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I bought this in New Carlisle, OH from a John Deere guy. He didn't know what the big fuss was when my Wheel Horse guys gathered around and started to google over it! haha!! It's a little sweetie! Will be an easy restoration for me this winter.

Well dad and I need another project like we need a hole in our head but what the heck, you only live once! This past Sunday we finally made the trip over in to Ohio to pick up our new Wheel Horse Hauler. We grabbed ourselves a 1953 Ford F500. This is the last year for the flathead V8 and it sports a 4 speed tranny with a top speed of about 48 mph. The truck has the 12 foot script flat bed on the back and the wood is still pretty solid. Everything works as it should minus the cab lights. Those need to be rewired which will happen down the road. All 6 tires are in great shape and it has minimal rust issues.....it has some but nothing too crazy. The previous owner believes the odometer to be correct at 42K original miles. We are currently experiencing an overheating issue which I believe a few radiator flushes will cure. The thermostat seems to be working fine as it won't overheat at an idle. The future of this truck will be..............well that is to be determined. Right now we are going to enjoy it and gather up some things to make it a bit better. This will be a local swap meet and show hauler. Not wanting to travel too far with it as it isn't going to win any races. Here it is.......

Like this? Yeah... they're out there. As for the tiller.... I've been happy with my Wheel Horse one. Digs like a champ.

Hi Everyone, I was at a local fall festival and decided to bring some tractors for fun lol. Here are some pictures. Hope you like them!

Ken- It is the only help I can get around this place.. He really is. I told him I was tired while taking a break for dinner and said I think I am done for today. He said "I will do the hard work, you can stay on the tractor"... What a great kid. We worked last night until we ran out of fuel in the tamper. First thing this morning he said "Dad, we need to go get more gas".

Well I must admit that I have dropped the ball on updates. For our loyal followers, we are still plugging away and making progress. The end is in sight!!!!! We managed to meet the entire summer and only took a couple weeks off. We didn't miss a beat once school began again in the middle of August. Things have been very hectic on my end and I apologize for not sharing the updates that many of you look forward to on a weekly basis. I will try and pick up the slack! We have been lucky enough to show off our projects in two parades, received many compliments, and a group of kids that don't understand the word "quit" Thank you to everyone that has supported us......who would have ever thought things would have turned out the way they have. We are truly blessed! Here is one picture I snapped tonight. The past two days the tractors have been on display in the front entry way of the school so the entire student body can admire the craftsmanship of the kids. We will be rolling them back in to the club barn tomorrow to work on getting these closer to completion. I will try and get some other pictures posted soon! Here you go...........

Found a tractor listed on CL with snow cab and two stage blower, less than 100 hours on unit. Older gent moving from WI to AZ, he had purchased new for $5500 in '96 per dealer receipt, owner's manual, and service records. It had never spent a day outside of his garage. Thought I had uncovered The Great Find, and started dreaming about owning a near mint show tractor driving over to his house, caller #1 baby! As we were opening his garage, he first mentioned that it had gotten "a little rusty" from the salt on his driveway. Soon discovered that would be like saying Dolly Parton is a "little busty." There wasn't a piece of tin on it that wasn't covered with rust and bulged up paint scabs over top of rust; it had even undermined the decals. It started okay, but moved really slow even at full throttle. That is the second 520H I've passed over that went really slow even pushing the hydro lever forward, and I thought they were supposed to go even faster than my 8 speeds? He said; "I didn't bother to wash it because I didn't know anybody collected Wheel Horse." So, for lack of a hosing off each Spring, that ultra low hour garage queen was ruined by rust... I was distressed, and I figured that after the rust pits the metal that bad, and the chrome air cleaner is solid rust and even the hood louvers are all rusty, it wasn't worth even $1K to me. I suppose some would have parted it out and made money, but I was too disappointed and figured maybe someone better equipped could restore it... Sorry if this is posted in the wrong section. "wyzmark"

Was thinking of different ideas for a front weight on my 633 and this is what I came up with. Simple yet effective. It weighs 40lbs and it's made from flat steel stock and concrete filled lolli columns. Just had them around the house. The best part is if I need more I can jus weld on what I need.

Thought I'd use my very original first name nobody else here has.....

I think I like original colors better.... less to distract from the Wheel Horses that will be on the back of it! The bright red would be a great contrast against the truck and really stand out!

Love the older trucks. I've wanted a '48-'51 since I was about 11 or 12 years old. My Uncle next door had one and let me drive it around the yard. Then one day coming back from town he let me drive on our road the rest of the way home. I was in high cotton that day.. Red would look awesome on that ride!

Thanks everyone for the very nice comments. We are gearing up for another night of club. We will be moving the machines back out to the club barn and continue on with our journey. It looks as though we will be adding a couple of members starting next week. I am wanting to fill the vacant spots that were left by the students who are now 7th graders. They will get the crash course and will start disassembly on the tractor the kids won during the essay contest. The kids that have been previously in the club will continue on with the tractors that you have been following. Exciting times and a lot going on!

PAINT IT RED.......

Here we are last week at the Homecoming parade showing off our projects!

Wade, it would have been good for someone who already had a 520. The motor was noisy (very heavy rust on the muffler) but ran well, the cab was white/black and mostly orange colored and did not cover the engine enough to be "heated", but the glass window and wiper blade were nice. The seat was untorn, and the wheel weights were perfect. The back of the blower had been rattle canned with runs and paint over the decals, and the big decal on the impeller body had the Toro half flapping loose. The auger and main body were very rusty, but I like the mid mount design and it would have worked to throw snow I think. The steering had a big "dead spot" on center, is that common with the gear reduction set up or was it wear? He never had a deck on it, so the hours were low, but given the choice, I've learned to go for the mowing tractor with more hours but no salt damage. Probably Martin the indefatiguable could restore it, but the original factory magic was forever gone. So rest easy, you didn't miss out. Thanks for your replies, all.

I am a newbie to the whole tractor game. I have a 1975 Cub Cadet with a blown Kohler K301 that I plan on rebuilding. That will probably be a total rebuild, engine, transmission, paint the frame and redecal to make it look brandy-new. It is for my VT property, mainly to mow the lawn and clear the access road. Yesterday I picked up (for free!) a 1964 WheelHorse 854 with a Kohler K181S that the owner told me was in running condition. I plan on giving it an oil-change and cleaning out the fuel tank this weekend and seeing how it runs. It is rusty, so I plan on taking it apart and painting at least the hood and fenders, if not the frame and everything. It depends on how well the engine runs on whether or not I am rebuilding it. Still haven't decided about the transmission. Otherwise, just here to introduce myself. -Jeff

Here is a series of photos showing how I mounted three pairs of new tires on new rims for my Gravely Walk-Behind tractors. Instead of using screwdrivers, etc., to align the rims, I made a jig using 3/8"-16 threaded rod, 3/8"-16 coupler nuts, and 3/8"-16 T-Nuts to hold them in-place. Apply a liberal amount of talcum powder to the tube and inside of the tire. Use Ruglyde to lubricate the bead and rim. With this arrangement I mounted four 4.80-8 and two 16X6.50-8 tires in about two hours. It went quicker with each one. You do need to be careful not to pinch the tube though which is probably the most time consuming part.

Before... After... Not too bad for a first tractor resto for a guy in his mid 20's. I still need a few miscellaneous parts to finish it up. This is next...

I agree. I saw that it had been repainted which is why I assumed it was going to be a restore. But pictures don't always show enough. It looks great as is but since it's not original a full restoration wouldn't take the "it's only original once" away.

I guess a closer look does reveal a paint job...but still a very nice looking Tractor

My friends used to say I was nuts. For that matter, they still do. I thought the name suited me.

I found a couple more photos from the recent Mentone Swap meet and Show that I thought were worth posting!

nice looking tractors, bet they got alot of attention

Well now that's something.

I promised my four year old that Friday he can help me work on the tractor. I'll snap some pics then and start a thread. I am looking forward to some good advice to get this thing running smoothly! Thanks for the warm welcomes!

From the 2001 Wheel Horse "Drive & Mower Belt Usage Charts": Belt #1594 is 107.21" in length, 1/2" wide and 5/16" thick. The Wheel Horse belts have the exact side bevel/angle and should last a lot longer. Glen

Beautiful little tractor!!! Very nice shape.

To explain what happens here...the belt guard has some tabs welded or fastened on the inside...when you depress the clutch pedal, the tension pulley puts slack in the belt...this slack is funneled toward the engine pulley enabling the engine pulley to turn freely while the belt stops rotating...this means the the input pulley on the transmission stops turning and you can shift gears with out grinding. Try this...it takes 2 people. With the guard off, take 2 screwdrivers, and place the shafts of the screwdrivers (one on top of the belt about 2" toward the trans from the engine pulley and the other one lifting the bottom of the belt on the underside in about the same distance)...start the horse, while holding the screwdrivers in place, the 2nd person is to push in the clutch (while the trans is in neutral) and see where these screwdrivers need to be to funnel the slack so that the belt stops turning. This will give you an idea where the tabs need to be. Here are some pictures of what Walfish did for a guy at the show this last June. You may be able to form these tabs with out the guard, but it would be better to position the tabs in the guard if possible. This will fix your problem. I know this is not the set up you have, but the idea is the same. You will have to do some fabrication, but should not be that hard...the screwdriver thing will put you in the ballpark. Hope this helps. You will also need the right length belt that allows all this to happen...sounds like you already have a couple of choices.

foozerush= Foozeball or fooseball, you know that table soccer game in the dark corner of your favorite watering hole with 2 or 4 guys around kicking a ball with those yellow guys on sticks.... I've been told I'm pretty good at it..... Rush= That awesome trio from Canada . Huge fan. Sometimes I have 2112 on the end and that gives it away. Gregg in Indiana Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Prondzy short for Prondzinski nickname from highschool

Great little score you made Kate! Have fun with it!

Purdue, Pitt, Nwestern, wisconsin, MSU, SYR, Navy, Michigan, Minny, Illinois, PSU, Mizzou, Nebraska

That truck is awesome Scott! No doubt that is the original mileage on the odometer. I'd leave it just the way it is myself but do everything you said in your last post. Way back in the 80's I worked for an electrical company in town. All of their trucks were very old and they had a few just like yours. They were all in good shape, restored in house with nice new red paint on most of them with hand brushed lettering and old school pinstripes. The old guy that did the lettering was an artist! I used to drive the oldies there all the time, I will say you don't wanna get to close to that top speed for long durations or bottom end go kaboomie... Stick to the back roads and enjoy the ride. The owners son blew the engine in the 53 F-500 bucket truck in a hurry to get back to the shop and sadly that was the end of that truck.

Looks entirely too original to ruin with a restoration.

Very nice tractor I'm looking forward to your restoration.

Yeah, 2 tone red + ivory with stainless simulators and stacks.

What a great boy you have.

Some times its just better to close your eyes and walk away... If the tractor was that bad I can only imagine what the underside of his car's look like! I have a late 80's Chevy custom van in nice condition. At the very first hint that they will be bombing the roads with that liquid calcium my van gets parked till spring time. I sacrifice my Jeep Grand Cherokee.

Good time of year to start stocking the freezer.

It's what the guy's named me at work to many years ago to remember why. The two I's had to be added for another account. Same name I use for everything because I will forget anything else.

Not sure if I did this right but thought some may not have ever seen a Wheel Horse with a track. Found it in c/l.

I have to say it's so nice having a good MIG welder again, as much as I've liked using an Arc welder for many a year, it just can't produce the heat and strength I need for this project... More mounts almost made up.. And tweaked a bit to give a bit more space around the starter motor.. They bolt here.. The only trouble with recycling steel is it needs a good clean up first.. This was part of the filming trailer I built ages ago but never used! Cleaned up and welded on.. More to come in a short while, I need some food!

Been my nickname for a long time. Went to get personalized license plate for the bike, Burly had already been taken by some woman in Cleveland who already had the plate, so we improvised, came up with Brrly1 and thats me and has been since I landed the first computer that my kid sister gave me, with her thinking I needed to be knowledgeable about computers. So here I am Brrly1 P.S. Some woman in Cleveland with a nickname of burly scares the daylights out of me just thinking about it.YIKES!!

Hey Guys, thanks for the warm welcome already! Back by my home computer for a few moments and so... This is a slide of my mom cutting the lawn with it in about 1978. Love that plaid mom! You gotta love slides (a quick observation will note that I accidently ran this one backwards on the convertor and so everything is a mirror image of what it should be!!!). It has the timed rear discharge deck and dad worked as a service technician for an IH farm implement dealer in those days and so it has a Farmall Cub muffler on it. Had a straight pipe when he first got it and I think he was starting to go deaf! :eusa-doh:More pics to follow..

Looks pretty cool Ed , but too much of that and I'll have to come for your Wheel Horse man card...

I wonder if the site admins could work it out for silent auction bids to be placed here on the Square? I think it would do well.

do you get beaten much? my wife is terrible...... the abuse i have to put up with....... more videos are on there way....... mike, the choke didn't make any difference any time i tried it and that was my first clue that maybe it wasn't a mixture issue....... the second was the fact that i could steady the governor arm and get it to behave itself..... as far as the belt guide, there is a lower one bolted to the engine plate on 416 #3 that the engine came off, so i will swap that in asap and see what difference it makes, i think i have a idler with a bad bearing as well........ back to the engine....... this hunting crap was really starting to get to me...(actually i was going to type something else, but karl would be on my back) i did a little manual reading, and then went and did some investigating....... in the manual....... so i disconnected the linkage and arm and pushed both toward the carb and they didn't line up with anything. so i disconnected it...... this is the linkage that was on the tractor, when i compared it with the older style thick linkage that mike sent me with the carb and other parts, the bends were all wrong. so i swapped out the arm with the older style and lined up perfectly with the middle hole, stole a clip off the linkage on my t260 sitting in the corner and hooked it up...... then i checked where the sensitivity spring was at. when i put this engine back together i left everything where it was at. the spring had spent some time in the hole it was in as you could see wear in the hole. but according to the manual the baseline was the 3rd hole and not the second one that it was in. so changed it to the 3rd...... then i kicked it in the guts and guess what?

Jason, Thanks for posting! Very interesting as well as the comments that followed. Dave