I bought a Wheel Horse C-120 for £200 and now have the job of seeing if it will run ! It's a nice piece of equipment and I have full confidence in its abilities.
I live in the central U.S my dad and now myself have owned and maintained the same Wheel Horse since 1972. It's a Charger 12, like yours only hydrostatic, with a hydraulic lift in the center and rear both. It used the Brinly line of attachments. Breaking plow, disk, cultivator etc. Ours also has a dozer blade(with down pressure, it'll lift the front wheels off the ground) a snowblower, belly blade in addition to the grass mower. Personally I'd just pressure wash it give a good going over it and enjoy. If you plan on making a show tractor then yes I'd sand it all down and go back that way. Enjoy.
Those K301’s were good engines! All cast iron, could bore them .060” over, the crank is meaty enough to turn, just good dependable engines. When you give it some maintenance, just remember that is a points ignition system, carburator side of engine, out put shaft end, there is a tin cover with a set of points under it. Love your work.
Wheel Horse was part of American Motors in the 70's. They should get credit for not altering the excellent quality built into those machines. My mom and stepdad wore out one of them and bought another on their small farm with a large yard in Indiana .
Great video , these tractors are greatly underated, but not by the people who own one , they know what they have got 👍😊If it was me , would clean up , wash , do the service items & Prolan , keep it in its original working clothes 😊👍😊😊👍👍
I like the UK Ghostbusters style cleaning ..🧽 Sweet mini tractor.. didn't see that fat sound coming🤓 Awesome 😎I want to have one of those Cycle Cars with this Motor in it..
Love those Kohler engines, they’re pretty much bomb proof. Howard used used to use them on their 350 rotovators, and they’d work their socks off all day long day after day. As for the wheel horse, I don’t think I’d worry about paint, it’s fine as is.
I have a dozen w/hs well built . It has a full bunch of attachments from front to rear. If you need deck bearings get them cross matched for a fraction of the price in places. You can use an air hose and shoot from the inside out to do the paper element for a quick fix. I sprained my back trying to unstick mine, my fault. I looked it up and the book said upwards of 500 lbs. Good video !
Wellsir, I vote for a damn good clean and sheep grease for the old girl. It will look great and smell....distinctive. They only get to look that good with original paint once and if it has stood up well this long best to leave alone. Thanks for posting this, never knew Wheelhorse were built that heavy and appreciate machinery made well. That old Kohler is the sweetest gas utility engine have ever heard...just smooth, even sound and a great exhaust note. Music!
Give it a ProLan shine and let it live as it has for the last 50 years. I have a C100 that I have used every year for the past 28 years and it is the only lawn tractor tough enough to mow the open field around our house. They are fantastic, super tough and reliable. I will look forward to see what you do with this beauty, they are becoming rare and need to be preserved, used and appreciated. Great video.
Don't respray it Kurt, good clean and Prolan, keep that nice original working clothes look. Looking forward to you fettling a bit more on this little tractor
Muck Great Vid! Keep it original. I have a ‘76 C 120 8 speed my parents bought new from a Chevy/ Wheel Horse dealer in Adams, Wisconsin Still runs great. I use it for my trail mower
Excellent little tractor the Wheel Horse, and the Kohler engines are very good. Well engineered bit of kit and that one look a good buy for its condition . I think it looks good as is with the Prolan and it keeps it nice and original. I like little tractors as they are very handy in tight spaces and can do some work. All the best Mucker.
As much as I'd like to see the video of you painting her up to look new again I think it's better to oil her up and leave as is. She suits the used look.
I like to see both types of tractor restoration ie. complete restoration or retained patina - this tractor is in such good condition it would look great with new paint and decals!
Cool old tractor, I say just prolan it to preserve the patina, didn't take much to get that old beast running again! I collect old chainsaws and I never restore them, I just clean them up, get them running and leave them in their original patina to show the work they've done.
A good deep clean and the Prolan..👍. Great timing as last year I got one Wheel Horse here in the Uk… so looking forward to seeing what you do with it…👍👍
Make it mechanically and functionally spot on - blades sharpened, belts replaced the lot - but keep the patina, clean it up and give it the lanolin treatment
Mucker you have a antique there and yes she's a Bute ,I love this older stuff from the 50s and 60s ,good to see you Mucking about with it , this would be a good project to Bring Kim in on to give you a hand ,That fuel line is harder that a bankers heart ,Ya got a runner Mucker ,you need some bloody heat in that shop before you freeze your nickers off, Do a respray
I have a 1968 Commando 8 Wheel Horse with an 8 horse Kohler Engine on it that sat for 25 years before I got it I gave $40 American for it clean the carburetor filed the points and it ran that good those Kohler Motors are bulletproof they are the best small engine in my opinion and those wheel horses are awesome How good are they? All OF THE GOOD!! 😂
Prolan every day of the week. Perfect treatment for this great little vehicle. Also, a great way to get around a show. You would look like a total prat if you drove around on a golf cart OR a quad and … the mini-Matador should be left to the young fella😁. Cheers from NZ🇳🇿. Have a good year. P.S. The Prolan will counteract the smell of old cut grass residue.
Excellent day Lord Muck :) also well made plus say start up super and my cousin Dave has one! He got lawn deck , blade for snow plow or dirt bade on back with arms 3 point hitch and plus tiller for ground turn over for garden work for yummy human foods ! Plus wheel weights and tire chains too also Kohler USA motor gas one on his to! Also Lord Muck give tune up plus bath and use respray solution on after dries up too! If want know my cousin Dave use 89 octane with 5 % Ethonal fuel or 91 octane that 0 % Ethonal in plus grey bottle of STP Total Treatment fuel injection and carb cleaner every year plus month uses it , fuel filter changes , spark plugs , air and oil change ever 3 months of 10w30 engine oil no synthetic type to belts 2 times year! He get belts from TORO lawn tractor or farm company sells old farm tractor supplies like called COOP !
Hi ya Mucker bloody good video of your little tractor! I think you should wash it down and spray it with that sheep oil it’s looks good with that on it. Fenland Rob
She lives, awesome little old trusty. I’ve got a 1974 simplicity lawn tractor I use to cart my 6x4 trailer around my place. I’ve got chains on the back wheels and she’ll climb and tow some heavy weight lol, it has a gratorblade I’ve attached on the front. The mower deck shit itself many years ago and I’m spewing I didn’t keep it to restore but anyway, she still runs and runs well. It’s a hydraulic drive, actually has a hydraulic pump on the back that drives the wheels and it’s similar to this old girl you got going, very solid unit. I reckon Mucker, you give her just a good clean up as the paint in yours does seem to be not too bad plus it gives it a sense of age. But old mate, it’s up to you, she would look tops if you did repaint it though ❤❤😊😂👍
My dad had a rotavator with a Kohler engine, it was a beast! Hearing it fire up took me right back to the eighties, watching him do his veg garden. I too had a go with it when i was about 15 yrs old and about nine stone, it used to throw me about all over the place. I did eventually get the boss of it.
Enjoy handling a piece of American history it would be a wonderful and glorious thing if America could go back to making our own products and that were made last truly enjoy your channel keep up all the wonderful work that you do thank you
Great video Kurt 👍 never had any doubt about it starting 😃 these agri style tyres on the back are over £100 each, one of our club members was a pioneer in getting these little tractors started in horticultural ploughing competitions as you can buya plough called a Brinley that uses the lever for lifting the deck to lift the plough at the back , my preference would be to leave it original every scrape bump dent is part of its history and just so happens originality is my thing, my 1958 is totally original and many people have commented on that 👍 enjoy Lamma 👌
Minty video m'lud, I got a c121 a few years back to tow a poover around the paddock. I didn't know anything about them, it just happened to be what was available in my area cheapish. Like you, I'm surprisingly impressed with it. There's a couple of videos on my channel if anyone's interested. 👍
Nice video Kurt. I picked up a 706 in 1988 and it got a page in Tractor & Machinery a few years back (August 2011) ; Got rid as the deck finally rotted beyond possible repair and the shaft stub mounts in the deck cracked.. Got a Toro but it was nowhere near as good. Apparently the first Wheel Horse models used cut down Ford Model T rear axles. Proper Job.
Mighty stuff Kurt and Puppo, they are not putting the iron into the newer yokes anymore, great little machine, ah leave her as original as possible💯👌👍🙏🙂
