Archive through April 29, 2010

[kmcconaughey]

Allen, WELCOME!

As much as I like the narrow frame tractors, you're probably going to want to look into the 82 series. The best one would probably be the 782 with a 44" or 50" deck and either an H-42 or an H-48 snow thrower. The 982 would be too hard to find and too expensive to buy and maintain. The Onan engines can be expensive to repair and maintain.

 

[kweaver]

"my wife needs to be able to use it to clear snow before she leaves for work"

... and HE comes home to a clean driveway ... boy he trained her good !

All I can do is get Kathy to trim the yard once a month.

 

[dfrisk]

ALLEN - Welcome to the forum. I live west of you about 50 miles! I used to work in Brookfield.

I would look for an 1872 or 2072. There's also a 1572 & 1772 diesel version but they're pricy. I have a 982, great tractor but I hate, no make that "HATE" the Onan engine. The 18/2072's have Kohler series II engines, better engine and cheaper parts. Rest of the tractor is the same as a 982 except yellow/white paint instead of red. And they have factory Power Steering, nice feature if your wife will be running it with the snow blower attached. I mow about 2 acres also, with about 80 mature trees & bushes, takes about 2-1/2 to 3 hours to mow & trim eveything.

Maybe Kraig or Art A. can post pic's of Art's 1872 so you know what they look like. They were built around 1986 till about 1990 then replaced with the 1882/2082, also known as "The CYCLOPS tractors", lots of plastic parts used on them.

I worked at FARMALL in Rock Island back from '76 to '85 with frequent lay-offs. I actually worked @ E. Moline for 6 weeks in '77. Was a helper on a BIG 8 ft Cinncinatti metal cutting shear. IH's Waukesha Foundry is a pretty well kept secret, not many people know it exists. Probably like your folks, Wife & I decided to move out of the Quad-Cities so we didn't have to turn off all the lights!

 

[jbaker]

Allen S. The others are right about the 82 series although in my area they are hard to find at a decent price, so here is my .02 a 149 with hydralic lift or even a 129 with a hydralic lift installed. spring assist are nice but a it still can be heavy. Then i would get a qa 36 or 42 blower and a 48 or 50 inch deck. also the head lights are a must.

 

[jott]

Anyone know the size dimensions for the NF pto set screws? I have to replace them on one of them.

 

[mgonitzke]

Inner set is 1/4-20 x 3/8" pointed, the outer set is 1/4-20 x 1/4" rounded end.

 

[jott]

thanks Matt

 

[ttallarico]

I'm a glutton for punishment! Love my Onan powered 982 and my Cyclops 1862! The Onan doesn't even break a sweat with the big tiller. The 450 blower is for the 1862 this upcoming winter. Should be nice with power steering.

 

[kide]

Allen:
As much as I love my 129 and the 1x9 series, I'd go along with the recommendations for an '82 series or even some of the later (off topic) models. I would stay away from the Onan engined models,- they're nice running but rebuild parts are getting harder to find and face it, in the age bracket we're talking about, rebuild parts availability should be a decision factor.

 

[dfrisk]

THOM - Welcome to the forum too! Nice looking 982.
I well remember back in 1980 when the 982's were new, "Why on EARTH would anyone want a garden tractor THAT big?!?!". Then I lived on a 75 ft x 170 ft lot with a ranch style house. NOW I mow two acres.

I have no real problems with my 982, and the Onan runs O-K but not without issues, was completely rebuilt when I bought it, just the way Onan did things compared to Kohler is just WRONG. There's no way to accurately set ignition timing per ANY of the IH manuals, They say "Consult Your Dealer" and there's no timing marks anywhere; the ignition points are located in a stagnant airflow area in the engine, therefore get covered with oil, and they seem to slip out of adjustment, gap closes resulting in poor or no running, the engine governor on mine is "Lazy", a slowly increasing load will slow the engine down, but if I punch the throttle it speeds right up, a quick loading of the engine it will hold speed, fuel pump vacuum port on crankcase is almost impossible to reach, carb & intake manifolds are prone to leaks due to warpage. Parts are horribly expensive compared to Kohler & B&S.

I don't know what brand of engine will replace my Onan when it's needed, hopefully that won't be for a long time, but I know it won't be another Onan. I had a suggestion a year or so ago from the pullng forum here to investigate an older GENERAC engine. They're larger displacement than the Onan but same relative physical size, some are double the Onan's 48 CID. And Generac's home offices are located only 50 miles from me!