Tractors, Mowers, Chippers, Trailers, Chainsaws, Generators, Driveway Erosion Control, ETC.

Didn't feel like waiting on an idler pulley, so decided to just rebuild the original. 80% of the mower deck idler pulleys use the same bearing.

I bought a dozen for $16. In addition, I can pop the shield off and add additional grease.

Grind off rivit heads, separate halves, insert new bearing and clamp the center to ensure it stays flat. Weld rivit holes. 15 minutes tops.

 

This pic goes with the above. Disregard the double.

 

hey man if yo ugot no suspension seat or susp right now? this is gonna make a LOT of difference for you!

the new Ferris's have suspension all the way around, so do the Torro's. The wrights dont have suspension on the machine itself, its a floating operator unit instead. the seat, rider & sticks all float on a big spring/shock that is weight adjustable & then you have the suspension seat on top of that. it do take a bit to get it balanced out for your weight/yard set up. took me about 4 mows to get it where im leaving it.

 

Excellent, I’ll see if the price drops for Prime Day and pick one up.

Damn seller on FB marketplace read my message and never replied. Sent another message today and again, looked at it but no reply. I don’t have time for games. Too bad because I’m ready with cash. Guess he doesn’t want to sell. :shrug:

In the meantime, for $50 more I can maybe grab this 25hp machine to use the motor for a repower on the Ferris. Original motor is 23hp, the last craftsman mower I was trying to get was 24hp, this one is 25hp. And closer to home, so I’ll see if I can get my hands on it.

 

If that’s the Craftsman I’m thinkin’ of, I’d jump on that if it’s in good shape.

 

I'm way past playing those games as well. If a seller goes "radio silence" after 2 requests, I Google his user name. More often than not I can get his number. I just call him/her. I could give 2 shits about " how did you get my number"?

If they give me shit, and won't sell what they advertised because I invaded their privacy, I just report their add. I've done it 3 times on FBMP. They always come around when FB reviews the messenger history.

 

That pic in my last post is a John Deere rider that’s getting parted out but motor is still on frame so I can see it run. Leaning toward this one.

You’ve piqued my interest with that approach, I’m usually quite good at finding info online about people .

My wife says I’m a creeper, but I generally like to know who I’m about to meet up with. Nothing wrong with that.

 

Nothing new to report except: I hate FB Marketplace even more when I actually need something. Three different sellers, one had zero response but looked at the messages, one gives single word responses but doesn't answer basic questions like "does it run?", and the last just replies with his asking price repeatedly...

Ugh.

 

Annd, going to look at a Craftsman YT4000 w/ a 24hp Briggs Platinum pressure lubed motor on it. New starter, coils, fuel pump, fuel filter, two fuel lines, ignition switch, spare starter gear, plugs, oil change and filter, new solenoid, battery from 2021.

Says he was running it last fall and it just started running poorly, surging a bit, this year it won't start. Buddy of mine has the same mower and the way the fuel line is run it gets pinched and kills the fuel. Looks like this dude threw parts at it to try to fix rather than actually diagnose, though he did say he thinks it's a "fuel issue" based off how it was running. He's pretty steadfast on $500, he already bought a new mower and just wants this one gone.

So my buddy has the same mower, as I said, he's interested in the deck, offered to split it with me. So $250 each is a steal as far as I'm concerned. I'll see if it runs off ether.

 

got my mowing done early this morning. started at about 9am, just got it all cleaned up & put away at noon. yard looks good for a farm yard.

still not 100% happy with those factory tires, but not gonna change them until they wear out. will probably go to lugs then like ive always ran in the past. it just spins the wheels sooooo easy with these turfers on it.

hopped on the mini excavator after that & took out a couple tree stumps down on one of our trails. just gomming around to see if i got the leak fixed. so far? it appears that did the job!

starting to get a back log of projects now, all small. wifes Jeep needs its 100K going thru, but she has to save up the coin to pay for all the goodies 1st. i'll do the labor, but she has to buy the parts. shes super hard on brakes & rotors & just runs the crap out of everything she touches.... hence why she buys the parts.

then im getting my Taco list together for things about to be done on it & to it.

dogs are all taking naps here on the couch. time to cool off & let the hot part of the day pass by.

 

The donor machine. It’s a hydro machine, might slap a different cheap motor on it, go through it and flip it to recoup my cost. We’ll see. If the hour meter is correct, it’s at less than 100hrs!!! (Double digits) looks like 50 something. I’ll clean it up to really see.

So he put all those parts on in an effort to get it to start. I talked to him a bit, nice guy, mechanically inclined but he’s no diagnostician. I taught him how to troubleshoot before spending money.

One shot of ether and it fires right up and runs SMOOTH. Fuel line is indeed collapsed. I’ll get this thing going and run it a bit before I swap the motor out to the Ferris.






Briggs Platinum pressure lubricated, spin on filter w/ what looks like 50.x (yes fifty) hours on the meter.

 

Did it come with a good battery? I'm running about 20% actually have a good battery.

 

He says it won’t hold a charge, but it’s only 2yrs old. I’m betting a good desulfation charge with the NOCO will bring it back. I’ve had really good luck with that thing.

I think I did alright for $500 even though my budget was <$300. At least it’s a full machine that’s in reasonably good shape, minus being sun bleached.

 

Nice score!

I bought a tractor that the fuel line collapsed internally. It looked perfect outside but 100 psi air pressure wouldn't pass. I slit the line along the length and found a 12" section completely ??? broken down ??? I really don't know what caused it, ethanol gas probably.

 

Thanks! I’m pretty excited about this engine swap. I still plan to rebuild the Kawasaki but at least it moves lower on the list of priorities.

Yeah it’s weird, wasn’t getting any fuel at all. Gas was stale, really nasty so probably a good thing.

 

Anyone have experience or knowledge with this machine? Ive been kicking around the idea of getting rid of my 1985 JD 210 for something a little more reliable and I’ve always liked the older wheel horses

https://dayton.craigslist.org/grd/d/franklin-wheel-horse-520h-tractor-mower/7638897830.html

 

Positive:
It's a Wheel Horse, they are well manufactured machines and designed to be serviced & repaired virtually forever.
There are still many of these machines in use so parts should be readily available -- be warned however WH parts are quite expensive.
The transaxle is an Eaton 1100, they are both very common and very reliable with just regular maintenance.
If this was just a mowing tractor it hasn't been stressed much.


Negative:
It is old, built between 1988-97.
With an ambitious maintenance plan you should be able keep it mowing along, however there is always that potential for an unexpected failure on a machine over 30 years old.

It has an Onan engine.
I personally have never had an Onan, they do have a reputation for being smooth and reliable.
Onan was purchased by Cummins in 1992, I have heard/read about difficulties obtaining parts for older model engines, again never experienced it for myself, just reporting what I have read/been told.

 

Think I’ve seen Onan on grain augers & small farm equipment IICR

 

Ive always heard they are pretty bullet proof. I would only be using it to pull implements a few times a year and utility trailer around the yard. I also don’t see where it ever came with a 60” deck according to tractordata.com?

 

Any insight on a small chipper for around the house/farm?