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T-Mo

They Don’t Make Them Like They Used To

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WNYPCRepair
20 hours ago, ferguson65 said:

 

You better try out a 5xi before you call it junk.  The frame is serious.  My dad had a 96 520H, and side by side he or I would grab my 522xi any day of the week over the 520.  Power steering, tilt wheel, foot control hydro, 2 speed trans, cruise, etc.  The only thing the xi didn't offer as a true GT was a diff lock.  Yes, the deck wheels suck, I'll give you that.  But somebody doing a wiring hack job rather than fix it right has no reflection on the tractor itself.  And oh yeah, the hood IS not plastic.  It's steel just like the rest of it.

 

What is sad is that my Dad just replaced the 520H with an X758 JD.  Diesel, 4x4, it's a nice big machine overall.  But it weighs the same as my 522xi................................  My brother grabbed the 520H.

 

Had the XI line continued, who knows where it could have went.  But the big powerful garden tractor is a dying market.  The only ones still making them are Simplicity and Deere.  All my neighbors would just rather buy a new little box store junker every 5 years than pay up for one that will last.

 

 

 

I've never seen any Toro or WH 500 series with a plastic hood. Am I missing something?

 

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ferguson65
1 hour ago, WNYPCRepair said:

 

 

 

I've never seen any Toro or WH 500 series with a plastic hood. Am I missing something?

 

Somebody stated the 500 series (assuming they meant 5xi) has a plastic hood.  I was just debunking that myth.  Dads new JD does.  But that's neither here nor there.

Edited by ferguson65
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WNYPCRepair
40 minutes ago, ferguson65 said:

Somebody stated the 500 series (assuming they meant 5xi) has a plastic hood.  I was just debunking that myth.  Dads new JD does.  But that's neither here nor there.

 

 

Sorry, I wasn't clear. I knew you weren't saying they were plastic, I was wondering if the original poster was correct that some model of the 500 series had a plastic hood and I just wasn't aware of it

 

Frankly, my 522xi seems more heavy duty than my 520H

 

Edited by WNYPCRepair
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JERSEYHAWG /  Glenn
1 hour ago, WNYPCRepair said:

 

 

Sorry, I wasn't clear. I knew you weren't saying they were plastic, I was wondering if the original poster was correct that some model of the 500 series had a plastic hood and I just wasn't aware of it

 

Frankly, my 522xi seems more heavy duty than my 520H

 

I agree with you on that comment to. Having had the 520H and owning the 522xi the same thought ran across my mind.

 

Glenn

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T-Mo

Here is the official word from Eastman-Ingersoll.

 

"We are nearing the end of a HUGE Warehouse move which includes the Ingersoll line, so currently no production line is running but to say we’re shutting down would not be correct."

Eastman-Ingersoll

 

 

I do admit that I tend to look down upon the newer designs, and may have lump the 5xi in with the newer 200 series.  My brother picked up an used Ford GT which was made by Toro.  It has a plastic hood that is broken pretty bad to the point that it needs to be thrown away, so I guess I got biased by that "Toro" tractor.  I believe it's the same or similar to a 200 series, but don't quote my on that.

Edited by T-Mo
Added 5xi comment.
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Al C.

Shutting down Wheel Horse was the best thing Toro could do for the brand, short of finding a way to profitably maintain the standard Wheel Horse had established.     I wonder many times whether there is a market out there for someone to bring the old Wheel Horse back to life?

 

I have to imagine that a Classic might sell for $8,000 or $9,000 today to be profitable.  And this does not include all the zero turn, four wheel drive, floating/mulching mower, power steering, OHV EPA engine, and cup holder stuff.  Just an all steel/cast iron tractor/mower/plow.  

 

The proposition of buying something that works 99% of the time, can be maintained and repaired with over-the-counter hardware parts and tools, is tougher than the tasks it is designed for, and if cared for, can be pass down generations - wow! it seems worth $9,000.   

 

Until some young entrepreneurial sort recognizes this, I guess it is up to us current generation Wheel Horse owners, to preserve the heritage and tradition.  My intention is to pass my two Wheel Horses, to my sons as my father passed the 1067 to me.  These machine represent so much that is positive and good, that I don't think we can afford to loose the value of what passing that on to the next generation can bring.  So I am accumulating all the documentation, restoring every component, creating simple maintenance schedules, and taking pictures of every assembly.  With a little bit of luck and effort, hopefully this will preserve the legacy until someone gets the courage to begin building new again. Probably a pipe dream, but what the heck!

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JERSEYHAWG /  Glenn

Its a good pipe dream. after all. you never know.

 

Glenn

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V-Four
1 hour ago, JERSEYHAWG / Glenn said:

Its a good pipe dream. after all. you never know.

 

Glenn

Sadly it will never happen.

  :/

 

Times have changed.

Back in the 50s people were out in the suburbs..probly grew up on farms,  so they had their small gardens, lawns to care for etc. Machines were built to last, and to be repaired if anything went wrong.

 

 

 

Fast forward 60 plus years..people are moving back to the cities for work.. nobodys buying houses anymore...nobody want/needs a garden when you can buy imported veggies from super Walmart . 

'Machines ' are cheaply made..and made to be disposable.  :/

 

Yea there's more details and it's a little more complex.. but sadly i think those days will never return. (Heck I wasn't even there and I miss the good ole days )

 

Ymmv.

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