Leaderboard

Its a project alright . Its been in parts for along time. Its looks to me its got WH rear wheels. The correct ones came with it though

Lengthened the lift bar today. Just by about 1/2". Now with the tractor on 3/8" boards, the blade just touches the ground. That will do me. With the tractor down on terra firma and the blade up, there is about 3" clearance t'ween blade and ground. With the blade angled, there is roughly 2" difference side to side. All primed now and may get top coats tomorrow.

This is a great picture because it shows what a Bolens looks like with the panels removed. The design started with the 600 in 1962 and very little changed right through to 1978 with the last G14. The chassis tubes were shorter on the 600 and they had a dog leg on the hydros. The steering column is a work of art although the top bush can be a pain. The cast front axle and cradle are unbelievably heavy. The body panels changed over the years and various gearbox, clutch and engine options were available. Everything is widely over engineered which is why I love them so much. Just as well it is really considering the weight of some of the attachments. This big boy for example weighs in at 550lbs (250kg). Have I got one - no, do I want one - you bet! Iain

I think Alain over in the states, said somewhere that several manufacturers of GT's used the same wheels. I like the style of the steering column.

Spent some time over the last couple of days on my blade. I notched the side like Chris has done, to clear the deck mounting bar on the lift bar. This mod turned out to be not needing done, as you will see further on. Got more ground clearance, but I wanted more. I also wanted some way of applying down pressure. Feet are not really a good idea. After much thinking, pondering and fiddling, I worked out a solid bar arrangement. This will attach to the short bracket on the lift fulcrum and down to the blade. It does have to be curved at the top, to clear the plate across the chassis, that carries the steering quadrant. To get the shape, I made a cardboard template. Made a hole in the top and fastened it to the short bracket. With the blade on the ground and lift lever down, I could see how long the bar needed to be and the bottom hole. From this template I made one out of ply wood. A bit of trimming was needed. The round bar the blade pivots on needed shortening a bit. I'd already cut some off when I moved the bracket. Today I made the bar from 1/4" x 1" flat bar. Sorry about the picture quality. The reason for the two holes is simple. Somehow I drilled the second from right first and in the wrong place. The second photo shows part of the bar side relieved. When the blade was down, that part fouled the swivel pin. Next a couple of shots of blade down and up. The bar just clears the lift arm and as you can see, the chain has been moved to the rearmost hole. You can now see why that cut out is not needed. So does it work ok? Yes and no. Yes, with the rubber strip fitted. Great for on concrete. Without the strip a slight error showed up. I'd measured up for the lift bar, with blade down on the ground and rubber fitted . With the rubber removed, the blade is slightly proud of the ground. So now I've three options. (1) Make another lift bar. (2) Make a deeper wear strip. (3) Leave as is. Three is a no-no. So first I'll try number one.

I believe the foundry was the E. Rowe Co. they made the exact wheel weight for Bolens. early MTD garden tractors, and several brands of walk behinds.They may have made other styles, but I don't know. However I do not think they made any wheels.

I think you are right; certainly the wheel weights were used by a lot of GTs in the States from several foundaries.

A very worthwhile project, looking forward to the pictures. Something to keep you busy in the cold winter evenings? Iain

Still available. Keep tripping over it as still no electric in the garage for lights. Can strap it on a pallet if you wanted to arrange for collection? Got some other bits and a complete 312-8 for sale if of interest?

Chris collected the 600 earlier today (Thanks); just awaiting a full report but suffice to say 'it's a project' requiring some work. Will try to upload some photos of the 600.

Nicholas has owned this machine since 1979 but at the age of 76 he realised he would never be able to use it again in anger. So today I became the new owner

i think you missed one ian

A few photo's of Nigel driving the Tonka Tojan, yes it really is that small

this is some picts i took about five years ago it was the last time it was used