Question about gt 14 mule drive

[Tim1986 3]

I found a 1973 gt 14 on Craigslist that I am considering purchasing. from the pictures he has sent me it doesn't have the mule drive ( I think that's what is called) so I won't be able to use the mower deck. My question is I have found a couple mule drives on ebay but none of them say specifically that they will work on a gt14. Are they universal or do I need to keep looking? I am wanting to use it for mowing but he said he hasn't hooked up the mower deck so he is not sure if it works. Is there anything else I need to look out for? He has a snow plow hooked up to it right now so I would assume it has the parts to hook up the mower deck. Sorry for all the rambling. In case you can't tell this will be my first wheel horse. Thanks in advance.

[Tankman 3,515]

Not only a mule drive and drive belt but, the mid-mount to hang the deck. You will also need the lift link to raise 'n lower the deck.

 

Got any pic's? Post 'em.      

 

Welcome to the forums!   

Edited December 28, 2014 by Tankman

[gwest_ca-(File Mod) 10,539]

This manual shows what the mule drive looks like. Perhaps the owner has the pieces and has forgotten about them as they often get separated when not on the tractor.

 

Garry

[Tim1986 3]

He sent me the model # and from what I found it turned out to be a 1970 not a 73. He said he bought it from his neighbor and he thinks he seen the mule drive sitting on a shelf. He is going to check later tonight. From the picture of the deck it looks to me like it haves the necessary brackets(hopefully). Not sure what the mower looks like under neath so I don't know if it's needs anything else. Crossing my fingers he finds the pulleys then we will go from there :)

[Tim1986 3]

It looks like I might need another pulley setup right above the mower deck near the front tire? Does anyone know what it is called and how I would go about finding it?

[gwest_ca-(File Mod) 10,539]

Here is a 1970 mower parts list for the GT-14

 

Hopefully the owner has the pulleys on the shelf.

 

Garry

[953 nut 52,131]

      Nice GT-14! You have the mid-mount-attachment bracket and the mule drive attachment point already, all you need is warm weather and a mule drive and you are ready to mow! If the PO can't find one they can be found on ebay.   

[Theroundhousernr 589]

Hey Tim,

 

  That gt14 has had some interesting mods done to it. Nice big quiet muffler. The front tach-o-matic. Newer style mower deck with scalp wheels. Manual PTO, original would have been an electric PTO. PLUS a three point  . All some nice upgrades that I have thought about doing to mine to open up to more versatility. If everything was done right , should make for a nice little tractor!

   Good Luck

[Racinbob 10,406]

That mower deck is for a newer model on tractors that had the front mule drive. Apparently the PO made the switch to the newer deck and mule drive which I think is a good thing unless you want a fully original GT-14. I believe he put the manual PTO setup on it too. There's no reason you won't be able to have it working fine with maybe just a little fiddling.

 

Oops! Edit. Sorry roundhouse. I really just repeated what you said. I need to read ALL the posts better.

Edited December 31, 2014 by Racinbob

[Theroundhousernr 589]

No apology needed. We all think a like anyway.   Most of the time....  lol. 

 

   I was just glad to see some pictures of someone else that has done what I have been thinking about doing to my GT14. With some time taken and paint, no one would every no the difference.

[gwest_ca-(File Mod) 10,539]

My ignorance is showing as I never noticed the upgrades. Have a couple of WH decks but have never used them. The mule for the front would look like this one

 

Looks like you have a 48" deck.

 

Garry

[Tim1986 3]

He emailed me earlier tonight and said he found the mule drive and is willing to hold the tractor for me until later this month when I will have time to pick it up I went last weekend and looked at it for about 15 minutes and he started it up and it sounded good but I didn't drive it because I talked myself out of getting it since it didn't have the mule drive that I needed. So when I go up there next time I will hook up the deck and plow and make sure everything hooks up correctly. And drive it. I don't have much mechanical knowledge. so is there anything y'all can think of that I need to look out for? How do I check to see if the tranny is still good and strong? Thanks again for all the input. Y'all have got me excited about getting it again :)

[953 nut 52,131]

  Bring a chain, after you have driven it around and warmed it up just hook it to a tree, rev up the engine and let it dig, both forward and backward. If it isn't strong in both directions the hydro may have a problem. Depending on the price and your willingness  to do a few repairs you may want to buy it and ask for a price reduction of a couple hundred. The hydro should be run at high RPMs at all times, adjust speed with the motion control lever. 

 

Good luck and hope you get it.

[Tim1986 3]

I've got him talked down to $800. That's his bottom dollar he says. Do you think I am getting a fair deal for the condition it is in? He originally had it listed for $1400!!! I don't think he had anyone interested at that price so he dropped it.

[953 nut 52,131]

   If the transmission is OK and you don't want that set up for $ 800 please PM me his phone number!   

[Tim1986 3]

Ha ha I'll let you know how it goes :)

[Tim1986 3]

I'm happy to say I'm finally a proud owner of a wheel horse!! I picked it up last night. It was dark when I got home so I had to wait until today to play with it. I hate to admit that it took me half an hour to figure out how to hook up the mower deck after I figured it all out I decided to take it for a spin. Two minutes later I hit a stump I didn't know was there and I broke the shaft that goes to the lift going to tear it apart this weekend and see if I can find someone to weld it back together for me. Looks like it may have been welded before. Is there anything I can do to prevent it from breaking again? Other than avoiding stumps lol. is this a part I can buy if it's not fixable?

[953 nut 52,131]

Glad to hear you got it, sorry about the broken lift arm. You already discovered the problem, don't hit stumps! I like to hang the deck off a chain rather than a solid link, saves a little impact transfer.

 

Good luck and keep us posted.

[Theroundhousernr 589]

I'm happy to say I'm finally a proud owner of a wheel horse!! I picked it up last night. It was dark when I got home so I had to wait until today to play with it. I hate to admit that it took me half an hour to figure out how to hook up the mower deck after I figured it all out I decided to take it for a spin. Two minutes later I hit a stump I didn't know was there and I broke the shaft that goes to the lift going to tear it apart this weekend and see if I can find someone to weld it back together for me. Looks like it may have been welded before. Is there anything I can do to prevent it from breaking again? Other than avoiding stumps lol. is this a part I can buy if it's not fixable?

 

 

  Ouch! I have never had mine break but I hear this is not fun to pull out to fix! I believe a quote by a member here was something along the lines of " they must have built the tractor around the rockshaft.... " Good luck! Hope all goes well.