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Hello Horse fans. We've all had a chance to get something cheap enough for no reason so, why not. And people say $50 don't buy much. However, it does buy a C120 sitting for 15 years. New battery and fuel line was all it took. Will get a bath and better pictures tomorrow!

For years I've let my electrical parts float around a large tool box. Every time I needed something I had to hunt and dig. Used scraps of plywood and 1x4's. Components that require crimping on bottom and wire nuts on top. I suspect I'll never have to purchase some of them ever again.

I was gone all afternoon. Got home and headed for the shop. Much to my surprise there was a snowplow sitting in front of the small overhead door. While I was looking it over a neighbor lady came and gave me a description of the person and his truck who was here. Said she knew I wasn’t home but since he was dropping off she wasn’t too concerned. It was from a friend who felt he owed me something. Told me it was a payback. I just sold two with brackets. Now I have to scrounge some or fabricate some.

Prepping some wheels I picked up from @Retired Wrencher for this winters plow tractor. Kinda neat that they were made by Firestone. Just grey primer went on tonight. I’ve had these never mounted Carlisle All-Trails on the shelf for a few years, will be nice to put em to work!

I had some dirt to dump out back. It’s been too long since I’ve Horsed around, so I took the long way home on Steve Oh Two.

The boss found this blade on FB for our daughters Commando 800. I made a trip to South Bend and brought it home. It came with the weights. It was dirty so I pressure washed it and also the 48" deck since mowing is done this year. Not bad for a 50+ year old deck.

I went looking for a decent reversible scoop, and saw this:

I have been having fuel issues with my 1054. I have changed the fuel pump to electric and have not gotten over a year out of three different Amazon pumps. I ordered a Facet pump and installed it and also changed my fuel line, fuel filter and removed the sediment bowl. The sediment bowl would catch some trash in the tube and not allow fuel into the bowl at times. I rode it today for about 10 minutes and the issues are gone, runs great, starts quickly and not starving for gas. I think this new setup has taken care of the fuel issues.

@BPEisenhower @WHX?? @ebinmaine Did someone say something about collecting C-Series tractors? 😂 I just happen to have a few! And a few other models as well !!!

Found on local FB Marketplace. And of course, not running, no surprise there. Small block Chevy engine, exhaust in the face, what more can you want?

I've done this before just to see if I could- but will just spend the money next time on a wide set of wheels. It is alot of work. But yes I used a side grinder with cutoff wheels and a narrow strip of steel to align both sides when finished. I also used the tractor itself to both mark and cut the wheels. Just jacked up the rear and let the wheel spin in low range and don't try to cut much. Just let the grinder do what it does. The good thing was because of where my cuts were, the leftover parts make up some nice 6 inch wide spares.

First coat of finished color is on…

Scored a FREE vintage Coke cooler and unloaded it with the 520 FL. It cools but the wiring is pretty scary so replacing.

#41 off the assembly line

Now this is definitely a “side shot”!! I posted this elsewhere on the forum but just realized how perfect it is for this topic

Great grandson was here for a couple hours. 28 months old. We went for a ride with great grandmother sitting with him. Drove the custom Cub Cadet 1864. He is still leery when you fire up but loved the ride around town. Waved at everybody. Went to the drive up at the bank and got a dum dum sucker. Then went to the drive up at the village office and got another one. After that we stopped at a local resale shop where the elderly lady who owns it made over him and he left with a chocolate bar. After we got back home he was wanting to go again. He wouldn’t pose for a picture.

I put a different Schnacke recoil on my patina 1958 RJ today! i had Joe Papke replace a spring and stainless steel cable in my spare Schnacke recoil! This old motor with the Schancke starts on the first pull! I changed oil in the oil bath air cleaner and motor! Still smokes a bit but runs best of any Kohler I own! I also changed air filter in my 314-8 today!

Last few days was very productive, I made clevis hitch along with rockshaft and other small pieces. I can't take credit of this version completely because I found many ideas on this forum . Unfortunately clevis hitch is not perfect, my tools are basic and mechanical skills too, but everything works well. I don't have any hitch attachements but that will probably change. I think about some kind of rakes and weeder/ cultivator. I don't need plow or tiller. Clevis hitch is slightly bigger, measurements are little bit different (slightly longer and wider at trans shaft) - I adjusted it to my homemade receiver hitch. Receiver hitch had to be improved too. Shaft is not moving (7/8- 22 mm diameter),secured to side plate by nut, washers and spring cotter pin. Other spring cotter pins secure moving arm at one side and shaft itself. That arm is moving freely

I have made a few improvements to mine. 18 HP Vanguard, 5 lug front wheels, transmission frame brace, tie rods with heims joints. and rebuilt the axle pivot, Added brass bushing at clutch and PTO shafts.

There is a Toro dealer about twenty miles from me. On Monday I was going to be within ten miles of it and made the side trip there. Asked if they had any clunkers out back they wanted to get rid of. I didn’t need a runner, didn’t care about engines or hydros. The two owners just stared at me for a few seconds, then said follow us. Showed me a Toro Time Cutter 4235. No engine. Said they had just unloaded it 5 minutes before I got there. $20 and ten minutes later it was in the back of my truck. Took it home and stripped it. Talked to the owner of the local mower repair shop. He took the hydros, wiring harness, rear bumper and rear shield, and the two struts. Wouldn’t take anything for it since he takes care of me with parts and mowers. Went through my steel and came up with enough to fab a rear axle and tongue. Got done and gave it a test drive just before the rain came. Clean up and paint next. Then decide if it will be a flat bed/hay rack or put sides on it and make a wagon. Thing is I don’t need any of those. Just wanted to make something.

Leaving for Delaware for a week of crabbing and fishing. Looks like rain all day today then clear but cold for a few days. Then a warm up the last few days. I'm afraid all the fresh water from last weeks Nor easterner may have pushed the crabs out of the rivers where I crab. We shall see. There's always the hot tub.

Found a LTD24 to add to my collection, UW645, LTD244 & my homemade tilt trailer. Just can’t have a Tractor collection without these Gems.

Trina's family has had an annual apple pickin day for decades. Yesterday we met at Ricker Hill Farm in Turner Maine. All the best tourist trap stuff you can find there. The apple cider donuts were still warm.

Not sure what the bracket in the first picture was for, but I used that to hold the back of the receiver. Appears plenty stout for my needs. The receiver attachment piece slips over the 1”x 1” angle on that bracket. A 1/2” x1/2” angle welded in the receiver attachment piece helps keep it from twisting or moving back into the housing. A 3/4” x 1.75” x 6” block of oak slides in the attachment piece under the 1” x 1” angle and keeps that side of the receiver from tilting up when there is a load on the towing side. Then 2 supports tied to the bottom boss on the housing taking the bulk of the load. The 2 supports also lock the block of oak in place. Takes about 3 minutes to put it on or remove it, though I doubt I’ll be removing it. Heaviest loads will be my log splitter or my 3’ x 3’ x 2.5’ tall wood cart. Already moved the wood splitter with no issues.

Ready to go

Early morning with the Hotsy. Big believer in Citri Blast and Cascade. I did get everything cleaned and I think it's a good candidate for a repaint. No dents or holes. Surface rust isn't bad but, I do like the wet look. LoL 🤣. Also, I did get the original rear tires with it and do hold air, no cracking. I can see myself adding more C series to the collection. Show more pictures later! Enjoy your morning Horse fans! 🌞 Apologies for the hazy photos but I had my washer set at 280°. Can't stand greasy build up!

I've made several pairs over the years using 3/8"-24 threaded rod with 3/8" ID steel tube over it. Also made them with heims.

Here is my new seat. Some 2X4 to make it level. It was free from stuff i saved and will work for now. The old seat was shot and I think it held about 50 gallons of water in it.

October 6, 2023 American Simone Biles wins all-around gold at the World Championships in Antwerp, Belgium, becoming the most decorated gymnast with 34 World and Olympic medals.

A guy in my town posted this for sale, $100 Not really practical for my yard (not to mention lack of storage) but I thought is was pretty cool!

Got the 520-HC vanguard swap just about completed. Still not charging. I have a new stator coming today. Old one was only putting out 4.5 VAC. Here's the build thread: I used a Jeep muffler from amazon for the stack.

Mowing season will be over soon .. got in done seat time on the 414/8 with a 42” RD today.

I for one can't stand the peeling varnish that passes for tool handle finishes,so here is a quick how to for an oil like finish very quickly The process starts with a utility knife to scrape off the gunk that is brittle to start with. I just stroke the knife in a scraping fashion and if grain digestion is felt, just peel from the other end and so forth. The before and after is obvious. The black handle has two uses. The first is the singed wood has the color under the finish. I actually turned it black,then hit it again just enough that a bit of flame showed up and sanded it while still very warm with a cheap foam block. If you are in a super hurry you can apply tung oil while still hot to the touch and it will drink on several thin coats. You can hit it after an hour is so with more tung oil wet sanded into the wood. After some time just buff it with a paper towel . The handle will be slick and feel dry. The next day you can start a linseed oil routine by rubbing slight amounts hard into the surface. Linseed a few days and then once a week.The blackened handle shown has some spots sanded thinly enough to make parts of it brown as I enjoy that type of appearance. Blackened wood makes a much better finish of the softer woods and lets you sand off the raised grain . The tung oil soaked in very deeply and actually hardens and lays down the fuzzy grain. Think of tung oil as faster drying primer for the linseed oil. You can skip the burning step if you like, but it will take days and days for the tung oil to sink in fully. A SKS took at least twenty coats before it fully sealed.

Agreed Pete, Ive made a few tie rods up for some of my other tractors but don't believe the Heim joints would look right on the 701. here is a couple/3 pics. The bottom pic is the 701 and they are different design than the later models.

If you count the interstates that parallel the original Route 66 roadway, I’ve traveled the entire length of Route 66. But I cheated… Route 66 runs along the town I grew up in (Granite City, IL) and while it was just another road to my generation, nobody ever called it anything other than Route 66 or Old 66 despite all the street signs proclaiming it as a named street or local thoroughfare . My first and second jobs (welder and forklift driver) were both on Old 66. My current office - where I am sitting at work at this very moment - is along one of the previous Route 66 paths through St. Louis. So, I still drive on a portion of it almost every day and see the old Route 66 bridge across the Mississippi that has one heck of a dogleg turn about 2/3 the way across the river (look at satellite images of the Chain of Rocks Bridge). Many places along the route and the route’s position itself changed over the years, both in the road’s heyday and in its retirement. There are several Route 66 pathways through St. Louis alone so in its 100-year history it has both shaped and been shaped by the changing times. I would imagine the meandering path holds true across the country. When I was a kid (in the 80’s) pretty much everything along the old route from St. Louis to Chicago was in some state of disrepair or abandonment. There’s been quite a resurgence of the kitschy stuff in recent years and now there’s a lot of signs helping people navigate the old path. November marks the 100th anniversary of The Mother Road (will we see a bet you’ll didn’t know about this coming up?). I’m not sure I have seen as many antique cars in my lifetime as I have seen just this year. Great numbers of enthusiasts have been retracing the paths of the road and of the mentioned show. My grandpa and his brother left this area in the depression and tried to find better luck than what befell the Joads on their Route 66 travels. They drove out to California in a 1916 Chandler on 66 and ended up finding work building a Borax factory somewhere in the California desert. Eventually grandpa came back home to Illinois, but his brother stayed. They traded letters and a few phone calls but never saw each other again over the next 60 or so years. It’s a shame grandpa didn’t write a book about his adventure out and back. My daughter goes to college outside Los Angeles. While I loosely knew that the western terminus was out in the same area, I was delighted to find that her college is merely a block or two over from Route 66. It’s kind of neat that while she’s over 1800 miles away, she’s really just down the road. Full circle. Steve

New tires and wider rims on the 314H. Used VHT wheel paint. Not a fan of it. Turned out really rough. Re-sand and paint in the spring. Now to paint the wheel weights. Plan on using the 314 as my plow tractor this winter. Just had the driveway repaved, so going to try a poly edge on the blade and no chains.

For me, it comes down to 2 factors - the price difference between the so-so and the better procucts - and the biggie - the PITA factor. How difficult is it to change out? The axle seals on a Unidrive are a good example. Short change in price, but can be a chore to get the hub off. I always use a top quality brand for that. Do it once, do it right.....

When you put the pullies and spacers be sure they are in the correct order .

New drag link on 701 and made a little weight bracket out of a old repurposed mule drive. Its on the C160 but can use it on any tractor with mule drive hitch up front. Hood has about 1/2” clearance when fully tilted open.

They used to use plastic Tackle Boxes in the Pharmacy at the hospital I worked at on the crash carts. About 10 years ago the "laws" changed and everything had to be locked up and computerized for safety, billing and inventory control so they had to get rid of them. Outside my office is where they would pile all of their trash. So naturally i scarfed 2 of them. One of them has all the crimp ends, heat shrink and wire nuts etc. The other is a mini crash box I take to shows and it has all of my spark plug wire ends, plug wire, plugs, spare Kohler points and condenser and tools to change them out plus a few crimp ends and nuts and bolts