What have you done to your Wheel Horse today?

[pfrederi 19,035]

Sort of finished a "Proof of Concept" project.  I am not getting any younger and neither is my chore tractor (and favorite WH) the L-107 father bought in May of 1967.  She has been in use ever since.  The HH70 replacement engine is over 30 years old still starts from cold two pulls if I use the recoil...but she is burning oil.  I am not sure it is possible to really overhaul a techy anymore didn't see much in over /under parts availability.  I have many other WHs (18 or so) but as I get older climbing on and off gets more tiring.  Not a problem mowing or snow plowing as I don't have to get on and off a lot...but chore tractor constant on and off.  Staring at a 856 one day I wondered if I could almost convert it to Lawn Ranger size.  So swapped out wheels used a spare Lawn Ranger rear fender.  I do not like to dill holes or cut metal on WHs. But I did have to drill 4 holes in the 856 hood-stand to mount the LR fender and some holes in the fender for the seat. ( I have a correct seat with a beautiful new cover but I don't want to get it dirty on a chore tractor.)   Wanted front tachmatic, had to grind a bit of the side plates to clear the hood  (need to do a bit more so hood opens farther).  Had to make a modified rear hitch to get right drawbar height for the trailer (It was a Father son project from the 1960s with several mods over the years).  The engine on it is from a pallet of engines I got for $25 bucks two of them run  but will need overhaul.  This one starts and runs but smokes some.  Good enough for now.  Going to use it for a few months see if it works okay then pretty her up some and drop in a new engine.  Long run the old L-107 may get an S/G K-181.

[ebinmaine 74,780]

11 minutes ago, pfrederi said:

finished a "Proof of Concept" project

 

Excellent results sir!

[SylvanLakeWH 29,412]

Very cool idea and great implementation!!! 

[Blue Chips 246]

On 11/17/2025 at 8:46 PM, 8ntruck said:

We had a 'controlled burn' into the lawn at one point.  I'm claiming that it was an experiment to see if that patch of grass will be healthier next year, what with the 'regenerative' properties of a forest or prairie fire are supposed to give.

 

Sounds legit to me. 

 

We contribute a bunch of tree trimmings to our neighbor's burn pile once or twice a year. It's always a big and hot burn (the pile of branches in the photo is over six feet high), placed in the middle of a large lawn to keep it far from any nearby trees, and the grass always grows back quickly and thickly, although it's a completely different type of grass (maybe crabgrass?) than the surrounding lawn, which is largely Kentucky bluegrass. I imagine that the seeds may have already been present in the soil several inches below the surface, since they come up thickly and all at once, and they apparently like the fertilizer from the ashes. The Kentucky bluegrass eventually spreads back in and out-competes the opportunistic grass.