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She thinks I am nuts, but sometimes I see things in firewood that I just can’t pass up.

Just finished building a 520H Loader with Backhoe. It works Great!

My wife’s “brother from another mother” Bryan recently got a new boss, from somewhere down south and he lives just a couple miles away from us. After a tour of the shop a couple weeks ago, he asked “Uncle B” if I’d be willing to shop for a tractor for him to mow, pull a trailer, etc. I found this deal and sent it his way. He’s coming to borrow a trailer this afternoon to pick it up, negotiated a deal at $550 I believe. I thought about jumping on it myself and parting out the accessories but thought it would be wise to just pass a deal on this time.

To make a long story short: (it never ends up a short story when I get to jaw jackin) Old man bought a brand new 317 Deere in 82. I was 7, and still remember he and gramps backing in and unloading it off the trailer. "COOL, can I ride it?" And I did......about 20 feet and right into the corner of the house, denting the grille. It had the 'rod chucker' KT17 series 1, and burned a half quart of oil per acre since day one. The dealership never followed up with him on the warranty, if the old man remembers correctly they were offering up 18hp Onans or a trade up to the 318 model. The tractor got used regularly for about 15 years before he overhauled the engine. It still guzzled oil and smoked, so he parked it. Fast forward to last fall- I bought a 'long term flip' home on an acre of land in the country and needed a mower. Old man says "drag the old Deere out and take it up there." Now, the old man is not a poster child for maintenance- I put a new battery in it, changed the oil (probably the third oil change it ever got lol) changed the hydro fluid and filter (had the ORIGINAL oil and filter on it from 1982), 2 new deck bearings, cleaned the carb, plugs, sharpened the blades that looked like butter knives, etc... and test mowed the property at the shop. Dang, she cuts nice and has plenty of grunt, belching smoke and dripping oil the whole time. He comes to the shop and says "wow, thats great! Maybe ill take it to the new house and leave the zero turn at the shop instead of hauling it back n forth." Wait a minute. What? Son of a fine, ill go buy my own damn tractor. Soon after, I was hauling home my first horse, a rough but running 520H. Always liked the horses, but we're a green family, and I like to be different. And theres my screen name: "green to red". One thing led to another with the 520, and maintenance turned into a full blown restoration/custom, intake seat and valve job/decarbon,belts, fluids, sleeve hitch, etc..etc... and one by one the attachments came in. HA, cant hook any of these to your Deere can ya, old man?? Ill hand it to the old Deere- its a good tractor, cuts beautiful, and just wont die- just keep oil on hand. Considering the absolute lack of maintenance for 35 years, theres something to be said for it. In a drag race, it would blow the doors off my 520H, but hook a chain between them and ill rip that Deere in half. I absolutely LOVE that 520, cant stop bragging on it- it is a beast! Theres only a need for one 'do it all' tractor, but theres already a 654 in the garage, waiting on a fix up. I find myself looking in yards, for sale listings, etc... trying to find another horse. Will it ever end? Doubt it. Hope you all enjoyed the 'long story short'. I told ya.....

Hello All, Well if I could only have 1 it would be a 1973--1976 C160 with the solid mount engine / big oil pan the gas tank under hood & the "trunk" fender pan setup. Plus I just love the looks.... Had to buy this one when I saw it... yah its a re-paint... needs a belt and fresh gear oil. But runs out great... Hope everyone is safe / healthy and is trying to stay busy. Its easy to get bored. Have a good one! Tony P.S. CHECK OUT THE BRILLIANT USE OF ROOF SHINGLES ON THE RUNNING BOARDS!

Well the boredom finally got the best of me...Rodger and I have been spending a lot of time working on some of the tractors in his collection, and talking about tractors in general. He told me about this old Case tractor he had in another barn a couple towns over. Ended up striking a deal with him on it this evening. Back when junk iron was way high, a lot of really nice things ended up going to the scrapper. There were a couple guys in our town who bought and sold junk, and Rodger told them if they ever got a tractor with decent rubber on it that he would buy the tires. They ended up with this Case and called him to see if he wanted the tires. He took one look at the tractor and decided it was way to nice to junk. He gave them $800 for it and told them to take it right back out where they got it. It's been sitting in that same spot ever since. I ended up buying it for $800 today...strangely he was trying to talk me into giving him LESS money for it...but I wasnt going to let him lose money on it. I dont think it will take much to get it running, and with a long overdue bath should look good as well. Going to pick it up Saturday so will have lots more and lot better pics then

We all know old playing cards work well to mask tires. Today I found they also work for masking mullions .

Shelves for nicknacks

Took a cruise parade in the field!

The donor engine on my 520-H was having surging issues over the winter when I ran my snow blower (once) and hard to get the RPM in the correct range, so today I took the carb/intake manifold from the original Onan (because I knew it worked fine when I did the engine swap last fall) and swapped it with the donor. Runs great now. Idle at 1,200 RPM and full throttle at 3,600 RPM as advertised. Got it all put together and took the dump cart out for a tow before the storms rolled in. IMG_0254.mp4

I always try to point out my own mistakes, especially to my children. In a world where so much is expected of you, it’s easy to get wrapped up in the misery of less than perfect. I have one child who struggles with trying anything new, for the fear of failure. I continue to remind her, “You don’t have to BE the best, you just need to TRY your best.”

Love the story!! I to grew up with deeres everywhere and i own more deeres then wheelhorses. I love all the old iron. My late dad did to. We owned a little of everything but deeres and horses and a few cubs where our main machines. I just sold a 317 i put a series 2 in it. What a beast they are a tough machine. Here was a Christmas display idea my dad loved to do my wife thought of it and we did this up until dad died and people loved it.The second photo is my some of my deeres when i had them at my son in laws till my building got moved. the 3rd photo is my daughter maddison showing off my restored rj58, my 1963 953 i bought from the original owners son, and my late dads favorite 67 round fender. I used the 67 to plow snow this winter did a great job. I hear ya on the maintenance my dad use to preach it but never did it himself. LOL

Kevin—so glad you aren’t/weren’t seriously hurt. You need to be more careful (coming from a guy who “engineered” the homemade clutch spring compressor)... honestly...what could go wrong here🤞🏻? It is crazy how quickly stuff can happen when dealing with oversized objects and uneven “terrain”. I’m so glad this one didn’t have to end with a trip to the ER. Stay safe my friend...

Been back at the ole D for a few days. I managed to get the new front tires mounted, rims painted, grille surround mounted, exhaust fabbed up (original 90 elbows, new Nelson mufflers, and electrical conduit - didn’t want to go to town with corona, so it got the weld it together as best I can treatment!), engine mounted, seat pan painted and mounted, control levers painted, and plastic dash repaired. I just hope it runs good once I get around to firing it up!

We've recently purchased 20 acres outside of Bowling Green Kentucky and are starting to make preparations to start building. Last spring, we got the county to put a culvert in the ditch so we can get vehicles onto the property more easily. Last fall, we had 10 tons of gravel delivered to stub the driveway farther onto the property so we can park a couple of vehicles a safe distance off of the road. My son and I started spreading the gravel by hand. After working at this for a couple of hours, we decided that there had to be a better way. I started thinking about the 8N tractor that we used to have when we were living there about 15 years ago. On a whim, I called the friend who I traded it to and asked if he still had it. Yup, he did, and I could borrow it. By the way, would I like to buy it back? I said yes, and a deal was struck. Here is a picture of EJ and me spreading the remainder of the gravel: We first got EJ back about 1996. We had just moved to a 5 acre property in Bowling Green. We needed a tractor to brush hog, grade the driveway and work our large garden. We ended up with a well used 1948 8N. Why the name EJ? Well the paint on the tractor was well weathered - most of it has weathered away and the tractor has a heavy patina of rust. It reminded us of the pulling tractors that E. J. Potter ran in the 70's. Those were Allison V1710 aircraft engine powered tractors that ran in the unlimited classes. He did well, but he cared more about how the tractors ran than what they looked like. Most of them looked as if they were built from odds and ends that had been laying out in the field. When my job took us to Missouri, we traded EJ the 8N to friend in exchange for him trucking some of my project cars to Missouri. He treated EJ to a paint job, new tires, some engine work, and a 12 volt electrical system conversion. The tractor was then used to mow the grounds around my friend's warehouse and to grade his parking lot. My friend retired the tractor in 2018, replacing it with a zero turn mower. Now that we've got EJ back, he will be put to use developing and maintaining the new acreage we have. The brakes on this tractor were never very effective. They are not any better now. Since our new property has much more contour than our old property did, going through them will be first on the to do list. There are a couple of items in the fuel system that need attention and some clean up in the wiring is also needed. The hydraulics work, but improvements are needed. I expect to have to rebuild the lift cylinder. I've also found instructions on the internet to add a hydraulic pump and plumbing to provide live hydraulics - a desirable feature when using a brush hog. I plan to post more in this thread as I work on the tractor. However, EJ is in storage in Kentucky and we are sheltering in place in Missouri until the Covid 19 situation gets sorted out. I expect that it will be this fall before we will get the opportunity to get back to Kentucky to re-activate our big project there.

Ed, is the stay at home directive getting to you?

Been dragging this one for the last few years. Time for a new custom build

Just found this video of Caleb @PeacemakerJack. I think this was your handywork. Had a great time there for sure. Can’t wait to get back.

Sad to say "NO" it may never end. Feel rest assured that we will all be here to help you through this illness. Also know that we are all more than willing to help talk you into buying that next (should you have any doubt). Hang in there buddy, & start building more sheds so that you have room to keep them.

I feel a bit sore today, but leg is feeling very well! Still tender, but the muscle isn’t deeply bruised (yet). I live to fight another day!

Took lRV out for a joyride behind the house nice cool evening lots of pollen in the air yuck!

Next time I will pull rank @Coulter Caleb!

Yes he did put a few miles on it! Prolly enough to wear nubbies off....... Hey how come I got no seat time!!!

Yes...I took that while driving dad’s 875. You can see the IH Cub stack in and out of the shot. I’m so glad the Caleb and I had the opportunity to make that run with Jim and Dan. Lots of great memories from that trip👍🏻

Put some gas in a water bottle to squirt into a carb. Then after working on it a little bit went to take a sip of water. Unfortunately this was at the big show with a few other clowns standing right there and watching. They had a pretty good laugh at my expense and one of them won't ever let me live it down! It was kind of funny though!

Someone got a heck of a deal! Tell him to keep the history on it be great to keep where it has traveled all its life!

The tins all got welded yesterday afternoon, before the storms came rolling through. Not too much more than a crazy light show and some good booms. They were predicting golf ball sized hail for us and up to 2-1/2” diameter stones about 40-50 miles north. The round hoods have a pair of 1” strapping braces from the steering block to the tower just under the fuel tank. We did a dry assembly of the tower with the lift handle and will see if the braces from the 552 will work. The 753 did not have any braces left. I bet they’re around somewhere! I’ll likely add another 3/8” bolt to either side of the tower on the frame as well. There isn’t really any good hold down behind the shifter box, most likely the reason the rear strapping brakes so often! I also noticed a good deal of rubbing from a seat spring on that rear brace, so we’ll clearance a 1/4” or so from that area to create a bit more wiggle room.

That was worth the write up right there! I recently had to put dad in a home and inherited his green & yellow s. First off was a good bath! I'll have to get some pics. of his fixes before I correct them.

Good thing you're younger, Kevin I don't bounce as good as I used to

Hope you heal fast Kevin.

Are you saying that the spline hole is smaller than the shaft on the tractor?? If so I can get it drilled out & broach a key way so that it will work. @PeacemakerJack If all this is true I can stop by & pick that pulley up. We'll have you in business in no time.

Thomas Edison is well known the world around for inventing and patenting (1,093 US Patents and 2,332 world wide) products that changed our lives. Most people don't remember that most of his efforts resulted in failures.

I lent a trailer and some straps to the guys so they could pick the tractor up. They left me with a little cash and these hub caps as a finder’s thanks! Unexpected, but appreciated!

Why would I laugh, sounds like a normal day for me. I just brought the brush cutter around to start it up, get the oil warmed up, and change it. Put gas in, put the choke on, pulled the cord. The thing wouldn't start. Pulled the cord again and again. Walked away, came back, turned the switch to "ON", it started right up.

I think it's time. This motor was tired when I got it about 10 years ago. Pulled the head. Pardon the shaky phone but you can see the play in the piston to bore.

Barney Fife the 857, our newest mock 1045 in the family... Steve the C-81... Screamin’ Jimmy the Commando 800... Rylee the spunky monster.

One of the biggest mistakes I ever made was putting the phone away just before you did that!

I guess its true then.

The steering on the C-121 Black Horse, was a little heavy. Yesterday I did a bit of investigating. I found that the track rod ends were just fouling the steering arms. The track rods slope downwards and the steering arms tilt inwards. So I knocked up a couple of spacers this morning. Just 1/4" thick and really need to be thicker, but I'd no bolts long enough to fit through thicker ones. Another future mod one day. If you look closely at the photo, you can see the top of the spacer is slightly chamfered. Also you'll see the arm is further down from the axle than standard. That's because I made spacers to lift the front end an inch, to compensate for the taller tyres on the rear. Not done a proper road test yet. I'll do that tomorrow. The rest of the day was spent getting the C-125 running better and made a towing attachment for the Sears/Roper.

Final assembly in place! Like her mother, no pain is needed. Just clean up and go.

But tractor parts are essential. You can’t stay home without them.

Before checking back in with ya, I discussed options with Jada. We agreed that angle iron would be the best option. We also agreed that these tractors have been beat much harder by much heavier operators than her, for many years... so any improvements we do are likely to outlast us!

Upright supports and parking brake lever borrowed from the 552 “Poppy”

Here’s the furnace. It’s a fuel oil burner and I’ll work to convert a brand new burner head to run waste oil through.

I’ll be in touch Dan. I have to get my shop organized enough to be able to get at Blackbeard again. He has been tucked away for the long winters nap. However, once I have him back out, I’ll study the situation and let you know what I find.

Eb send me a text or message, I might be able to help you, with a swept axle

ICE, LOTS OF ICE! I've had my share of falls over the years, now my balance is so bad that I have to watch every step. If I had been that careful when I was young I probably wouldn't have these problems now.

What did the cat ever do to you? Well , guess you could let it idle for 14 hours and then rebuild it. Kohler did make a rebuild kit with new bearings for the balance gears. I guess you could try to find one of the kits or source some bearings that will fit. The older Kohlers didn't have any balance gears and would run forever so I'm not too sure they were needed. Your engine, your decision, just don't throw them at the cat!