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Many of us are picking up new horses throughout the course of a given calendar year. Ironically, we get some of our best deals when an uneducated PO says something like, “I don’t know what happened with this but it just doesn’t work like it should” or “last fall it was running fine but this spring it wouldn’t start!” While I will concede that SOME tractors possess a truly broken engine, transmission, or other massive failure item, MOST just need some TLC to get them running good again. I purchased a 418-A last week Friday for a friend of mine named Cindy. Her husband Dale is dying from heart disease and she approached me about getting her old JD 185 going. It has a bunch of stuff wrong with it and because it is a lawn mower tractor, it seems useless to me to spend time, money, and effort on it. I asked her if she minded giving me some time to look around and find her a tractor. Last week @19richie66 came through with a tip about a nice looking 400 series machine in southern WI. A little too far for him to swing by and check it out!😉. I contacted the owner and he said it works great except the PTO bearing is seized. When I arrived, I was less than impressed with the whole operation. The battery was dead, which isn’t uncommon but he had to literally kick the brake lever to get it to move far enough to engage the safety switch. Once he got the tractor running, the idle was all over the place and he had to kick the brake pedal back in order for me to take it for a test drive. I could get maybe 2mph forward but about normal speed in reverse. Hydraulics worked fine but, sure enough, try to engage the PTO and it would kill the engine dead! The voltmeter said that the battery was at least receiving a 14 volt charge. There was decent looking engine oil on the dipstick but the hydro looked low on fluid. In spite of it problems, I still saw the potential in this diamond in the rough. It also helped that he had offered me a package deal if I took a pair of Big Wheels (953 and 1054A) off his hands. I told the boys that that we were going to use this Labor Day to get that tractor running like it should be for Cindy. After pulling the tunnel cover we found it full to the top with debris and crud. Upon cleaning that out, and pulling the fender pan we noticed that lots of moving points were just plain rusty. The gas cap on the fuel tank was broken and while dumping out the fuel, I noticed that there was some water in it. While the boys boys were cleaning the fender pan and fuel tank, I worked on finding the problem to the brake pedal. I was convinced it was the pedal but it turned out to be the bolt that holds the return to neutral plate. Lots of deep creep and changing out some hardware and we had that thing working like a song. In the above pic you can see how far the plate was capable of moving with the speed control arm because the return to neutral was somewhat “seized” and not allowing full travel. After freeing that up we had normal brake, e-brake, and speed control lever operation! This was just some of the junk that we cleaned off of the hydro, tunnel area, and underside! The next thing that is typically wrong when these older tractors don’t like to run well is the carb. Caleb pulled that off and we noted by the condition of the air filter that this thing was getting some LONG OVERDUE tune up parts. While he was dismantling the carb for cleaning, I pulled the spark plugs. They were the wrong plug and they had two different plug gaps. The one that was close to the recommended .035” looked like it was burning wheel. The one that was squished to about .10”—NOT SO MUCH! It was sooty and black looking. Caleb then said to me, “Dad, check this out!” There was water floating in the float bowl! I showed Caleb how to lightly bottom the idle air mixture screw and pay attention to where it was set (this one was less than 3/4 of a turn when the recommended start point is 1 1/4 turns from bottom. Meanwhile I had Judge and Zach polishing the chrome hubcaps and sheet metal. Doesn’t help it run better but it sure looks better running when clean! Next up was a run to town to pick up the tune up supplies and lunch. After lunch we dumped the rear end oil which was nasty and likely in there for decades. Changed filter and put in fresh oil after lifting the front of the tractor up with the chain hoist. The boys thought that was pretty cool. Looked like Dan @Achto doing a wheelie. By now the carb was ready to go back on after being cleaned out really well and new fuel line installed. Correct plugs with .035” gap were installed and all shear metal put back in place. The battery was on the charger and this thing was ready to start. Once we got fuel pumped through the system it started right up and ran really good. Needed a little tweaking but it drove around like a champ! It is amazing how the little things can make such a big difference in how something runs or doesn’t! It turned out that the PTO wasn’t seized by the bearing but rather a belt rusted tight to the pulley! Once that was removed, the pulley seemed to work just fine! Tomorrow I’ll hook up the deck and test it mowing some lawn! A great days work on a fine little machine. I’ll be sure to add pictures soon of the finished product.

Enjoying a beautiful evening in the double tub, my son Max(4) asked if he could drive tractor tonight were both enjoying every minute of it.

I never set out to have all these 15” rear rim tractors but it ended up working out that way. Thought it would be fun to line them up and snap a few pics... COOL!

Out of the way and looks good too...….

Just picked up a 1967 wheel horse lawn ranger 107. It’s in great shape just needs some TLC to get the engine running again. I plan to fully restore it. Any sites, tips or tricks y’all have learned along the way would be great. It doesn’t have the original engine. It is an older 8hp kohler that I’d like to keep with it. It fits the style of the tractor and close in age. I believe it’s a 1976 motor. Thanks

1944 75 year young M and a mid 50s Bush Hog

being a fly tyer, i never pass up a material source, this morning , very conveniently there was a dead jake turkey near my mail box. looked like a head hit , no body damage and perfect feathers. i have screened boxes to dry feathers , so i quickly stripped out the bird , early golden bronze phase colors. the body was just going off so i left that back in the woods , more supply for bad weather tying , good start to the day, pete

A Christmas tree stand repurposed into a plow frame. Let's see could we make old plow frames into Christmas tree stands.

I think this is from 1948.

This lot flew in this evening. Not usually here till later in the year. Hard winter coming? Apologies for the shaky video. P1030101.MP4

I’ve sold many tractors and only a few made my personal “sellers regret list”, my 1054 is on that list. Nice line up of Big Whees!

The culprit was located as I was setting up the deck for Cindy’s tractor. I was trying to figure out why that belt got rusted to the PTO in the first place... suddenly it all made sense! The bearing on the V-idler pulley gave out and seized up and choked out the system. The PO, didn’t know what had happened and assumed it was the PTO bearing. So, I set up Cindy’s tractor with a different mule that I had which has good bearings. I changed the engine oil and greased everything up good. Then I was able to do a test run on it...it worked great! So, a little more cleaning and a fresh PTO belt were all that was needed before delivery. Cindy was overjoyed to take possession of her new “horse”. She is a horse lover by nature and at one time years ago had over 20 horses that she boarded at her farmette. She still has two horses and now a third! She loved the fact that it was automatic and has hydraulic lift. I spent about 30 minutes explaining it to her and then let her play with it a little. Dale was having a good day and even though he didn’t remember me, was very interested in the machine and especially in my old Chevy truck! He’s a fan of Chevy trucks! It was so good to see him up and around because a few months ago he was bed ridden. Cindy had tears in her eyes as she gave me a HUGE hug thanking me for getting this tractor for her. It was so worth it!

Not shown is the old hay elevator that Terry has converted to hydraulic power, this feeds the log to the saw as needed - operator controlled. The saw rig is run from an old truck differential that is driven off the tractor pto, the emergency brakes are now independent, when the left drum is locked the saw blade runs, when the right drum is locked the splitter becomes operational. Apparently it's safe to use, Terry's been using this thing for years.

I happen to be a member of PETA. People Eating Tasty Animals that is. My favorite motto being "There's plenty of room for all of gods creatures, right next to the mashed potatoes"

Is the trip lever still functional?

Sounds like the girls and I will be joining the party... Mrs. P has other plans.

How many will be rolling dirt at Jim’s plow day? Will we outnumber the little wheels?

I'm thinking about possibly making a steel radius roller type machine to make some steel wheels. (Classic steel wheels like in the picture) Would anyone be interested in steel wheels? I dont know if theres a market for something like that, but that would be the deciding factor if I make a machine to make them.

Thanks guys!.... Headed to Florida this afternoon to our daughter's in the Tampa area.... Gonna take a couple days going down and hoping the traffic won't be too bad when we get there.

Absolutely! It is my sincere desire that she will not only like this tractor and that she will feel comfortable operating it but that it will serve her well for years to come. It is definitely more blessed to give than to receive!

That is one sweet line up Josh!!

Seems I’ve seen pictures of a smaller lighter tractor somewhere working a garden with street tires somewhere... I just can’t pinpoint where. But I found this cool picture of an 875 once!

Zach is pulling really hard to plow with Blackbeard at Jim’s. I would have to get a set of AG’s or something with a little more tread before then. The 1054 could also be a good candidate...however, Clyde is already set up for plowing (weights, AG’s, plow, etc). We will see... Looking forward to seeing you guys and turning some earth with you. Always look forward to climbing in the furrows with my buddies from Minnnn-A-sotaa- ya hey! its coming quick!

I have 1941 H and that is one smooth running machine.Being able to stand up and see all around is great.Sometimes ,bigger is better.

First pic drive disengaged. The lever is sitting against a roll pin that goes through the shaft. Second Pic engaged lever is past the roll pin spring is keeping the belt tight. This is a newer machine and later decks had two drive belts but engage disengaged worked the same as you rs.

I took everyone’s feed back and came up with a better solution! See the attached pics. Now all pressure points from the plow go directly to the frame. (I had an extra Christmas Tree stand in the garage.). Extreme pressure will cause the tractor front end to deflect sideways instead of against the front axle to deflect backwards. Clearances for all belts, the mower, and the attachmate are all still good. What do you think?

Gotta Love this decal! Definitely going to keep it or have @Vinylguy replicate it... I will be sure to have OSHA inspect my handiwork when finished!!!

Sooooo...... 3rd times a charm? I noticed this machine was not charging... again. looked at the connection that I had thought was the problem with no success. As I was moving (wiggling) the wires around further along, I saw the voltmeter jump. followed it to the key switch connector. Pulled the plug, blew it out well with compressed air and upon close examination, one of the connectors that's bent (to apply pressure on the blade on the back of the key switch) was broken off! if you looked at the plug quickly, everything looked ok, put a new end on the wire and getting a nice charge.

Here is a link to a thread that member @dclarke did on a nice restoration of a Lawn Ranger. By the way, today is Denny's birthday.

For those with religious affinity this is the Fatima Sanctuary, This great view is at the Nazaré shore where the world famous surfing events are held. Today however not one wave in sight

Clutch pedal switch controls the starter circuit. All you can do is follow the ignition (I) circuit from the ignition switch to the coil. Check all the bypass connections. Garry

Fantastic work there my friend!!! I'll be looking forward to more pics too!! We used to tell people in the old school auto parts stores: You can't do trouble shooting until you do the maintenance!

Lowell is going to get me set up.! 💯

Ya Caleb, no staying out partying the night before this year.

Thanks guys!

You wish Mike!

Sure hope @Coulter Caleb can make it

BLAM!! POW!! BOOM!! No harm in trying. You could post in the cooking section.

What model tractor are we talking about here??? The PTO cone on most drives deck, snow blowers, and even tillers

This is the first time opening my box in probably close to 20 years... how did I do back then?

Might do well in Amish country, check the photos.

Not to let John Deere get all the attention when it comes to "B's". Here's one of the red nature.

@Fuzz! I recently did a build using a 753’s sheet metal, a Charger 12’s chassis and C-101’s 10 horse Kohler. Against my better judgement, my wife convinced me to wet sand and clear coat the finished product. It’s a great way to preserve what you have but get a nice smooth sheen at the same time. I guy named Bud we met at th Portage, WI show this year used a matte clear to keep a satin type finish on his, that was pretty sweet too.

Great work Stertz boys! Josh as much as I know you love a big wheel or two, I bet handing this over to Miss Cindy will be the most rewarding!

Nice there... I'm betting it's glad it found you guys.

Good on you for helping out your friend! That'll be a far better tractor than that JD could ever think of being. It's also cool that your kids are learning on these things! That'll pay dividends later. Glad that all it needed was relatively simple! Hopefully its shortfalls helped you negotiate a bit! You know we're going to need a picture of it all cleaned up with its polished wheel covers.

You’ll have a whole lot better chance with the 1” rod than 3/4” rod... if you happen to bend a 1” axle I’d ask what you’re loading and how much at a time?

Back in the mid seventies right after I got my first car, a 1963 corvair, I found an old piece of plywood and strapped it to the bumper to push most of the snow away. It fell apart till I was done but I was able to accomplish my mission! Rear engine, rear wheel drive helped alot with traction. Not my actual car, at that time I didn't take any pictures of it.

I received these pictures from the customer last night. The table top needs to be drilled now for inserts then we can screw the two together. There will be ivory in the chairs and all the cabinetry handles are deer antler. All the woodwork is from the same tree, remember!