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kj4kicks

Picked up a 1968 Charger 12

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kj4kicks

Hi Guys, went and picked up a trailer load of goodies from my local dealer's private stash. What was supposed to be a C-120 turned out to be a Charger 12. It has C-120 decals on it, but the number is 1-7231, meaning it's a '68 Charger 12 Automatic.

The original plan was to use the hydro out of it to fix up the old C-160. But now that I see it, I'm not so sure. It is pretty complete except for the engine and headlight assembly. Looks like something too rare to part out. Any suggestions?

Anyone interested in buying it? I can get some pics loaded in a day or two.

Thanks,

Eldon.

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Rollerman

Eldon good deal...seems you have graduated Wheel Horse scavenger class :D

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TT

Don't worry about it being rare, Eldon. I have pieces of 4 or 5 Chargers here and trip over the stuff on a regular basis. It seems like there's still a bunch of them being used, including a '68 or '69 across the road from where I work.

Use the transaxle if you need it, and save the hood if it's decent.

About the only other things worth saving (meaning: keep inside somewhere) would be the steering wheel (if it's good), the front wheels, and the implement lift stuff. The rest of it's worth about 25 cents a pound. :D

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Rollerman

Eldon didn't mean to get off topic, but I do agree with Terry...there were many/many of that style of tractor made.

If it's clean & you like ...save it.

But the early long frames are pretty common.

All in all though sounds like a good find.

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kpinnc

Looks like something too rare to part out. Any suggestions?

Ah-YEAH! I got a suggestion that may be better than the other opinions on this thread... :P

Even a "common" Wheel Horse down here isn't so common. If it gets in you way Eldon, I'll take it off of your hands! :D

And it's an old automatic too? I do NOT think I'd scrap it. There are parts there you can't replace.

Kevin

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nylyon

Did the Chargers have the hydraulic lift as well, or did they have manual lifts like the C-120's had? Eldon, you sure have amassed a large collection of horses in a short amount of time! Looking forward to seeing the new ones!

Karl with Horse envy in NY

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kj4kicks

Thanks for the input, guys. The trans is stuck in full speed forward. I think it's just the shift plate on the front of the trans. The hood is pretty nice, and reminds me of the 1077 hood, except this one has lights.

Also in the mix was some sheet metal from a CS or SC series (cheapy WH). It looks like what I need to rebuild the C-160 that sacrificed it's metal for the C-520 project. I would still needs a trans (or parts), but I'm leaning towards that path. The guy I talked to last week had a Sundstrand laying on his garage floor.

So Kevin, when I head to Atlanta in the spring, can you meet me near I-85 to pick it up?

Eldon.

PS. Sorry Karl, manual lift :D But I did see a C-160 lift valve on ebay for you!

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combatmp29r

Karl the charger 12 had an electric lift available for them, but I don't know of any hydralic lifts for them.

Kevin, rare they are not up here. I have a buddy in Indiana who has 8 of them. Buys a new one about every year. It may be his favorite model of WH :P

He has I think 35 horses all togethor though. Was 37 but I talked him out of his only 2 verticals :D

I'm sorry to hear horses are that scarse down south guess I wont get my hopes up about my brother in NC finding many for me :(

Joel

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kpinnc

So Kevin, when I head to Atlanta in the spring, can you meet me near I-85 to pick it up?

Eldon, if you're talking the whole thing, We can definately figure something out! Just give me a heads up!

Joel, there are a few tractors down here. I looked at a C-160 today that is for sale. The guy has a very reasonable price on it, given it's condition. Unfortunately, Christmas wiped me out for a few months.

If your brother looks, he'll find some. Just nothing like you guys have up there.

Kevin

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oldandred

Eldon you can always use the spare parts i have a few raider 9 and 10,s and one 12 nothing to talk about buit there part tractors Im always needing a part or two.

i never get rid of any thing untill its picked real clean may be thats why Im always triping over parts. :D

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Sparky

Hey Jerry!! Good to see ya here. Welcome aboard.

Mike.......(Tony's neighbor in Connecticut)

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TT

Karl the charger 12 had an electric lift available for them, but I don't know of any hydralic lifts for them.

The Chargers were capable of supporting the hydraulic lift set up, they just needed the correct valves in the pump block on the Sundstrand. I was actually going to put hydraulics on my tricycle Charger so I could build a "mini" 3 point hitch but I ran out of time before the local show in September. Now I'm not going to mess with it.

P.S.>> An Electro 12 is basically a Charger 12 with hydraulics and an electric PTO clutch.

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nylyon

I suspected that would be the case. Last year I passed on a clean Electro 12, looked awsome, not sure why I passed on it, guess I was hung up on a C-Series

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T-Mo

Jerry,

Welcome the site. Glad to have you here.

Eldon,

Sounds like you made good on your scavenger hunt to your local dealer's stash. I wish I had more to add, but I'm still not as Wheel Horse savvy as some here are.

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nylyon

PS. Sorry Karl, manual lift :P But I did see a C-160 lift valve on ebay for you!

I'm the high bidder :D

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WheelHorse_of_course

These appear to have been fairly common.

They are VERY similar to C120s but have a few differences:

PTO Engagement lever is different

Front hitch was optional and very rare.

They have the Push-pull throttle and choke. However many have been upgrades to lever style since the push-pull wear out and stop locking.

By default they use a different mule drive (buil;t into the mid mount) and decks from the C series, though often they have been upgraded.

Other than that, my 1969 Charger 12 is extremely similar to the 1976 C120 I once owned.

If you want an engine for it, I have a 1969 engine I would consider selling for cheap. Has a thrown rod, but is most likely rebuildable (rod let go at very low RPM). 1969 was the first year with a real starter vs starter generator. In NE Ohio.

BTW, Joes Power Equipment on Ebay has a Sundstand Hydro plus transaxle up for sale right now. They are somewhere in MI.

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TT

Front hitch was optional and very rare.

1969 was the first year with a real starter vs starter generator.

Up until 1970 (when the hood style was changed), these tractors used a different hood hinge that allows a 1973 & up front Attach-Matic hitch to be easily installed. I built one for my 1056 so I could use a 1983 42" mower deck on it. I would post a picture of the one I built, but I sold it to a guy who wanted to do the same thing to his Charger. The front axle pivot pin sticks through the hitch on the newer tractors and you can use that hole to line it up on the older tractors. Weld two pieces of 1/4" X 1 1/2" strap to the sides of the hitch, drill the holes to match the front two holes in the side of the tractor frame, bolt it fast, and hook up your belt tensioner, snow thrower, or whatever.

You can do the same with the 1970 to 1972 tractors, but you either have to cut the hood hinge brackets off and use the holes in the Attach-Matic hitch (like a C series) or you can cut out part of the newer hitch to clear the original hinges.

1968 was the first year for gear starters on the big block Kohlers. It was also a weird "changeover" year for some models. My 1968 Raider 12 originally had magneto ignition :D and some even had a rope pulley instead of the standard flywheel screen. (so you could pull start it if the battery was dead. :P )

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kj4kicks

Thanks for all the info guys! It does look just like the transition from the late 60's models, to the C series. Maybe that's where the "C" came from, short for "Charger" ?

I did get the 48" mower deck with it, but there is a hole on each side. Still fixable, but, well, you know.

It does have the same mounting setup as the old 1077, and the PTO setup is also the same.

I think this one will go down the road, maybe to Kevin's place.

Tim, (the dealer dude) is thinking about a price on another collection. A nice set of 3, really. A B-60, B-80, and B-100. The B-80 is missing a few parts, but the other 2 are complete, and all 3 are pretty nice. If the price is right, maybe I'll get them in a few weeks. They could all be easily ready by the June show.

Eldon... fingers crossed, but wallet is thin.....

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Rollerman

Eldon the B series are pretty similiar to the C series too.

Kind of a cheaper alternative, but gave nothing up in strength.

That B-60 is a neat one to have & an odd ball.

Don't see to many of the with the original K series in them any more...it's pretty much a "C 060" :D

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T-Mo

So much info here. Maybe we should include this in another "Pinned" thread similar to Karl's "300, 400 and 500 series differences" thread here at the top of this section. We could have a couple of them, "Short to Large Frame Differences" and "Differences between the Late '60's/Early '70's and the Letter Series", and maybe one more "Differences in the Letter Series". :D

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kj4kicks

Forgot to mention, he also has a 552 sitting there. Looks pretty complete, but needs restored. The grille has a few of the cross bars missing, and there is no seat. There is an engine on it, but I don't know enough about them to know if it's original.

He didn't know what to ask for it. I know it's tough without seeing pictures, but any offers?

Eldon.

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TT

I paid $150 for my 502. The hood and rear tires in this picture don't belong to it, (I temporarily borrowed the "good" parts for another tractor) and it had an electric start H60 from a newer WH on it that did run, but not well. (that's an HH60 on it now) I believe a 552 should have a Lauson HT55C engine.

9a1cd466.jpg

I'd say offer him $75.00 for it and see what happens. :D

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WheelHorse_of_course

1) A few more comments on the C120 and predecessors

All Chargers are Auto ~/= Cxxx Autos

All Raiders are manual ~/= Cxxx manual.

Note 100 percent sure of the Electro from that same period. I know there are Charger Electro's which are an electric PTO version of the Charger.

My "What Kind of Horse is Wheel Horse" Brochure (1964) lists the following:

1054

804/854

604/654

Lawn Ranger

I have individual Brochures from 1969 for the following:

Charger 9, 12 (Auto)

Raider 9, 12 ("6 speed")

Commando 6, 8 ("3 speed")

Lawn Ranger (6 HP, "3 speed", Recoil or Electric start available)

My "Wheel Horse Power" Brochure from 1972 List the following:

GT-14

Bronco 14

Charger 10, 12 (Auto)

Raider 8, 10, 12, 14 ("Six Speed")

Commando 800

800 Auto

Lawn Ranger

My 1974 "ABCD's of Tractoring" brochure lists the following:

D-160, 180, 200 (Auto)

C-100

C-120, 160 (Auto)

B-80, 100 (4 speed)

A-800 Ranger (this is a verticle shaft engine)

2) I doubt the C in C-xxx has any meaning. After all, this series has direct parents in both the Charger and Raider tractors.

3) IN the 1969 Brochures WH brags about the "Bendix type starter" and "transistorized" rectifier. Also, 1969 is the first year Kohler had an "Electronic Ignition" though WH does not brag about that per se.

Happy New Year :D

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CasualObserver

your 69 brochure is 68 not 69. I have the same one and four of the tractors out of it. The Raider and Charger 9s were only made in 68... in late 68 the hp rating on the HH100 motor changed to 10 and the model number was also changed to Raider 10 and Charger 10. There are even some Raider 10 and Charger 10s that were at the end of the 68 production year.

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kj4kicks

Got one picture of it before the battery died. Here you go....

Attached Image (Click thumbnail to expand)

post-3-1199550655.jpg

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