New Property, New Wheel Horse

[Charbs152 253]

Hi All,

 

My Fiance and I just bought our forever home so i decided to add another Wheel Horse to the Stable. we've got 4.5 acres and probably 3 of it is grass so  i decided to add a backup to my C-175. i picked up a 312-8 today in prey good shape with a 42 in rear discharge deck and mowed with it when i got home.  it works well, its just noticeable slower than my c175 auto which has a briggs 18hp opposed twin swapped into it.  Anyways I wanted a backup to run my carious attachments. now have a c175 auto, 312-8, 48 inch deck, 42 inch rear discharge deck, 42 inch tall chute snow blower and a 48 inch plow, wheel weights and chains.  I love my wheel horses.  This is my first manual, the two ive had prior have been hydros.  Now i need to find all the manuals here and figure out some of the stuff...like what is the test switch/lights on the dash?  and why did the previous owner wire in a seperate coil kill switch in addition to the key? lol . 

 

Another thing is the clutch releases very slowwwly, I'd like to get that figured out.  its not the pedal or linkage, its the actual clutch that is slow to engage.

 

https://imgur.com/a/EKSDWdj

 

can an admin move this? I didn’t mean to put it in the transmission section

thanks 

 

Edited May 9, 2023 by Charbs152

[Racinbob 10,286]

6 hours ago, Charbs152 said:

Another thing is the clutch releases very slowwwly, I'd like to get that figured out.  its not the pedal or linkage, its the actual clutch that is slow to engage.

 

In their later years Wheel Horse tinkered with various methods of the clutch engagement. I don't know which you have because I don't know the year. one method used a stopper which caught the clutch arm just before engagement to slow it down. Another was a hydraulic damper in conjunction with the spring. Yet another was a strut with no spring. None of them worked very well in my opinion. I only had to deal with one of them on my 2005. The solution is very simple. Remove all that excess crap and use only the 108035 spring. Make sure it's in good shape. They used only the spring for decades and it worked great. It still does. Wheelie issues? Nope, not unless there's some other issue. 

[Charbs152 253]

51 minutes ago, Racinbob said:

 

In their later years Wheel Horse tinkered with various methods of the clutch engagement. I don't know which you have because I don't know the year. one method used a stopper which caught the clutch arm just before engagement to slow it down. Another was a hydraulic damper in conjunction with the spring. Yet another was a strut with no spring. None of them worked very well in my opinion. I only had to deal with one of them on my 2005. The solution is very simple. Remove all that excess crap and use only the 108035 spring. Make sure it's in good shape. They used only the spring for decades and it worked great. It still does. Wheelie issues? Nope, not unless there's some other issue. 

Good to know. Where can I find the model/serial number tag on the 312?

[Achto 26,566]

1 hour ago, Charbs152 said:

Where can I find the model/serial number tag on the 312?

 

 I believe that the number is on a sticker under the seat. If the sticker is still there?

[Charbs152 253]

1 hour ago, Achto said:

 

 I believe that the number is on a sticker under the seat. If the sticker is still there?

I dont believe that sticker is there..

 

any way to date it other than that?  Also where can i get the owners manual and service manual?  I've found a bunch in the manuals section but they all seem to be parts lists.  Thanks!

[Handy Don 10,609]

33 minutes ago, Charbs152 said:

I dont believe that sticker is there..

 

any way to date it other than that?  Also where can i get the owners manual and service manual?  I've found a bunch in the manuals section but they all seem to be parts lists.  Thanks!

The files which are owners manuals have “OM” in their titles. Include that as a search term and turn on “use all my search words”.

[peter lena 8,071]

@Charbs152 on that clutch linkage , would , only use the spring pull set up , might even refresh the spring , a little stronger , most important is get some aerosol penetrating oil into / every related point . follow that up with lucas aerosol red spray grease , that entire unit probably needs a , " make the rust run out " refresh . personally would verify lucas grease to every intended spot . pete

[953 nut 51,733]

I responded to your other post on the same subject. Click on this link and you should find your information, https://www.wheelhorseforum.com/search/?q=31-12K802&quick=1&type=downloads_file

 

[Charbs152 253]

8 hours ago, Handy Don said:

The files which are owners manuals have “OM” in their titles. Include that as a search term and turn on “use all my search words”.

Thank you, i found them

[Charbs152 253]

8 hours ago, peter lena said:

@Charbs152 on that clutch linkage , would , only use the spring pull set up , might even refresh the spring , a little stronger , most important is get some aerosol penetrating oil into / every related point . follow that up with lucas aerosol red spray grease , that entire unit probably needs a , " make the rust run out " refresh . personally would verify lucas grease to every intended spot . pete

I will give it a spray down...the "stiff" part seems to be insidde the transmission case if that makes sense...i let off the pedal and it comes right up until the point something in the transmission/clutch is making it engage really slowly...id like to be able to control that with my foot, it just seems like it wastes so much time letting that pedal out and then waiting for whatever is in there to actually do what your foot just did

[peter lena 8,071]

@Charbs152  what does that trans " oil " look like ? is it milky ? nasty looking ? there is a 3/8" Allen plug  lower left hand corner of the bottom of trans , usually packed with dirt , feel around for it , also suggest using a jack under front end to lift it off the ground , 6/ 8 inches to assist trans drain . personally like hi mileage atf fluid as a refill and flushing agent, get some time on that oil , so it can help clean up the crud, like to drive it a few miles . also like lucas hi performance 89-90 oil ,2 qts  has " climbing oil additives " to make things better . gat a new shift boot , add a TYE WRAP just after boot to metal shifter , to hold in place . you might also refill that at the shifter top of trans point , get a thin gas funnel, that would insure flooding lubricant to the brass slide shifting set up, go slow on that. sounds like you have a combo of , rusty linkage and possibly watery , contaminated  trans fluid . let us know what works , pete

[Racinbob 10,286]

You definitely want to make sure the transmission is clean inside and the proper lube is in it. 2 quarts. I've used Valvoline for decades for all my lubrication needs with zero issues. The spinning transmission will lubricate all the insides very well but just use anything good. 

 I wouldn't try to hold the boot in place. It will do that by itself and you likely will harm it or at least shorten it's life.

@peter lena FYI. There's no brass in the shifter rails and shift forks.

[Racinbob 10,286]

@Charbs152

One more thing. I can say for sure that the slow to engage issue isn't anything inside the transmission. Get that spring I mentioned, remove the excess garbage I also mentioned, make sure your belt and pullies are good and that issue will be history. 

[953 nut 51,733]

2 hours ago, Charbs152 said:

the "stiff" part seems to be insidde the transmission case if that makes sense...i let off the pedal and it comes right up until the point something in the transmission/clutch is making it engage really slowly.

The clutch mechanism is all external, nothing inside the transaxle.  Take a look at the right side foot rest. If it has been bumped in too far it will cause interference with the clutch arm. sounds a bit strange I know but that is what happened to me a few years ago.

[Charbs152 253]

4 hours ago, peter lena said:

@Charbs152  what does that trans " oil " look like ? is it milky ? nasty looking ? there is a 3/8" Allen plug  lower left hand corner of the bottom of trans , usually packed with dirt , feel around for it , also suggest using a jack under front end to lift it off the ground , 6/ 8 inches to assist trans drain . personally like hi mileage atf fluid as a refill and flushing agent, get some time on that oil , so it can help clean up the crud, like to drive it a few miles . also like lucas hi performance 89-90 oil ,2 qts  has " climbing oil additives " to make things better . gat a new shift boot , add a TYE WRAP just after boot to metal shifter , to hold in place . you might also refill that at the shifter top of trans point , get a thin gas funnel, that would insure flooding lubricant to the brass slide shifting set up, go slow on that. sounds like you have a combo of , rusty linkage and possibly watery , contaminated  trans fluid . let us know what works , pete

 

 

The trans oil loos mostly ok, maybe slightly milky but mostly ok looking.  HJOw important is the atf or certain brand of 80-90w?  I ask because i just bought a gallon of cheap super-tech 80-90 to give the trans a fluid change..also  what do i have to do to get to the shift boot?  take the fender off?

[Charbs152 253]

3 hours ago, Racinbob said:

@Charbs152

One more thing. I can say for sure that the slow to engage issue isn't anything inside the transmission. Get that spring I mentioned, remove the excess garbage I also mentioned, make sure your belt and pullies are good and that issue will be history. 

is there a guide on what i need to remove ? ive never had an 8 speed wheel horse before.

[Charbs152 253]

2 hours ago, 953 nut said:

The clutch mechanism is all external, nothing inside the transaxle.  Take a look at the right side foot rest. If it has been bumped in too far it will cause interference with the clutch arm. sounds a bit strange I know but that is what happened to me a few years ago.

i will check that.  thank you