Gravely had over 200 attachments and the most unusual was a ice cream machine

I remember when i was a wee little lad the auto repair shops would use these to push cars around at the gas stations like Elmer lund Phillips 66 in Peoria where my dad worked . Of course in the 60s and 70s cars had metal bumpers not plastic like today

Dad had a 1959 L, typically used the rotary plow attachment. You could furrow with it, plant your taters and cover them back over with that rotary plow. You could plow when the soil moisture was just right and not even have to rake anything level. Started with a canvas strap you wound around the flywheel. Used the same oil filter as our 66 Ford F 250. PH-8A.

Before I went into Aviation maintenance, I worked in a golf course maintenance shop and my favorite small engines in the late 80's/early 90's were always the "Cast Iron" Kohler K series. Especially the 321 singles and the 482 twins. The only real weakness was if you broke the oil "Dipper" off the end of the connecting rod on the singles (Which, unfortunately, did happen) the engine would seize almost immediately. We had a couple old (retired) Gravely riding tractors too. Strange transmission. Low & Hi range, plus Low & Hi gear. Listening to this old engine both crank and later, run brought back SO many fond memories.

I remember those. I will never forget the Gravely I was using. I was working on a horse farm years ago and I was cutting grass around the pond. On trying to get as close the edge of the water line as I could, the mower slid down towards the water after hitting a rut. I could`nt disengage the drive quick enough, so the whole gravely went into the deep.

High quality machines from a bygone era. Very versatile. Also.....GIT EM BOI, GIT EM!!

I remember back in the early to mid seventies the janitor at out school used one with a blade to clear the snow off the sidewalks.

Haha, I fix these old Gravely sweepers all the time! I get a lot of them coming through my small engine shop up here in Canada with all the snow we get. Contractors love them! Good heavy duty machines. Had to rebuild a lot of the internal clutches and fabricate a few pieces here and there for them too.

Hi Taryl, i'am a young Grass rat and I like to work on my five lawn traktors.

Gravely, the king of lawn and garden!!!!

I loved my old Gravely with the tiller attachment.

I had the pleasure of using one of those Gravely tractors back in my teens. The one I used was equipped with the mower deck, snow blade and snow blower attachments. It had lots of power and was a beast but was very temperamental about cold starts. It was like an old Harley Davidson cold start, if you didn't follow the proper start procedure, it wouldn't start.

My childhood was spent on a Model L, which had I believe an 8hp motor. Started with a leather strap hand wound each time. Lots of compression. We had a roller, a sickle bar and a wagon with a seat. Very handy, and dangerous, 1950's-style.

I worked as a machinist in the Gravely factory '72-'75. We machined in house most of the parts to build them. I always enjoyed watching the R&D guys putting them through hell trying to break them on purpose. Some models were odd looking but they were tough.

Had one , It was built in 1973 I bought it in 1986 ,used it till 2012 , best mower I ever bought and used . Thanks Taryl

Finally a gravely!!!! ❤

Love these videos: brings back memories mowing around the farm as a kid. -The tow-behind wheel/seat attachment for these could get you on uneven ground as the handles would come down on your thigh or “lap area” going up a hill. After just one instance; you ALWAYS were careful/mindful 😂.

Two thumbs up for Hallerween and Michael Pliers!

My neighbor has one from the late 50's, it's a cool sounding beast during our snow storms. I use a 1962 Snowbird to fight old man winter. That too is a beast, throws the heaviest snow straight up 25' and clear across the road into my other neighbors yard.

I really enjoy these videos, but the vintage equipment repairs/restorations are especially interesting.

I found about a dozen of these units on a property i bought a few years back..( 1940s-1980s) Got a few of them running, they are some very stout machines.. Biggest issues ive found besides the points and carbs is the rusty blades on back of the key switch.. Remove the switch and an 1/8 file cleans the blades up nicely..👍👍

What most people don't realize is point gap is an average of best setting for high speed and the best setting for low speed. If you widened the gap it will run smoother at idle but backfire at high speed. Narrowing the gap has an opposite effect. The point is point gap is not etched in stone. Years ago when you tuned a car engine with points and a carburetor it is exactly what Taryl did. An adjustment here and tweak there. Timing an old car specs were given at base idle. The real correct timing was full advance at about 2800 rpm. Truely tuning an engine is becoming a lost art.

@dkeith45

8 ай бұрын

Yep, and Taryl is a master tuner. Few can finesse a carb like he can : )

Sunday morning. Coffee and Taryl time. 👍 My dad used my finger to check spark. If i jumped it had spark.

@dkeith45

8 ай бұрын

LOL

Another amazing job Taryl! Backstory on this one is I purchased it in Aug.2020 for $200. It had only been used as a snowblower and was actually advertised that way on FBMP, 'old nonrunning snowblower'. The owner had died and someone purchased the property and some stuff was left in the barn and this was one of the items. The snowblower is known as a 'snowcannon' and it was in perfect condition. The tires were nice and had chains on them that were barely worn. It was covered with a tarp, but the handle bars were not covered and chickens had sat on the bars and crapped on them, which is why the chrome is so bad on top of the bars. It has a 'quick hitch' for the snowcannon. The gas tank was filled with a dark black liquid and smelled BAD. Drained it and it was pretty rusty, so cleaned it and coated the inside with two coats of 'Redkote', then put on a new fuel petcock, new fuel lines, cleaned the carb as best I could and tried to start it but only got weak spark so cleaned the points and that's where I was stumped. BTW I'd also repainted the cowling, which I did in white (originally red) because I thought it would look cooler since the hood is white. I also added in my 'anti-fluffy' port to make it easy to clean out mouse mess. There had been a LARGE mouse nest in it. Well, it has sat in my garage like that for the last two years and I finally was able to take it to Taryls place since I got a better trailer this summer. Taryl worked his magic on it and it's running like a top now. Shortly after purchasing this 546, I saw an old Model L Gravely on the FBMP for $200 non running and in very bad condition, but it had the snowblade, 30" bush hog, dual wheel hubs and a sulky, so purchased it just for those items, all of which fit perfectly on this 546. I'm so happy to have the 546 running. Thanks again Taryl : ) Oh, one more thing. Taryl dealing with the points brought up an old memory. Back in 1978 I purchased a 1972 Honda CL 350, or was it a 360? Hm, can't remember but it was a CL, red and white four stroke twin. Very nice condition. Sometimes it got no spark and I learned to open the points cover on the side of the engine and I'd use a matchbook striker to clean the points then it would run fine again for awhile, a few days, weeks etc.

@charlesangell_bulmtl

8 ай бұрын

My 'anti-fluffy' port, is a plastic welding cover plate (Only handles air) , no more nest, as rodents want a DARK bedroom. Now also, I can look IN before I start...

@dkeith45

8 ай бұрын

I used the cover of an electric junction box, the type used for home wiring. I attached it using those little clip on, slide on automotive nut clips. I didn't think to use plastic, thought it would be damaged by the heat?@@charlesangell_bulmtl

@notajp

8 ай бұрын

72 would have been a 350. I don’t believe Honda introduced the 360 until 74. I had a brand new 76 orange CL 360 I bought as NOS in 1980.

One of the best channels on utube. Should be at a million or more subscribers

@TarylFixesAll

8 ай бұрын

Thank you! We agree 😂

Michael Plyers these guys are hilarious 😂😂

Props to doc neon. What a cool guy to do this skit. Know he had to drive to podunk and put in a lot of time. Nicely done, everyone involved.

Hey Taryl my grandparents have 3 of them on the farm with all the attachments. My grandfather who just passed away on wensday was giving me one with all the attachments. Great tools.

@Farm_fab

8 ай бұрын

Sorry to hear of your loss.😢 I pray that you get to know the God of all comfort. I recommend you read the gospel of John in the King James Bible for more information.

@ClickinChicken

8 ай бұрын

yeah, dittos, sorry for your loss of the loved... but congratulations.

@leehuff2330

8 ай бұрын

I'm very sorry to hear of your grandpa's passing.

We used these when I was a teenager to mow a city park. Lots of attachments. We used a sulky to ride. Gravelys are great machines!

Those Gravelys carry a high price in my area. People know they're worth it.

My brother has 8 of these contraptions, with every available attachment.

Junior needed a Jamie Lee Curtis Mask!

Stop it guys you're cracking me up😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂

Gravely, Onan and STP were part of the last vestiges of the Studebaker Corporation, South Bend Indiana.Taryl is working on a Studebaker!

@n3bruce

8 ай бұрын

Onan got sold off to Cummins around 1990, and for a while they were owned by McGraw-Edison.

Loved the skit! Wasn't expecting another cameo! Thanks Taryl and crew! I had a buddy who kept calling my bolens pulling tractor a gravely. He said they used the same trans and worm gear. I had the opportunity to buy one but never did. They are super interesting!

@mechanicallycreative9788

8 ай бұрын

I worked on a rear engine one for an elderly lady. It was pretty sweet.

I love the Clown shoes…HAHAHAHA!!!

The neighbor across the street when I was growing up had one of these. His had the front mower attachment and the seat at the rear. I remember his being all red. This one looks much newer.

Who knew Doc Neon would be a ham? "No! No! No! No! No!"

Got a collection of those from the L to the 16 Pro. Excellent machines! I'd add it to my collection any day!

@rrnabors1

7 ай бұрын

I had one with an 8 hp. Krawler and a 2 speed transmission . . . slow as molasses on a winter's day at Santa's House. I believe the later models had a 4 speed trans.

If you don't have a spark tester, you can verify points by using the test light on the neg. side of the coil looking for a flashing light during cranking. I learned the arc-ing points hand signal. Last really good jobsite sign i learned was from a lady construction apprentice. She noticed the guys used hand signals. "Wheres my hammer?" And "take a break". Or, "bring the phone here". So she saw her partner waving and asking "wheres my screwdriver?" It was loud with equipment running that moment, so She answered, Eye. Leftit. In the box.

@michaelszczys8316

8 ай бұрын

I cleaned the points real good Taryl, I even used Dawn dish soap and a toothbrush

I have worked on a few K series Kohlers like this, and one problem that happens on engines that have a lot of hours, or don't get maintained properly is that the push rod for the points wears a groove into the camshaft lobe that operates the points. The best solution is a new or known good camshaft, or thread the pushrod and affix a nut to the end that contacts the camshaft to bridge the groove. In both cases the engine has to come apart. The symptoms are that the timing changes as the engine warms up, and the range of adjustment for the points tightens up.

@davidpotter9462

8 ай бұрын

Better to weld up the groove and grind it back down flush, or perhaps change the oil more often than every 4000 hours.

@n3bruce

8 ай бұрын

I am not really sure how a long a new K-series engine will go, if maintained properly, I became used to dealing with worn out junk, but the last Cub I brought was used by it's original owner for 40 years with no real engine work needed he said. The engine died after the top piston ring seized, Looking at the condition of the rest of the machine, the probable chain of events was started by some failed spindles on the mower deck, I could hardly turn them. This lead to the engine overheating. It had seen a lot of use, I had to weld new metal to support the clutch assembly where it had cracked out, but the transmission was sound. I was able to salvage the block, cam and crankshaft, and except for where there was a deep scratch in the cylinder wall, the bore was close to being in spec. I had it bored out .020 over and put a Stens rebuild kit in it. The tractor doesn't get too much use, I plowed the garden a few times and run it around a local tractor show a few times a year. @@davidpotter9462

Yes the roofing company I worked for years ago had a bunch of them for removal of flat roofs and one had a big sweeper brush on it !

@donmoore7785

8 ай бұрын

Did they use a small crane to lift it onto the roof? Sounds like a great application once it is on the roof!

@notajp

8 ай бұрын

I used to have a 56 L that was a roofing tractor. It had solid rubber tires so it wouldn’t get flats from roofing nails.

The points were sparking pretty bad, but not nearly like Dr. Neon's paddles. Thanks Taryl for great skit!!

Lil Johhny could mow Gwampas garden with that thing!

I've owned one before. It was an older model, good machine.

Another very good video. Your posts are very entertaining and educational. MIKE PLIERS ha ha, cheers from Mass.

Yes it was the best machine I ever owned.

Holy buckets!!!!!!!!¡!! That was totally awesome! Great job! Had me in in suspense the whole time. Great job guys! Love the Michael pliers

@1pcfred

8 ай бұрын

Michael Pliers

@angieshaw8877

7 ай бұрын

Haha! A GRAVELY on Hallerween🤣

How fitting you were working on a 'Gravely'...

Sweet. I asked about these last week. I have the 5240 with the dog eater and 106 mower deck.

These are the best machines ever made. At one point this company was owned by Studebaker. They was invented in wv. The original ones had Indian motorcycle engines on them.

@josephdougherty2399

8 ай бұрын

You ready for a heart attack now? Kohler is now Italian owned by an Italian small engine company known for their compact diesels

@patjohnson3100

8 ай бұрын

Very interesting. I never knew that . These are very gullible in our area. Some very nice restorations show up at our pioneer power shows.

@patjohnson3100

8 ай бұрын

I meant collectible, not gullible.

@prevost8686

8 ай бұрын

@@josephdougherty2399The same Italian company has contracts with the U.S. Military to supply certain types of equipment with diesel engines. Some quite large.

@independentthinker8930

8 ай бұрын

@@josephdougherty2399 I can not trust Italian engines and cars, some diesel engines they make are decent, but they make a ton of junk. Even their Jeep Italian engines are blowing up.

When I was a very young man in the mid-late 80’s I was a county Park maintenance worker during the summers. Each year I had the the responsibility of teaching the “new kids” how to maintain and operate a Gravely walk behind very similar to this one. We towed it from park area to park area with a 1932 Worthington tractor that had been retro fitted with a Ford rear end (dang thing was geared to go about 50mph but up around 30mph the front end would start bouncing so hard you couldn’t keep it on the road). I flipped the Gravely off the trailer one day taking a corner too fast and that ole unit barley had a scratch on it. When I explained to my former marine drill sergeant boss what happened all he was worried about was the Worthington…….ah those were good times. We called the Worthington unit 007. It was during that period of my life that I knew I was going to be a grass rat! Keep tinkering boys! Love the channel! Hope to meet you guys at mid-Ohio next summer.

Michael Pliers... Hilarious😆😆

Somehow, you guys just keep improving. Taryl is the most factual OPE instructor I have come across. Anyhoo, I have always wondered, was Taryl onboard with the filming, in the beginning or did he think it was wasting time and in his way? Thanks!

@dkeith45

8 ай бұрын

Unlike his reaction when I brought the WH520h in, he was glad to work on this Gravely 546 : ) However if you mean in the very beginning? I'm pretty sure his sons got him interested in filming videos as they had done some music videos first if I remember correctly.

Taryl, that was a neat little video. It's always good to see videos on equipment from the past, when they really made equipment

Hi, Taryl! I love your work and your videos. Keep up the great work! Nearly 50 years ago, when I started working on cars and they all had points in the ignition systems, I figured out a system for easily gapping points accurately nearly every time. If a gap needed to be .020, I would snug the contacts against a .021 or .022 feeler gauge then tighten them down. This saved me the trouble of the points walking when I would tighten the hold-down screw. The gap usually ended up right where I needed it without a lot of readjustment. This also works for other things that need to be gapped. I worked on automated mechanical equipment for nearly 20 years and that trick worked for most gapping jobs.

Yes, my neighbor John had one. The plow attached to the front, was one of the weirdest things, I'd ever seen. But it did a really good job.

@dkeith45

8 ай бұрын

Yeah, called the 'rotary plow' it has a downward facing drill, fan blade, weird tiller thing and it chews up the ground pretty well, though in some cases I think it would be best to use a single blade plough first, then a disc harrow, THEN the rotary plow or tiller. Amazing machines.

About 30 years ago I had one a feller give me. It was pretty old, older than the one you have there. It' had a Studebaker tag and had big round mower on front. Back in 1970s my dad worked at a school and they had one with a shovel and tractor- like tires set up for pushing snow.

When I worked for parks and recreation back in the 1970's,we used one of these.I used it with,and without the seat attachment.Till watching your video,I never knew it came with different front attachments,we only had the mower attachment..Did alot of mowing with it.

Thanks for another great tutorial! I went into lawn care about 3 years ago, and thanks to your tutorial videos, I have so far been able to repair all of my equipment on my own. You have saved me hundreds of dollars by teaching me to do repairs on my own. Thanks again!!!

Remember in Jr hIgh school they used a Gravely sort of like this to mow the schoolyard. Later years I spotted one of these with a snowplow on it that was used to plow snow from the Metro-rail subway stations in Wash DC.

Have not had to use a timing light in over 25 years. Great video,Taryl!

I like the old ones with T-head (flathead with intake an exhaust valves on opposite sides of the cylinder) external magneto and backside-of -the-fanbelt-driven external governor.

Great piece of machinery, love working on the old stuff. Built like a tank!

I learned Taryl I did.....The Gravley mowers were a common sight here in Florida 70'-80's with commercial mowers - stand behind setups. Their a commercial machine. Got a big old Kohler that needs everything you went over and then some. I will use your "sign language"

Ignition points, condenser, timing light etc. Reminds me of the old days when I tuned my 68 Camaro. About the time I learned how to do thorough, accurate auto tuneups, Detroit came out with the first solid state ignitions, so I was obsolete. Still electronic ignitions are a big improvement.

That battery clamp idea is kind of brilliant. As long as you have good clamps, why not? The battery industry will have their biased reasons, of course... moving batteries around is bad for your back, and the surgeon general says you should only do it every 1 to 5 years

Was waiting for Taryl to make a video on a Gravely!😂

@michaelszczys8316

8 ай бұрын

You know? , Taryl, with all the effort put forth on silly skits I think what could be a better focus of time and creativity would be to figure a set-up for getting the camera right up close and personal. You were adjusting points way down there in the basement somewhere. How about letting us get in on the REAL action? After all, most of us are here to see mower and small engine work. Be careful, your cousin Jaryl might get it worked out first and steal your show.

Yes Taryl, you've taught me alot since watching you. .You're a great mechanic ,and teacher, thanks.

@DTD-no7wl

8 ай бұрын

Agreed

several versions of the 1st screw starter still available , even one for phillips heads . we used to field test condensers by charging them , then ground the wire to cond body .

Stop it guys you're cracking me up😂😂😂😂

I would love to own one with all the attachments. Grass rates sign language. 😂

You guys are cracking me up😂😂😂😂

Love the video awesome job taryl!

GREAT VIDEO GUYS.both the Meyers skit,and the machine. I didn't know why points arced so much ,now i do.And it made perfect sense.thanks

This makes me want to pull my 1952 L out of storage and get it running. My dad used it in the 60's/70's at his work to move snow. They gave it to him in the 90's and hasn't ran since.

@chrishayden7016

8 ай бұрын

I have two model L and both needed the magneto points cleaned. Both start with a couple strap pulls. Now, lol. One has a sickle mower, other one has the rotary plow which is like nothing I've ever seen. There's videos on you tube.

@msack6904

8 ай бұрын

@chrishayden7016 mine has a dozer blade and 30" brush cutter. We tried to start it in the late 90's, weak spark and carb was gummed up so pushed it back in the barn. It would take me days to get it uncovered and out with all the junk piled around it LOL.

@chrishayden7016

8 ай бұрын

I understand. All four tires were flat and only two took air; replaced the others with what amounts to trailer tires. It’s so heavy, it didn’t need tread for my usage. A snowplow would, though.

I reaally felt nostalgic when I watched the fiddling with the points. I had a Harley sportster as a daily driver when I was in college almost 40 years ago. It was always a very holesome feeling when I got the dwell angle and timing juuuuuuust perfectly right and it started first kick on a cold and rainy morning. It was a kind of zen meditation sitting there for half an hour trying to get the points gap for both lobes to be exactly the same. But it is very rewarding.

We are always happy with Taryl’s work, but we don’t acknowledge how good (great) the camera work is done.

I LOVE that vintage Gravely equipment. Nice Job Taryl!

That's quite a scar by your right thumb. Must have been quite a boo boo. My old 61 Harley has points and even though they need occasional maintenance I love it. Great job Taryl

Nothing like resurrecting an “grave”ly from the “grave” on Halloween weekend

High quality machinery from ancient times. Very flexible. Somehow, you guys just keep improving. Thank you!

That was a real education. Beautifully methodical. Thank you.

I have a friend here in West virginia .he is 86 years old .he has two of those Gravelys .he owned them for many years

Love the videos. You all are trip. Thank you.

Yes, modern version of David Bradley machines that looked like art deco locomotives!

I actually have a predecessor model, an L-8. Mine dates to 1974, and is powered by a T- head engine of Gravely's own design and construction.

@dkeith45

8 ай бұрын

Yes, those are cool engines. They came in 6.6 and 7.6 hp. I'm guessing Gravely started using Kohlers because the old Gravely engine was not capable of more hp than 7.6?

@wtchr6883

8 ай бұрын

​​@@dkeith45the larger models were Kohler powered, many 10 hp and I have seen some 12 and 14 hp

@dkeith45

8 ай бұрын

Yeah, anything over 7.6 is a single cylinder Kohler, the 8, 10,12,14,16. After that I'm pretty sure some opposed twins were used like the Onan.@@wtchr6883

@leehuff2330

8 ай бұрын

@@dkeith45 That's what I'm thinking. Mine is the 7.6 version. The other possibility is that those engines didn't have battery charging capability for the electric start Super Convertible. All I have for mine is the 30 inch brush hog and a homemade front hitch for a cart or roller. I used to have a modified snow blade off an old Cub Cadet, but it finally gave up. I went and got a blade for my 2002 John Deere, but I would love to get my hands on a snow thrower for the Gravely- especially the "snow cannon".

@dkeith45

8 ай бұрын

The L model I got for the attachments has the original Gravely engine and is an electric start model, though it appears to be an aftermarket setup.@@leehuff2330

I love your sense of humor love your videos very informative ❤

Thank you for sharing.👍

That’s a new one compared to the the one I used! Spent a lot of time in the garden and mowing with one. Great tractors! Thanks for another great one Taryl!

Best teacher on KZread

BTW...You are my small engine guru. So glad that i found your channel a few years back. Both informative and fun.

Not only have I seen one of those, I know someone who has two of them along with a dozen other Gravelys w all of the attachments.

Taryl, there are many things that you have on the channel that I have never seen. However, in this case, these are a fairly regular site down here in Alabama. Great Video as always!!

You crack me up. Normally, I am the epitome of the grumpy old man, yet I get a real laugh from your show. Keep it up.

Very cool my friends. Happy Halloween to you guys

I've owned a Gravely 5665 since new in the early 80's...12hp K301. This is by far the best Gravely/ Kohler "how to" that that I have ever watched on YT...Thanks Taryl

@dkeith45

8 ай бұрын

Agree. One of the other big YT small engine repair ppl did a video on his 546 or maybe it was the 526? But it was not nearly as detailed and did not help me solve the problem for this machine. I was truly stumped. So glad to have it repaired right by Taryl. And he only charged me $140, WOW : )

We had a similar one in the 70's! They had all kinds of attachments to include plows and mowers!

Your the best, with the teaching! Always enjoy your videos, thanks! BTW, skit was funny.

The intros and endings, are so good these days , I'm finding that I fast fwd. the rest...😂