What have you done to your Wheel Horse today?

[pfrederi 19,040]

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 74,788]

11 minutes ago, pfrederi said:

finished a "Proof of Concept" project

 

Excellent results sir!

[SylvanLakeWH 29,416]

Very cool idea and great implementation!!! 

[Blue Chips 250]

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.

 

 

 

[rjg854 12,574]

Gotta love a bonfire.

[ebinmaine 74,788]

57 minutes ago, rjg854 said:

Gotta love a bonfire.

 

 

Definitely. 

Camping isn't Camping without the open fire.  

 

Bonfire. Campfire. Stove fire. 

 

All good.  

 

 

 

[8ntruck 8,205]

  We had a small fire going in a rocket stove when we had our early Thanksgiving dinner in the woods last weekend.  2nd time it's had a fire in it.  Still learning how to run it.

[ebinmaine 74,788]

4 minutes ago, 8ntruck said:

  We had a small fire going in a rocket stove when we had our early Thanksgiving dinner in the woods last weekend.  2nd time it's had a fire in it.  Still learning how to run it.

 

 

You'll remember from several past threads here that Trina has a serious liking for wood stoves. 

 

She's done several restorations of them. 

 

[8ntruck 8,205]

3 minutes ago, ebinmaine said:

 

 

You'll remember from several past threads here that Trina has a serious liking for wood stoves. 

 

She's done several restorations of them. 

 

I haven't  posted pictures of this stove yet.  It is made out of 1/4" plate that was laser cut to go together with sliding tab type joints.  We won it at a fund raiser silent auction for the high school robotics team I mentor.  Has a laser cut team logo applied to its side.

 

Small stove, has a 4" square combustion chamber.

[cleat 7,729]

26 minutes ago, ebinmaine said:

 

 

You'll remember from several past threads here that Trina has a serious liking for wood stoves. 

 

She's done several restorations of them. 

 

 

Unfortunately, insurance companies have a serious dislike for them lots of rules and regulations for a stove in the house and virtually impossible to have one in the shop.

 

[ebinmaine 74,788]

5 minutes ago, cleat said:

 

Unfortunately, insurance companies have a serious dislike for them lots of rules and regulations for a stove in the house and virtually impossible to have one in the shop.

 

 

 

Similar regulations are coming into play here. 

This house has had a wood stove prior to the more strict rules so it's grandfathered.

There are however insurance companies that either won't cover, or use a strict set of rules to cover. Ours is the latter. I appreciate the strict rules because they keep us safer.  

 

For a garage - NO wood stove is legal anywhere in the US. No solid fuel burners are allowed where a gasoline powered vehicle is to be stored.

Period. 

 

If a loss occurs due to the stove an insurance company would have the right to decline payment. 

 

 

For a workshop  - the rules are a little more lenient. 

Our particular workshop space was designed by me to be NON garage. 

The rear door is 36" wide. 

The front french doors total about 73" IIRC. 

There are no vehicles able to be driven in there. (We have no motorcycles and no intention of it). 

 

No ability to access by vehicle means no ability to enforce the space as a garage, hence we have the right to use solid fuel as a heat source.