Ugly Betty 520H

[Catt 13]

I made a dumb move today and did a Wheel Horse search on Craigslist. A 520H was listed for $350 and I'm not sure it's ever been stored inside. Plenty of pitted rust and dirt. There are many mysteries with the tractor, like the hood and wiring harness for starters. Much of the wiring is disconnected and a green wire is used to start the engine by connecting it to the plus terminal to engage the starter. The hood has a brace that's been bent to fit over the battery (Not sure why). The compression seems like it should be OK and it runs good sometimes. Other times it's like it is running too rich and has a surging issue. If I add a little choke the surging gets significantly worse. I have mixed feelings as I don't know what I'll do with it yet. Maybe next year I'll rebuild it, but not this year.

[Catt 13]

Compression on the front cylinder is 110 and the rear cylinder is a tiny bit higher. Is this OK?

[CasualObserver 3,411]

I saw that listed and thought it wouldn't last very long!  Good luck with it!

[AMC RULES 37,196]

Nicely priced...lots of hours? 

[Sparky-(Admin) 23,170]

You did fine at $350. Those rear wheel weights are worth $75-$125, the 48" deck (if its  good and it looks good to me from here) is a $300 item.  Probably just needs real good carb cleaning to get the Onan to run smooth. The only way you could loose money would be to rebuild the motor, then you would have more into it than you could get out of it in my opinion.

 Mike............

[Jake Kuhn 1,579]

Thats a great price! You did very well!

[Catt 13]

Thanks, I feel a little better. The hour meter reads around 250 hours, but I'm sure it was disconnected along with most everything else on the dash.

[47JDG 65]

Yes as Jake said, you did very good for that price. It has certainly spent some time outside but it has not been outside its whole life or it would look far worse indeed (I think it looks fine as it is once you straighten out your wiring situation). I would have paid $350 for that tractor no question. Don't feel like you need to completely over haul it and make it look new again. It may only need a few simple repairs and then be fine for years of service. I say enjoy it!

[546cowboy 302]

I agree with the above and there is no way I would pass up a 520 for $350. Most people are very inept at electrical and instead of fixing a problem they eliminate the wires and as long as it runs, so what? Most of the guages you can do without if you don't want to fix them. From the picture it looks like a 1990. Great find.

[Wheel Horse Kid 105]

That was not a dumb move at all! A 520H that is running with deck and wheel weights/hub caps for $350 is a very good deal in my opinion. 520's are awesome tractors (I also have a 1990 520H)!! Good Luck with it!

[Catt 13]

There was a switch on top of the dash that somebody installed for starting the engine, but the switch was bad. I replaced the switch and connected the green wire. It now starts with a push of the button. The forward/reverse speed was way off. It was much faster in reverse than forward. I made an adjustment to the cam below the seat on the hydro. It's now much faster in forward than reverse and seems about right. Next I'll need to adjust the neutral lever location and brake neutral position. I'm not sure how to do that yet.

I adjusted the choke because it wasn't opening completely and now the engine seems to run fine.  I mowed my grass with it and am pretty amazed. It's far from pretty, but it worked good.

[Tankman 3,523]

For the price, the 520 would be in my barn. Your "find" is in much better condition

than mine when I found it.

Amongst many fixes, Terry's decals, bling, tires, a seat to name a few items, makes this a great Stallion. SeaFoam spray has this 20hp Onan purrin' away when the Horse is working for a living.

Good luck with your fixin', have fun!

PS. Be sure to follow up your post. You have everyones' attention!

[Cable 180]

Very good buy.  I envy you.  Just for parts alone it is a good buy.  If you decide you don't want it let me know.

[welderman85 53]

I think you did great

[Catt 13]

I think SeaFoam is a good plan. I should probably change the oil soon too. 

 

Next I better search this forum for 520 information.

 

* What oil to use in the Onan.

* How to adjust the hydro properly and brake neutral.

* Wiring diagram

* Any common 520 issues

[6wheeler 669]

Nice find. I didn't see that one or you wouldn't have it  . . I paid $0.00 for my 91 (traded a nice C-120 for it) with 894 hours. It was in kind of the same condition as yours appears to be. I put some Berrynan's and some fresh gas in and it cleaned out well and runs great. I do have the typical wiring issues to work out.  But, all in all? it runs good. I use 30wt. oil in the engine(it does not see any wintertime use) and 10w-30 in the hydro. It is used for mowing and Garden duty (plowing, discing and cultivating). The only real issue with it? The hydro adjustment under the seat. It has one nut that adjusts the plate and it keeps coming loose on mine, then the hydro doesn't stay in place so I have to keep moving the lever. Not a big deal. You will like it Good Luck...  Pat 

[Catt 13]

Well I just found the number one item on the list to repair. The battery isn't being charged which I'm guessing is the wiring nightmare. I have a couple wiring diagrams, but will certainly take suggestions. I need to check the fuses first...

[Catt 13]

On top of the Onan engine is a three terminal device that looks like a voltage regulator to me. It has three white wires connected to it. I think the center terminal is the output and should be what charges the battery. Is this correct?

[Catt 13]

Well that looks correct. So with a little testing is seems to voltage regulator is working fine. Now back to the wiring nightmare. Somebody cut, taped and spliced a lot of wires. Many others are disconnected.

[6wheeler 669]

Usually its the 30 amp fuse (the one closest to the dash tower) that is not connecting. Check it out. Wiggle it with the tractor running and see if the voltmeter jumps.

[Catt 13]

Thanks for the 30 amp fuse suggestion. It's one of the many things missing (along with the wires to the fuse).

[Catt 13]

I repaired much of the wiring, replaced the fuses and now the battery is charging properly.  Everything works on the dash too. Even the hour meter works and I'm sure it hadn't worked in years since it reads 255 hours. I removed the rear fender, a few other panels and power washed off years of dirt and grime. Not sure how many animals had been living in this thing, but it was filthy. I had to use a shovel to clean my driveway after the power wash.

I mowed my lawn today and to my surprise it worked fantastic. I still need to work on the hydro forward/reverse speed adjustment.

[AMC RULES 37,196]

Looking at her, I bet that hour meter isn't that far off.

U done good picking that one up.    

[leeave96 490]

I repaired much of the wiring, replaced the fuses and now the battery is charging properly.  Everything works on the dash too. Even the hour meter works and I'm sure it hadn't worked in years since it reads 255 hours. I removed the rear fender, a few other panels and power washed off years of dirt and grime. Not sure how many animals had been living in this thing, but it was filthy. I had to use a shovel to clean my driveway after the power wash.

I mowed my lawn today and to my surprise it worked fantastic. I still need to work on the hydro forward/reverse speed adjustment.

 

Great news!  Maybe you can get another 20 or more years out of this tractor!

[cheesegrader 433]

It sounds like my '91.  Wiring from hell, ugly, surging.

If you are patient, and pick through the electrical problems, it could be a great tractor.

If yo don't like it, and don't send it all the way to Cable, call me!

And I agree, the hours might really be 250.  A filthy 250, but that's fine for a worker.

I got my carb working much better with a  spray out and Seafoam in the gas.

Check to see that the plugs have been replaced.

Original RCL 14-YC was superceded by hotter RSL 17-YX.  The new plugs seemed to help.

Oil is 10w30 in the engine and hydro.  I use Amsoil synthetic 10w30 in the hydro due to the cold winters here.

Manuals are on this board in the manual section.

Instructions for adjusting the drive is in the Eaton 1100 transmission manual.

Really dirty machines always make me wonder if they were cared for, unless they have fresh grease at all the zerk fittings.

For some reason, I assume that if they got tended too, the fliud and filter maintenance happened, too.