Leaderboard

To check out a D-160 I saw on c-list. I have recently moved and was in the market for something in which I can mow a little bit more land with than the 37" deck I have on my 310-8. After keeping my eyes open, I saw a D-160 about an hour and a half away that looked interesting, so I decided to make a trip. The previous owner had told me that he was the second owner, and that the original owner only used it for mowing his property. The tractor did run a little rough, idled decently, but when throttled up, would sputter. He said that it had always ran fine for him, but he didn't run it during the winter at all, so it probably just needs a carb cleaning, which seemed plausible to me. I drove it around a bit, and it seemed to be a solid machine, so I took it. It was missing the serial tag, but doing some research, I found that the 1978 D-160 is the only one year this exact model of Onan was put in this tractor, so I was able to deduce that it was a 1978! Today I took it out for about a half hour, just driving it around a little and letting it idle, after a while, I brought the throttle up and she roared to life with no sputters or anything. It must have been a small piece of dirt lodged somewhere in the carb. The motor runs strong, smooth, and quiet, and the hydro works strong as well. I even put it up against a solid object once it was warmed up and it spun both tires with ease. I love this thing, shes weathered, and has a beautiful patina, I'm not sure if I want to paint it one day, or just leave it as is and maintain it, the patina is gorgeous, in my opinion. The tractor also came with the mule drive, a beautiful and solid 48" side discharge deck, and a decent, but small 7.5 cu.ft. Jackson cart (which kind of upset me, because from the pics, it looked like a wheel horse cart) but the cart does say it is rated for 750 lbs which stunned me, but it is at least the right color.

so ive been in construction for more than 30 years,mostly a stone mason slash concrete installer,its hard work and long hours,the last employer I workrd for we averaged 70 hours a week,that includes the winter when you just cant work that many hours,it was a lot for someone my age,im not that old but I'm not a spring chicken either as I was born in the mid sixties,we had some time off this winter and a caretaker job pops up just around the corner from me,i talk to the wife and she agrees that its been just too much,cant even have a social life unalone hobbies or take care of my property,well I go for the job which is on a magnificent estate,200 acres,rivers,ponds,its an old mill as a matter of fact,it is right up my alley,taking care of pretty much the entire estate excluding gardening and housekeeping,neither of which I care to do anyway,got enough gardens at home,but they have every piece of equipment an estate would need,backhoe,which I have many years experience,woodshippers,stumpgrinders,etc,so today they call me and give me the job,yeha,but the only downfall is they have 3 johndeere tractors,2 garden and the zero turn is a big deere,well I guess I'm gonna half to get used to wrenching and riding a deere,but I get off every day at 4 and home by 4.10 so ill have lots of time to work on my horses,and the honey do list as well

65 F here today. Time to give the snow team a spring cleaning and put them back in their summer storage.

WAHOO!! I'm now a certified Red Square supporter. You know, being a Red Square supporter sounds better than being an Athletic supporter!

So as I previously mentioned I purchased a 1965 855 this past Saturday. I've begun the tune up on the 8hp Kohler. This little tractor seems to be in good shape, came with a mower deck and a plow. The metal is in great shape, no rust and only 1 modification that I can tell. The addition of goofy plowing head lights. The transmission is a Uni-drive 3 speed and seems to be in good working order. As mentioned I have begun the tune up on the engine. I believe I can have this up and running in fairly short order. After hearing about my recent purchase my Grandfather has given me his 1964 1054 10Hp. It is a bit rougher but this has sentimental value as it was the tractor I remember from my childhood. Right now nothing is working on it. He parked it once the transmission failed. I just started on the 855 restoration and now I'm torn as to what to do with the 1054? The engine work doesn't concern me as much as the bad tranny on the 1054. I've started down this road because I have 6 young children who like to do things with their hands and I thought this would make an excellent project. Do i juggle both? Focus on the 855? Sell the 1054? What to do what to do? I've attached pictures of both.

you just gotta...take a chance. Recent C/L offering...C-160 sitting outside, unused for the past year, flat front tires, dead battery, no spark, below freezing, so the trans was locked up. Seller helped me push it up the ramps, and into the truck...once back home...was running, driving, and mowing within the hour after unloading.

A nice mod

Hi friends it has been a while since I have been around sorry about that. Last weekend I spent some time chasing down a lead on a new horse for the stable. Well I got it the tractor followed me home Sunday and I'm already loving it. The new machine is a 310-8 with a new battery it roared back to life and purrs like a kitten it has a 37 inch SD deck witch I'm very excited to try out never owned on before take a look at it tell me what you think I paid 300$ just the way it sits Sorry only one pic here's another

Well got to get the WH out today and clear som of my land in the back,,top is the before pic , bottom is the after... She worked today ,, but did it all with ease !!

No problem Jim....I have been accused of causing bigger problems than a Spring Blizzard. That reminds me.. I gotta stop at DQ. All this hot weather has worked up a thirst. My real goal today was to get the "snow team" to the rear of the herd and move the mowers to the front. Guess who wanted to go to work today? Yep, my favorite and first WH the C-120 w/ Tecky.

Think I may bring the fast tractor I bought from John while back to the show . Getting it back to whole again belts etc .

YES please continue with any and all rebuilds. I have a 1977 B80 I want to rebuild the engine and fix it up to cut grass I got a lot of information from this. I want to start with the k181 8 hp and maybe try a k341 that I have extra for the c160. there is no knowledge like old knowledge , Not saying your old but these old kohlers are not todays engines. I would rather have a old kohlers then a new one any day . Thank you PRONDZY

Keep 'em both.The 1054 is pricless due to the sentimental value.I have a tranny out of a 1054 or 953.A year ago I had a guy interested in buying it.I pulled it out of the tractor and he must have been kidnapped or abducted by aliens.Never heard from him since.It's on the scrap pile right now.I'll sell it cheap,but ya gotta come get it.

I'm a big believer in finishing one project before starting another. I've seen guys have so many things started but nothing is ever finished and they end up with a garage and/or a yard full of junk.. I would do the 855 project first because it is easier and then tackle the more difficult and time consuming 1054

Now for assembly this is all explained in step by step in the manual. I might do things In a little different order but it's the way I do it, like measuring the ring end gap and lapping the valves they are out of the way and these parts are ready for later. I also should mention i have washed all the reused parts 1 day before assembly, this is so they don't rust in the two weeks they sat in my garage waiting for the block. You can wash the parts off in a parts washer , i have even washed them down with brake cleaner and rags. I am using a home made engine stand, but for this part you might need to lay the block on its side Install the pto side crankshaft bearing this will be a tight or snug fit you might want to put the bearing in the freezer for a few minutes before install. I just use a hammer and a brass drift to walk it in. First install the govenor shaft that sticks out of the brass nut on the side of the engine. I lube up the end that sticks into the block and the tab that pushes against the govenor. Then I install the govenor gear itself, don't forget the shim that you hopefully wired to the govenor gear so you didn't lose it Next slide the throttle govenor ring into the brass nut don't forget the choke cable holder. When you tighten the brass nut the throttle ring should spin freely if not you have something out of order or too much paint on something. Install the screw that keeps the govenor from walking off the shaft, don't forget the small copper washer that sits under the Phillips head Lube up the valve tappet shafts and slide them into the block. Some motors can have different height tappets like an exhaust and intake . Then lube the faces of the tappets where the camshaft lobes will be riding. Lube the camshaft rod and slide it in from the flywheel side of the block, through the camshaft and the shim on the pto side that you remembered to wire to the cam. On the flywheel side tap the camshaft rod so it is indented past the surface of the block. This was an earlier kohler so the timing marks are a little different than a newer k series small blck. There was a small dot on the camshaft gear that is now closest to the block I took a paint pen and marked the groove that the dot was located at by highlighting the teeth on each side of the groove. I then took my paint pen and marked the timing mark on the crankshaft. When you install the crank these marks must line up otherwise you engine won't run or run well. It can be a little tricky to understand at first but you'll get it. This is what you want to see Now that the crankshaft is installed properly, the bearing plate is next. Install the bearing into the plate if it isn't already stuck in it. It can be difficult to do this bearing plate shim part but I have found if you take two bolts 1/4-20 size and cut off the heads they make great alignment pins. The thick gray gasket always goes on first. Make sure you take your time to make sure the orientation is correct. The kohler manual says to add two to three of the other shims then measure. I always add three if not put them all in right away either way it's your decision, in the end you just need to stay within specs . I installed 3 and took a measurement and was within spec a little on the tighter side but still in spec, that is okay. So once you have installed your shims put two of the bearing plate bolts in and torque to spec to compress the shims. You then need to measure the gap betwwen the crankshaft and the crank bearings. If the gap is split between both crank bearings you can give a GENTLE persuasion with a soft deadblow hammer to the crankshaft (careful on the threaded end and use caution) I measured the maximum no fit, and the minimum it fit. So it is good to go. Remove the two locating pins you made and install the other bearing plate bolts and tighten to spec. If you do not have enough space or too much you must add or remove the manilla shims accordingly . Then install the crankshaft seals you can buy special drivers for this or if you are comfortable and patient you can walk them in by gently tapping them with a small punch or brass drift. The key is to have them square in the bore when you are finished. The kohler manual tells you proper depth for the seals. I will have to finish writing the rest of this tomorrow.

I had a therapy session this morning. I took some 0000 steel wool and WD-40 to the Lawn Ranger. Its like shinning your boondockers was in boot camp. No deep thinking, no mesmerizing the General Orders, just polish on / polish off / repeat. While working I realized that I'm not in any hurry to paint it, (except to stop rust) because I'm just like my tractor! After the barn makeup was removed it kinda looks as I do. I'm not shiny any more, I make funny noises on start up and shake a little at idle, and I've had parts replaced. I've always known I have an old soul, new things don't spark me like old things do and the more original the better. When I watch a hit-miss engine running or wander around antique farm equipment or putter with my two WH lawn tractors, its knowing that at the time they were built it was top of the line engineering and design with a sharp pencil and a slide rule, Men at lathes and mills, not CAD-CAM with CnC lathes and mills where one guy operates five machines. I know that's the world today, but to think of how some of our greatest accomplishments were done in the past before the computer still amazes me......

Last summer I asked my wife if she was going to trim the fescues after work tonight....you shoulda seen the look I got!! And here I thought I was the only one to use the f word....is a cool word tho.... fescues!!!

Can't wait to mount up a deck, and cut me some fescues.

You can never have enough projects. Maybe someday down the road the kids will remember working on it with you.

Couldn't believe my eyes!!! Don't bother the gentleman he still has the Deere but the goodies are gone!!!!

Six helpers - "Free" Two WH's - "Chump Change" Memories....Priceless!

3-7-1876 Alexander Graham Bell patents the telephone On this day in 1876, 29-year-old Alexander Graham Bell receives a patent for his revolutionary new invention–the telephone. The Scottish-born Bell worked in London with his father, Melville Bell, who developed Visible Speech, a written system used to teach speaking to the deaf. In the 1870s, the Bells moved to Boston, Massachusetts, where the younger Bell found work as a teacher at the Pemberton Avenue School for the Deaf. He later married one of his students, Mabel Hubbard. While in Boston, Bell became very interested in the possibility of transmitting speech over wires. Samuel F.B. Morse’s invention of the telegraph in 1843 had made nearly instantaneous communication possible between two distant points. The drawback of the telegraph, however, was that it still required hand-delivery of messages between telegraph stations and recipients, and only one message could be transmitted at a time. Bell wanted to improve on this by creating a “harmonic telegraph,” a device that combined aspects of the telegraph and record player to allow individuals to speak to each other from a distance. With the help of Thomas A. Watson, a Boston machine shop employee, Bell developed a prototype. In this first telephone, sound waves caused an electric current to vary in intensity and frequency, causing a thin, soft iron plate–called the diaphragm–to vibrate. These vibrations were transferred magnetically to another wire connected to a diaphragm in another, distant instrument. When that diaphragm vibrated, the original sound would be replicated in the ear of the receiving instrument. Three days after filing the patent, the telephone carried its first intelligible message–the famous “Mr. Watson, come here, I need you”–from Bell to his assistant. Bell’s patent filing beat a similar claim by Elisha Gray by only two hours. Not wanting to be shut out of the communications market, Western Union Telegraph Company employed Gray and fellow inventor Thomas A. Edison to develop their own telephone technology. Bell sued, and the case went all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court, which upheld Bell’s patent rights.

Man that sound great . Maybe you can bring some rattle cans of WH red to work and make repairs or get them to buy a good tractor of course.

I stand corrected... my memory of the one round hood FEL unit I've seen, isn't on an RJ.

Tom, I love your moniker "a WH nut in training" From your list of machines, I don't think you are in training any more!

I like to have at least two projects working. That way, while I'm waiting for parts for one project, I can switch over to the other. Sometimes you have to wait months for a rare part to show up on ebay or somewhere else. No sense in not working on another WH while you're waiting. Looks like you have two very worthwhile projects. Good luck.

Now I know why I didn't get one! But how is Mike ( @Sparky ) photogenic? Seems like there should be a caption for his pic " It puts the lotion in the basket" Just some friendly ball busting Mike!

If photogenicity is the criteria, where's mine?

Thanks Karl!! This came in the mail during the week and today I tore it outa the package! A bit wrinkly from being packaged but it fits great and looks even better! ). Mike........

I purchased a very nice machine from SteveBo as my equipment needs are changing and so is my stable. I picked up a clean RJ58 and had to make it my own. I changed the Cliton engine base gasket, axle seals, found another set of rear wheels, got some tires and fabricated dual wheel adapters. I also fabricated a slot hitch adapter for towing misc and here's where I'm at...

You want to pull a hub on a D...The flange will not take the stress if it is really stuck you have to pull from behind the hub. The tubes were thick wall 1-1/4' and that is not an illusion they bent during the pull. Behind the hub is a 3/4" plus a 1/4" thick pieces of steel 1" total

Oh DAM !!! Lol i seen them and thought nothing of them lol ! Thought they was just chunks of formed concrete weights ,, lmao , goes to show why i dont have any goodies like that ,, wait tell i see my eye doctor im gonna kick him in the butt lol

Look at the front weights to offset the tiller

Quality seat time with results to show for it; can;t beat that!

Very nice find, and a good price

Sounds like you need a new one. Or if it does click when you try to start it , the coil in the solenoid is good. The contacts are probably just dirty. They can be taken apart and cleaned , Us old retired geezers don't throw anything away. Were cheap, we have time, and we like the challenge

Wow, that's a lot of discussion. I think everyone has a valid point. Here's my . I don't own something that's was found by the side of the road and winched into a trailer carted home. The guys that do that have in my mind are unbelievable talented. I bought my horse brand new 30yrs ago. So it's not a 76' 160, it's a 86' 310 and I love it. So last fall there were parts that didn't look show room fresh. So I dismantled as much as I could and sanded and repainted the old girl. So what did I do??? I restored the paint. Over the years when the tractor broke I can't fix it cause, I'm in some "Rust Belt Town" working 6-10' s to put bread on the table. You see, I don't own a show horse I own a go horse. Yesterday I was out back cutting standing dead trees to heat my shop some day. Coming home I was loaded. I crossed a little water and stuck it good with chains. The old girl sat there jumping up and down in the mud. When I got home we both needed a bath. Everyone's horse is what we want it to be. I think we all agree on that. No matter what state of restoration it's in.

AHHHH ... no Ed...... I think that was FESTUS and no he didn't have a horse he had a mule ....or was it Uncle Fester....no wait he was on the Adam's Family ...Oh Balls now @AMC RULES is gonna post a Gunsmoke youtube I can see it coming.....

Great thread Mike with excellent pics... I don't know how I missed it, mods this needs to go to someplace special for reference, I'll just shut up now so I don't ruin it!

Fecues ??? Wasn't he Marshal Matt Dillon's sidekick.

Sounds like a job you'll love til you retire. Doing a job you enjoy because you love it is a plus. Not everyone gets to do a job they love. Machinery, the outdoors and being somewhat your own boss, that's a good job. I know being a stone mason takes a lot out of you. But your work can stand for over 100 yrs. That's something to be proud of. I retired from construction. I was lucky to come of it with a body that can still get around and do the thing that I love. Caring for my 6 acres with my .

How about refresh, recondition, rebuild, repaint? An original unrestored tractor might be called a preservation.

I hear tell smells better too .....

This seems to be your Wheel Horse searching motto Craig: The harder I work the luckier I get !

Drive it around until it is warmed up (Uphills speeds the warm up). On pavement put it up against an immovable object (the tire of your pickup truck for instance) and see if it will spin the rear wheels with you sitting on it.

Great find! Those 16's are, well, the bestest! Nice!

Craig. Nice find. These 16`s are harder to find every day. Enjoy that big block. Gary B...

So yesterday I got a chance to build my k161. I got it back from the machine shop the cost to rebore the cylinder and regrind the valves/seats was $70. The first thing to a quality rebuild is and I cannot stress this enough, USE A CLEAN WORKSPACE! I cleaned the top of my stand with brake clean, anything to remove dirt and debris. If you don't have a metal top to use, try a clean peice of cardboard, something. You just spent money to do this right Don't skip on the clean work bench. Here is the most of my parts I am putting in. I am building this with an aftermarket ebay kit these are not kohler oem parts. I know there are always debates about this but I have built many k series kohlers with great results if you think you need to add your about this do it else where this is a how to thread. You will notice in the background of the parts I have shown two things I like to use but in no way do you have to use them One is high tack Gasket sealant (helps hold the gaskets in place during assembly along with helping resist oil over time) and an assembly grease (you can use SAE 30 oil and still have great results). Here is a shot of the valve seats and cylinder walls, I have a great local machine shop and they do quality work. First I install each piston ring (minus the wavy oil ring spacer) one at a time. I then use the new piston to push it into the cylinder and square it up to the bore. I use one of the cutouts in the piston as a depth gage. Using the chart in my kohler manual I look up the end gap spec for my motor and measure the gap with a feeler gage. I measure for the biggest and smallest accepted gap from the book in this case it was .007" to .017" so I find these two feeler gages and check I want the smallest to fit (then there is enough room for expansion when hot ) and I don't want the biggest to fit otherwise the piston will be sloppy (not to worry about because if your machine shop did a quality job you will be closer to the smaller number). You can find out specifically what each gap is but it is indifferent if you are between the specs. Next I lap the valves. Yes the machine shop did just clean up the surfaces to match but lapping creates a microscopic "fluff" ring that will allow the valve to fully seal against the seat. Once again these two items only cost a couple dollars and can be bought at almost any automotive store. Get a small engine size lapping tool because one for doing chevy 350 valves won't be friendly because the suction cup will be too big. When it comes to the lapping compound there is water or oil based. Personally I prefer oil because it "sticks" to the surfaces better water just seems runny, just my opinion. I apply a small amount of compound to the valve face with my finger. Then suction the lapping tool to the top of the valve. Place the tool in between your hands and roll it back and forth with light pressure and some rapid back and forth speed. This is a sound and feel thing for those who haven't done it before, at first it will grind like sand this is a good thing. As you roll the tool back and forth it will become quieter ( the compound has pushed out of the seat) I lift the lapping tool up which should pick up the valve a little set it back down and keep rolling in my hands. each valve should only that 30 sec to 1 min it is not a lengthy process. Wipe out the seat and the valve with a clean rag (don't want that grit in the motor later) here is what the valve faces should look like. Notice how each valve has a dull light gray ring on its face (this is the "fluff" we just created) notice how uniform it is all around the valve. This shows good contact between the valve and the seat.

Somedays it's better to be luck than good. Today you were both, good and luck.

They are sweeet Karl... the Mr&Mrs Rules give them two thumbs up.