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This was our first Wheel Horse, bought about 12 years ago. I love this tractor and am feeling pretty proud of how it looks. 1987 312-A, as far as I know, all original. I have a 42" SD Deck to restore to put on it, mule has already been repainted. All done with Rustoleum Regal Red rattle cans. I've been working on this a little at a time for about 2 months. Not as nice as I had hoped for, but I don't have the time to invest in all the paint stripping and glazing to make it all perfectly smooth. Tried some clear coat on top on the fender, and it bubbled so I gave up on that. Maybe I'll give it some wax to make it shinier. The hubcaps had some rust that I mostly got rid of. I still need to do some detailing on the tower tins and engine tins, but am not going to try to repaint those completely. Many thanks to @Vinylguy for the decals!

November 8, 1966 Movie actor Ronald Reagan is elected Governor of California.

One of the few finishing touches to the new shop that has gone neglected to this point is the expansion of the shop air system. Most of today was spent running to the store and back, and cutting, threading, and hanging iron pipes for air. All the new line is installed, I just have to button up a few end-of-the-line (literally) things before I can turn the air on and check for leaks.

Rubber tire straps/chains installed on 416. New seat coming tomorrow.

In the continued effort to make certain parts of my life more physical, I've recently picked up this new 36 inch Fiskars splitting maul. It weighs something like 8.5 lb. Trina just a few weeks ago, picked up the little 17 inch mini ax that it's pictured with. Her mom wanted a smaller ax to use for splitting kindling up. The box arrived with two axes in it, so now each one of them has a mini. I did a couple quick test splits with the maul. VERY IMPRESSIVE. I like it so much I think I may have to get the ax that goes with it and has the same size handle. Here's the maul head in my big mitt. I'm hoping to make this part of my better Fitness regiment.

At the Polo, IL plow day 2 weeks ago, the 520-8 started running rough. It would just quit like it was loosing spark. When I got it home, I verified that it was. Ordered the engine ignition system kit and got it installed and back together this weekend. While I had it apart, I figured I would adjust the valves, since I was sure that the PO hadn't done that at 1,000 hours. The Onan 4 piece kit p/n is 166-0785 and is available on eBay. Here's how it ran before: IMG_9315.mp4 Here's after: IMG_1176.mp4

This doesn't always "work". I fell off a 12' ladder onto the concrete floor in my shop in 2024. Initial x-ray led to an orthopedist visit where I was basically told to suck it up while it healed. So I sucked it up until mid 2025 as it just kept getting worse. At that time I was told it was in my neck. After having THAT checked out with nothing found, I insisted upon re-evaluation in late 2025 (by a hand/wrist specialist). New x-rays showed 2 "non-unions" so a date was set for surgery. The surgeon decided he wanted an MRI just before surgery, and that showed 2 severed ligaments. During surgery, another severed ligament was found, as well as a pulverized bone. The ligaments were severed by constant rubbing against bone fragments. My wrist had 2 bones removed & 3 pins installed, leaving me with between 30 - 40 degrees of motion. Also, my pinky is in permanent "tea time" configuration, and I have hugely reduced use of my (right) hand. In short, see your doctor. Even if he or she says all is well, if something does not seem right, get a second or third opinion, and keep doing it until it is fixed or healed.

Spouse and I just got back from a week in Arizona. She's a Jane Austen fan, and we attended the JASNA (Jane Austen Society of North America) conference in Tucson. She was an official 'attendee,' and I was just listed as her 'companion.' There were over 700 people at the conference, so it was a fairly big affair. I only attended one lecture and the dinner, which was kind of fun, since almost everyone at the dinner dressed in Regency period clothing (including yours truly). I must say that we really looked the part with our Regency get-ups, (even though I don't know how to line dance or play whist). Wife attended a bunch of different lectures and events, and while she was getting 'Jane Austen-ized' I ventured out on my own and visited the Pima Air & Space Museum, which has a massive collection of aircraft, and the Titan Missile Museum (Titan missile silo), which was very interesting but kind of a somber experience at the same time, since it was sort of weird standing in the control room where mass destruction could have been wreaked upon the world. The tour guide had a couple of people in our tour group act as operators and follow the actual sequence that would have been used to launch a missile, which was a bit spooky. Looking down at a disarmed missile in the silo: We had a free day at the conference and visited the Sonora Desert Museum, which I thought was excellent. Here's a scenic view from the museum grounds: We also spent a night in Bisbee, which I rather liked. Very laid-back, artsy-craftsy old copper-mining town. Lots of arts and cultural events for such a small town. There weren't many tourists, despite the nice weather, and it still retains a substantial amount of its old mining-town atmosphere. We may go back someday and spend a little more time there to see if we like it well enough to use it as a winter getaway spot---not necessarily for purchasing a house, but possibly renting a place for a month or so during the dead of winter, since their winters are quite mild, and they rarely get snow. While we were gone, lots of leaves decided to fall here in Maine, and of course they've been soaked by rain, so my backpack blower won't move them very well. I've decided to wait another week (or more) until almost all of the oak leaves are down, and then use one of the Wheel Horses with mulching blades to make three or four complete passes over the lawn to grind them to oblivion, rather than trying to blow them away or rake them up.

LOL @ Finished One is never TRULY finished.

Finished the C-145 auto today…she’s ready for battle!! 25# inner and 65# outer weights. Brand new rear Carlisle All-Trails and a 48” 5 sector plow (yes I removed the swept axle extension kit for this install) I have cast iron 8” front weights and a set of rubber tire chains on standby if I need it.

Something like this may save the paint on your pretty wheels. Those 60+ lbs weights are hard to wrestle by hand

2005 550 5xi-Series Garden Tractor model 73561 Serial 250000001-250999999 - Formerly 522xi - This may be the same as a Ford New Holland model GT22A 2005 560 5xi-Series Garden Tractor model 73590 Serial 250000001-250999999 - Formerly 523Dxi

Score one for the Gipper...

i got recycler deck by accident with a tractor 4 yrs ago --- i have never used one -- sold it not realizing a few yrs later i wish i had kept it -- but yes, it would reguire much regular cleaning of grass. i understand there are many mixed owner comments -- i hope to obtain one some day -- but not to use as lawn grass mower but simply to mulch fall leaves

I found a guy on eBay that sells really nice ones for $20. (click photo for link)

Yeah, it looks better than it did when we bought it. My wife said "I think it looks too good to mow with now" ... and it probably won't do much mowing, unless it's the only one I keep when we downsize and move, which is quite possible.

I don't own a 5xi, but the transmission is identical to classic hydros with the only difference being how the orientation of the Eaton 1100 is mounted on the gearbox. All that said, most of the issues I've seen on classic machines are the result of slop in the linkages that actuate the cam assembly. The amount of movement between slow and fast is very small. A loose connection is plenty to rob all the travel in the linkage.

I have used and still use a few knockoff carbs, but whenever I can I clean/rebuild the originals. Once you do a few there really not that hard to do.

Sorry Mr. Richard, I don’t even know what a GT550 is

That looks like it may be the welded version, although I can't see the end real well at that angle.

Sleeping next to someone you love makes you fall asleep faster, reduces depression, reduces anxiety and helps you to live longer. Until they start to snore & fart in their sleep.

Very few things on earth can bring more "physical" than gathering and preparing firewood. The last few years that I did it was blessed with the largest hydraulic splitter I have ever seen (my FIL built it). It had a K321 and a two stage pump on it, and hitched up behind my truck. I've split 30 inch diameter sweetgum with it and it never even made a grunt. Even with that, it would make you work like a dog. I don't have to tell you obviously, but you will get a continual workout.

Yeah I have 3 stubborn trees that haven't dropped yet. Then i can be done with the cyclo vac

Remember when we used to laugh at the commercial on TV “I’ve fallen and I cant get up”? Well, it is not so funny any more … The lady said she got banned from Weight Watchers for dropping a bag of M&Ms on the floor. She said it was the best game of “Hungry Hippos” she has ever watched. What did the DNA say during the conversation –“Do these genes make me look fat?” What are the worst IQ test results? When they come up negative… Why cant you trust atoms?? Because they make up everything. Why was six afraid of seven? Because seven eight nine… What do you call the wife of a hippy? Mississippi … What is the difference between an outlaw and an in-law? Outlaws are wanted. I started to sleep in the fireplace, now I sleep like a log. If you think I am annoying now, imagine if I could play the banjo!

I wonder if there is a lot “c”.

Picked up some MORE leaves today. The garden is pretty well saturated, so these went to the street. And the Fat Lady hasn't even came on stage yet.

5:30 to 8:30 this morning. Saw a buck chasing a doe in the cut corn field but 200 yds away. Then a doe and two yearlings. Then this fat guy waddled past. I think he was returning to his den to sleep off a night he spent in the Amish Hen House feasting on wild wings. VID_20261107_083016705~2.mp4

Probably just one in small pieces. With an electric hoist You can stack five on a 28X28 dollie.

@953 nut Lets not forget the ole Eyecrometer 👁️ for the precise measurements 😂

The slot shows wear on the middle left side above the eccentric. Make sure the edges of this wear area are smooth, use a file and emery cloth to remove any metal burrs. While this is probable not you mane problem, it can contribute to rough movement.

I’ll offer some basic orientation that might, I hope, help you with diagnostics. 😁 The blue arrow points to the base of the input control arm on the hydro. It rotates when movement of the plate (yellow arrow) applies force against the eccentric (red arrow). The plate’s movement comes via a linkage to the forward/reverse motion control lever you operate by hand. The hydro pump/motor is internally symmetric making it capable of the same output speed in either direction. Moving the hydro’s input arm in one direction yields forward and the other way yields reverse. HOWEVER, those clever WH engineers shaped the slot in the plate so that (when correctly adjusted) it pushes the eccentric further in the forward direction that the reverse direction--hence the normal difference between full forward and full reverse. (Other parts of the linkage are also involved.) There are several possible reasons for having insufficient arm rotation in your “forward” direction. ONE of the reasons is addressed in Step 6, above. Over time, the sides of the slot in the plate and the sides of the eccentric can wear down through normal use leaving the eccentric “loose” in the slot. Step 6 in the manual is showing how to rotate the eccentric where it is attached to the input arm to where it is slightly narrower than the slot in the plate (to permit free movement with minimal slack) and where the end of the input arm (i.e. the bolt) is positioned in the middle of the slot. Further, it wants the “notch” in the eccentric to be pointed away from the input arm’s base at the hydro--yours is toward. Some subtle geometry dictates this. So your first step (with the engine off) is to hold the hex part of the eccentric with one wrench while loosening the bolt that holds it with a second wrench (or socket). Carefully rotate the eccentric 180º from pointing ESE (east southeast in the picture) so that it points WNW (west northwest). Retighten the holding bolt while again holding the eccentric. This might have some effect on the forward speed, but likely not a lot! Other adjustments to the linkage are likely needed to make sure that when the manual motion control lever is firmly in neutral the input arm to the hydro is centered (i.e. the tractor isn’t creeping forward or backward) and that the full range of motion control input is being transmitted to get proper rotation of the input arm. Here, though, we reach the limit of my expertise as I’ve not worked on this model. I will note that the Eaton manual for the 1100 has pretty clear instructions for adjusting the linkages so I would continue there first and, of course, come back here with questions (and pictures!)

Ed, how many decks will fit in a five gallon bucket?

Eye doctors dilate (die late). Eye doctors skip tape measures because they're great at eyeballing Eye Doctor had a patient complaining of a stabbing eye pain during coffee, doctor advised him to Take the spoon out of his coffee mug. Optometrists and teachers both spend their time testing pupils. A smartphone was wearing glasses because it lost its contacts.

Put some decks away for the winter. Left one on the 310-8 with Trac Vac for collecting leaves.

Quickie paint job…wiped the garage dust off these 65 pounders and gave em one coat of glossy black. Hopefully mounting em later this afternoon on the C-145 Auto.

hello AKol56, i'm with ri702bill. IMO better to change shear pins or grade 2 bolts then tear apart the blower, especially during the winter.

Download the manual for it - look to see if the OE pins have the undercuts. Years ago, my son worked at a local Ma & Pa Hardware Store. A customer came in looking to replace all the shearbolts on his Ariens walk behind SnoThro with Grade 8 bolts & nuts, as he was tired of replacing them. The Customer left with them, after my son warned him about their designed-in function... After the next storm, the same Customer returned - quite upset - because the bolts held and the gearbox internals were now trash. The Store owner reviewed the prior sale, complete with the warning, and told him he got exactly what he specified and paid for..... "Darwin Award Trophy Bolts".