Westwood Gazelle

[WestwoodGazelle 103]

Hi all I just thought I'd post some pictures of my Westwood Gazelle W11, which I bought in 2010 and fully restored (apart from the seat and some little bits). I would like to at some point to replace some of the steering joints, paint the engine and maybe give her an under-body exhaust that exits at the back like I hear the originals had.

 

Here it is when I bought it, it was a Gazelle but with Laser parts and was badly rusted:

And here she is after I restored her:

Edited February 20, 2014 by WestwoodGazelle

[Stormin 4,458]

Nice job.

[meadowfield 1,900]

Great job!

Btw is it Jon? Welcome to the forum

[nigel 1,877]

very nice job, its nice to see people restoring these as they are fast becoming collectable

[Stormin 4,458]

they are fast becoming collectable

 

Don't say that after I scrapped one.   Mind it was very, very far gone. Still got the engine though.

[neil 524]

Welcome to MoM , Im just up the road from you in Somerset , wherebouts in  Devon are you?

That is a really handsome looking tractor ,  I allways liked the look of those Westwoods .

Do you have any other goodies you can show us ?

[S1g 579]

As a very young child I remember sitting on these in my fathers showroom, pretending by were real tractors. Guess I must be getting old.

[WestwoodGazelle 103]

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.

[meadowfield 1,900]

Good to have you on board Jon!

Look forward to the C-100 pics...

[bowtiebutler956 166]

 Very nice work!    I've never heard of one, so I'm guessing they never made it to my part of the world. Would love to see your C100, as I have a couple Wheel Horses myself. 

 

Matt

[WestwoodGazelle 103]

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.

[norlett 32]

 Had three or four of these over the years.

Last one was a diesel good but noisy.Very solid machines for what they are.

Keep up the good work.    

[hangman 25]

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.

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

[WestwoodGazelle 103]

Thanks Norlett! I love the way the earlier Westwoods were so heavily over-engineered compared to some newer garden tractors. I guess that's why there still seems to be quite a few around. I've never actually seen a diesel Westwood, but that sounds like an interesting machine.

[norlett 32]

Yes the last westwood I had.Had a Lombardini Diesel in it

Was brill but very noisy Started up on the key if battery was charged

but could be started by pull cord.

some times sorry to them being sold.

Bought one for our grandson to fettle up two or three years ago.

Meadow field might put some photos on here to show every body how it looked    

[meadowfield 1,900]

Pictures are on here, look up westwood W11.

[WestwoodGazelle 103]

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.

[meadowfield 1,900]

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.

Thanks

[WestwoodGazelle 103]

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:

 

[meadowfield 1,900]

another happy customer

[Stormin 4,458]

I see the one in the vid's a pull start. The one I had was electric start.

[Chris 642]

Glad to see that the engine I supplied you with Jon is still going well.

 

Yes it did come out of another westwood if you others were wondering, the rest I weighed in

[WestwoodGazelle 103]

Thanks Mark, the decals are holding up very well, and really finish off the look.

 

The engine's running nicely Chris, thanks. The only mod I would like to do sometime to the engine/mower might be a stack exhaust, I like the look of them

[Wristpin 400]

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

The early Westwoods were just re- badged Dynamarks, hence the resemblance! The next generation had a UK built chassis with a Dynamark deck followed by the complete UK built machines.

The diesel machines were prone to catching fire due to the vibration rupturing fuel lines and chafing wiring looms! Several " lawn tractor" manufacturers of that era tried to meet the perceived need for a diesel by just dropping a single pot oil burner onto an existing chassis without giving much attention to engine mounts etc and without exception they were all pretty horrible.

The last to try it were Stiga with a Hatz lump on a rear engined bendy and this setup, as well as being harsh and crude sent vibrations through the hydrostatic transmissions knocking out the axle bushes sometimes in as little as ten hours!

[ranger 373]

 Nice job    

         My D1200 is a bit noisy but the main problem is the "pikey" mice who chew through the fuel lines and make of with the cup full of diesel which seems to be all it needs to harrow / roll a couple of acres of horse paddocks. This was another freebie I was given because it would only run for about an hour then cut out. The owner was told the injector was dribbling causing oil to be washed off the bore, causing a partial seizure. A new injector later, no different, all it was,was the tiny outlet in the fuel tank needed opening up. Mine is a single pot, but I've seen twin pot Ruggerini ones.