WestwoodGazelle

another happy customer

Been doing some log runs with the Gazelle for our log-burner The new engine is running very well, I just need to get round to doing a couple of paint touch ups and a new seat.

(I blurred Dad's face because I'm not sure if he wants to appear online )

Also there's a guy on YouTube restoring one of these, I enjoyed watching his video series on it:

 

Tidy, all original with the ubiquitous ripped seat!
Nice

Where the hell did this come from!!      That's a nut's idea aimed solely at getting us to pay more!        Reading the article it's say that NFU expects it to cost about £100 a year!  Now correct me if I'm wrong but I'm sure I've just read above that it's only costing people a little over £30 a year with NFU??
 
How would they police it anyway?  Will we have to watch the streets for "Mower detection vans", that have a couple of blokes in the back trying to match an engine sound they have heard coming from behind a house, to a list of "known" mower engine sounds?
 
And what about those "project" mowers that may not run or are not even bolted together? Are we going to have to get insurance on them just in case some "low life" breaks into your workshop and hurts him/her self while running past your project that's up on the bench and hasn't moved under it's own power in years???
 
What's next? Insurance on leaf blowers just in case a leaf you have blown manages to find it's way in next doors window, makes the owner sneeze and knocks over an expensive vase??
 
I remember reading a few winters back that you shouldn't clear the snow off the path in front of your house just in case someone slips and trys to sue you!!!
 
The world is going mad I tell you !!!

Er .....it's the 5th of August today! , or should it be April Fools Day?. I won't be drawn any further on this one, wouldn't want to get political here         

Good idea :hide: Look at all the tax revenue the treasury is losing by all the uninsured car driivers about. How can we possibly pay MP's saleries & expenses without something like this

I'd sit tight and see what transpires. If it's just one machine that doesn't leave the garden , assuming that you have buildings and contents insurance it will almost certainly include Public Liability cover - typically 3-5 million. This should cover the householders liability to those visiting the premises - postman, paper boy, tradesmen etc and personal visitors. Some contents policies will include some cover for garden equipment but sometimes with conditions concerning security or even only when in a garage attached to the house.
For anything other than basic standard cover, especially for multiple machines the best route is to insure through a specialist company or broker.

Barmy idea to say the least. Insurance for shows etc, is sensible, but for your own garden? How would it be policed?! Then what? Self propelled walk behind mowers?

one day I hope to get them as clean & shiny as yours. the exhaust on the C121 is off a Kubota 2 cylinder engine, the 312-8 is a stainless silencer copy of the original except for the stack. The original rusted out so I cut it up & measured everything even down to the number and size of the holes in the baffles in an attempt to maintain the correct backpressure, sad really. but then I bought a carb with adjustable main jet so I needn`t have bothered. The company Northern Tools sell trailer hubs with I think a 1" bore bearing size,You could fit these with a sleeve 3/4" to 1" I think they have either a 4" or 100mm pcd. so nice narrow 8" trailer wheels would  fit. I would imagine any trailer / caravan / camping / good motorist shop will probably stock these as well. The downside is You have to buy them,so much better when you can scrounge/recycle things.

Great job Doug, seems like very good way of solving the problem Your 'Horse looks pretty cool with that exhaust and those wheels too!

Sorry, not sure how I missed this.
Yes, I obtained mine from U.S. in the end, could not get the heavy duty Heim brand. Got mine (4) in 2012 for about £3 ea incl shipping.
As Doug(Ranger) has mentioned above, now cost more, but if you still want them, I can point you to an advert for 4 at about £15 incl Shipping. 
Toro part number is 110513,but there are many U.S Aftermarket numbers too. 
Regards

Hi again,
some photos of the John Deere 279 mower deck spindles converted to front wheel hubs. The holes are not threaded as i thought, I threaded them M10. The wheels are off a Howard rotavator.

Hi W/Gazelle
   I fitted John Deere 279 deck spindle housings minus the shafts to the front stub axles of my C121 these have 3/4" bore bearings the same as the Wheelhorse I scrounged these from a customer of ours-a council mower shop whose policy was if the bearings are shot,change the whole assembly! If a walk behind mower needed more than a spark plug to repair it -it was scrapped! I bought a box of new bearings from the USA for these and fitted a couple of nice narrow Howard/ Dowdeswell rotavator wheels along with 4.00 x 8 tri rib tyres. These housings have four threaded holes to attach them to the deck,these now take the wheel bolts.They almost lined up,just a touch with a file needed, tube spacers then fitted to give the track width I wanted.
    regards Doug.

Same age as my two collies.

I think black works on a WH... As long as some flames are painted on as well

Hi all, I managed to dig out a photo of my Wheelhorse as it was when it arived back in 2005. Luckily it's looking better these days, even though I don't consider it finished. (could do with a fresh lick of paint on the red parts). I did keep the engine silver, when I first painted it ages ago, not really sure why
 
I'd actually forgotten someone must have crashed it since the hood was damaged at the front, I learned a lot about body work straigntening it out. The rest of her was in pretty good shape though and most surprising is how there's effectively no rust on it at all. I also brought the light lens and light box for behind so I'll have to wire up the lights when I do the repaint at some point.
 

they are all the same...
 
Glenpetit in the US sell repro ones too...
 
My dad actually filed one out of a piece of ally

Ah yes, you did a great job on that Westwood!  It looked good in blue, and I liked how you did the exhaust and gearbox.

A GT14 fits somewhere between a C and a D series. 15 rear wheels, sundstrand hydro, optional 3 pt lift and 14hp Kohler.
They are awesome machines, will post some of my pics one day....

have to say that i have seen the gazelle and the dynamarks before on old sales leaflets etc and had not picked up on the fact that they do indeed have some very similar features

Thanks Meadowfield (Mark)!
 
Thank you Matt!  Yes, I don't think Westwoods were ever sold in the USA, but interestingly the older ones like mine look a lot like the 1970s Dynamarks.

Thanks Meadowfield (Mark)!
 
Thank you Matt!  Yes, I don't think Westwoods were ever sold in the USA, but interestingly the older ones like mine look a lot like the 1970s Dynamarks.

Thanks guys!
Hi Meadowfield, this is Jon, life got a little busy since my posts on the other forum, but I wanted to post here for anyone interested in my restoration and try and keep up with the latest ride-on projects going on.
 
I agree that these tractors are becoming collectable, ever since I was a teenager back in '04, I've loved the old Westwoods, my favourite was always the Gazelle and part of me worried since it was popular as a racing mower it might go the way of the Lawnbug and face near-extinction, so I wanted to restore at least one example.
 
Hi Niel, I am on Dartmoor near Yelverton. Glad you like it, I also have a 1975 Wheelhorse C-100 which is running now. I am away from home until 12th March though, when I get back I'll take some pictures of it. My Dad also has a 2006 Husqvarna Bio-Clip, but I guess that dosen't count as an "old" machine just yet
 
That's cool about sitting on them at the showroom, S1g, I find the history of these very interesting. Westwood's HQ used to be in High Wycombe, Bucks (where I lived the first 13 years of my life), then moved down to Plymouth, where I've lived for the following ten years! (wierd). What was pretty fun was at our local pub I was talking to a guy and it turns out he worked for Westwood, and was telling me about the factory, what he did and working with Gerry Hazelwood, who owned the company.