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Sunday morning and the "boys were out walking the hood." Juno didn't react surprisingly to the bucks but did later react to the 10 does on our morning walk.

No it's not Loretta Lynn. I found these pictures while searching through my albums to make a slide show for my Mother's 91st birthday next month. This is my Granddad holding his new baby daughter, my Mother, in April, 1925. And 19 years later in Jan, 1944, My mother holding me. Hope Mom enjoys the show.....I love the old black and whites.

Just picked this up last week. I sold a JD round fender, and my allis b-12 and put that money with some other money I had stashed. My son is 14 and wanted to build a car. It's a 1965 mustang fastback with a Shelby kit. Was in a barn since 1993. Found it 1/2 mile from my house.

Quite simply, because I too am just...

When I first purchased my sons wheel horse I came to the forum for help. I got more than expected. As the greetings and help poured in I started looking at some of your profiles and noticed that most of you had several wheel horses. I remember thinking , what do they do with all of them? Why so many? Are these people nuts? Well I answered all of my own questions Saturday when I picked up my 3rd trailer load. I am absolutely hooked and find myself looking in every yard I drive past. When I am gone during the week I look through every states craigslist for tractors and accessories. This is by far the most intense hobby I have been involved with. I know everybody loves pics so here are the new horses. 656-877-1277-Commando8. They all need love but they all do run and operate. I absolutely understand you guys now. Between the tractors and this forum this is really an awesome hobby! I will get more pics and info posted when I can spend some time with them.

Nice load.....and it doesn't take long to figure out the madness. Once it sets in, good luck trying to shake it!

Last fall at a local antique/steam show, a fellow picked up one of my cards. During our conversation, he asked, "do you work on Wheel Horses"? My comment was, "I have 11 of them....I work on them all the time"! Nice find on your trailer.

I see you caught the fever . Mine started in September and I can't seem to shack it , and from what I've herd there is no cure . I can't stop looking for them either . Keep them separated cause they breed like rabbits ! 1+1= ... Hope this helps. By the way nice score!

Hummmm. That's a tough one...Oh wait...I haven't sold any!

I believe in loading the rear rims with weight for snow-plowing traction. I don't have fancy facts and figures to back up anything I say....its only my opinion... but nothing last forever and everything wears out at some point if its being used (even our beloved WH's). So in theory an axle bearing with less load and proper lubrication should outlast the same bearing with proper lubrication and more load. Wall fish has a back-hoe hanging off his machine so he has no choice as to how the weight is added to his machine but for snow duty/traction we have choices and I always opt for wheel/rim weight. Mike......

I have never considered the tractor i would sell to regret later......My first is my 401 that was a land fill save.....I can not fathom what that day will bring, if that day were to come,.... ..i have been ask,,,,What will it take?? How much?? just tell me......I was ask once ... you can will it to me...and pay now in advance....but recieve it after i take the last ride.....My children have no intrest in my tractors.....There is a guy at my job....he wants it what ever it takes..he ask that i put a note in my wallet ,,that my wife would find it,,,,telling her...it is his,,,,just fill in an amount....... Then there is me and what if,,,a faulty lung ,,,,(and i don't smoke).......well....i have thought of this,,,mortality and age comes to a person in the quiet of night.....there is a person................someone in our june group,,,,,,i feel it will never be dismantled,,,,just a rider for fun...... and at this point....they dont know it will be gifted to them...........my 2 1/2 briggs .....racin machine....

When I bought my first the man who sold it asked how many I had; my wife asked him if people actually collected them. I had no intention of starting a herd at the time, but after using the first one for a while I knew I needed another. Fifteen years later I have a dozen!

Ed, enjoy the day with your mom. I remember my mom's 90th birthday party, seems like yesterday, but it was 15 years ago, it was a great time with several aunts and uncles present. Thanks for putting a smile on my face thinking about it.

I was considering thinning out the herd a little, but now I may just continue hording them all!

i think if anyone is going to add weight to a hitch then they need to forget about the standard hitch that you mention, they look like they are only designed for pulling a load, trailer etc. Down force through weight (and lets face it, you need to add a few hundred pounds, or whats the point?) added to the end of those hitches is eventually going to bend them beyond use. They also make the front end too light with steering etc....Ive moved my 18 ft trailer with one a few times and don't even like that because it doesn't transfer the weight back to the axle properly and makes the front end/steering too light. Use a decent hitch like Scott's or similar, has the right weight transfer to the transaxle and beefy too....

Looks like a convoy...

I figured I had a better chance of being struck by lightning on a sunny day in the middle of Main Street, so I saved my money! I have said before, "I don't have any bad habit's"!.....Well, maybe a couple, but I have to work too hard for my $$ so I don't gamble it away! Good Luck to those of you that do!

We also move WH'S for different reasons, but if you are like me you look back on some you wish you didn't sell at the time. I use to buy and sell a lot more but as the family got bigger, career changed and I grew older time has grown shorter for horse tradin. I was thankful to have owned and learned a lot with the 30+ machines that passed though my garage. But here are my top 5 regrets. 1. The 310-8 I sold to Duff, went to a great home, but I put all new shoes on it, case wheel weights, Stevebo'S first restore, the paint was nice. I got this in a trade with Big Jim. It was sweet, Last I knew Duff only improved on it. 2. The C-175 I bought from Stevebo years ago, it was bada** looking. I was scared of the KT rep so I traded it, if I knew now what I knew then I would have kept it. If I remember right it went back to big Jim and Uncle Bo, their comedy was worth the deal. 3. Every round hood I have ever sold, 5 years ago they were easy pickens, they do not pop up at often, especially the 854 I have from KenB that went to Glenn, went to a great home, and got a top notch restore. 4. Mt grandfather's 312-a with 2000 hours. I never owned it, but family was involved and wanted crazy money at first so I walked, come to find they sold it for $400. 5. A beat up 416 I won at an auction, I forget who got it, but Duane and his wife picked it up. Met great people, but wish I kept that tractor, was a good rest canidate K series 16HP 1 lunger....it ran good, low hours.

Well I installed a new electric fuel pump. I bought one that people had recommended in another thread. I hooked up the positive side to the coil and just grounded the negative side. I did bypass the old pump like most of you recommended. I switched the key to on and it was great to see the fuel filter fill up!! Well I fired up the tractor and damn, it would not start. I cranked and cranked. Nothing. Then I discovered that in the excitement of watching the fuel filter fill with fuel, I forgot to use the choke and turn the throttle up. Raised both levers to the top and she fired right up!! Awesome!! Now the C-175 is ready for snow!! Thanks guys for all the help! Butch S. Jersey

Hi I use to own a small engine repair business and of all the machines I worked on in the 15 yrs in business the Wheel Horse units were my all time favorites to repair and test drive. Iv owned several over the years but now that Im retired Iv bought 8 of them in different sizes just this past summer alone... My favorites are the four 16 HP tractors and a couple 8 HP. Im picking up a C140 this coming weekend and plan on buying more to use on my mini farm. I'm not into restoration to make them look show room but rather using them without having to change out all the implements I have for them. Jim

After sanding the JB weld I went back over everything and did a little body filler. I spent a few hours today reshaping dents and dings.on the hood. I went ahead and primed everything to keep it from rusting. Still have more work on the hood but here is where it's at now. Too wet and cold to paint so it looks like I'll prep and prime as I go and tear down and paint when the weather allows. I still have a few small parts to remake like the brake rod and this rod for the steering.

My problem is I never sell anything. I`m kind of a hoarder. I probably wouldn`t be able to move if a couple of women hadn`t cleaned me out over the years.

What a great idea Ed, She will love it.

Some good History there Ed. I love those old pictures too!!!

One of my tractors has a constant and continuous hanging load of about 500lbs off the back and haven't had any issues with the trans so far after 6 or 7 years. (8 speed with 1 1/8 axles) Only problem I had was snapping an axle while using dual 10.5 wide tires on it.

Do you know what I would do with all the money I spent on Drinking, Gambling and Women? Spend it on Gambling , Drinking and Women!

...and if I win... I'll fund this effort Tony.

Hello, just bought my 1st wheel horse but 2nd toro. It's 416H showing 492 hours but I think hour meter don't work because voltage reg. don't work. Starts and runs great, just waiting to tear into it for all the maint. Stuff. It sat for 4 yrs so fresh gas and sea foam and away we go. Came with snow blower, 42" rear discharge deck and a roller. Hope I got a good deal, time will tell.

Just repaired the original fuel shut off valve in my 1976 B100. I didn't see any part numbers for the o-ring on Red Square for the shut off valve. So, I'm going to throw it out there for anyone that wants to repair, instead of replace their (with plastic junk) fuel shut off valve. Here it is: Ace Hardware Stock # 35750B 5/16 X 3/16X1/16 O-Ring 4 ft of 1/4" X11/32" fuel line handled all fuel line replacement with 6" to spare I truly appreciate this website! All the Best, Danny P.S. What I Love about these machines is that they were built to be Repaired.

When I win the 900+ million Powerball tonight I will take whatever share would be needed (within reason ....) and go straight to TORO and get them to start producing new 5xx series Wheel Horses with either an 8 speed or the Eaton 1100 . Fuel injected engines with closed evap systems would take care of one of the issues that caused Toro to discontinue them ---EPA wanted a closed fuel system... 42 and 48 plows, a forward swept heavy duty front end, 2 stage snow blowers... 42 rd , 42, 48 and 60 sd decks... on and on... Boy it would be nice... There's how I would "waste" some of it.... and even if I had to loose money on every one I would make them affordable so everybody could own one. Tony

When that day comes... over here I'm your man.

I bought my first a Commando 8, it looked so lonely that it had to have a stable mate. So I found it a twin, I had a team of Horses now, Then I went to the Big Show in PA, and saw a model 854 I was born 8/54! Well right there is a good enough reason to have to buy one of them So now, I have the start of a herd. Over the summer I added onto the shed, and there's still some more room but that doesn't mean I'd have to fill it does it ?

@Gernzz8 You are correct (I truly appreciate this website! ) this is a great place. to

So far none of them, but if I had the room to keep them all, then the custom tractors I built would still be here. Still have the first 3 I ever bought which are a 416-8 loader, Early RJ-58 and a 654.

That truly is a great thing you are doing for your mom ed. I know she will love it. Great pics, thanks for sharing.

Seem that we all get excited and forget the basics some times, I once put a freshly rebuilt small block Chrvy engine my Street Rod and was so eager to hear it run that I failed to tighten the oil pressure gauge line. It fired right up and oiled down everything in sight. Took a couple of days just cleaning the engine compartment, never did get the oil stains off the roof rafters in the shop!

Before the original failure, there were no indications of problems. Engine ran strong and there weren't any funny noises or smoking. I did pull the exhaust side apart as well. I wanted to be sure there weren't any issues there that were being masked by the intake valve. Nothing fun to see there. Valve seats all look good, and the exhaust retainer/keepers looked like the new ones I put in a week or so ago. I don't have much of an excuse not to work on it...I'm lucky enough that my wife picked a house that has a heated garage and separate heated shop space so even when it in the negative numbers like it is today it's not bad to be out there working on things. Shop stays about 40 most of the time even when the heat isn't on and when it isn't warm enough just turn the heat up.

Looks like the reason the valve keepers failed is the retainer is broken. Valve looks good though. Looks like two more valve keepers, a retainer, head gasket, intake, breather and fuel pump gaskets. Here's to hoping this is the last time I have this engine apart.

Considering expansion, and contraction...don't think I'd clear over them. IMO, International Harvester red is the best duplicate of the original factory color on the earlier 's.

Better not show 'em to buckrancher.

I am pleased to see that this topic has prompted a lot of discussion. Anyway, going back to Ed's question of yesterday about bearing life...I am not a bearing designer and going through the Torrington design catalog was enough to make my head spin...and I am too old for that. What is significant is that since these are drawn cup bearings, there is no inner race, the needles contact the shaft directly. The outer race is a thin steel shell which is a light press fit into the transaxle. In order for the bearing to survive at all, the load cannot be supported by one needle. Proper lubrication is needed to support the needle and distribute the load to the other adjacent needles. Not any different than in a engine where the journal bearings support the crankshaft, but the crank actually rides on the thin film of oil between the crank and the bearing. Lose the engine oil and you get a spun bearing (assuming the rings do not seize first). There is not enough heat developed in a WH transaxle to cause the transaxle to seize, however, if you lose lubrication, the contact forces will be high enough to cause the needles to spall (fracture under a compressive load). The seals in these machines were never designed for a 30 year life (or more in some cases). All that is needed is a small breech and the gear oil will start to seep out. Not enough to leave a spot on the floor, but as it gets hot, the viscosity goes down and more will seep out. Pretty soon your transaxle is dry and from there everything goes down hill. I am in agreement with Ed, (im)proper lube, not excess weight is likely the cause of any bearing failures. That being said, others have raised very good points about too much weight on the rear hitch. The local stress is very high where the hitch meets the transaxle. It is a point (a line at best) and the contact area is miniscule. Stress is simply load divided by the area (and don't forget the multiplication factor for the lever arms on the rear hitch). thx to all who have joined this lively discussion

Just some thoughts based on reading and actual use. I think it's important to know the differences in weighted tires/wheels and other loads and that weights address different issues with different effects on the center of gravity, loads around the axle and loads on the axle, better traction and counter-balancing. Obviously if a WH can haul a backhoe around it can handle some serious on the axles load! But that machine probably isn't getting much mowing time. Same with the FEL machines. Light weight tractors can mow OK but that's about it. Got to have some weight to do serious work! Toro recommends their weight box for certain reasons, not as an overall improvement for all tractors. My 2 cents is to weight the tires and wheels for the best center of gravity and the first shot at getting more traction and then more weight where you've got to have it. My NH with FEL is about worthless to me without something hanging off the back! I've never had the FEL off but I'm guessing that if I had the backhoe on without the FEL I would not like my steering! My 2 cents...

One more test you can do. Turn the ignition key to the RUN position with the engine NOT running. See what the voltage is across the battery posts. Now move the red (+) test lead to the Bat + terminal on the regulator. You will likely have to do this at the ignition switch again. Ideally you should have the exact same reading as across the battery posts. This test checks the path the charge current takes to get to the battery. You don't want any resistance in that circuit. Just another wiring connection test but this one includes the ignition switch's ability to connect the regulator output to the battery. Another reason is the regulator must see battery voltage to turn it on so to speak before it can regulate the charge current produced by the flywheel stator. Garry

Most new members come seeking information, here you are furnishing advice. Glad you found us.

I totally agree . My Kobuta BX2230 is the same way .

As Paul said, be sure that the rectifier is properly grounded. I had a poorly grounded rectifier on a B-100, and it caused my B+ voltage to read 17 VDC. Go figure. First rule in troubleshooting electrical is to make sure that ALL grounds are clean and secure.

Weights added to the hitch area will increase traction on a level surface BUT weights added to the wheels increase stability on a side hill.

Thanks Don...a lot of good information there. I can't help you with your question as I have never had an axle bearing fail and probably would not know what caused it if one did fail. Although I am guessing most of these low speed bearing failures are due to improper lubrication. It would be interesting to see bearing life expectancy data at different loads, with proper lubrication and no lubrication.

That frame looks a lot like an old Simplicity frame. As you've already said the look went south from there. The Wheel Horse hood and fender is a great improvement. It will look great after it gets the Stig treatment. With the odd ball machine already in this tread here's mine. I broke down and bought a Harbor Freight engine for the Ford Shortdog. Wanted an older engine just could find one around here.