Leaderboard

I have been working on my little shed at home and remembered how Dad would always put Masonite(tempered hardboard) down for a nice work surface. The great thing about it is it cleans up nice and when it gets too messed up you just pull it up and put down a new piece!! The 1/4" 4'x8' sheet was less than $25 I am still organizing this shed at my house since I got it a couple of years ago. My shop is 9 miles away, so I have to have stuff here too!

So Mrs. M and I took some much needed time off from the world and stood on a corner in Winslow, AZ

Never forget Our Nation is in mourning, for those lost for our freedoms. There will be hatred always, but the way we handle it seems odd to this country boy. ‘Nuff said. RIP Charlie Kirk, a man who would respectfully debate with anyone, no matter their beliefs.

I was given a 68 Raider 9 a while ago and had to ponder a while deciding if it should be rebuilt or parted out. I know parted out makes some guys cringe but the parts needed to save one have to come from something. This is going to be one of those 'somethings' and a lot of the parts will hopefully get in the right hands. The transmission, being a 5060 6-speed limited slip tweaked my interest. The hubs pulled without much of a fight. As I posted earlier, one of the lug bolts is mangled bad. I intend to weld a nut on the head but haven't done that yet. The hubs have two setscrews with both having a factory ground flat. I didn't know they did that back then. The input pulley slipped right off and the key fell out by itself. The brake drum put up a fight but I prevailed. The axle keys were ornery. I did end up getting one off with the usual hammer rocking method but one wouldn't budge. Enter the rotary tool and cutoff wheel. After 20+ wheels I finally created the clearance to get it out. Note the smaller brake drum key. It was like that before I attacked it. Fortunately, the keyway in the drum is fine. Of course I want to open it up for inspection. First I drained the oil. It was motor oil and pretty clean. Then I brushed on some Purple Power I've had on the shelf and hit it with the pressure washer. Not much need to be done before it turns red. Then it's flush time. As I've mentioned several times in the past, I hate the diesel smell. For years I've used Motor Medic Motor Flush. It does an incredible job with very little odor. I reuse it. After another couple days and spinning the input shaft now and then I'll drain it into a clean pan and strain it as it goes back in the bottles. I really don't know the fate of this transmission right now. I probably would have used it in the Dino project had it come along sooner. Now I'm thinking it would sure go nice in my 76 reborn B-80 since that tractor is now dedicated to the dirt/snow blade.

My son sent me a link to a recent Flash Mob performance in Paris that I thought was worth sharing with ya'll. A lot of time and talent went into this one time show. Hope you enjoy.

If I could find the top of my bench I would probably do the same.

We are prevailed to live in a nation that was founded on freedom of speech and religious belief. The protection of these rights against discriminatory practices is a balancing act. My rights should only go to the point where they will not interfere with the rights of others. That was the philosophy of Charlie Kirk, freedom of religion and freedom of speech. Charlie Kirk was an amazing young man who inspired others through his "Turning Point USA" campaign encouraging young Americans to live a life of purpose, become involved and vote their conscience. In his thirty one short years Charley Kirk did more to unite and motivate high school and collage students than anyone I am aware of. He used the Constitution of the United States and the Bible as the basis of his debate points and would allow others to make their point in open debate. This is a sad time in our history Rest in piece Charlie Kirk.

I've posted a few pics of Trina's latest woodstove restoration project. This'n is a Timberline. It's now located in the new basement apartment for her momma. Here's a before during and after pic set.

Hello All! Added THREE tractors all at once yesterday(09/16/2025). Two model 854, and one model 855. The two 854 look pretty nice, but are not running right this minute --does not look like much more than a little tinkering/refreshing after sitting for a long time. The 855 was labelled a "parts" tractor, but except for it being Really well-used looking, it seems to be all there so I am not going to consider it out of play yet. The two 854's have rear discharge mower decks...one is a square style deck, the other the rounded style deck. I think it is really nice that all three are basically the same machine, separated by one year, yet completely different styles--the end of one era and the beginning of another I guess. There is an ID tag on the 855 (serial number 135166) but on the two 854 tractors, there is No tag under the steering like late models. Are the tags in a different place on older machines? Looking them over, I do not notice anything obvious. The 854 with the lower Kohler engine serial number has the round style mover deck, while the one with the slightly higher engine serial number has the square style deck. All for now! Be well and stay safe. [rayg]

My first thought when someone mentions a garden tractor is my grandfathers 1965 Big Ten, as a young kid I can vividly remember my dad and grandfather hauling fire wood out of the woods across the meadow to the where he stored and stacked his fire wood. I can remember when I got to drive the Big Ten for the first time, I was king and he was there to show me how to mow and how to change the oil and how to remove the deck and put the plow on to turn the garden. So I was set on a mission to find a Big Ten. He sold his and upgraded to a 716. I tried to search for his but I got to two owners than it just disappeared. So I found this one in Erie, Pa. I dragged it home and showed him what I got I was so proud of myself for finding it and getting it running, I was able to get him on the tractor at 90 and he had a huge smile and talked about that tractor and memories he had. It is always amazing to me the attachment me have to just a simple little tractor. I was not able to get a picture of him back on a Big Ten, I made a promise to myself to redo this little tractor and show him but I didn’t make it. So it sat in my shed for a couple of years and now I’m ready to get this done. Started the tear down and these tractors are a lot more complex than wheel horses. I really enjoy the simplicity of wheel horse. I guess that is why wheel horse is so popular they are easy to work on.

Was talking to a good friend of mine last weekend at the coffee shop we meet up at every weekend, his son (also a good friend of mine) sadly passed away about three months ago, so he has been busy settling all of that. Anyway he brought it up to me last weekend that he was ready to sell some things, and was wondering if I might be interested in the camper his son had. We have been talking about buying one for a while, for years I have attended various tractor shows and just camped in a tent for the weekend, or a whole week in the case of our show that’s right around the corner. Never has bothered me to sleep in a tent, but Courtney can’t stand sleeping in a tent and informed me after our show last year that if she was going to go this year we were either renting a motel room for a week or buying a camper. That combined with the fact that I knew Rick was going through a rough enough time and not wanting him to have to deal with all the tire kickers and idiots that come with selling something these days, I went ahead and wrote him a check for it this morning. It’s a 2006 Forest River Wildwood LE 27’. We went and picked it up tonight after work, needs some cleaning from sitting for a while, Courtney is going to start on that tomorrow while I put 4 new tires on it and check bearings and all that good stuff before we drag it 100 miles to the show grounds next weekend. Will get more pictures of the inside tomorrow. Almost forgot the free boat that came with it too, he told me to get it out of there as well, no title and the floor is pretty well rotted out, but has a lot of good scrap aluminum in the framework, and two good pontoons I’m going to try and sell to someone wanting to build a floating dock. All I really wanted or had a use for was the trailer. Offered to buy it from him but he insisted that I drag it out to the farm and dispose of it.

I came back with more than I left with at the Meet and Greet…. This time it’s an early 80’s C-85 with a K181 engine in a box and no transmission. But if you’ll remember back in May, I bought a trailer and truck bed full of parts and the C-141 Frankenstein from @ebinmaine. Well, there was an 8 speed trans that went with it. That went into the C-85 this afternoon. I have a 16hp Kohler K341 that came from a RV Generator that needs some small modifications to work.That is the engine that will probably go in it. I also FSAG mocked it up for Side shot Saturday and Sunday. More later…

No matter your beliefs, no matter what culture or lifestyle- No one deserves to die for what they say. We have alot to reflect upon at this time. Emotions are running high and the shock of horrible events doesn't ever really go away, whether 24 years ago or yesterday. I pray that God will be with us all. Regardless of your beliefs, it's clear more than ever that we need it.

Celebrated on September 17, Constitution Day, also known as Constitution and Citizenship Day, honors the document that guarantees Americans their essential rights. Since its ratification in 1787, the Constitution of the United States has served as the basis for all U.S. laws. Our Founding Fathers framed the Constitution carefully, distributing power between three branches of government. The Constitution outlines the government’s powers, the limitations on those powers, and the rights of citizens. It also outlines an amendment process for making changes in the future. At the 1787 Constitutional Convention, delegates from twelve of the thirteen new states gathered to draft the document that would serve as the basis of all future U.S. law. Delegates at the Convention had two options for setting up the framework of the new legislative branch. The Virginia Plan, predictably supported by larger states, called for representation based on population. The competing New Jersey Plan called for equal representation for each state. The two-house solution known as the Great Compromise combines aspects of both plans and is still in use today. The Constitution also outlines the responsibilities and powers of the judicial and executive branches, how the President is elected, and other nitty-gritty details. In 1940, Congress and the President passed a resolution creating “I Am an American Day,” observed on the third Sunday in May. In 1952, the holiday was renamed to “Constitution Day” and moved to September 17, the day in 1787 that the Constitution was signed. More than 50 years later in 2004, Congress once again changed the name of the holiday to Constitution Day and Citizenship Day.

All six of my Wheel Horse RJs out for some fresh air today! 1958 and 1959s. Wheel Horse made about 24,000 in those two years and $2.5 million in profit- enough to buy and build a modern factory on south side of South Bend, Indiana on Ireland Road!

Since I got some new Cadillacs I don't need to wear glasses anymore. Now in the shop everyone should wear safety glasses. Well yesterday while wire wheeling the gasket surfaces on tranny halves a bristle came off and headed strait for my face. Missed the eye by an inch and wasn't wearing any protection. No pics or this would have been in bumps and bruises. What's worse is @Achto gave me a real nice set he gets from work. He works in a very industrial environment. Says they got safety machines there that dispense them and gloves and such. He is allowed one a week and just has to swipe his ID to get them. Best part is they have cheaters built right in in different strengths. So SWMBO marches me right out to the truck where she left them and makes me wear them. She says just because protection is no longer needed on the night stand ... and something about Red Ryder and yer gonna poke an eye out. Now I imagine you can get them cheap in the jungle but I like Dan's price ... clean the machine out Dan I'll have them laying every where!!!

Well I didn’t make bread or pancakes but I did make progress. I got all the roof metal on. Just need to trim the ends a little bit. Wasn’t too bad. I ordered the metal 2” longer in case I had a bunch of sawtoothing on the ends from being out of square. I was a 3/16” off across 36’. Not bad for a regular joe.

@Bar Nuthin @SylvanLakeWH the chickens and cats are so cross with me right now, they aren’t laughing. Cats haven’t been out since Monday, chickens have been cooped up for 3 weeks! No poopin’ or scratchin’ allowed on my new mud!

Got a few in the new workshop space.

Funny you should post this @ClassicTractorProfessor ! My wife and I just bought a 27’ Forest River too! We got it in August and have used it three times already. Here’s our first trip to the ocean on Eastern Long Island. It’s a short trip from home,20-30 minutes but felt like a real getaway! Have to air down to 15psi in the truck and trailer or you will get stuck in the soft sand.

Uncle Sam Day is observed on September 13 every year. The day commemorates the man behind the iconic image which is synonymous with the United States government. The fascinating nickname for the United States government came to be on September 13, 1766. Uncle Sam is as famous as the stars and the stripes and the eagle that is often used to represent the nation of America. Uncle Sam also makes for a fascinating case study of how an image can successfully represent a bunch of ideals and aspirations. Uncle Sam Day has become a permanent symbol of American strength and idealism.

Picked up the Work Horse tonight. Runs great & everything works. Needs a good cleaning & definitely a seat. I'll go thru it & change fluids, etc. Time to find a complete 2stage blower now

With a ton of other projects going on, I haven't been able to spend as much time as I would like to explore this forum or work on my 522xi or my recently-acquired GT18, but I'm trying to squeeze in some time here and there. In between other tasks, I'm 'rejuvenating' the mower deck that came with the GT18. One of the steps involved repairing the anti-scalp wheels and gage/adjusting plates. The axles for the anti-scalp wheels were both badly worn. Here's one of the old axles after grinding off the weld and popping it out of the plate: I ordered some high-strength shoulder bolts, which I welded onto the old gage/adjusting plates. Also some new wheels. The dimensions of the shoulder bolts worked out very well. I did had to shave about .020" off the hub of the plastic wheels to get a perfect fit without having to extend the shoulder of the bolts. The wheels spin freely with the lock nuts nice and tight against the shoulder. To lubricate the axles, I sprayed the axles and the inside of the wheel hubs with dry graphite lubricant. It's messy stuff to use, but after it dries it doesn't attract dust. Another little task was to clean up the GT18 headlights. I polished and waxed the lens, which was pretty dull and a bit yellow. I think it came out pretty good. The reflective plating of the headlight reflector was rather deteriorated in places, so I cleaned it up and sprayed it with Rust-Oleum "Cast Coat Aluminum" engine enamel...some kind of ceramic coating. It's quite reflective, seems to adhere well, and it appears to be quite tough, so I might not spray a clear coat over it...haven't decided yet. I also installed some very bright white LED bulbs. I might try some other LED bulbs later, as I have quite an assortment left over from experimenting with lights on another vehicle project. I just ordered more of the clips that secure the lens to the reflector, but they're on backorder, so I might not see them for a while. In the meantime, four clips will have to do. If they never show up, I guess I can make some new clips from strips of spring steel (anneal, bend, temper). Tomorrow I'll be busy programming our new standby generator and backfilling the trench I dug for the propane line, so won't be able to play with my toys tractors.

World Barber Day is celebrated on September 16 every year, join this celebration if you enjoy making others look beautiful! Did you know barbers in the Middle Ages were not only skilled at haircuts and wet shaves, but also at pulling teeth, dressing wounds, and performing operations! These ‘barber surgeons’ were known for much more than just styling men’s hair. They even founded the first barbers’ organization in France in 1096. World Barber Day celebrates this sense of community — it’s a demonstration of how ‘ordinary’ barbers can contribute to extraordinary differences. World Barber Day emphasizes how — in just one week — every barber can make a real and significant difference in the world.

On the return trip from a weekend leave when I was in the Navy I would stop about an hour away from the base and park by the pumps of a closed gas station to take a nap. They opened at 6:00 am so that was my wake-up call in time to make morning muster on the ship.

I was messing around with the English wheel today and decided to run a panel on it to try it out. Just a little time made a big difference. After the DR releases me I think I will be able to get it pretty straight.

You can find them in the electrical section for conduit clamps

Took the "show seat " off of HHHOOOWWWAAARRRDDD!!! and installed a work seat for fall and winter duty

So you can leave 103 pairs at Jim's door step. That unprotected well worn out wire wheel and flannel sleeve are itchin for a fight!

But in Kevin's case it'll be chickens...

Now that you clowns got properly ... EB would say it's all good... Casing down to 245 ft. with the screen. It was interesting that he put the screen down to the bottom then pulled the casing back up so the screen hangs out the bottom of the casing. Would have liked to see how he cut off the pipe and drive coupling to final grade but had a doctors appt. He said it not a great well but not a bad one. Water up in the casing to about 14 ft. from the top. Today I noticed water dripping out of the conduit power connection and at times a decent stream. Maybe they did hit a artesian ?? Gotta like their custom caps! Now to wait on the pump installers. Can't wait for seat time on the FEL to move the dirt he pulled out and put the lawn back together.

Well its 99.9% done a few little small things

Things went great yesterday! Rylee has been whooping me in the gym, and I’m sore… but we got work to do! A handful of years back now, @Achto had a wonderful string of luck on the plow fields. His wallet and phone were both plowed under, on separate occasions. It seems the joke was that he’d have to plow naked from now on to not loose anything. I told the boys via text yesterday that it was National get naked and pour concrete and take selfies day Sorry @SylvanLakeWH for the show…

I picked this up today while I was on marketplace looking for just any aerator. I've had a couple in the past but not built like this one. I actually need one this time and lucked out finding this one. I've seen a lot of Wheelhorse implements but never seen a spiker aerator.

@Bow_Extreme knows much more about the details of the promoters, and I missed a good majority of the show, we were just cruising through town on the nut for ice cream! There was a full row of hyper cars that I missed, but was very intrigued by the IH truck!

Ed, that's to allow room for the Firemen!!

I see lots of terrible parking in the course of my job, mostly by entitled people who are too lazy to walk more than three feet to the door, so the block the door to the shop. But we don't have gas pumps. I think the worst one I've seen with gas pumps, and it was so much entitled as it was stupid, was this one guy at Sam's. He had one of those push-button start cars (don't get me started on how dumb those are). Anyway, he dropped his girlfriend off over at the store across the plaza and went to get gas. He shut the car off, pumped his gas, then remembered the key was in her purse.

National Eat A Hoagie Day takes place on September 14 every year and we’ve got the best tips to help you celebrate. A hoagie is a type of submarine sandwich or a long bread roll filled with meat, cheese, and veggies. Whether you call them submarine sandwiches, subs, torpedoes, po’boys, grinders, heroes, bombers, or submarines, these heavyweight sandwiches will always be a crowd favorite.

After unloading the suv and big trailer this morning and swapping tires on Cinnamon Horse, I finally got the chance to let that beast work a little. I hooked up the recently rebuilt pole trailer. Headed out to the forest. Loaded up with several hundred pounds of hardwood. Here we have a BBT in its natural environment. And here we have a momma in camouflage.... In other news.... Yesterday I picked up this pair of steel weights from @Sparky Today I wire brushed them and got some primer and painting done. Cottage white.

Landfill score, someone had discarded the cast iron frame from a Singer sewing machine. Brought it home then cut the trade mark logo from the casting. Gave one to a buddy his wife wants him to clean up the rough edges, she wants to use it in the kitchen to set a hot pot onto. I'm going to steal her idea, clean it up then gift it to a girl friend.

Awesome Bryce! Glad to hear from you, hope all is well! We are planning to upgrade to a different camper soon. Flights are booked to hopefully get it next week! It’s only 2100 miles away, what could possibly go wrong? Instead of pulling the 5th wheel toy hauler, we plan to get an enclosed trailer to haul our toys. 8.3 Cummins and 6 speed Allison, new tires are on order in Reno as well.

This is the @roadapples legacy tractor that I gave to my brother in law. The cylinder bore is glazed and worn, and the rod is seized right tight. I picked up this rope @Pullstart 12 hp Kohler a couple months ago, and have wondered if it’ll fire. One thing’s for sure… it needs a muffler! It’s been far too long since I tinkered on a tractor. Momma’s in the big city with her girls, I’m playing in the shop.

I'm a new member. Joust purchased my first Wheel Horse Tractor. It's a C-175 Twin Automatic. The package came with a Montgomery Wards Loader attached and operating., an unknown back blade, an unknown disc, a Wheel Horse 37-inch roto tiller, a Wheel horse cycle bar mower, a 42-inch Wheel Horse belly mower, and a cub cadet dump trailer. I was told it was a 1981 model. The ID tag has 95-42MR02 37519 9178

Game changer no good for menial tasks, but good for getting around the garden.... suffering from a lot of understeer

I had this one many years ago picked it up from Rick. Had it shipped up from his house enjoy the picture.

Been in the fuel construction industry my whole life, both ground up builds and maintenance. Ive seen it ALL. Been ran over by many people, had people park and wait for fueling next to dispensers still on pallets...Had people pull sideways between the fuel lanes. But contrary to popular belief of self serve fueling, NJ seldom has this problem due to full service fueling. When there is no need to exit the vehicle to start the dispenser, the lazy person will typically wait until fueling is done then drive the 50 ft to the spot closest to the convenience store. A good fuel attendent not only pumps the gas for you, but also keeps the fuel lanes moving.

Cleaning is done. Only other issue I found besides the busted toilet and peeling floor was a bit of seepage coming out of the water heater. Tank looks pretty rusty. Will have to replace that too, luckily where we are taking it next week we don’t need the water hooked up. Have full shower and bathroom facilities right around the corner from where we will be parked at. Fixing the toilet and water heater will be a good project this winter when I get a spot cleaned out in the shop for it.

Couple of full line side shots from the Meet n Greet in N Berwick yesterday.

It's alive! Installed the coil I received from @Easton Rich, cleaned the carburetor, and ran the starter. It fired right up.

The image in the window is a painting. The one on the street is real.