Technical Articles

You found that perfect old tractor. You hauled it home.  Now what?Here is one of the first items I recommend you to replace: The ignition key switch.Chances are that old garden tractor you just brought has been sitting outside in the weather for more than a decade. rain, moisture and time wreak havoc on electrical components. When the terminals in the ignition switch get too corroded it increases the electrical resistance. This will start giving you all kinds of problems wi …

I was recently asked to diagnosis an engine failure for an engine from my Mother in Law. It was a 14HP Briggs and Stratton Intek Engine in a Craftsman Lawn Tractor made by American Yard Products.It was clear to me that the engine broke the connecting rod.After removing the engine from the Tractor and removing the shroud this is what I found:A mice nest! As you can see this nest blocked the cooling fins and cause the engine to overheat causing the connecting rod to break.To prevent this put dry …

Hi Vintage Garden Tractor Enthusiast!This week we have a customer machine in the shop. Our customer's complaint was he just bought this "restored" 1970's Wheel Horse Raider 10 Garden Tractor, and the transmission would only shift into 1st gear and Reverse and even then he had a hard time shifting it.Our customer opted to just swap in a good working transaxle and have us rebuild the broken transaxle at a later time.Here is what we found:  The photo you see on the left is the shift for …

Can your engine run forever? Yes, with some preventative maintenance your Kohler K engine will likely outlive you.Here are 3 easy procedures to keep your engine running for another 100 years:1. Keep your engine oil clean and change it every 25 hours of use. The engine oil in your Kohler K engine is the primary lubricant and method for cooling in your engine. The oil keeps metal parts out of direct contact with each other, and helps move the heat away from the parts. It's the lifeblood of …

Guide to Buying and Restoring Vintage Garden Tractors Part 1Are you interested in a mechanical oriented project? Do you love old Farm Tractors but don’t have the space to work on one? Do you love the rural lifestyle but live in suburbia? If this is you, then working on a Vintage Garden Tractor is the perfect hobby!Vintage Garden Tractors provide the perfect outlet for a person to get greasy, work with tools, be outside, and take pride in an important part of American Histo …