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I figured we needed a thread to capture some of the boneheaded moves we make when doing what should be routine stuff. I'll start. Note to Self: When you've got your transaxle put back together and you're ready to fill it with fluid - double check your parts tray to see if the drain plug might still be laying there.

I picked up another WH very close to home. 2 miles away. The fellow moved into a new housing plan with very little yard and no need for it. Very good price as it is off season here.He said it was used to mow a half acre field next to his old house about 6 times a year. I think I have to believe him. No rust just dirty which I will address. It will need a new seat and a hood as he said the hood met with a tree limb. Deck shows no rot or rust at all. Oils are clean. He said he serviced it regular. To dang cold to do much yet. Will probably start with the deck first for a good power wash when weather permits. It will be a camp tractor. It does have the 15 amp charging system. It probably will become a Burgundy stripe machine. 1990 vintage.

Drain plug in - check Oil in - check Gassed up - check PTO disengaged - check Battery charged - check Fire it up and... it's somehow raining oil???!!! Oops - Dip stick reinserted in fill tube? - Not Check I have heard that can happen...

Splash lubrication should be kept inside the engine.

I plow a large area.. For the main driveway start out down the middle casting to the right turn around out in the road an go back still casting right ..Repeat until you have cleared your driveway.

I've definitely done similar. I'm also quite proud of the fact that I have multiple times, attempted to start an engine powered by gasoline without actually having gasoline in it or, perhaps, leave the gasoline flow valve shut. Neither of these things works very well at all.

Thumbs up makers…

I went to start tiny two stroke Toro snowthrower yesterday. Gas full. Check. Primer pumped. Check. Choke on. Check. 5 or 6 starter rope pulls later with no indication of it wanting to start. Step back, scratch head. Ignition on? Not check.

Tire chains on turf tires will provide a great deal of added traction at a minimal cost.

Or flushing out the bottom residue. That is my story.

slightly different but the same. Leaving the PTO on, and trying to start a WH? I know a guy that went to town and bought a new battery then called when it would not start. Is the PTO on? crickets......I'll call you back!

Oh I know what you mean fellows. But I have been around these tractors long enough to know what to look for. There is no wiggle at all at the front hood bottom hinge mounting hardware. No slop in the throttle shaft. My 2000 hour 312 hood wiggles an inch side to side at front bottom hinge points. My throttle shaft wiggled on the carb a good 1/8" before I shimmed it. From what I can see it is for real. And the old fellow didnt strike me as a con man. Hardly any wear on the floor boards. Just some dirt. I took my chances.

Personally, I would just clean up your old points. The material they use on the new points just don't seem to last like the old ones did. This can be said of the Kohler ones as well.

I got to thinking about this and my last snafu I was working on Frankie and needed to run it and check some things. Robbed a battery out of another and hooked it up in Frankie. Hit start (I have one of those solenoids with the button to activate, tractor is not wired yet) and the starter just spun, the bend-ex did not engage. Worked fine the last time. HMMMM Messed around poking and prodding. Well got to take starter off. Went to unhook battery and seen the + and - crossed. Starter was spinning backward. That bend-ex was never coming out. Hmmm dumb a$$. I believe I done this on an xi with using the key switch one time.

December eleventh is International Mountain Day. Take a scenic hike or drive up a nearby peak, try adventurous sports like mountain biking and skiing or camp out and sleep under the stars. Mountains are some of the most beautiful of nature’s structures, stolid and regal they stand against the sky, of such a size that they can catch entire countrysides in their shadow, and turn back the ravages of storms against their unflinching sides. There are a number of reasons why International Mountain Day is loved by people all over the world. This includes the fact that mountains are scarce in some areas of the world, which makes them precious to a lot of people.

Nah, that's just called "Priming the threads on the Drain." Gotta make sure it works when you need it again!

Keep the camper on while plowing??

I always plow 8’ at a time. That usually works best for me…

Pressure washed and mounted some 24-12-12 wheels and tires on Ol Thumper (C160). Almost to cold to play in water and got my feet wet..

I can’t hoist a jack, I can lay a track, I can pick, and shovel too… Walnut sheller:

Oh do I have a bunch of these ... Gas cock off/tank empty ... multiple times. Trying to diagnose no start with the spark wire not on the coil...

I’m sure I’ve missed quite a bit on RedSquare since Thanksgiving, but I can attest that the U.S.S. Arizona still leaks her oil to this day. Pearl Harbor is a somber tomb, and active military base all at the same time. The hustle and bustle of the 1.2 million population city on such a small island relatively seems to drown out the reality of what took place all those years ago. It’s like we step into this base from a small NYC, and anre expected to change gears from that hustle to paying respects. I wish there was no bustle, I wish it was not so grown up. I don’t know if irony has a place in this story, but the aircraft carrier coming into port for the day was the U.S.S. Nimitz. As with any military vessel coming into or leaving port, Her crew stands attention lining the deck paying respects due to the Arizona and Missouri, until their commanding officer gives the signal to return to their normal duties aboard the ship.

One tip I can share, if you might or know that your going to fluid fill the tires, I coat the inside with POR or equivalent to reduce rusting of the rim. If time permits. Fronts are Super Extra Grip 23 10.50 12 Rears Destone 23 10.50 12 The destone set good on the 7 inch rims. The "on size" 23 10.50 12 tires, ie Carlisle, tend to balloon the side walls a bit and set much nicer on 8 1/2" wide rims. On 7 inch rims.

It's all about price Cheapest option Deestone D405 they run smallest on width 10.5 size is more like 8.5 in actual width however other then that they really are a good tire. I have had one on my tractor 5 years and used a brinly plowed with them did great BKT TR315 here is a comparison with the Deestone which are on the tractor however the BKT's aren't on rims so so that will cut the width down a bit but i would say it's about 1/2" wider then the deestones both of these are 10.5 width size Otr lawn trac and Carlisle tru powers I believe both of those run close to true size from what I have heard. But to be honest if you want to do plowing you might actually do better with the narrower tire or you can get the Lawn Trac and Carlisle in the 8.5 width as well.

Today I used both of mine to hold down the garage floor. Both are out of commission until tomorrow at least, and probably Saturday. Mechanical fuel pumps failed and started leaking again, so I'm biting the bullet and going electric.

Just finished plowing snow with the 654. 20251211_170301.mp4

Keeps weight on the rear wheels...

Note to self: Remember that line for future reference.

You n your technicalities.....

Yeah! “Cool" and apt.

I do two adjacent driveways so I use a modified Zamboni pattern much as described. The third drive gets its own mini pattern in same fashion. Very few blade changes...

That is a drawbar intended for pulling and no more than a moderate tongue weight. Not especially thin, no, but it is a casting, not forged, and not reinforced for the load you are adding. You’ve created a lever. If there is 50 pounds of downforce centered 12” from the pivot pin and the other end of the drawbars is two points maybe 3” from the pivot then static pressure alone is 100 pound of force on each tiny point. Hit a bump and the pressure could easily double or triple.

to the Please don't use ether. Use regular gasoline to spray into the carb. If it runs OK by hand feeding fuel into the intake, and the fuel pump spurts a good supply of fuel to the carb., there is a problem in the carb. Clean the carb again paying attention to the shut off needle in the bowl.

I always make that first full blade pass down hill. Then I can use less blade if necessary to maintain traction on the uphill return pass.

Well, we finally got some plow-able snow. I think around 10" The trusty 520HC plowed that snow with no complaints (it has been back in the heated shop for a few hours so the snow is melted off of it). Yard looks much better now. Driveway is gravel so I have the blade skids set up around 5/8" or so.

I installed hourmeter, there were cables ready so I just hooked it up, after some cutting and drilling of course. New ignition key switch was installed too. By the way I noticed that I don't have any power in cables for lights switch :/

Finally got a chance to swap the 24-12-12 to the C160 today. Had plenty of room and wheel back space was perfect for tractor, no spacers needed didnt even come close to hitting anything . The tires hold air but I want to get some loaded ag/tractor tread tires to go on it Probably will be after Santa Claus has time to recoup from spreading cheer everywhere though.

My last Genuine Kohler points were stamped "made in Mexico". There are not many Kohler engine parts made here in the USA anymore.

Good sources for tires when you do decide: https://www.millertire.com/categories/lawn-garden-tires/ https://lawnmowertirestore.com/lawn-garden/lawn-mower-tires.html Amazon is good as well. Here's my setup for plowing. Carlisle Tru Power 23x10.5-12 ags for the rear and Vredestein 16x6.5-8 V61 5 rib for the front. All are fluid filled and weighted.

Apparently I didn't hit the go button on an earlier attempt to post. She's all done. I opted for a very simple setup fully 'portable' if the blower would end up on a different tractor. Simply plugged in to a power point and a magnet on the control box. I pointed the ram down because I'm thinking that would be the area most likely to let water in. As far as spinning the entire chute I'm good with that manual crank.

Exactly my strategy when I must operate the tractor on sloped areas. I use 2-link chains on “all purpose” treads and they dramatically improve traction for braking as well as pulling.

@Lee1977 recommended my tires and I have been really happy with them. No fluid however I put tubes in. Great tires. Should last my lifetime.

I (WE) square folks all have a lot of plates spinning or whatever the best metaphor is? I have done that more times than I care to admit. Fixing supper, cycling laundry, mowing, doing an oil change, watering my garden, taxes etc. etc. etc. Uh oops drain plug is not in. Oil not usually. Antifreeze I do that often. Life may be easier with a significant??? or more complicated. I.D.K.I am super single. I intend to stay that way. All the things land on me. either way no harm no foul really right? Slight frustration and you catch it before you pour all the fluid soon good

. First run after complete K181 engine overhaul. Always a fingers crossed time hoping no loud banging noises. Don't know what happened to the sound Try again

Good information here but I'll add IMO you can't effectively clean a carburetor without removing and replacing the welch plugs. They're cheap and easy to replace. They cover drillings in the carburetor body that you really need to be able to spray cleaner through or to have uncovered when you submerge the body in an ultrasonic tank (also highly recommended and relatively cheap at harbor freight or online). DonyBoy is a good source of information but I don't subscribe to his removal method. I never drill through them, I just carefully drive a scratch awl through and pry them out. Clean the carb, set the correct replacement plug in the milled body and set it (gently) with a blunt punch. If you foul the plug just pry it out and set another until you get it right. Really easy once you've done a couple.

Wow how the years have passed

Blade refresh details: Wear bar, completely pooched. It had almost worn through the bolt on one side of the blade, and has been flipped once before. I'd say a lot of time spent blading concrete driveway, and previous owner probably never adjusted the pivot to eliminate the axial movement. Replacement wear bar is 3/16" x 2" flat bar.

You're headed the right General direction. That carburetor gasket. It's going to be trash. That's not negotiable. Get a good kit from kohler. I refuse to use aftermarket. I can send you the numbers when I get home. Great carburetor cleaning is all about having great patience. After you clean it, do it again. And then when you're done with that, do it again. I use an ultrasonic cleaner to do mine and whoever sends me a carb. Feel free to do so. I also use about two cans of brake clean. After a complete disassembly including all of the screws, spray every orifice inside outside backwards forward up down left right and then back again every direction. It's not the least bit complicated. But you definitely want to be thorough.

You go look on the YouTube channels for me or Trina. Over the past three or four years you'll find several videos of either one of us plowing snow. I'm not sure I could honestly say that you're going to find a specific direction that works any better than one another because the wind blow alone is going to change your entire work pattern for that storm. If you want to speed things up a little bit I would suggest maybe building some scoops. Side wings.

@PeacemakerJack has an amazing build or rebuild or re-re-rebuild was it? on his family’s 875. It has a wealth of knowledge in it, and all kinds of timeless photos of working that tractor in its new years in the 60’s and 70’s I think. One photo that really hit home to me, is his father plowing the garden with turfs and chains. It seems today that we as a society need the newest, the best, the innovation to accomplish a simple task. Remember that our grandfather’s best camouflage was a red flannel and sitting still. With all that said, turfs and chains do pretty alright in the dirt! I’d run them, if needed and have plenty in the past.