lynnmor 8,870 #25851 Posted April 30 6 hours ago, ebinmaine said: A#1 note here. I'm not a scientist. That said, to the best of my knowledge, no off the shelf chemical does anything to cancel the negative effects of ethanol on rubber. You've done exceedingly well. I've had first hand personal experience with at least a dozen machines that were affected by ethanol over the years. Dried up carb components. Fuel lines aged prematurely. Carbs and pumps leaking. We've seen ethanol destroy (someone else's supplied) cheap rubber fuel line in just one mowing season. Disgusting stuff and it has no place in an engine. Period. I agree that it had no place in gasoline, it is there to force people to buy it and in turn to buy the farm votes. I had issues years ago before ethanol resistant fuel system materials were available. My thought is that many of the problems are brought on by the users allowing the fuel to be exposed to the atmosphere. I was going to move to all ethanol free, but that isn’t going to happen at current inflated prices. If folks think that they can buy 9 gallons of gasoline and a gallon of ethanol and then pour in a small amount of snake oil they can make that gallon of corn squeezins go away have at it. 2 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Handy Don 16,846 #25852 Posted April 30 Not “to” my WH but “for” it. In the fall, I made a small cart to hold my 36” RD Gear mower deck for easier storage and movement during its off season. An unanticipated benefit was easy access for sharpening and cleaning and for re-greasing one of the gearboxes. Now that I’ve got the mower back on the tractor, I decided to upgrade the cart so that it’ll hold the blade. Here it is with the mower and now with the blade. 18 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
sqrlgtr 3,109 #25853 Posted April 30 Mounted some Vredstien V61’s, added some liquid ballast and got um back on 520H. 7 5 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Chris689 292 #25854 Posted April 30 Back moving under its own power sooner than I anticipated. Need to have the AGS mounted next and swap the tri-ribs from the C120 over and remount the dozer blade. 8 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
CasaytheMann 169 #25855 Posted May 1 (edited) Rebuilt the carb after the parts came in and reinstalled it. Cleaned the gas tank, installed new fuel line, filter, and shut off valve. Went to the local gas station that the net said had ethanol free gas. They did. $5.80 a gallon. Went to Walmart, bought a 5 gallon gas tank, and went back. Once I got home and put some in the WH it was time to check operation. Turned the key and it cranked, and cranked, and cranked until the battery wore down. Stuck the charger on it and started looking to see why it wouldn't start. 🤔 Low and behold I forgot to plug the new harness into the new fuel solenoid.🤦♂️ Started right up! I did not shut the gas off because I want to see if the new parts took care of the previous leak. Edited May 1 by CasaytheMann 3 7 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
rick 296 #25856 Posted May 1 Last summer I used E10 in the 314-8 to mow the whole season. I had no problems this spring when I started mowing again. I won't use it in my mixed fuel though. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Stan50 197 #25857 Posted May 1 With propane system there will be no problem with ethanol . That video is very interesting - Propane kit , NashFuel kit for 10,12 HP Kohler engines. Any advice regarding Propane conversion pros and cons? Thera are many videos with propane converted riding mowers, but no Wheel Horses 3 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
CasaytheMann 169 #25858 Posted May 1 Went and changed the deck belt today. I saw no fuel leaks anywhere which confirms the rubber seals and O Rings were degraded, most likely caused by the ethanol. 3 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Handy Don 16,846 #25859 Posted May 1 (edited) 56 minutes ago, Stan50 said: With propane system there will be no problem with ethanol . That video is very interesting - Propane kit , NashFuel kit for 10,12 HP Kohler engines. Any advice regarding Propane conversion pros and cons? Thera are many videos with propane converted riding mowers, but no Wheel Horses The videos show the pros emphatically. There is a lot to like with propane and the hardware to switch a Kohler to propane (or to dual fuel) is readily obtained. Things to keep in mind: - Propane will yield somewhat lower horsepower than gasoline for a given engine displacement/compression ratio. - Sizing a propane tank big enough to run the engine for as long as you need it. The inter web tells us a standard 20 lb propane tank contains approximately 430,000 to 455,000 BTUs. In one gallon of gasoline there are approximately 114,000 to 125,000 BTUs. So about 3.5 gallons of gas (a full 300, 400, or 500 tank) equals one 20 lb tank. Near me a tank refill ~$20; a gas refill ~$15. - Where on the tractor to mount it safely, including plumbing - Refueling convenience (i.e. switching tanks and getting refills) Edited May 1 by Handy Don 3 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
sqrlgtr 3,109 #25860 Posted May 1 Replaced rectifier on the 520H and installed a Wheel Horse head fuse block cover gifted to me from @WHX??. Btw the rectifier fixed my charging problem, from looks of the gauge face must not have worked for a long time. 5 4 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Achto 32,026 #25861 Posted May 1 (edited) I finally decide to take the time to pay attention to this 704 that I bought last fall. First off - pull the rope & see if it runs. Yep that's right, I brought it home, and stuffed it in the shed. Never even tried to see if it ran. Good news, after a bunch of pulls and some coaxing I have it starting easy and running good with no smoke. Here are a couple pics of when I brought it home. There are a few discrepancies but most of the correct parts came with it. The correct gas tank and rear wheels where included in the purchase. Did a little shopping in my parts collection and also in Jim's collection to find the rest of the parts needed. Top tin for the engine, gas cap, a different set of front wheel covers, clutch spring, and a hood that is in better shape. Ready to show and enjoy now. This tractor is how ever on my resto list. Pictures after a light make over. Edited May 1 by Achto 4 8 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
702854boy 933 #25862 Posted May 1 18 minutes ago, Achto said: @Achto, could you include the idler pulley and arm thingy with the mower deck as it looks like that is specific to the deck? 1 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Razorback 1,358 #25863 Posted May 1 (edited) Spent some time looking at my 36RD deck. Last season I had put the deck on the tractor just for the fun of it. (Now I remember.... The front wheel bushings on my normal mower were shot and I was waiting for parts to arrive) I don't remember using the deck before. I don't normally mow with the C160... it's a garden machine. While I was using it, the middle blade fell off! The bolt securing the blade broke. Again, I don't remember ever doing anything with this deck since I acquired the tractor, so I'm guessing the PO over-tightened the bolt. Anyway, today I sharpened the blades, used an easy-out to get the remainder of the bolt out of the spindle shaft, and then cleaned up the underside of the deck. While doing all of this, I noticed there was no bolt on the top side of this same spindle (!), so I remedied that using a bolt, washer, and split washer out of my pile o'stuff. Sometime soon I will put the deck on the tractor and see how it does. Thankful that this was a rather simple fix, requiring no bearings, spindles, etc. Our yard is almost an acre, so this smaller deck is just what came with the tractor. A few years back, a neighbor GAVE me a 42SD deck! I might try that one, too. (We normally mow with a Craftsman PGT-9000 that has a 54" deck). Edited May 1 by Razorback 3 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Chris689 292 #25864 Posted May 2 Got the tri-ribs swapped over, replaced the front tie rods, and topped off the trans oil. Then gave my youngest a ride around the yard. It’s nice having this back up and running fully again. 6 7 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ML3 2,367 #25865 Posted May 2 Slowly getting the tractors outta storage in back shed. Wanna go thru them one at a time getting them ready for summer. Hasn't been easy cause we've had so much rain. Yard is like a swamp & don't wanna have a mess moving them from shed to garage. Got the rat rod all ready & added a simple belt guard. Have been fortunate so far not to get my jeans jammed up in pulleys/belt. Try to keep moving on to next ones.... 10 3 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
WHX?? 57,215 #25866 Posted May 2 (edited) Replaced a melted fuse block on the 520 FEL. Not a fun job but doable. The usual 30 amp fuse was the culprit. This one had the fuse cover on it. The cover did protect dirt from getting in but high current thru the fuse eventually created a runaway situation. The lesson here is @sqrlgtr even with a cover it pays to inspect it. This is the same circuit that can take out the nine pin. More fun ... started parting out this one. More on another thread why it was a parts tractor and it wasn't the mouse house or Squonkies favorite oil filter. Edited May 2 by WHX?? 9 3 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ineedanother 2,508 #25867 Posted May 2 Took the FEL off the 16 auto that it came on. Moving it to the shop to drop the sub-frame so it can go on the c-165. Have to investigate the hub and axle on the 16 auto to see if the axle can be saved. It doesn't look promising so there might be a whole gearbox swap rather than an axle repair in front of me. We'll see. The pump and motor work fine. 8 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
sqrlgtr 3,109 #25868 Posted May 2 Put the hood back on the 520H today. Got all of the mechanical stuff fixed . Except the lights front or back dont work maybe a bad switch? Im going to try a resto. on this one in near future, never redone a later model before. 9 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
CasaytheMann 169 #25869 Posted May 2 ^^^ Love the moonies. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
WHX?? 57,215 #25870 Posted May 2 3 hours ago, sqrlgtr said: front or back dont work maybe a bad switch? On 520s most always. For some reason those switches just don't hold up. If you work it back and forth it will eventually come on. If it's not a concern to stay original best to just replace it with a common toggle. 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
sqrlgtr 3,109 #25871 Posted May 3 1 hour ago, WHX?? said: On 520s most always. For some reason those switches just don't hold up. If you work it back and forth it will eventually come on. If it's not a concern to stay original best to just replace it with a common toggle. yeah, it doesn't feel quite right when it toggles. Looks like I should be able to find a replacement pretty easy, looks like it is just a common size rocker but IDK fer sure. @cafoose may have one on a parts tractor I could "borrow"... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
cleat 8,993 #25872 Posted May 3 32 minutes ago, sqrlgtr said: yeah, it doesn't feel quite right when it toggles. Looks like I should be able to find a replacement pretty easy, looks like it is just a common size rocker but IDK fer sure. @cafoose may have one on a parts tractor I could "borrow"... What happens is the grease inside them gets hard and the contacts don't move as they should. You can take the switch apart if you are careful and clean it up then regrease with a little dielectric grease on the moving parts. It is a little difficult to get it properly snapped back together but with some patience it can be done. I have never had one yet that could not be saved that way. I will try and take some pictures of the next one I do if there is one. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
CasaytheMann 169 #25873 Posted May 3 (edited) I've had old dirty oil all over the base and frame around the engine area. I traced the cause to the dipstick housing grommet. I received a new one today. I pulled the old one out and discovered the bottom of the grommet was threaded. Ive never seen anything like it. This picture is the new one. It went in with some effort, as did the dipstick housing. I think I've seen the last of that oil leak. Edited May 3 by CasaytheMann 5 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
cafoose 3,747 #25874 Posted May 3 1 hour ago, sqrlgtr said: yeah, it doesn't feel quite right when it toggles. Looks like I should be able to find a replacement pretty easy, looks like it is just a common size rocker but IDK fer sure. @cafoose may have one on a parts tractor I could "borrow"... Had the same problem on my 520. Got these and that fixed it Now to find the other two I didn't see for two years I'll give you one @sqrlgtr if I find them tomorrow 3 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
953 nut 67,100 #25875 Posted May 3 10 hours ago, cleat said: What happens is the grease inside them gets hard and the contacts don't move as they should. Could the grease be rejuvenated by warming it up with a good old inconstant light bulb for a couple houres? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
