Triumph66

That would be interesting. Would a Bolens be welcome? It would be good to have a MOM stand of the members' machines.

What shows do you go to in Dorset as I live in Devon. Cheers

Cheers That is a lovely Bolens. Did you sell it locally? Did the plough fit ok or did you have to make it fit

Great photos. Down in the South West, my family and I enjoyed lunch outside in the warm sunshine! We took the hound for a walk near Bovey Tracey, Dartmoor where it was pleasantly mild. However, the temps are dropping and the log burner have been fired up. Talk about the North/ South Divide!

James, you are really cracking on with this project. Very impressive. I am currently amassing parts for my Bolens 1254 and seeing your posts want me to crack on myself.

On the Bolens 600, is that a Brinley plough? Lovely! Where and when did you sell the BOlens? Cheers

George, That's superb landscaping there and I am very impressed with the Gutbrod tractor earning its keep. I might have to look into the Gutbrod myself.

Ian, You are making progress; impressive workmanship. Are you halfway through your project? Cheers

That's a very tidy woodland there and a great bit of kit. Is the barrow fairly stable with that load?

There was a Markham tractor in the Hastings area a few months ago. I was tempted but the seller didn't fully answer my questions or evaded his answers. I was going to get my brother to collect it and store it in his barn had I bought it for collection at a later date. Paul, yours is in better condition than the one in Hastings. A good find. Here's the listing number 361112210236

I would have to do a 20 point turn in my garden!

That's a hefty bit of kit and appears to be in good overall nick. For roughly £1850 with the attachments that would be of use for someone with a large garden.

My Morris van obviously share the engine oil with the gear box but fortunately I have not topped up with EP90 yet.......

Yes, I am lucky as a lot of my customers want a trained gardener to look after thier gardens properly such as pruning, plant division, planting out and creating a garden of thier dreams and as such there are very few of us around who can garden professionally. More to the point, thanks for pointing out pump fresh fuel regarding the Briggs product.

Cheers Chris. I have been there with my 2 sons and I know what it's like only too well!

Very interesting feedback and views concerning Aspen and their competitors. As I said earlier I have not experienced any problems using it and as it's alkylate based I find I can work longer without feeling tired compared to ordinary fuel. When I use my machinery I charge for the fuel and the use of my kit which amply covers the cost of fuel used. I am interested in George's (The Fife Ploorman) use of Stihl petrol and Wristpin's use of Briggs Fuel Fresh. As part of my business I also service my customers' lawn mowers and I have put fuel stabiliser in the petrol tanks after the service. I encouraged my customers to fill up their 5l fuel cans halfway and then they can again top it up with fresh fuel a few months later so as to reduce the use of stale fuel. Cheers

Cheers Nigel

Tom, Ok, that's interesting. From my own experience for my 2 strokes machines I have not had that problem. Something to keep an eye out for. Thanks Andrew

I am looking for a working vintage/ classic B&S 5hp vertical engine to replace the modern MTD electric start engine on my forthcoming Bolens Lawn Keeper as I am keen to replace the modern one with a more appropriate engine. PM or leave a post. Thanks Andrew

Aspen 2 is around £19 for 5 litre. You can get 1 litre as well but do not know the price. Yes it is more than unleaded petrol (especially now that fuel is lower than it was a few months ago!). If I used my machinery week in and out I would probably use ordinary unleaded plus the oil mixture BUT having used Aspen2 on tree work and hedge cutting I don't smell the fumes and I don't feel tired etc. Crucially, the machine runs better as the plug isn't fouled up nor is the air filter or the carb. Efficiency is the key word here I think from the operator and the machine.

Bankman, A good project for someone. Good of you to give it away and I hope it go to an enthusiast.

On the subject of tranmission oil in another thread I thought I would raise this topic. Some of you may know that I run a bespoke gardening business in South Devon. As many of you know, modern unleaded fuel goes off quickly and can cause some headache when you need to use your mower or in this case, your tractors/ ride ons after being unused over the winter. I don't use a lot of machinery as my business is garden design, writing articles for gardening magazines and carrying out the more techical aspect of horticulture. From time to time I am asked to cut hedges, strim grass and fell trees; jobs I enjoy doing. As I don't use my 2 strokes equipment a lot, I have gone down the route of using Aspen 2 which is specially formulated for two strokes engines. Apart from being better for the environment and for the operator (the Aspen fuel is ethanol free and consists of approximately 12 chemicals while unleaded plus the 2 stroke oil consist of over approximately 50 chemicals) the fuel can stay in the tank for 5 years without going off. Modern fuel goes off after 2 or 3 months (if the fuel is yellow then it's stale and is difficult to ignite.) I have not used Aspen 4 which is for 4 stroke engines but It it has the same principles as Aspen 2. I can honestly say that using this product have made life easier for me and that all my 2 stroke machinery fires up first or second time after a period of unused. For example, my Husqvarna chainsaw was last used in March '14 and it fired up first time in November. As I use my cylinder and rotory mower throughout the season, I use ordinary unleaded petrol. In the winter, I will run it on Aspen 4 so to start up easier when the mowing season begin I am going to use Aspen 4 on my Bolens. I read somewhere that the company is manufacturing petrol for classic cars for the very same reason (I have a Morris Minor LCV van). The downside is the price but for less hassle, less damage to the environment, better for the machine and more importantly, better for the operator, I would consider this. For more details, google aspenfuel.co.uk Hope this is of some interest. Cheers Andrew

The old girl was incontinent; hence my supply of EP90

I am the same too on my BOlens; I use SAE 30 lawn mower oil as they are air cooled engines and as I have approximately 10l of EP90 left over from my Land Rover days for the transmission.

Yes very impressive collection. The problem is it want you to get one yourself or to increase your own collection.