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It is not big and I believe you are right in that it looks like a small bent nail. I couldn't find any other evidence, which suggests that somehow this ended up in the engine, jammed a valve snapping the camshaft. A few years ago I was given another Wisconsin TRA-10D engine in need of a rebuild, which is something I was planning to do at some point. As time is tight, I took that engine apart and pulled out the camshaft which is in good condition. Iain

My plan for this weekend between other jobs was to get the tractor running and out of the workshop as I need the space for something else. I failed on the main objective and things escalated quickly. Friday evening I decided to fit the valves as I find these a little fiddly and can take an unpredictable amount of time. I found a new technique by using a pry bar upside down to push under the springs. The exhaust valve went well and before I started on the inlet I ensured both valve lifted as expected and the gaps were still good. I fitted the inlet valve and spring and turned the engine over but the valve only opened a little! Turning the engine over with a pry bar taking the spring load resulted in the valve opening and closing as expected. I decided to call it a night and have a think. It didn't sort itself overnight so I felt the only option I had was to strip the engine down and see what was going on. I was expecting to see a damaged follower or similar by was shocked to see this It looks like this has been been broken for a while and could be something to do with the damage I found on the face of the inlet valve. The point on the shaft where it has broken has a ridge which suggest it has run like this. I don't know the history of the tractor but when I bought it did run but not very well. I found this in the sump, not sure what it is/was and if it is related Iain

When I started to clean up the parts I was surprised to see these markings on the block. I don't recall seeing them on other Wisconsin engine blocks In our parts of the country you tend to see this symbol on the back of cars owned by Born again Christians

Looks like a puppy now, took years of him/her. I wish a hair cut would do that for me

I have electronic copies of the 850 parts manual and wiring diagram, also a service manual which covers this model. Drop me a PM if you want a copies. Iain

Thanks guys, it is as original as it looks and so far I have only found one modification, which is on the wiring and easily sorted. It is great working on this tractor as all the nuts and bolt are easily removed, set to the right torque and all the washers are still in place. The only other tractor that I own that is in this condition is a Wheelhorse Raider 10. So far I have replaced the throttle and choke cables which were seized, and got a spark to the engine. I needed to repair a wire that has been nibbled and replace the points and condenser. The exhaust valve is stuck open and it was a bear to get out. I had to smile when I removed the engine cowl as the bolt at the very bottom under the starter/generator was still in place, it has been missing on all my other tractors. It will be going back in. Iain

It must have been over a year since I have managed to find some tractor time and we currently do not have anything running. Instead of doing the sensible thing of looking at something that ran recently we decided to drag a tractor out of storage that last ran well over 10 years ago. It was such a long time ago I cant remember what was wrong with it and it is no good asking Joseph because he was not born then. I really like this tractor because it is very original and has a hydraulic implement lift. Joseph made an introduction video of the tractor So far we have flushed the fuel tank, rebuilt the carb and fitted replacement throttle and carb cables, before we ran out of time. Hopefully I can make some time to continue with it. Iain

Belated birthday wishes for yesterday Chris. I hope you had a great day.

Hi Lez welcome to the forum. GTT is a good forum with lots of friendly and knowledgable people, just like here. Once you join you will have to do some posts before you are able to download from the library. To save you some time this is the parts manual from a G8 which is a slightly newer version of your tractor and the wiring diagram. Bolens G-8 - Parts Manual.pdf Small Frame Wiring diagram.pdf Your tractor was made in 1972 and should be fitted with a B&S 8hp (191707-063101) engine. Hope this helps Iain

No naughty words, I think we were both in shock My glasses took a lot of the impact, expensive mistake I have you know it's hard work walking backwards trying to keep the camera still I must admit the colour is growing on me Iain

Happy birthday Ian, I hope you had a good day Iain

Going nowhere today. Last night after I got home, some muppet in a 2wd car saw my tracks and tried to get through. They got stuck and abandoned the car without leaving any contact details. I have been talking to the police and they have told the owner to shift it. In the case of an emergency we currently have no way of getting out unless I use my digger to push it off the road into the ditch, which is very tempting. Overnight the drift has filled in my tracks and the snow is now frozen, so I have no intention of trying to get through it unless we have an emergency. Picture of the drift

We were hit with about 8-12 inches of snow yesterday which resulted in traffic carnage yesterday. It took me two hours longer than normal to get to work and it was then only possible because I doubled back and used the really difficult country lanes that nobody had been on. Overnight we had high winds and the snow drifted. Those that have visited Bolens towers will know we live on the top of the only hill in Norfolk. Driving down the hill this morning I was faced with a bigger than expected snow drift and I decided to hit the gas rather than stop. This is what a Disco looks like after it has hit a six foot wall of snow. In the picture you may be able to see the drift in the background on the left. The picture does not really show just how much snow was on the bonnet, took me ages to clear it. It's good how they designed it so the badge always shows From past experience I knew that a drift would be in that location but I was not expecting it to be that big. I told the kids to watch the impact from the bedroom window and they said that the snow went 30 foot in the air. It frightened the life out of me when I lost vision. I got a call from the SWMBO lunch time to tell me that our neighbour was not so successful and his Isuzu 4x4 pickup is stuck in the drift. I am still at work atm but the jouney home should be interesting as I will need to recover his truck before I can attack the drift again and get home. He sold his Land Rover last year and has been winding me up about how much better his Isuzu is. Looking forward to the banter as I attach the tow strap Iain

I'm exhausted walking behind the tractor all day. Our woodburner feeds the radiators and hot water so probably only 2-3 weeks worth. You may have seen that small black trailer somewhere before too Mum's orders Looking forward to the day when I am indoors chucking it on the fire while he is moving and cutting

Fantastic work and paint job on that hood Ewan.

Just remembered that I also had fuel pump issues with the K582 in mine, you would have to crank it over for a while before you would get fuel to the engine. At great expense I fitted a new OEM fuel pump but it made little difference, so I added a manual primer and in-line tap. A couple of pumps with the primer and it fires up the second you engage the starter. I also put an additional battery earth lead directly onto the engine which made it run smoother.

Fantastic collection of saws you have Alain. We have been watching you YouTube videos about them and I'm impressed by your knowledge about them. I didn't realise you were such a chainsaw expert. Iain

Happy to help Alan, I will sort some measurments.

I have just been catching up with your build. Your attention to detail continues to be incredible, love that brake peddle. Alan if your looking for another job , an option on the D-Series is split wheel brakes with the foot peddles mounted on the other side of the tractor. They would look really cool on your mini-D and they are fitted to my D-200 if you want some pictures, measurments, etc.

That is an absolutely fantastic tractor, I love it. It hard to imagine that they were not a good seller as it looks perfect for cutting large areas of grass. Great find. It has the same engine as my main grass cutting tractor and I budget for one gallon of petrol per acre. Those engines do run hot and can suffer from head gasket problems. I now regularly remove the tin around the heads, blow out any debris and re-torque the heads. Not had any problems since.

Thanks Andrew, sounds good

Happy birthday Paul, I hope you have a great day Best wishes Joseph and Iain

I have just had the chance to read your build post. It is a fascinating read and not spoiled by the snippets you have shared with me. I am pleased I was able to provide a small contribution with a few measurements. Fantastic workmanship. Your great grandson looks at home on the tractor, you will have to build another one for him Iain

Joseph and I managed to get a small amount of tractor time today. The battery on the Estate Keeper is dead and we either had the time to go and buy a replacement or bodge a different battery in and have some seat time. We spend most of our time correcting bodges but the prospect of some seat time won the day. I recently replaced the battery in our house alarm and the old one is still good even though it is tiny and only 7aH. The EK7 starts really well so worth a go. The old battery Modifications to a bit of firewood Job done Despite being a horrible bodge it works well. It started well despite not being used since August and Joseph cut some grass with the tractor. He let me have a go too and I realised that it is the first time I have driven this tractor. If the battery holds up we will make a proper frame for it. Iain

Happy birthday Alain, I hope you have a good one