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Sleep escapes many people throughout the night so if you need a little shut-eye today, even while in public, it’s totally fine because it’s National Public Sleeping Day, on February 28. Yes, if you feel like you’re going to nod off on that park bench or at the beach, no one will think poorly of you. It’s actually what we are all called to do today, so grab a pillow and be prepared for that magical moment when you can doze off in public. While no one has claimed to be the founder of National Public Sleeping Day, whoever it was, was clearly onto something. Maybe they had seen so many of their fellow Americans asleep in public, they felt we all needed to be given a free pass for just one day. If you take a few moments to think of all the times you’ve fallen asleep in public, you’ll realize it is not at all a rare occurrence! The key for today is preparation. If you want to be an overt public sleeper, a sleeping bag will get the job done. If you are still a little uncomfortable about sleeping in public, you’ll want some sunglasses, a hat, or a newspaper. Of course, you can always point to this article as your permission to indulge in some public sleeping but in the event that you are at work and your boss walks in while your head is down, let the first word you say be “Amen.”

Hard to believe a week ago the temps were below freezing. Highs in the 50s this week thawed the ground enough to start plowing today.

Many of you have seen the wooden horse and received a smaller version. After 10 years of weather, mine needed major repair. The wood was starting to delaminate and nearly all the black lettering and paint had disappeared. The red was still OK. After some regluing and painting, it's back in the wall.

Mom and I made a trip from south Missouri to north Missouri-more than 6 hours of driving for me. We delivered the 500 lbs of fescue grass seed we will be sowing once the water ways are completed. We, along with my brother, burned a brush pile and began tearing out some fencing that is not needed. We talked with an adjoining neighbor about the abandoned rail road right of way that I have written about elsewhere. I think the highlight for mom was to get to see the recently purchased (2014-100 hp) Kubota tractor. Mom even got to drive it. Not too bad when you consider this 89 years old woman was in the hospital and nursing home rehab three months a little over a year ago following a botched biopsy.

Put a electric lift on my 1056. I only use this tractor for plowing so no idea if it would clear with a deck. Made a bracket that bolts to the frame/transaxle and the other end bolts right to the lower part of the rockshaft. Wired it up and it works great! its a bit slower than I would like says its 14mm/sec but still a reasonable speed. The cylinder can lift 265lbs and has no problem lifting my 48'' blade.

You southern folk!!

As you know I picked up that Bolens at an estate sale few weeks ago for 50 bucks. Got it running and have sold it. At the sale there was also a International Harvester Cub Cadet 109 for sale that I did not buy as the asking price was more then I was willing to spend. The lady running the sale called me the other day to tell me the Cub did not sell and asked if I was interested in it. Cub was in the barn. She said it wouldn't start. I bought the Bolens not starting and it was outside. So we worked out a deal and I went to pick it up today. Got it pretty cheap but not as cheap as I got the Bolens. The Cub had a deck attached and also a second one that appears to be solid but incomplete. It also came with the owners manual and a very nice Service Manual in a 3 ring binder. So I use my Snowco trailer for the second time now and get it home. Seems to be in ok shape. I notice some issues right away but a put some gas in it, charged the battery. Turned the key and it's purring like a kitten. Fired right up. I see some things I need to address but mostly issues with the deck and how the deck carriage locks into place. That being said it's running and driving. Saved from being scraped. Couple years back I had the 108 model. The 109 is same only it's hydro driven. These old IH Cubs are built like tanks. Hopefully find a new home for it soon. Let me know if anyone has had or have one. Noticed it didn't have headlights, were they an option ? This one has the cigarette lighter that still works. First pick is it in the barn. I thought because of all the green grass clippings all over it that it must have been running recently. 20250227_132803.mp4

Had a flock of about 30 robins out in the yard.

The original 502 with a plow!!

Bring it on! Great here in Indiana too! ut I had a good sunset onTuesday leaving Florida! B

@Ed Kennell 10% off coupon this weekend at HF... I was there earlier today and saw big stacks of their red buckets... Cuz... Your gonna need a bigger bucket...

The robotics team programmer was building the automatic climb program for the robot. After getting the operation sequence we needed figured out, he got position encoder readings that he needed for all of the devices involved and finished his code. Part of the code is setting a latch to make sure the robot ends up in the climb position at the end of the climb. The climber storage position is past where the latch is needed to hold the robot in the up position, so the latch needs to be set after the climber is extended out to the pick up position. Anyhow, the programmer tested the program - except he forgot to put the latch in the clear position to allow the climber to rotate out into the pick up position. the motors started up, the climber moved, the latch engaged stopping the climber, but the motors kept running until a 'pop' sounded off and the climber arm fell back into its storage position. Here is a picture of what made the 'pop': That twisted piece between the gears is a piece of 6061 T6 hex aluminum shafting. The space between the gears is about 1/2". The shaft twisted about 60 degrees before shearing into 2 pieces. We are running this thing on two Talon 60 brushless motors that are a little smaller than fist size. Overall gear reduction between the motors and the climb are is 198:1. The gearbox has 5 stages 5:1, 3 stages of 3:1, then a final chain drive of 1.4:1. The shaft that twisted apart was on the 2nd 3:1 stage. This stage has the last aluminum shaft. The next 2 stages are using 1/2" hex steel shafts. Guess you could say that the climber has been pre-disastered. The repair did not take very long, and we are now working on our list of spares that we should take to our competitions. We are planning on taking a spare climber gear box, but now we are going to throw a couple of extra shafts in. I'll have to suggest to the climber team and programmer that we install some sort of switch to tell us where the latch is, and not let the climber run if the latch is in the wrong spot at the wrong time. One of the students commented that we should replace that shaft with a steel one. I quickly pointed out that the aluminum shaft that failed acted like a mechanical fuse and prevented further damage, so replace it with another aluminum shaft.

Well I got this far today. I'll finish up in the next day or two. So far so good.

This just in... ! First time in RS history - an @ebinmaine thread has gone off topic!!!!

Went to an auction today and saved a ton of abandoned horse parts that would have gone to scrap. I need only about 2% of these and all the rest is for sale. Anyone want all f it make an offer.

I’d start by soaking the trunnion and the threaded rod so you can adjust it. If you have a torch to heat it, even better.

Tomorrow I'm planning on working outside all day. Sunday looks like dodging rain drops.

Just watched the weather. We might get 4-5" then hit the 50's

Ok gentleman, we have pretty blue spark now! 😃 I don't know what was on those point contacts but it took some cleaning with crocus cloth to get them to work! Never had to go that far in past experiences. One choke and she fired up and idled like champ. Shout out to Brian of K & B Wheel Horse Parts for building me a great lil Carter! And thanks to all who chimed in with help throughout! Now just awaiting my steering pins to tighten up the steering a bit. Wheeeeeeew...

Yep, I've been wearing Levi's, almost exclusively, for a good 50 years. One thing the are LOUSY for is detailing vehicles. The very rivets that they are famous for do not mix well with vehicle finishes.

200w.webp

That shifter hole is more than enough. An average mouse only needs a dime sized entrance.

The 782 is the only IH built one, the other two are MTD built. The 782 actually has international harvester on the tag while the other two are just Cub Cadet.

@Achto ??? I would say no just get it started strait and plenty of cutting oil.

A little more progress.

They didn't play well with wallpaper either. Growing up on the farm in central New York we needed to warm up coming in from the fringed winter weather. The furnace was directly under the kitchen so we would stand over that register. My brother and I both got new Levi's for Christmas one year and within a few weeks there were little rivet tracks in the wall paper over the kitchen register. Those were the last Levi's jeans I had until I was out on my own.

Definitely still WINTER here. Another couple inches of snow tomorrow.

The Bluebirds are getting feisty. Good thing there is too much snow to get the pine needles for the nest or they would be building!

A rich mixture is easier to fire than a lean one. Weak spark will need more fuel to fire.

Due to the blinding glare from oncoming lights and the reflection from road signs, I could not drive at night. With these new lens, no more night glare.

Same here Richard. I have a roll of these stickers that I use to cover the idiot lights.

I believe it's a 1973. I'm going to hang on to the service manual as it explains in great detail of the kohler engines. @ebinmaine take a road trip and come get it for what I paid. Since I'm not keeping it I don't plan on fixing anything else on it. Needs a deck belt so I can't test the deck but the spindles spin very freely. For you I'd even toss in the 3 ring binder! Looking at some images of these older Cubs I notice alot of them have the steering knob. Was that another option or just coincidence ? This one has the cigarette lighter that works and dosnt look to be ever used. If no one noticed yet the rear tires don't match. I do have a pair of 6x12s or AGs I can put on. Going to have to wait for the snow to melt first to get them out of the shed.

Excellent. Great save Don! If I was closer I'd be interested in that. My maternal Grampa had a yellow & white IHC Cub Cadet before his Red X82 series. Always did like that. His was hydro too. No idea what year or model. Niiiiice.

And for clarification- the spacers touch nothing unless the bearing slides inward over the axle.

No sir. I'm talking top link spacers for CAT2 tractor stuff. They are 1 inch ID, thin wall steel spacers. 2 of them slip loosely over the axle, and combined allow for 1/4 "in or out" axle movement but prevent the bearing slipping into the case. The only direction the bearing can go is outward, so at least it would be visible should that happen. The spacers slip loosely over the axle and do not touch anything else inside the case. Two spacers fit perfectly between the diff end cap and outer axle bearing, but still allow for the axial in/ out play.

Got some more done

Welcome back. Any chance you can show a picture of the ID tags on those x82 series? Just curious if they are IH or MTD built. IH built will say International Harvester made in Chicago IL on it. MTD built will say Cub Cadet made in Louisville KY or Cleveland Ohio.

Can you elaborate on this? Pics? Several inches of shims between the inner and outer bearings? Or am I overlooking....

I figured out a way to save the original case, so that's the one I built up tonight. My "spare" case is ok as well, but I'm gonna save it for another project. The right side of the case at the axle bearing is not quite as tight (only a few thousands) as the left. The bearing couldn't be pushed by hand, but it did go in much easier than the left side. It was too tight to shim. If you look at the original disassembly, the axle bearing had slipped into the case and no longer supported the axle. So I'm going to add thin hitch pin spacers on the axle just to make a stop so the bearing can't move into the case again. The case where the bearing sits isn't worn, it's just slightly larger. Anyway- got the original case cleaned out. Ignore the black goo in the bearings. I used some assembly lube just because I didn't want to cram everything together dry. Replaced the axle bearings and all the seals (axle, brake shaft, input shaft) with all new. Borrowed a few parts from the bad 8-speed as well. 2 small capped needle bearings, and the 3 worst gears (comparison on the good/ bad gears below). Also gonna use the shifter rails so I won't have shifting issues with this transmission. I've also decided to use the differential and axles from the donor tranny. Assembly tomorrow...

I found this discarded flue pipe plan on @Pullstart's shop floor...

I’ve just acquired a new to me 877 to putt around on. It runs (not great) but smokes a lot, has a very cool look, and I love the size of it. I’m gonna cruise around in here and, hopefully, end up with a neat little machine that I can enjoy with my grandson.

I have a set of 5x12 ag tires that would sure look better sticking out another inch on each side. But the 701 is an icon in a way. You don't see many that have mods. Every tractor I own is modified, and I wanted to make this one at least close to correct. But it might look pretty nice...

As it always seems to be the case, my transmission has a few more issues than I initially saw. Firstly, some eagle-eyed folks may have noticed (I saw it but ignored it) that one axle bearings was in a strange place. I figured somehow it got there during all the beatings that I gave this thing getting it apart. Nope... the case somehow got wallowed out so that the bearing could slip. The axle on that side has a small ring that I believe is just deep enough to prevent the seal from doing it's job. Also- some of the gear teeth that were in the bottom are chipped more than I thought. Luckily I do have another 3 speed case, and a 8-speed that has a damaged case. I'm hoping to use not only the newer shifter rails but the differential bull gear and brake shaft as well as possibly any other gears from it that are the same. The problem is that I do not have another axle of the same length, but do have a nice pair from the donor 8-speed. Of course they are 1 inch longer, so I'm not sure if they will look OK on this machine. Anyone got an opinion on using these axles?

Somehow this got earwormed last week. Figured I'd share the ......

You can use a 78 or 79 metal pan or 300, 400, or 500. 77 or early seat pans you have to saw the hole of the gas tank.

I will be replacing the O rings in my 520HC with Viton ones soon. The O rings are on order but should be here soon. The Nitrile ones have swollen making the valve hard to move. I am blaming the synthetic oil I put in this tractor for the swelling since it has not happened to any of my other tractors with regular oil. I will document that as I do it.

No not me either. When I run into one that needs $$$$ or a skill I lack I have a tendency to push it to a back burner. Except for if Cindy is involved... then I get a 🔥 lit under my a$$ to giterdone...

I decided to test out the transdenser 2 made by Overnight Solutions LLC and distributed through Kirk engines. How does it work? Think of the Transdenser II as a high-performance/high-voltage relay. Breaker-points in a conventional ignition system make and break 3 to 4 amps of current depending on the coil resistance. This leads to their ultimate demise. The Transdenser II takes the heavy lifting from the points and places it on an IGBT semiconductor, thus dropping the breaker-point current to a preset 160mA, or 0.16A. Two thumbs up for me so far.

I've got the rivets showing through on the clutch brake for my d-180. Toro says the part is NLA. I'm sure this has been discussed before, but how can I replace the friction material so I don't damage anything since I now have metal touching metal? Doesn't seem like rocket science, but I'm not sure where to start.