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To anyone who thinks Toro ruined Wheel Horse: you have not tried an XI. Yesterday I mowed my grass for the first time with my XI with a fairly junky deck that has re-welds and braces that cause clogs. That is an awesome machine to mow with. The weight of it really gives you a smooth ride and it also allowed me to sidecut my hill (though I will be putting wheel weights on next time, just a BIT tippy). 25HP really allowed that 48" deck to chew through the tall wet grass and other than the clogging (caused by a poorly positioned brace welded in) it just took it all no problem. The electric clutch holds steady and doesn't allow slipping. I was so impressed. The power steering, while not precise, is effortless and you get used to it pretty fast. While it is almost a foot longer than my 520 was, it can turn in a much smaller radius. It was just a delight to drive. The pedals are positioned well and have good feedback. The extra bit of adjustments they added to the deck work nicely and the front anti-scalp wheels are so much better! Getting on and off with no tunnel is pretty awesome too. And on top of all of that, it still feels like a Wheel Horse. Anyone that has driven lots of brands of tractors will tell you you can feel the brand of tractor that you are driving, and this feels like a horse. Will I be selling off my classics? No. They all have their strong points but I feel that the XI is highly underrated by many. I have had this unit for less than a year and I don't feel like that attachments are too hard to come by. I own a NOS tiller for it now, a mower deck, plow, and snowblower. All pretty reasonably priced. Is it a perfect machine? NO. It is still a garden tractor and it is not a SCUT or zero turn. There are of course some things that some companies had that would have made it even better (and aesthetics, c'mon now!), but I can tell you that Toro took the heart of a wheel horse and in almost every way made it better. If the heavy duty, high quality garden tractor were still a feasible market today, I am certain that Wheel Horse would be a top competitor. So thank you Toro for keeping WH alive for all those years and thank you for the XI. That is an awesome machine. Ok. End of ramble... Now... Does anyone have a really good condition 44 or 48" deck for an XI they want to sell?

Had a little time to look over this new to me 1055 last nite and wasn't too surprised as to what I found. After some choice french and a can of PB Blaster did manage to get the belt guard off and deck pedal off. Only twisted off one hooby doo and one broken guard tab so that was a nice surprise as I had expected many more. Transmission is locked up solid so drained the tranny to find nothing but a few drops of brown water goo come out. Turns out it is not stuck in two gears as thought but a careful feel of the shift lever revealed it is indeed in neutral. The shift rails are rusted solid and so is the rest of it. I did manage to free up the input pulley with a chain wrench but it feels rather gritty. My intent is to just get it rolling to move around easier. I am force feeding it a diet of ATF & diesel through the bolt hole in the tunnel just to kinda help preserve it further till I get the time to really tie into it. I would love to dump that love juice mixture down the shifter hole to cover the shift rails & forks but the dog point is snapped off flush so that operation will have to wait till it's on the bench. It was rather messy but I did manage to get some to seep down past the shifter ball. Other noteworthy finds: The SG will spin the motor which is free and a good sign. The rear tires will hold air.... for about five minutes The gas tank and fuel system are fairly clean. The frame has and other items have suffered some stick welding with what appears to be 240 VAC and a coat hanger. Fortunately nothing that can't be ground off and repaired properly. Note the round welded on washers under the lower frame to transmission bolts Paint @Shynon, appears to be original in most areas except I suspect the fender pan has been messed with. See the pics ... a strange yellow undertone, maybe the fenders were yellow at one time? Reminds me of the yellow painted ones guys had pics of that were for park service???

Finally had some time after work and was able to put a couple Deestone 4.00-8 Tri-rib tires on the 1054. I think they look pretty nice with the original Ag tires on the back.

A few more pics I found..

Tearing down a K 301. Head bolt started to come out then bound up some. Finished spinning it out and only part of it came out. Pulled the head and the remaining piece spun out easily with my fingers. If I put the pieces together it looks like part of the bolt was eaten away!

this is the c161 wheel horse that I bought last year for $50. It has the briggs engine and runs very good, hydro trans and hyd lift.

Yep those sure are some Beauty's! But if your like me I'm just getting Started!

This little lady was drawn to the tri-ribs on my barn fresh 953 too.

My 857 (or 856?) got to come out and play in my wife's little salad garden early this evening.

FLASHBACK I remember posting a topic in the garden section around a year ago, so I thought I'd show a couple of pictures from it. Essentially these are to show my need for a loader, when you've got this much material to move by hand.... it.... it...kinda focuses the mind. So onto my upay purchase, from the conception of this project I knew I would need a hydraulic tank, so I put a search up on that site for a 'small hydraulic tank'. Nothing turned up that was suitable, (either to big or the wrong shape) then this little beauty appeared. It came off a BMC Nuffield horticulture tractor, with 9 litre capacity, an internal filter, it seemed just what I was looking for. I contacted the vendor and he kindly took some measurements, and I couldn't hardly believe it. This tank could almost have been made by for this application, it fits into the bonnet behind the grill like a glove (almost freakishly). Pictures tomorrow. It had a BIN so I did, £25.00, bargain! Now I had a tank, time to make somewhere for it to go, only one logical place, right at the back behind the steering axle. The tank plus oil would weigh around 10 kilos, so really useful weight smack in the right place. To accommodate the tank (and later another vital component) the frame was lengthened another 230mm, this was ok because it didn't effect the wheelbase, it just stuck the tail out a bit beyond the steering axle. Tomorrow: mounting the tank and cosmetic protection!!... till then loader fans.

You are going to open that trans...why wouldn't you? It is just too easy to do it right. A little cheese and some carrots, and this horse is alive and kicking and making road apples again. Tip-toe through the Tulips. Duke's right!!

It's Amazing what these Horses see as far as SHADE TREE MECHANICS. I mean I am the farthest from the sharpest wrench in the shed, but flat out hacking up a tractor is just plain stupid. I would like to think that every horse that has come through my stable has either left in as good, or in better condition than it did when it came here. There is always that occasional horse that came and gave their life that another may live but that will always happen. Good luck with her I know you will make her better!

Put the back wheels on some of those roller skate hoobie-doobies for pushing around. I have a pair that I use for my boat trailer.

What's with the funky head bolts & missing tin's you suppose? deck that came with it, anyone have an Idea on the model ...no tags but 42" SD Holes in the common spots but other wise solid & spins.

HorseFixer..I guess I will jump in This is my last one. It is not done. I sold everything else I had. We are getting ready to travel. I hope you enjoy it. Thanks for looking.

Forgot to put up this picture showing the roll pin 'retainers' on the subframe.

Just a heads up!!! I was sent a message from a member of Red Square stating that he would like to purchase a splined coupler from me. After an exchange of info and an agreement on price, he informed me that he had sent the funds via Pay-Pal "Friends and Family" He also gave me the address that he wished for the part to be sent to. I had my son pack and ship the Item {without checking if the funds had actually transferred into my account.} Then it dawned on me that I should have checked to see if the funds had actually transferred into my account or not. They did not. So I messaged the buyer and let him know this, he reiterated that Pay-Pal was holding the funds until I accepted them, and gave me the transaction #. I knew that was not correct as that is not the way Pay-Pal works, but I called Pay-Pal and relayed the transaction # to them. They were quick to let me know that it was an invalid transaction # and that the funds were never sent. I requested an interception from the U.S.P.S. I then listed the item on Ebay and it sold. So now I always check to see that the funds have posted to the account prior to shipping.

Well yah Steve I am going to open it up eventually.. just greasing the skids for you. Trouble is I am NOT RETIRED SO I DON'T HAVE THE TIME RIGHT NOW AND....oooh I'm yelling like Duke..so get yer @$$ up here...your room is ready and Cindy will make Lasagna! Thank you Hank now to find that weekend or three! Tell you what Steve I will get Tom over to help you.... I know where a nice GT-14 with a FEL is he would like. Trouble is there he would leave in the middle of the night with the 1055!

Toro did the best they could to keep the Wheel Horse line going and bring it up to date. This is a newsletter sent to dealers explaining the 5xi build and the future of the old tractor. In the 10 years I worked there (including 4 years on the 5xi) everyone was impressed with the Wheel Horse line. They brought in Ray from retirement to design the new Unidrive. I have edited the document to exclude names. wheel_horse_forum.pdf

... HF wooding moving dollies work great . Your fenders match my 1075's hood but as you can see mine has definitely been messed with !

It's magic, and magic is never the same after you know how the trick is done.

I can play too!

I got a phone call out of the blue this morning from an elderly gentleman who asked if I was the guy who collected Wheel Horse tractors. I replied that I was, and he asked if I would be interested in looking at some things he was going to be selling.I replied that I would, and within an hour I was in his barn and out in the rain looking. I am going to try to identify what he has and add a bunch of not-so-good pictures. First item is what I think is a Suburban 400. He said the engine blew a rod and came through the crankcase, so engine was replaced. Love those sexy foot rests though. In the next barn was the front axle, hood, gas tank, and steering of what appears to be an RJ 58 or 59 Next item in the rain was a snow thrower Next barn contained a gutted 1-3745 1969 Work Horse 700. No engine or steering wheel. The fenders on the seat are from the RJ I think. Last item is a Suburban 552? Anyway, I bought them all but haven't picked them up yet. So just to get you primed, they will all be for sale but I am not advertising them until I have them in my possession and know for sure what I have. Inquiries can be directed to me via PM. What doesn't get sold before the big show will be going to the WHCC show.

If it sat for a year and it was run on gas with ethanol in it you probably have a bit of goop blocking the valves in the fuel pump preventing it from pumping. The carburetor will probably be full of crud too. Pull the fuel pump and take it apart and clean it up, if it has some jelly like goop in it the carburetor will too. Best to use non-ethanol gas to prevent problems.

Jim you should have all head bolts no studs, with a large boss head on it Besides you need another project while waiting for the parts for a project

Build a loft and pick it a block and tackle setup and you should be fine

Build a shelf and get a FEL to pick the blower up and put it on it.

I filled my suburban to the top with ATF & left it soak for a few weeks before I tore into it. You could also jack the back end up when you leave it sit so that the ATF is forced to sit by the shifter. Other wise it looks savable if you choose. Nothing that some $ & elbow grease can't fix.

If you really want to see their heads spin, mow your lawn while towing a 500lb roller with a 6.5 hp Lawn Ranger, or disc your garden with a double discer gang with a 5.5 hp 551!

I should have taken a picture it involves a Bridgeport mill a 6" Kurt vise a right angle knee a fixture I made with a 3/4" pin and three Kant twist clamps a 1"x1 1/2" spacer one edge finder a 1/4" two flute endmill a center drill a 15/64" drill and a 1/4" reamer Brian

Still waiting...

Took a road trip to Ohio, Saturday. Look what followed me home

Motion control part 2 cable ends to transmission plus mistakes. My first attempt to make the link between cable and transmission worked out but was stiff and jerky, I used the 'gate' arrangment had designed for their lever control and made a 'see saw' bridge to convert the movement to the cable, you may spot this in some of the pictures, mark 1 quickly got scrapped. Mark 2 solution needed some surgery to be carried out on the 'gate' Now I had a nice smooth rotary motion to work from. using a couple of roll pins I cut and squeezed them so the cable sheaths couldn't pass through them, then welded these to a small bar. (I used this roll pin idea at the other end of the cable off the subframe). Then weld this to the frame as the picture shows. The 'rocker' above is simply two roll pins with small bolts welded by their heads and grooved clamps to squeeze the cables in. This arrangement is nice and smooth. I included this picture to show I cut out two 50x50x5 box pieces from the base of the towers on the subframe and at the top of the towers. After I had welded the main cross members in the subframe the lower piece became unnecessary and in the way. The upper one was a pain as well and I realised when the booms were eventually linked, it too would be unnecessary. So there you go motion control sorted, tomorrow....A very fortunate upay purchase.

Nobody has come by and picked me up from the floor because I fell outta my chair when I seen these pics !

The bolt was in the rear of the head. All of the bolt holes have been tapped. Just recieved new grade 8 flange head bolts from Fastenal today. sent from a pile of leaves in Dino's back yard using Crapatalk

pfrederi....,that's showing off!!!!! lol i have a sky crane ordered from harbor freight!

You could use a wall ledger then post far enough apart to park a tractor between them. If the roof structure is strong enough hang all thread down to a shelf.

How close was that bolt to the exhaust port stuff?? Cents, since, sense you did not ask a question. Hi Mike

Maybe some kind of primer?? Hind sight being 20/20 I should have jacked the front up to see what kind of goo was over the hump too. I do have about 2 quarts in it now.

I love it when I'm doing things with my 857 and the neighbors wonder why their 20 HP riding mowers (that look like a garden tractor) can't.

I don't care about the cat but I am lovin' the "horse"....... carry on

I'm beginning to regret mentioning the friggin cat now, still I suppose some are actually following along for the project, while most are now scanning the pictures for 'walley' ((not its real name) ... pigging thing. More later.

I think I'm getting the Cat Scatch Fever!

Give me the 60 inch deck and you won't have that problem any more.Nice tractor.Love the Onan's.