[grnspot]

Time to bore you with my lawn & garden tractor history. The first "rider" I ever owned was after we bought the property we have now, a Swisher "Big Mow! Really, not a bad little mower, if your yard is flat & smooth! Next were a couple "gray market" tractors, fist was a Sears gear drive, then a hydrostat made by Noma, I forget the brand name. Then a 54" Bush Hog zero turn.

After I started attending tractor shows, I got the hankering for a John Deere rider, started looking for a 110 RF. No internet then, so searching was a bit more time consuming than it is now. Â Ran across this 69-140 H1:



Turned it down at first due to condition, then decided to get it. Took some doing as I'd never done any work like this before, but I got it cleaned up & added a "demo seat":



Then a Johnson #12 loader:



I was hooked! Next came the RF 110, at a show, I was looking at a 1964 for $900. Talked to an acquaintance who said he'd sell me his 65 for $250. I told him to consider it sold & I'd pick it up at his show in a couple months.



Cleaned it up (down to bare frame) & repainted it, added hub caps & seat cushion:



Then it was the 67-112 off ebay, I'd pre-arranged to meet the seller at Des Moines (about 1/2 way) if I won it. We were gone the day it sold, one more bid & it wouldn't have been mine!



It had a replacement HH10 engine (wrong size shaft), so I modified it a little with upright muffler, narrow front wheels & narrow ag rears:



After that, it was time for a FF 110, picked this 71 up at a farm estate auction:



Not running & hadn't been for a while. New points, condenser, plug, battery & clean gas tank & it sprang to life. Another down to frame project:



It desrved hub caps too:



FF 110 needs a companion FF 112! Â So I found this 74:



Not as good of condition as I first though & a bit overpriced @ $600, but I wanted it! Â It got the treatment & a tiller:

And snowblower, first a #37:



Then a 37A:



By then, I wanted a "big-un" so< an 83-420 joined the herd:



Not as much to be done with it, but cleaned & painted it.



Mostly used for pushing snow:



And plow days:



I'll add more later!

 

[grnspot]

All the tractors in my previous post have been sold over time, mostly to upgrade. The 74-112 was sold when I bought the 80-314:



(deck included).

Found it on KC CL, seller agreed to meet me on the north side of the KC area. &Acirc; He pulled in with it right on time, got out of his pickup & told me it wouldn't start. He told me he'd bought it at a storage unit auction. I looked it over & agreed to buy when he got it going, he offered to bring it to me, another 80 miles. We kept in touch, he would get it running, then it would quit! He went through nearly all fuel & electrical & got it going just when we were going that direction. Brought it home, mowed the yard with it to see how it ran, it started sputtering in about an hour. I took the gas tank off & pressure washed it out, put it back together & haven't had a problem since. I use it mostly for the 49 snowblower:



Another recent purchase was the 78-110 lawn tractor I'm working on now:



I'd planned to restore it last winter, but had shoulder surgery instead! &Acirc; So I just refurbished some of the parts I could take off as I had time; fender deck, hood, wheels & tire, etc.



In the last few days, I've started taking it apart for a "frame-up refurbish:



Still need to pull the steering & lift, then pressure wash it before repaint.

Next will be my modifieds!

 

[gtcollector]

Very nice collection of tractors grnspot. Do you ever wish you wouldn't have sold some of them? Thanks for sharing your history with us.

 

[grnspot]

Very nice collection of tractors grnspot. Do you ever wish you wouldn't have sold some of them? Thanks for sharing your history with us.

Thanks!

Not really, when I sell one, i'm ready for something different.

 

[johndeereelfman]

Hey Lowell,

I see in your signature, that you have a 69-L/60 and a 70/70 I listed. Care to share pictures of those?

 

[grnspot]

Hey Lowell,

&Acirc;

I see in your signature, that you have a 69-L/60 and a 70/70 I listed. Care to share pictures of those?

I'll get them in with my "modifieds" before long, probably a separate thread !

I'm working on the little 100 lawn tractor right now, got it stripped down as far as I plan to:

Pressure wash it tomorrow, then sand & paint. Hope I can remember how to put it back together!!!

 

[grnspot]

Pressure washed the frame, front axle & engine mounting plate this morning:

 

[grnspot]

Painting the front axle w/linkage & pto linkage today:



Also painting the frame, underside gets one coat of Rustoleum "jd Green":



Outside after primer:



Then, 1st of 4 coats of jd "Ag Green":

 

[grnspot]

Some more work on the 100 today, stripped the engine housing & painted it:



I had some gravel chips one one side panel, so it got repainted with the footrests:



Painted the replacement muffler:



Started putting it all back together:

 

[grnspot]

Coming along on the 100,



Have a bearing kit for the steering sector on order from Deere. Grip for the lift lever on the way & a fuel shut-off that "departed Denver sorting facility 3:45 am Feb 10", by way of USPS!

 

[grnspot]

Finishing up the 100 today:

Sand treads for the footrests & a new rubber grip for the lift lever are on the way!

Brought the deck to the shop to put back on this afternoon.

 

[grnspot]

The grip came in the mail today, so it's on. Put the deck on after dinner:

Now it sets in the back shed under cover until spring