early rj 58 ?

[wheelie 2]

i have a rj 58 that has a smooth nose, it dose not have wheel horse stamped on the front of the hood.. is this rare or a early one ?? pics soon...

[CasualObserver 3,411]

RJs with smooth hoods were not RJ-58s, they were RJ-35s. (and on the rare occasion, RJ-25s) What does it have for a transmission, gear box with shifter, or large variable speed belt tensioner? Later RJ-35s were made with WHEEL HORSE embossed in the hood, but I've never heard of an RJ-58 with a smooth hood. Pictures would help tremendously.

and :WRS:

[Jake Kuhn 1,579]

:WRS: Jason explained It very well. It would really help if you got us some pics. It could have the uni drive upgrade kit on it which could get you confused but that is not very often found. Jake

[wheelie 2]

it's a slab sidded 3 speed trans, i thought it was a rj58.... is it a rj 35 ?? , i also have the mower deck, it's the timed gearbox version, and has square gearbox covers on it, not tapered ones... my dad bought this used for $75.00 at a mower dealer, needed a headgasket, then fired right up, he used it for the front yard and trimming, after a gear broke on the mowerdeck i took the deck off it, and it became my first car at 12 years old ..lol... i went all over town on it, love this lil guy ! plan on getting it running soon, got a re-built 4 hp kohler for it, i need a gas tank and where do i find the decals for it ???.. thanks for the welcomes ! :)

[stevebo-(Moderator) 8,541]

Your tractor has an RJ35 hood (55 or 56) and the front rims and tires look like RJ35. The tranny is 58/59 and frame. I was told by a reliable source that wheel horse offered a conversion kit for the 35's to change the 35 to a 58. VinsRJ may be able to add to this. It looks like this may be one of those machines that were combined. I believe the other one that is know to have had this conversion was also out of NJ. Either way, very nice machine. Let me know if you are looking to sell it...

[Kelly 1,033]

I guess it could be a RJ58 with a older hood, or it had the update kit installed, on the frame right behind the hood on top of the rail is there a ID tag decal, or glue left from a decal?

[Ken B 3,189]

Very nice, the fact that you have had it since you were a kid really adds to it. It looks as though there may have been a 327 stuffed under the hood at some point.

[AMC RULES 37,210]

I like the emblems better than the decals.

Cool tractor. :WRS:

[VinsRJ 723]

Steve may be right on with the conversion. If you can post up the casted date/info on the tranny center section that would help. The date/info should be just to the right of the shifter hole when seated on the tractor.

Nice looking tractor!

[wheelie 2]

we have had it for over 40 years. and it's like a member of the family, the 327 emblems off my cousins 68 camaro, the jahns racing pistons, stp , and wynn's decals were from trips to island dragway in great meadows nj to see ronnie sox and big daddy don garlits run ! so there is two tons of memories on and in this lil guy ! id like to restore it mechanically. and cosmetically, but mask off all the decals and save them... intersting info on what it is....it got a 6 hp techumseh put on it... then i put a tiny pulley on the trans....it hauls ass then...lol but i still had first gear to go in the woods and up and down the brook and hill climbs.......i.learned fast to have about 30 lbs. of chain wrapped around the frame in the nose...lol my chest ate the steering wheel more than once when she reared up and over on me ! lol good times indeed !! i will be checking for tags or id #'s great site and forum ...thanks for the replies ! randy....

[wheelie 2]

casting # on trans is E 18 0 no decal on front of frame by hood...so what model and year is it ????????

[wheelie 2]

Very nice, the fact that you have had it since you were a kid really adds to it. It looks as though there may have been a 327 stuffed under the hood at some point.

......lol i drove it like it had one in there... with a 6 hp and a tiny pulley on the trans, it went too fast ...if thats possible... eratic steering at high speeds, gotta love it !!!

[fireman 1,022]

The "0" probably makes the casting for that transmission as being made in 1960. That lends credence to the fact it might have been a RJ35 and updated later on. Most 58's have a "8" or "9" at the end.

[wheelie 2]

The "0" probably makes the casting for that transmission as being made in 1960. That lends credence to the fact it might have been a RJ35 and updated later on. Most 58's have a "8" or "9" at the end.

........1960 ??? the same year i was made ! ......ok, who would update a tractor back then just to get a different hood on it ????... i can say we never switched anything around except the engine... im thinking this is a rj 35 as it left the factory... when was the last year they made rj 35's ???

[fireman 1,022]

It wasn't the hood that was updated. You kept the existing hood, front-end, seat, rear tires, front tires. You really just changed out the frame and complete rear end

[wheelie 2]

ohh, now i get it..thanks for the info... i see lots of reproduction decals, but not like the black and green rectangle shaped one on the hood, is there someone that repro's them ???

[HorseWhisperer 243]

With all this info said,someone mentioned a unidrive rear upgrade?I have what I thought was a rj58 but it has a smooth hood,unidrive rear,4 horse kohler and suburban fenders(of which I'm sure are incorrect Lol).The rear looks like it came in it!Btw wheelie,WELCOME!

Edited June 27, 2012 by commandomayo

[Ken B 3,189]

You'll be amazed at how well it will clean up. Personally speaking, I'd leave it as it is. If you repaint it you'll be wiping away its personality. Of course do as you like she is yours!

You might want to remove the calcium from the front tires if it has any. If you don't then sooner or later the front rims will turn to dust. The front rims appear to be the early style rims.

[VinsRJ 723]

The RJ58/9 up grade was like a $250 option for the RJ35.

You may very well have a conversion tractor there, that would be the third one I know of.

[wheelie 2]

glad to be here, thanks for all the responses ! soon i will post pics of my other wheel horses. if i find another smooth hood to put on it, id restore it ! otherwise id probably just restore the frame and rear, clean up the hood ,and keep the history and patina intact ...