Toro Wheelhorse 312-8
by steve
(baldwinsville ny)
My lawn mower is a Toro Wheelhorse 312-8 its a small garden tractor with a 12 hp cast iron fan cooled Kohler engine belt driven to a dual range 3 speed w/ reverse gearbox for a total of 8 gears. The tractor was purchased brand new in 1984 with a recycling deck and a small pull cart.
for the first 8 years of its life it was used to move yard waste and mowed a 1/2 acre lot every week all summer and was stored winters although i have heard good things about the available snow blower I've always had access to a plow truck.
for the last 16 years its mowed 1 1/2 acres of varying terrain. the deck was a 3 blade 42" wide model. the reason for the recycler deck is i don't like to rake grass and it helps keep the lawn fertilized. as long as i didn't let the lawn go to long the deck always cut clean and straight. the desk is attached with toros attach-o-matic system that requires no tools.
After the first couple times you take it off and on it takes maybe 5 minutes to remove or install for cleaning or sharping. every spring i changed the oil and replaced the air filter . along the way i've installed a small clear fuel filter and replaced the gas line from the tank to the carb. also the rubber grommet that seals the petcock to the fuel tank had gotten brittle and dry so i replaced that as well.
Its worn out one drive belt and one mower belt. and about 10 years ago the deck was rotting around were the blade attach so i picked up a used side discharge deck for $150 the pto clutch has always worked smoothly and never slipped. after backing into a couple shrubs the taillight cover and bulbs were broken and never replaced but the headlights still have the factory bulbs and work great i once had to replace the main fuse and it has a new battery.
a few years ago i removed and rebuilt the carb and just this year the muffler gave out and was replaced the engine has always ran flawlessly and started with just a few turns. in the past 24 years my I've seen my neighbors go threw 4 or 5 mowers each but my wheel horse still works today like the day i bought it.
along the way its worn out a few parts but over all for the 500 or so in parts plus the high initial price to buy it I feel it was well worth it, and would recommend to anyone to buy a wheelhorse mower.
With a little tlc it will probably be the only lawnmower you ever buy.