log fireplace on about 300 to 400 gallons of LP per year depending on the winter. In the summer when we are just using the water heater and cooking with the gas usage the use is not noticeable. Our tank is a 500 gallon unit and I fill it at the end of the summer, unless we have a very harsh winter it will not be refilled until the following summer.

After having been through a spill... I'd HIGHLY RECOMMEND everyone does this.

An electric tank type uses electricity with 100% efficiency meaning that all of the heat went directly into the water. The only loss is thru the jacket and that is very little. A tankless gas heater loses the heat going up the chimney plus all of the residual heat between uses.

We have LP on site for the Generac. Venting the unit might need some creative solutions. The concrete chimney starts below grade and runs up the back side of the house. I suppose it could be tapped into above the connection for the furnace. I doubt I could 'T' into the furnace flue pipe.... The furnace is about the same age. We have been thinking about going to LP for the next furnace and getting rid of the oil tank in the basement. Probably out to go to the next size larger LP tank if we make that conversion.

More efficient.... sure. .. but carefully consider the whole picture. Our 40 gallon electric water heater was about $400. For the record, installation was discounted and we only paid a couple hundred bucks. If it was a retail job we still wouldn't have had more than $800 or so into it. For a propane setup we were quoted THOUSANDS. Anywhere from $6K up to $15K NOT COUNTING getting a new tank and regulator. Point being..... our experience shows us... It would take a VERY long time even at a high usage rate to catch and pass the initial investment. Over and over and over again.... I've had conversations with people who get all freaked out about electric heat and/or electric hot water. It saved us WELL over a thousand dollars per year compared to the old oil system.

The tankless unit only fires when water flows, the tank type keep on using gas all day. Much more efficient than an electric tank type.

It could, but this rack isn't meant for a lot of weight. These bins are going to be mostly for hunting,fishing, and camping gear. Probably the heaviest bin will have two pairs of chest waders in it.

I asked an HVAC and plumbing guy I know about one of those and he said they suck the gas down fast.

Cool idea, but I'd do shelves... weight on those plastic hanging on those edges might give way...

22 years on a tank water heater is living on barrowed time, We have a Navien tankless water heater going on 15 years with no problems, If you have natural gas or LP that is the way to go.

Not so much me as the wife, but she found this idea on the facie-page maybe:

Same. Processing thinkerizations & mullerificating prodigiously is often cause for sleeperating.

Yes, I think that would help with the math, but to be honest, while enhanced heating efficiency would be something to aim for, I'm actually more concerned about working in the shop in comfort, without a cold draft from the window blowing on me. I guess I'm getting spoiled in my retirement years.

There was about six inches of snow on the ground when I got up this morning, and I don't have the snowblower back on my 522xi yet, so I brought out the big gun (my Case 480E) and cleared 'most' of the snow off the driveway and turnaround areas with the loader bucket, which was a bit awkward, since there are so many short-radius curves to deal with. Also, it's fairly new asphalt...just a few months old...and I didn't want to damage it with the edge of the loader bucket, so I just scraped off what I could with the bucket in its unlocked mode, with just the weight of the bucket keeping it on the ground, and with the leading edge of the bucket angled up slightly so it wouldn't dig into the asphalt. It's not a very efficient way to scrape snow, since the upward angle wanted to make the bucket slide up over the packed areas, leaving a lot of patches of snow. Oh, well. Good enough for now.

Jack I applaud all of the mods you’ve made except using a bolt in the front hitch. Under load and use, both the bolt threads and the parts of the hitch touching them will have premature wear. A piece of plain rod or a bolt with a longer shoulder would work better.

Hmmmm, about 1 hr away.....

Have all three, broke connecting rod. Thanks Joe