Disassembly continues on the C160…

[Handy Don 16,285]

55 minutes ago, RoubaixRider said:

hat black adhesive that looks almost like sandpaper.

Great work.

Sold as grip for skateboards! A HUGE variety of colors and patterns available. 

[RoubaixRider 279]

3 hours ago, Handy Don said:

Great work.

Sold as grip for skateboards! A HUGE variety of colors and patterns available. 

I found the rubber online for the Wheel Horse…$40. Think I’ll cut some 1/8 inch rubber and fasten it in place with 3M two sided tape and lag bolts through those holes. 

[Handy Don 16,285]

11 minutes ago, RoubaixRider said:

I found the rubber online for the Wheel Horse…$40. Think I’ll cut some 1/8 inch rubber and fasten it in place with 3M two sided tape and lag bolts through those holes. 

The risk you might have is water getting between the mat and the foot rest during use or when washed.

If the mat is your decision, I’d consider rubber cement. 

I went with the skateboard stuff (in boring black) and am pleased. 

Edited January 12 by Handy Don

[RoubaixRider 279]

For the moment, I had some rubber in my shop, and just put that down so that I could occasionally sit on the tractor and make engine noises, dreaming of doing laps in the yard😂.

Edited January 13 by RoubaixRider
Added image

[Handy Don 16,285]

Vroom Vroom Putt Putt

[RoubaixRider 279]

Steering column “upgrade”.

well, as I had mentioned before, it was impossible to get the old pin out of the steering wheel to be able to pull the column apart… So I found a nice shaft collar, painted it to match and it does a nice job. I slightly drilled a detent into the shaft so that the Alan key bolts would seat into it for a good positive contact.

Got the decals on and turning my attention now to electrical and engine tear down. That may take a little while, with those pesky work requirements stealing my time away from the shop.🤓

[RoubaixRider 279]

Well,

following an insane week of flight training in the Blackhawk, I gave my brain a few days to recuperate and now getting the recently rebuilt K341 put back together for installation. I had to take quite a long break away from the Tractor because of all the work requirements of life, so this is feeling kind of nice and therapeutic.
 

Jason

[RoubaixRider 279]

Ok, well… decided to drop the engine in for fit, and everything‘s looking good. Going to start snugging things up a little and then continuing with dressing the engine with all of the freshly painted and prepped accessories.

[kpinnc 17,928]

12 hours ago, RoubaixRider said:

following an insane week of flight training in the Blackhawk,

 

Pilot or crew member?

 

Your tractor looks fantastic. Well done! 

[RoubaixRider 279]

On 4/18/2026 at 7:48 PM, kpinnc said:

 

Pilot or crew member?

 

Your tractor looks fantastic. Well done! 

PIC (pilot in command) sir. Was a tough transition to it in a very short time but mission accomplished. Thanks for the support… Now I am pretty much left with the electrical wiring and then it’s ready to crank!

Best,

Jason

[kpinnc 17,928]

3 minutes ago, RoubaixRider said:

PIC (pilot in command) sir. Was a tough transition to it in a very short time but mission accomplished. Thanks for the support… Now I am pretty much left with the electrical wiring and then it’s ready to crank!

Best,

Jason

 

Awesome! Last time I was PIC was in 1997. I still miss it sometimes but not all that came with it (US Army). The military was very good to me but it had its share of political silliness on the officer side of the fence. I have a mental block that prevents me from kissing the rear of senior officers... 

 

My hat is off to you and others who do the job you do. You save lives every time you pull pitch!  I thank you sir! 

[rmaynard 17,107]

On 12/18/2025 at 2:58 PM, RoubaixRider said:

 I have not come across one single frozen bolt yet!

I know this quote is on a post from December, but I thought about it while trying to loosen some nuts on the rear spring shackles of my 2014 Toyota Tacoma. Even with an impact wrench, I still have not gotten them loose. However, every Wheel Horse that I have disassembled from 1961's through 1996, the nuts and bolts came right off. Says something about American-made steel. 

[c-series don 11,850]

@RoubaixRider I certainly admire your attention to detail sir! My kinda guy 👍🏻 When I saw that you painted the heads of the set screws on the steering shaft collar it made me smile. @cleat will appreciate this type of work as well! 

[kpinnc 17,928]

2 hours ago, rmaynard said:

I thought about it while trying to loosen some nuts on the rear spring shackles of my 2014 Toyota Tacoma. Even with an impact wrench, I still have not gotten them loose. However, every Wheel Horse that I have disassembled from 1961's through 1996, the nuts and bolts came right off. Says something about American-made steel. 

 

I agree 100%!

 

But I still love my 2011 Tacoma... 

 

 

[rmaynard 17,107]

1 minute ago, kpinnc said:

 

I agree 100%!

 

But I still love my 2011 Tacoma... 

 

I love mine too.

[sqrlgtr 2,620]

28 minutes ago, c-series don said:

When I saw that you painted the heads of the set screws on the steering shaft collar it made me smile

I just assumed they were stainless; didn't realize they were painted, and @RoubaixRider if I hadn't mentioned before that is one sharp C160 brother.

Edited April 21 by sqrlgtr

[RoubaixRider 279]

On 4/20/2026 at 3:06 PM, kpinnc said:

 

Awesome! Last time I was PIC was in 1997. I still miss it sometimes but not all that came with it (US Army). The military was very good to me but it had its share of political silliness on the officer side of the fence. I have a mental block that prevents me from kissing the rear of senior officers... 

 

My hat is off to you and others who do the job you do. You save lives every time you pull pitch!  I thank you sir! 

That’s awesome, sir, and thanks for your service. Yeah, all of my Flight experience is civilian, but I’ve had a lot of good former military instructors over the years in the different aircraft I’ve flown. This Blackhawk transition kicked my butt big time! The hydraulic system alone had so much information and related emergency procedures that I may have broken. Something in my brain cramming all that extra information in there.😂

[RoubaixRider 279]

On 4/20/2026 at 6:55 PM, sqrlgtr said:

I just assumed they were stainless; didn't realize they were painted, and @RoubaixRider if I hadn't mentioned before that is one sharp C160 brother.

Ha! That’s so funny that you guys noticed the painted screw heads on the steering shaft collar! One of the reasons why I literally replaced every bolt on the tractor was because I love the contrast of new bolts over fresh paint. I’m really cracking up right now that you guys noticed that!😂 the bolts that came with the shaft were bare metal so I knew they would end up resting, and we just can’t have that!

[RoubaixRider 279]

OK, boys… So the engine is installed and I’ve done all of the break-in runs as per the instructions of my engine guru, Brian, in San Diego at San Diego Small Engines. Getting the engine fine-tuned now and it is running about 95% of the way I want it… Just small adjustments from this point on. But…
 

Now I need to get the proper engine to transmission drive belt. The information I can find says that it is a 5/8 x 82“, but I just can’t see how that will be possible to fit on…

Any advice or ideas guys? I have access to a tractor supply that has tons of belts that are all through 5/8x80 to 5/8x90. I could just go and buy a series of them in returns the ones that don’t fit… Lol, Lord knows I’ve done that a few times in my life.😂😂

[RoubaixRider 279]

On 4/20/2026 at 6:27 PM, c-series don said:

@RoubaixRider I certainly admire your attention to detail sir! My kinda guy 👍🏻 When I saw that you painted the heads of the set screws on the steering shaft collar it made me smile. @cleat will appreciate this type of work as well! 

Oh Boy! My OCD-ness has been exposed! I’m so busted. You guys gave me a great laugh noticing those bolt heads were painted. It drove me crazy waiting for them to dry so that I could install the collar… I’m like a kid in a candy store sometimes. 

[kpinnc 17,928]

2 hours ago, RoubaixRider said:

Something in my brain cramming all that extra information in there.

 

Thanks for your service as well. 

 

Military flight school was pretty harsh with the information overload. We had to soak it all in, and then flush it for the next section, then exam or check ride (or both) and repeat. It was an exciting time but I don’t think I could do it nowadays! 

 

The Black Hawk is a complex machine for certain. I'm sure the newer models are even more so. But they do offer a smooth ride! 

[RoubaixRider 279]

58 minutes ago, kpinnc said:

 

Thanks for your service as well. 

 

Military flight school was pretty harsh with the information overload. We had to soak it all in, and then flush it for the next section, then exam or check ride (or both) and repeat. It was an exciting time but I don’t think I could do it nowadays! 

 

The Black Hawk is a complex machine for certain. I'm sure the newer models are even more so. But they do offer a smooth ride! 

Did you fly the hawk? I’m normally in the Bell 205 which is the civilian designation for the Huey… I love that machine and will be flying it most of this year with occasional flights with the hawk. During the winter I fly the.AStar and it is also a fun machine

[RoubaixRider 279]

Project complete. So much fun. I figured out that it needed an 84 inch belt… It works perfectly and along with a little bit of alignment with the belt cover, it all turned out nice. Thanks for all of the help along the way guys… Appreciate it very much best, Jason.

[Razorback 1,258]

That is BEAUTIFUL!!! 

[kpinnc 17,928]

29 minutes ago, RoubaixRider said:

Did you fly the hawk?

 

No, but I caught alot of rides on them. Same for the Huey, and a few hops in a Chinook. 

 

I was enlisted for 4 years in aviation maintenance before becoming a Warrant Officer and going to flight school. I flew TH-67s, and OH-58A/C/T models. I got a short maintainence flight in the AH-64A front seat as well. 

 

My time got cut short (life happens) so I didn't get to fly as much as I wanted to. But I wouldn't trade anything for my couple years as an aviator.