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Found Dad a project 854 over the weekend that was sitting under a shed, sent it to him and he jumped on purchasing it. We checked it out as much as we could for a non running tractor, steering didn't have excessive play, nothing more than surface rust, mower spindles turned good with no play in the bearings, drive guard was present, hooked up jumper cables to it and starter spun the motor just fine. I put my hand over the exhaust and it had enough compression to move my hand, checked the coil - it was even sparking just fine, but it was missing the condenser so we cant fire it up just yet. This one looks like a simple tune up kit and she will be running again! He negotiated a nice bargain (at least to us) for only $150 ...and it was local too. The toolbox and hood support (AKA shifter tray ) both had at least 2" of dirt and leaves and I just expected it to be rusted through with holes. They also contained a bunch of original spare parts. Mower blades, original hood thumb screw, two hitches and original hitch pin, and a few nuts and bolts. Sorted all the parts out, then hit it with the shop vac. I guess being protected from rain by the shed — both of them were in great shape with not a single rusted through hole. After all the loose dirt was vacuumed dad hit it with the pressure washer to give him something clean to start from. Now for the missing/wrong parts: Will need to buy a ignition and key since the starter key has been replaced with a push button start from a 701 Will need to fill two holes in the hood support. In order to kill the motor a white push/pull lever was added to the hood support above the starter button button. Next to it a second push/pull lever was also added, presumably lights at one point? ...but we have not yet traced back the wires for that one. Plan is to remove those and fill the two holes. Will need to find a starter belt guard as its missing Will need new choke and throttle cables as they are frozen Will need to take a apart the two-piece gas tank and thoroughly clean it. Old gas was not left in it, but it is dirty looking with a flaky like mold or something that is on both the outside and inside of the aluminum tank. Will need to find a replacement glass bowl as it has been replaced with a more modern brass 90° barbed fitting Will need new tires as they are shot, we can put air in them enough to move it around, but they are dry rotted and crumbing to pieces and the air leaks right back out. This seems like its going to be a great project tractor and I cant wait to help build it with him.

Had the 312H out with the lawn sweeper for some yard clean up after work this past week. Now to get some tractors ready for Old Man Winter. Like the 1054 pictured last winter.

All original safari 335

A $50 gift card for my Christmas present!

Hello. .. All New member / Fellow little tractor Nut . . . Started this thread on "My Tractor" where I have done a few restoration threads for various other make tractors I have picked up, but this old girls post is not getting the attention I think it would here so I am starting a new thread here in the Land of Wheel Horse enthusiasts !! I am a Old garden tractor enthusiast and was in the middle of redoing an old GT16 " it's in the murray section of my tractor". I was suppose to be in the garage all day putting the GT back together, but am very glad now I checked out the estate sale!! They wanted $250 for it ( I got it all for $200) with plow blade attached and I got a thatcher attachment and a newer mower deck I see no way it will work on this, , but a cool looking little tractor !!! So was $200 High priced or a reasonable deal? - Not feeling to bad about it considering it runs and is ready to plow snow. There was No model number that could be found and it looks like the motor has been upgraded to a Harbor freight GreyHound 6.5hp Carb had a plugged jet - runs fine now, but seems to surge while sitting running. A big THANK YOU to GlennPettit - a Member here who popped into the other thread and enlightened me to year / model potentials, and also dropped a link to the Red Square forum. With his help I believe I have a 1961 Suburban, but not sure of model number / original HP. While I have heard a lot = I have no experience or knowledge with the old wheel horses other then they look like cool little tractors !! I have begun to do some more research and enlighten myself on the wheel horse's. The tractor came with a custom rear lift system that is ingenuous in my opinion - removed cable spool from little winch - fitted with flat bar and hooked to hitch - only downside is the motor does not have a charging system for a battery and charging before use seems like a PITA so I will remove the lift winch / save it for another project, and hook the rear hitch to a manual lift rod is my intent. I will post a few posts here to bring you all up to speed with where I am at, and not one massive post

Came in with a pounding headache, but needed to get the metallic black laid down since it is lacquer based and has to go down before the red and clear enamel. Now to try to mount the rear tires if I have enough energy so I can paint the rims (I'd mar them up if I painted them before mounting the tires). Oh, there's a rear fender surprise coming - a little twist on Terry's flat black fender decals.

I was going to suggest this same trick...be careful when releasing the strap though...several of my straps have chunks of my knuckles still in them from releasing them

I would qualify that statement by saying that most of their stuff is high quality. I recently purchased a pressure gauge for an application that I was working on, and the gauge they sent me was described as 1.75" diameter but it was only 1.675". The clear plastic lens feel off as soon as I opened the box. They happily replaced it at no charge, but sent me the same junky item as a replacement. After a full refund, I ended up buying a Chinese gauge off eBay for 1/3 the price, and free shipping from China. The quality was superb. I don't know how they sell so cheap and still ship for free. But that's a discussion for another day. Having said that, I use McMaster-Carr quite often, and 99% of their stuff is great and arrives the next day.

Axle keys, hairpin clips, lynch pins, cotter pins ????

On the hood I'm going to paint everything else with the red metallic, just the original recessed area will be black. On the rear fenders, I'm going to carry the black insert idea over to the fender tops. I'm going to wrap the black all the way around the fenders across the taillight area in the back. I plan to use the black on the shift plate/cover and the vertical piece under the dash. Just trying to make it a little different for Emory, so it will be all his. I also had @Vinylguy customize a set of his carbon fiber look decals for me and they are awesome! Terry's work never disappoints!

A rare find that far west but there have been others from Washington post here. That tractor is a 61 model 551. How factory correct are you looking to get with the restoration? The reason for asking is we can point out all of the incorrect stuff if your interested without seeming like we're bashing the tractor. There's quite a bit going on with that one and we can help identifying the parts you may need or want. ie: The plow is not Wheel Horse. Soak the brake band and lining in gasoline, once dry and clean you can epoxy it back on. Find something to set the brake or clamp it to the drum for drying and you should be all set. Check the steering gears for worn teeth. Common that people just keep turning wheel when they loosen up and slip so it wears down the gear teeth until you can't turn back the other direction. I believe that could be why the steering shaft was modified to go back farther, to wedge the gears together. You should probably get rid of that pot metal pulley on the engine so it doesn't grenade on your private parts. They're designed for electric motors. Go with a 2 1/2 inch cast pulley instead. Or wear a cup!

Welcome to Redsqure. I'm not a expert on 520h but i did own one. but sounds like linkage is binding or loose. Check the bolts that hold the frame to axle. 4 bolts under tractor are known to come out letting axle to bind . Other then that other experts will help you here soon.

Hey thanks guys that tells me what I need to know. I had a chance to watch the tractor pulls at the Florida Flywheelers meet in Ft. Meade last week and the little kiddos pulling was my favorite part. Some of them looked to be 6 or 7ish. The ground speeds were real slow and it looked to be a safely run event. My wish is to mentor Amelia in wholesome things that Papa can help her learn. I raised my sons to take care of and respect machinery and I hope I can play a small part in doing that with my granddaughter too. My hope would be to place an emphasis on how things work. How to grow to be independent and comfortable with things that command respect. The little 857 looked to be a possible starting point and to tell you the truth winning is not important. More just something that is hers and she can be proud of looking back as she gets older. Thankyou guys for your input. I really had no idea where to start and you have provided me valuable info.

I would guess that you have plenty of time. First you should check with your local pulling groups to see what limitations they have in place for age and class rules for the younger age groups. A Lawn Ranger might be a better choice for a young child. lower seat height and can be outfitted with a spring loaded hand clutch so it will come to a stop if the handle is released. Make it start out as a fun, safe and enjoyable outing and worry about winning later on. Just my take on it.

Thanks for all the welcomes . . . . Nice to meet you all Actually not working on the old girl today = I decided to take the day off and give my tired old hands a break today. Should get back at her soon, and will add more pic's then. Curious if there is a cheap replacement for the old shifter boot, and perhaps some insight as to the issue with the brake pad floating For your added entertainment - I attached some before /after pics of the old GT16 Twin with Blower I just (frame off LOL) refurbished prior to getting started on the wheel horse . . . Hoping the Old WHeel horse turns out as nice

First thing I went after was the Steering wheel and it was "as one" with the steering column and required some heat and persuasion. I was concerned after fighting the steering wheel it was all going to give me grief, but was all simple removal from there. I did find a few loose and a few missing bolts / nuts. Hoods off . . . Interesting how simple these old horses are . . . Has been customized it looks like as the steering rod comes through a large hole and not the smaller center of the three holes as I have seen on all the other 61's Removed the plow, and seems someone adjusted the mounts down and (sorry Pic's upside down) it is only two fingers off the ground, so not sure how in the heck they did not get high centered all the time or must of just plowed a furrow. Again the hand pivot / lift for the blade is poorly designed and placed and hits your foot, so will have to be relocated / Changed / Altered in some fashion. I do not believe this harbor freight motor has a charging system (anyone Know) or I would install a battery and use the winch lift I took off the back, but charging a battery before each use seems like a P I T A, so I will just get creative. Looks like I am in need of a new shifter boot as this one is all aged / cracked out - Any suggestions as to where a guy could locate one at a reasonable price? Is there other makes that will work? The Brake - HMMM - The Brake Pad was floating around loose binding inside the brake ring - are these normally glued to the ring or tightened in when bolting ring or? As you can see the brake hub is gacked up pretty good. Hood has some cracks so I will need to tig those closed. Motor is pulled - Trying to decide on relocating the fuel tank to up under the hood and adding a stand pipe exhaust with the good old tractor ting ting ting cap - that way both the big holes in the hood will have a use or I will need to fill them in . . . . I am in the process of reworking the lifting mechanism to the left side as well hoping I can reuse most of what is there. Okay . . . Think that bring us up to speed with where I am at

Hello. I do wheel horse salvage and would have new throttle and choke cables, new ignition switch and new glass fuel bowl. Also I would have the belt guard for the starter belt on the engine used. If you are interested email me at aztractor255@gmail.com and I can get you prices.

Here in denmark we have diesel specialist auto repair and parts stores. They carry that one way walve, and thay look the same and work just perfect. I use them on older diesel cars that has a problem with backflow from the pump. I can send some to you if you want. The ones I can get, are made to come apart, and you can seal the threads with a bit of teflon tape etc.

What is your definition of everything? Attachments or just Rear PTO 3 pt turning brakes. Biggest thing what is the condition of the hydro. Get it hot put it up against an immovable object will she spin her tires on pavement or dig holes in packed gravel??? Steering is often shot but that is reasonably repairable.

If it all functions without issues, then it is perhaps not completely wrong, but judging a price with no idea of condition is really not a sound practice Some of it look to be in rather rough condition, and other parts look OK. I would try and set a realistic price on the "with everything", and work from there. I have recently bought a heap of items, so this is how I would value it. Others may think differently: Deck 150 Tiller 300-400 Grader blade 200 Snow blower 300 max Plow/snow blade 100-150 max Which leaves just about 700 for the D200 itself. It all comes down to condition of it all, and what it could be worth to you..................... And remember, if a lot of work is needed, parts can be hard to find, and often costly to the D series.

I put new tires on my 314 and they were deformed and looked flattened out. I did get 1 on with starting fluid . But I used a blow gun with the valve stim removed. When i ignited it the tire and rim pooped up off the floor and I keep adding air with the blow gun. But the other side I couldn't get so I added a tube to it. Unless you take it to a tire shop some will never get it on. I didn't want to pay $10.00 for one tire mounted.

O-ring kit is handy - their stuff is all high quality , it's something to consider if you want to avoid the usual hardware store imported junk - like o-rings . Some good US made front wheel bearings might be another one . I'm lucky , have an account with them and live close enough that any order put in before 6pm is here the next morning via UPS - they send their stuff out every night , 5 days a week . Just fyi - they have some of the best Super bearing grade bushings available in the silver material - works a lot better and smoother than the oil-impregnated bronze type so any bushings you need and want to last , that is the place to find them . They do carry quite a few of the very thin walled ones used on your 1277 - that's where I've gotten mine in the past . I also stock bushings for upgrading front axles to get rid of the metal-to-metal contact on the steering spindles and center axle pin . If you ever need a bizarre specialty tool - they stock some of the most odd things on the planet as well . If nothing else , I use their catalog and engineering drawings of parts as a reference book - saves a lot of time and their tech staff is second to none . Also , they have a phone app that actually works excellent - even the search engine is far beyond anything else I've found if you don't know what something is called . You can check/update/change orders and track shipments on your phone quickly , save orders or wish list items for later , ect . Wish whoever designed the app would do everyone else's - this is the first app I can honestly say that there is nothing I don't like about it . Sarge

My yard is now white and there are still a few leaves on some trees. I guess I will clean those up in the spring. Snow blade is on the 520HC, 2 stage blower gets to rest this winter as I put the big 72" 2 stage on my diesel tractor with cab. This is an old picture with the small wheels still on. Cleat

She runs not even a puff of smoke on first start up I'm impressed! I gotta get busy if I'm gonna put the snowblower on it ! It got saved from the junk. Good original engine and it's gonna be back to work again for this horse!! Should I start a new topic called resurrection?

Another abandoned one here... pulled from a field, trans frozen solid, full of water. Been mowing the lawn here, past two years now.

OK.....maybe a little wishful thinkin

I’m going to start a thread for my longest owned Garden Tractor. It isn’t a Wheel Horse or a John Deere or a Cub Cadet. It is a Case. Many of you happened upon Wheel Horse tractors in the same way that I happened upon this tractor—necessity and convenience and a little dumb luck. My first gt could’ve been a throw away lawn mower but I ended up with a heavy duty machine. These pics were taken about a month ago when my cousin (a Case GT guru—owns about 25 of them!) had just completely rebuilding a “new” deck for it. It is a cool little tractor with dual range and a true hydraulic (not hydrostatic) drive system. Case never held a large part of the market segment with these but they still were a player and definitely had a unique machine. The Story—my young bride and I had the opportunity to build a small but new home right after we were married. There are a lot of things that you don’t think about when you are setting up a household for the first time. We were building on a country lot with an acre of land and would have a 250’ driveway. I didn’t think about it at the time but we would need a lawn mower and snow blower to keep it up. About this time my uncle Eric approached me and asked if I’d be interested in purchasing his old 224 since he was buying a newer one. It came with a 44” deck and a 48” single stage snowthrower. This story now goes even further back... Eric got married to my aunt Judy in 1986 and in 1987 they bought their first home. They also needed a mower/snow removal machine so they contacted Judy’s oldest brother Bob who worked for a CaseIH AG dealership. (Just a few tractors from my uncles vast Case collection. Our family has been farming with Case tractors since they invented the old cross motor tractors in the early 1900’s) He told them they had taken a 224 cemetery mower in on trade. It had a bunch of hours on it for only being 7 years old but they could fix whatever needed attention and it was cheap. I have a file with all the receipts of the work that they performed at that time. Eric used and maintained it until selling it to me in 2001. I used it it religiously for about four years as my primary tractor. During that time I got my hands on a NOS M16 Kohler and I repowered it. At this point, I still wasn’t into the hobby. I just needed a GT to keep up my yard and I had one. Years later...I would become a hobbiest and this tractor would mean more to me. Caleb and I at a plow day with Casey in 2014. Just finished dragging the strawberry garden in preparation for planting a second bed. There are more stories surrounding this tractor. To Be Continued...

Well, I've been so excited about this project that I need to share it. Can't tell my son though-this is going to be his Christmas present this year. He absolutely loves driving the C125 that I got from @oldredrider. I picked this ugly beast up for $50 at the auction in Charlottesville. I only wanted the deck from it. Got the idea to fix it up for Emory for Christmas. Best part is he thinks I'm doing it for me. Can't wait till Christmas morning for him to find out it's his. This is going to get the Vanguard I picked up last week. Got several ideas to make it just his. I'll share more later as I go. I do need to get in touch with @Vinylguy to get him to do a set of his custom decals for it. I'm going to need a little help hooking up the Vanguard. It's got one wire coming from under the tinwork and I'm not sure what I'll need. I'm thinking it will need a regulator, solenoid, and switch, but which do I use? Look at him in the last picture-no idea it is his! Oh well, that's enough for now!

Ok guys, I need to make a order for some spirol roll pins and wondered if you could think of anything else I should order while I am at it. Maybe steering shims or something like that. Might as well make my shipping count. I currently have a C-120, 1277, 310-8, and a 401. If that would help. Thanks, Randy

You should know, I am a body man and auto glass tech. I know when I see great work. I hope you will be able to pass your talents on to your grandchild! Randy

I like the black paint , are you going to use the red as accent ?

It sis original minus skis painted . One small crack on side of belly pan that's it runs great . Track is nice

I would suggest using a tap to clean the threads and a couple of new bolts too.

I'd put on my poker face,go look at it,try it out,if you like it,offer 15 hundred.Gotta remember........15 bills doesn't buy much of a tractor at Lowes,Home Depot,Tractor supply,etc.The good thing about buying a used tractor is,not everybody is capable of making repairs on one.Some people just have to buy new. .Good luck.Keep us posted on your decision. Plus,you'll be impressed with the size and power of that Big D.

Wheel Horses in Florida are scarcer than hen's teeth, nice find!

Banned cars brings up some heavy memories - Dad used to spend more time in the tower than anyone getting protested for running what everyone thought was a Hemi . It was a wedge engine , modified 440-6 pushed to 458cu/in with a lot of very creative head work done by my great Uncle - he's a master machinist and one of the most anal engine builders I've ever met . I guess when you put fully sponsored cars back on the trailer in the first round it gets their blood pressure up , especially when you drove yours to the track with your equipment and a set of 8" slicks in the trunk and no real pit crew . I think his best pass was at 11.82 on a street-legal car - '70 Dodge Charger RT/SE 440-6 Auto , deep midnight black and quite rare if it were still around today . It died a horrible death in '74 when my step mother put it through a fence run in the rain at over 100mph . Older guys in the area still talk about it to this day at the car shows when they see me . Back up to 18yrs ago - helped a friend of mine restore a parade vehicle built by the Sante Fe Railroad shops in 1948 in Topeka , Kansas - it's a scaled down model of an F3 diesel that was on an old heavy Dodge truck chassis and used to promote their new line of fuel efficient diesel train engines . Just for grins , we took it to the World Of Wheels at McCormick Place in Chicago in 2000 - won top in it's class of specialty vehicles . Directly in the same row at the back sat the Chi-Town Hustler and all it's banners and trophies from across it's history , pretty cool show . http://www.mytrain.com/shows.html

Sounds like a tough one to do...for now, why not get into the habit of removing the key when you get off? hang it up high until a better solution comes along..

I've got a 312-8 and would love a 1054....so, love the pics!

Holy Cow!! You Sir, are an artist!! Thank you for sharing, I love the work you have done! Randy

This should give you an idea of Terrys decals, these are the 3 BIG ones along with a handful of smaller ones. They are TOP quality and make a clean rebuild like what youre doing really POP!!!

Thanks guys, you have given me more ideas than I have money!! Randy

Yeah Jeff, we need to set a date for some coffee and chats... I'll get the ole girl chirpin' along some day, I've got a few acres of food plot to tend to come spring!

Thanks Bob! I will sell on eBay, also the Wheelhorseplethora.com website. In March I plan to open up a small engine repair business again at my original location in Gardners. Thanks everyone for your encouraging words! If anyone can assist me in being added to the vendors list I would really appreciate it!

I Love McMaster-Carr. Have been ordering from them for a long time. they have just about everything. another good place to find some odd ball stuff is mscdirect.com

This is a C160 I saved! Bought for $125 and runs like a locomotive!

1958 Ride-Away Jr.

Looks like your missing a subframe how are you ever going to figure that one out

Got a little more done today. Emory and I sanded his front rims, I primed the wheels, and sealed the seat pan and hood. I also sprayed a test of the color combo - metallic black and Rustoleum red speck metallic. After clear (bottom of the picture), they'll look great. Ignore the reflection, that's the lamp I took the picture under.

My winter shop project is having a new shop built! Going from a 22x30 to a 40x60.

Various ideas were tried out for the seat using bits and pieces lying around and then discarded. A visit to a local upholstery shop with measurements resulted in a lottery win quote. Back to head scratching mode. I had already spent hours looking for something suitable on the internet without luck, trying various search word combinations. Then I spotted some cheap-ish scooter ( Lambretta / Vespa ) back rests. Not exactly what I wanted but worth a try. A pair were bought and after initial, not sure thoughts, the end result was better than expected. The fill in piece behind the seat cushion, made from plastic, still needs finishing off with padding. The first mock up from ply. The alloy frame, ex green house, just cleared the top of the gearbox. Fixing brackets were bolted on. Sheet steel was bent up for the base and back rest. There were two short threaded studs already fitted which made mounting easy. A length of U shaped trim finished off the steel plate and a similar section was fitted to the fuel tank. I finally managed to get my Great grandson Henry to try the tractor for size. Even though he is only 7 : 1/2 months he loved it. Mummy said she had never seen him so excited, squealing and swinging the steering wheel. We had to hold him though as mummy refused to let me cable tie him on.