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Well, I am back. Trip wasn't a total bust. I came back with one. Most of what was there was junk. I did pass on a 1257 that was way over priced, and he had a couple of other rust buckets that were buried under tons of other stuff. Nothing out of the ordinary. No round hoods. There was what I think was a Porter Cable Moto Mow (rough) and lots of miscellaneous parts. What I did load up though was this 1976 B-60. Lots of painted-over rust, and bad paint job, but the sheet metal is pretty straight, and there is no rust-through. The engine turns, but is missing the gas lines from the pump to carburetor, and tank to pump. Recoil still works. And the curious thing on the back? I think the previous owner (not the current seller) used this tractor in parades, and carried his dog on the back. Anyway, it's a project tractor.

just in case anybody is wondering if there is any work going on here, rest assured the short lists are being whittled down to the quantity needed for both calendars. its been really hard to choose as all the pics are so good. i have tried to focus on getting some of the newer members tractors in the calendars as much as possible and also try to not leave out the members who have gone to a lot of trouble submitting so many different pics to choose from. there are some of you who will be disappointed, can't help that. theres just only so many spots available. I'm just glad that i can stop at 2 calendars and not have to reduce the number to one calendars worth, now that would be very difficult! there is also no way i can justify having any of mine in there, so don't expect to see something from me as space is at such a premium....... i hope all of you can understand that this is such a difficult job to decide who's makes it and who's doesn't. i also have my favorites that i would really like to see in this years, but many of them didn't make it as i think its important to have some fresh 'faces' this time around as some of you, myself included, have made the last few calendars....... probably still a few days off getting the calendars finalized, i realize time is ticking and its important to get them done so you guys can get them in a timely fashion......

If it was mine....I would clean it up, put in the living room in front of the TV. get rid of my Lazy Boy and sit on it to watch TV. Then when I was ready for a beer, I would start it up and drive it to the refrigerator. The wife would probably like that cause she hates getting up to get me beers. Congrats Jason!!!

Well I for one am going to go against the conventional line of thought about putting it on a pedestal inside a glass vacuum. These tractors are no longer being made so my line of thinking is why not use it for it's intended purpose. How many of you members would love to have the opportunity to fuel up a NOS Wheel Horse and be the first to take her for a spin just as she came from the factory? As a Wheel Horse owner I can think of nothing better to fulfill me in this hobby. I can't subscribe to the mindset of "Save a Horse, Ride a Lawn Boy! Get on that Horse and ride!

Well I pondered this for a year now and I will be making a trip before the 1st of the year to go grab this nos 42 lse in ct y all already heard about. Not looking for negative comments Thanks once it's cleaned up pictures to follow.

STARTED THE RESTORATION ON MY 1992 310-8 LITTLE EARLY BECAUSE OF THE SNOW OUTSIDE. THIS IS MY 42" DECK I JUST FINISHED. I HAD NO HOLES JUST BAD PAINT, REPAINTED IT WITH RUSTOLEUM REGAL RED.

Here's some last night pics.....

Less than 10 miles from home and I couldn't resist, been wanting one of these with the 16hp Kohler for some time. A little rough around the edges but with a little work everything will clean up just fine. Probably next winter's project.

Here's more pics today one of these pictures better be on a wheel horse calendar if not on selling all my Wheel horses and buying John deere just kidding lol. We finally ended up with 70 inches

A few things I have made for work colleagues,leaving / retiring. These are made from worn / broken parts from machines we build. My Assistant

Craig is spot on..... i think some of you guys with 'not so calendar worthy' (not my opinion, yours.......) just need to think out of the box a little more. i think some of you will really be surprised at some of the tractors that i picked, they might not be the most popular, had the most money spent on them (or any money at all), or be the shiniest ones either....... i am looking at the character of the tractor, the setting of the shot, i picked most of them just on emotion alone, some models i wouldn't ever own myself, but i found the shot interesting. and there are only so many spots, that has made it hard because i like many more of the pics than the number i have got them down to. and i still have some more to sacrifice yet.......

With all the great tractors out there, all that matters is there is a calendar made to enjoy them.

If he thinks that you better get a new mechanic.

Watched this on ebay and it didn't sell, so I met him after and offered a good bit lower and got to bring her home....happy and runs like a charm! Anybody have a seat for her? Since your looking.

Well, as they say, "It aint over till the fat lady sings". I am not fat lady, and I definately understand the "despise" of the SEC... I personally would like to make them part of the MAC conference... Not gonna happen. As much as it pains me to say this, the SEC is and will be always, a thron in the B1G conference. Until the B1G conference starts to win consistantly, we will always be looked at as the "red headed step child". So, I say, bring on the SEC fans add some additional flavor to this thread.... Jim, Steve, John, Bob, AJ, Duke,Squonk, Jack, and all the rest, what will it hurt to add some additional depth in the picks?/// Bring it! Rob

Might want to hold that thought until... you see her reaction to #20 sitting in the driveway.

Just a head's up about the future of the "Football Thread". John, Steve and I have been talking, and we've come to the conclusion that RMCIII makes a strong case about the lackluster performance of the Big 10 again this year. So with that in mind we've decided that next year the thread will be all about the SEC Conference. We think that this may generate more interest in the thread as well being there are undoubtedly several SEC fans amongst the members here. Along with the SEC we will also add Notre Dame into the mix for our ND Fans up North. So even if you have a team in the SEC that you love to hate you can still enjoy the Football Thread. Be thinking about your team choices for next season. This will also benefit the basement menu. I envision grits, black eyed peas, Gumbo, some poke salad, and even some Bubba-Gump Shrimp!

Your work is awesome ranger! Definitely cherished keepsakes for those fortunate enough to have received one. Pretty darned cute assistant too.

Well, it's not "black" Friday, but tomorrow I am going "shopping". Found a guy about an hour from me who has a small barn full of garden tractors. Not all Wheel Horses, but there are a few. Don't know what I am going to come home with, but I will let you know tomorrow.

Well Rob, you have a point. My thoughts are that, in my relatively limited time on this forum, this has always been a Big 10 thing because of the fan base being in the heart of Wheel Horse country. Forget where I reside now. As far as conferences go, I'm a Big 10 fan too and that's why I'm participating in this thread. I agree with adding some additional flavor and adding the SEC teams would do that. But I also feel that there are too many folks that are sick and tired of the SEC. You can put me on that list. Try living down here. To me they represent a 'win at any expense' attitude. Now please understand that I don't include all the SEC teams in that comment but just the ones I don't need to mention. I guess it would make you think FSU was an SEC team, huh? My thoughts even before this years thread started was to include the independents and also Air Force. That adds some flavor and includes teams that many on this forum have personal attachments for. Keep it all in fun. More games to pick amongst teams with integrity and....more fun. Somehow, to me, the SEC takes a lot of the fun out of it.

Only when they're not cooperating do I call mine some choice female names.

Sounds like you get down this way from time to time . If you ever get down this way on a Sat or Sunday , let me know & I'll buy 'ya a coffee . I've PM'd you my e-mail & land line . ~Gene

You guys are an amazing breed to work through these kinds of Winters year after year. I'm very impressed with your snow removal skills using Wheel Horses. They seem so small compared to the volume of snow you are having to relocate.

I mounted a LED auto running light to the seat pan.(520H) When the lights are turned on power is supplied to a WH safety switch I mounted inside the hoodstand. When the motion linkage moves to reverse it trips the switch to turn on the backup lights.

I think my wife actually might support this addiction, she fell in love with my 735 when I brought it home! lol I haven't even gotten this one running yet, well it will run, it just isn't "running" but I've spotted another one looking to go home! lol

I have been doing eBay since 1998. My best parts finds have been from eBay, but...be careful. Check the seller's reputation return policy and feedback.

Got some wood delivered today (black locust) and stacked about 1/2 cord down near barn and took a few pics of where I stand as of today. I like the look of the stone and the wood.

Thanks Guys,I don't know what to say I am overwhelmed by your kind comments, :text-thankyouyellow: There is a `theme' behind these,some may not be immediately apparent. the theme is `hobbies' The one with the mop & bucket was for an Itailan who had worked for us in Germany & switzerland. His hobby is maintaining the apartment block he owns. The man with the dog (also my avatar ) was for a workmate who had recently lost his English Mastif. The man with a chainsaw's `hobby' is collecting logs for winter use in the Black Forest (Germany) All the parts have a previous `history'. perhaps I may find enough parts to build a Wheelhorse model Once again , Thanks for all your kind words. Doug.

You know I am impressed with the durability of the rustoleum paint. Takes up to a month to fully harden but when it does that is some tough paint. Accidentally spilled some solder on the paint and thought I would have to end up repainting the panel but it scraped right off without leaving a scratch.

(Refer to post #156) I respectfully disagree Jeff.

Looks great! Now the big question is... Is there finally room in the garage for Momma's SUV?

Hope you replace the spring pins on the wheels with cotter pins. They are not going to stay in there and don't want to see you lose those wheels. Garry

Shaun & Paul,,,,the pictures and story of this snow is way over the top. But,,,the main thing is to stay safe. With that said thanks for the first hand reports. The wheel horse proves its worth............... Glenn

Clean it put it off the ground on stands with a sheet on it till I buy my house then my living room either that or the wife can have a seperate room and it goes In the room lol

This wall is a "dry" wall with no concrete. I wanted it to have the old time look like they would have done 100 years ago. Men finished both side of the doors today and will be back next week to start/finish the retaining wall to the left side of the front door. Fireman and I went to Lowes today and picked up all the proper insulated pipe recommended by the installer. I am going overboard and installing it right our the the stove all the out the wall and up. I know that I could get away with double wall or even single off the back but not taking that chance. We also got the 49' in the barn too. She looks right at home... I have the proper amount of room behind the truck for the doorway. Kinda like it was made for it... lol

The horse was on a mission today guys. The snow was just right and it made clean up a breeze. Only thing I had to do was get off and knock down the huge pile by the house from the roof. Here's the pic from out the back door after clean up I added a piece to block the front on the lower section and it worked much better I thought here's a video. https://vimeo.com/112430515 Here's a real cool one where my bro does some on the fly editing https://vimeo.com/112430672 Definitely keeping this monster chute after today I was impressed! I just sprayed the inside with graphite spray and bolted on the lower section and put some color on that too.

I was beginning to think this day would never come, but I actually started my tractor today! I had a few problems with my wiring harness that I had to change and issues with the fuel filter and aftermarket carb, but it fired right up today. Might need a little adjustment, but it's too cold to mess with it today. I was really worried about the wiring, but the safety switches function correctly and the only thing left to wire are the headlights. What does everyone use to clip the wires to the frame? I bought some trailer frame wire clips that look like the original, but can't seem to get them to stay on. I'm probably going to wait till spring for the decals because I don't have heat in my garage.

Here's some buffalo pictures....

There is a lot of awesome tractors on here so I'm not sure my black horse will make the cut but I'm going to try. So here's my '87 414-8 In order from beginning until now.

Hello! I joined this forum pretty recently and I'm probably not the typical forum visitor. I build scale models - usually 1/25 cars - and I've been working on an Electro 12 model. BTW, many of the model cars that I build are my favorite car and another South Bend native - Studebakers. I found this site while searching online for reference photos and manuals. It's a great place with a lot of excellent resources. Reminds me a lot of the Studebaker Drivers Club forum where the members have always been very supportive of my model building. Makes me want to have a real Wheel Horse (and a Studebaker). Anyway, this is where it all started: Probably not many people are more interested in the Wheel Horse than they are in the Indy Car but I'm building the tractor and may never build the car. The tractor in the kit appears to be Charger but after looking over this forum for a while I decided to convert it to the Charger's cousin - a 1969 Electro 12. I had already built the engine as it came in the box but I realized it wasn't correct for this tractor. This is what the first build-up looked like: So I stripped the paint off and did a conversion: The next order of business was building a mower deck since the kit didn't have one and what good is a Wheel Horse without it! I downloaded the manual for a 5-1422 (Thank you, Forum!) and started scratchbuilding. This has been a lot of fun! Here are a few shots from the build-up and the finished mower: The paint is Duplicolor Bright Red which is a GM color. I bought some IH Red at Tractor Supply but didn't really like the drying properties of the paint. The GM Red matches it very well and in fact I brushed on a little of the IH color as touch-up paint in a few spots and can't see the difference. Duplicolor is my preferred paint. It dries fast and hard. There's certainly more to come. I hope you enjoy. Most of the other major components are under construction right now and will be ready to post soon.

Some "awesome" snow picts... just need to get the rest of 'em out now.

Sold, but not to me. I offered the seller to paypal him immediately, but he already had someone on the way after it by the time we communicated. So it goes! My wife rejoices. Steve

Shawn, thanks for the picks. The amount of snow is amazing and seeing it kind of brings it home how bad it really is down there. Words can't do it justice. Glad to hear that the Horses worked well and that you and the family are doing well!

JimD -- don't forget the grits

You're gonna love the big kohler single. I have two 416-8's and they are terrific tractors. Not as fuel efficient as their smaller brothers but the power factor makes up for it.

Wow Jason. I love your idea of protecting it in a special room inside. I think we all would like to have that opportunity at some point. But I have mixed feelings about using it. I'm not one to want a trailer queen but I'm not sure I could use that for everyday work. In this case I'm liking Jims idea of using it but as Rob mentioned, in parades and such. That would allow others to enjoy your rare find and still keep it mint. Think of all the great conversations........

W O W !! Looks fantastic & will probably last many , many years . The only thing I've found about PC-ing is it's tough to "touch-up" once it's chipped . Are you going to fab up some type of remote deflector control ?

videos look good Paul. mine stands at 30 inches and I'm thinking its a little high......36 inches? might need some aircraft warning lights on that thing!!!! I'm thinking about making a small front piece for mine, but i really would like to play in the snow with it as is, if i ever get it finished and we ever get some snow......... sorry, buffalo members......

The ignition system relies on a battery to keep the coil energized. It will not continue to run if you do not have a good battery in the system. If it were a magneto ignition, you could run without a battery. It has to be a GOOD battery, a marginal battery will not last long and will likely take a large toll on your electrical components. Troubleshooting: If you put a KNOWN GOOD battery in there and it does not keep running, it is not the fault of your charging system. A tractor can generally run for many hours (and sometimes days) on a freshly charged battery. The "alternators" rarely go bad. There are coils under the flywheel and magnets embedded in the flywheel, cant get much simpler. It generates about 40vac. The rectifier regulator turns that into a DC voltage to run accessories and charge the battery. Accessories: If you wanted to rig up an alternator you can, but the challenge to find a place to put it, run a belt to it (it would have to be the drive belt) and keep the PTO functional is quite a task. People rarely run enough electrical stuff to exceed the tractors 15 or 20amp charging system... There are LED lights that are better than their halogen counterparts and take a much lower toll on the electrical system. People do run small winches but generally -if you use a decent battery- the tractors electrical system will be able to catch up in between actual uses. It will take a toll on it though. If you put an actual alternator on, DEFINITELY keep it as its own separate system. You dont want to be chasing down electrical gremlins with that mess. People have rigged up 110V generators off of the PTO (there was even a rare factory option for this) to run equipment in the field. I would recommend going this way because it is much less efficient to use an inverter unless you are just running small things. Oh and I would also not recommend hammering on things to make them work... much to the contrary horses generally DONT like that unless you are bending something BACK into shape.

If the fuse blows that quickly I would bet you have a wire that chaffed and is shorting out to the chassis. Its hard to tell you which one at this point, but starter/solenoid power wire is a good start. P.S. Its not encouraging people to help you when you start out by demeaning the brand of tractors a whole forum is dedicated to that YOU came to for help. I understand your frustrations with it, but we have 40+ year old tractors on here in perfect running condition... It has less to do with the brand and more to do with the care it has received.