easy full restoration vintage Craftsman reel lawn mower 123.8172 model 80

[@cmotto.1]

I like your videos! They remind me of ol granpa on the farm back in 52..

[@spiderlovesbeerotto2892]

Thanks. The best part was getting to use GrandPa’s old tools.

[@skridtractor875]

That was awesome to watch! I've got a 123.81711 model... & now I know what it looked like brand-spankin' new :-) Beautiful job!

[@spiderlovesbeerotto2892]

Thanks. That was my goal. I was so tempted to paint white wall tires on Her. Would’ve looked cool but not original. It was crazy finding the original tags and owner’s manual.

[@michaelcastaneda8029]

Wow! Great job buddy! Love the spread on the bread. Let me know when you're ready to do mine,lol

[@spiderlovesbeerotto2892]

Roger That. I need a couple days off after this one. Hahaha. It was fun though.

[@jasondean3332]

So satisfying. I actually held my breath. Hahaha good stuff.

[@cmotto.1]

Jason Dean? I think i met you at the convention in 88 ?

[@spiderlovesbeerotto2892]

@@cmotto.1 not me. I was only 11 years old back in ‘88

[@SPGRAMPA1]

Im impressed!You did a Great Job on that..🇺🇸😊🙌🏽

[@spiderlovesbeerotto2892]

Thanks brother. I mow lawns for free now. Only because I love using this old mower.

[@Smallyardguy]

Holy smokes that was incredible. I just got one of these for 5 bucks at a yard sale and need to do this

[@spiderlovesbeerohyeah4760]

@@Smallyardguy You’ll be happy once you’re done. It’s amazing how well these old ones cut. It’s actually fun the cut the grass. Have fun. Let me know if you get stuck on anything.

[@spiderlovesbeerotto2892]

NICE!!!!!!! That old thing cuts good.

[@sherryhamilton8428]

I have one two. Was my geat great great grandfather's, then great great grandfather's, then my father passed it down to me. Hope to restore it and pass it down to daughter. Then it would be six generations gernation .

[@spiderlovesbeerohyeah4760]

Sweet. It is a cool mower. I love how it cuts my lawn with now effort. She just glides right over the grass. I hope you get yours back to showroom floor condition.

[@lonzo61]

Very nicely done. I love these old reel mowers, and I'm currently considering a resto on one. But dude, your lawn mower is much, much nicer than your lawn. Your lawn does not deserve a beautifully restored Craftsman lawn mower! It only deserves contempt and derision. But maybe some day, your lawn will be worthy of a classic reel mower. Maybe I shouldn't be so frank with my opinions. But I came here for inspiration, because I want a new old reel mower. The lawn comment was completely uncalled for. I hope that my positivity on your mower outdid the negativity on the lawn. Keep it reel, dude.

[@spiderlovesbeerohyeah4760]

Hahaha. Your comment is outstanding. You’re correct on my lawn not being up to the quality of my old Craftsman but I have an excuse….. My darn chickens won’t stop eating the grass. I do my best to keep it full & green but those darn chickens keep winning. I think it’s time to stop eating eggs. It’s time to start eating more chicken 😎 Let me know if you need any advice once you start your restoration. It’s a very easy process. Dang it, now I want to do another one. Have fun.

[@lonzo61]

@@spiderlovesbeerohyeah4760 I may check back with you for advice, if indeed I choose to restore one. BTW, I laughed at your note. We had chickens when I was a kid, and we occasionally let them roam outside the coop. They do like grass. We had more eggs than we could eat, and we were a large family. Mostly, I enjoyed the chickens, but I there were times I'd have rather eaten them! Although, I have heard that layers aren't good eating. Thanks for the reply.

[@spiderlovesbeerohyeah4760]

@@lonzo61 I have 50+ eggs on my counter right now. I never thought I’d have more eggs than I can ever eat. I give them to neighbors and still have so many. The cool part about having chickens is, putting an aluminum tray under their perch to collect all that good fertilizer for my lawn. These chickens just keep giving and giving. I wish they would just stop eating the grass they helped grow.

[@lonzo61]

@@spiderlovesbeerohyeah4760 Another fun fact: chickens...the kind we eat...produce more protein with less feed and other inputs than any other animal protein source. To put it another way, chicken has, by far, the lowest carbon footprint. So, eat lotsa eggs and chicken instead of beef (the worst, environmentally). If you do eat beef, take heart that you are mowing your lawn with a reel mower to make up for it! Our reel mowers are as efficient as it gets compared to their gas guzzling, CO2 emitting brethren. Hey, it's part of the reason I like reel mowers. That, and the great swishing sound they make. Now, if we can only train our chickens to do our mowing, we are sure to receive some kind of prize from the World Economic Forum. We'll be trotted out at the next conference in Davos as mega envrio-heroes. "Homeowners' Reach Zenith of Environmental Activism with Reel Mowing Hens." will be splashed across the headlines, I tell ya. My mother would have been so proud.

[@spiderlovesbeerohyeah4760]

@@lonzo61 Oh wow. I don’t know that about chickens. I do enjoy gathering the eggs without having to get rid of egg cartons. And like I mentioned before, I get to used their poop to fertilize my lawn and plants. It’s a win win for me. Now start the restoration on your reel mower so you can help me save the planet.

[@patjohnson3100]

Great job. This mower came out great. This video should encourage anyone who wants to do DIY resto projects but doesnt have access to powder coating, sand blasting, compressors etc. Everything in this video was done with basic tools you can get at the hardware store using stuff like Evaporust and rattle can paint. I assume the red paint is also from a rattle can. Except for the wire brush wheels, everything was done with hand tools, patience and elbow grease. By 5he way, the electric motors look like they are vintage. Cool old motors.

[@spiderlovesbeerohyeah4760]

Yes, everything was and can be done by hand using all old tools from the 1920’s to the 1950’s. That’s the fun part. I restore old tools to restore other old stuff. I’ve never done anything like this so it was a learning experience for me. I’m actually looking for another one just so I can restore it. Thank You for the kind words and for watching. This makes me want to make more videos. I didn’t think other folks would enjoy watching this the way I did.

[@atrociousrabbit]

Bro you nasty for that bread bit!! 😂😂 can’t wait to do this to my grandpas. He’s been gone ten years almost and grandma has now been taken in by my mom since she’s got Alzheimer’s now. Went to check on the place and literally dug one out of the backyard. It actually still cuts and rolls put you gotta want it. Hopefully doing this to mine will help.

[@spiderlovesbeerohyeah4760]

What do you mean?? I was starving. hahaha I still use mine once a week. I’ve noticed if I cut the grass before it gets so high, this old mower is perfect. That’s cool that you’re going to restore then use your Grandpa’s mower. It’s going to actually be fun to cut the grass every Sunday morning. Let me know if you need help if you get stuck on something along the way. Have fun.

[@holelottanothin6802]

When you spread on the piece of bread though😂

[@spiderlovesbeerohyeah4760]

I have you keep y’all laughing. Had me laughing too. Hahaha. Thanks for watching.👍🏼

[@amberacealyssa]

Brand new- tag and instructions included!!! This is beautiful!!

[@ivanstiles7030]

Your videos are awesome brother! I like how you use Grandpa's tools to do your restorations. I use my father and grandfathers old tools to do my restorations also. There's just something special about using the old tools and feeling that quality. Keep up the good work brother

[@spiderlovesbeerohyeah4760]

Thanks. I love using the old tools because that’s what them good Ol Boys would’ve used way back then. It doesn’t get much better than restoring something from the 1940’s using 1940’s tool. I’ve restored so many things but I just started filming it. There’s so many things that’ll never be seen by KZbin.

[@spiderlovesbeerohyeah4760]

@ivanstiles7030 You should start filming your restorations. I’d love to see what and how you do it.

[@ivanstiles7030]

I don't know about filming myself 🤣 if you have an email address i can send some before and after pictures of some stuff I've restored

[@spiderlovesbeerohyeah4760]

@@ivanstiles7030 I don’t know either. I always get blurry shots or off frame stuff. I don’t have a professional camera or anything. I’m using a Nikon Z30. It’s ok but I see what the pros use but I can’t drop $3000-$4000 for a camera. I’m not that good yet. Maybe someday🤞🏼 I have a new video that’s about to drop in 30 minutes. I hope it comes out ok. I don’t watch until it’s available for everyone to watch.

[@variousvisfineart]

Lots of tender loving care.

[@spiderlovesbeerohyeah4760]

Oh man. It was a lot easier than I thought. Once I took it all apart, I knew it would be a breeze to put Her back together. Sharpening the blade was fun too. I think I went above & beyond because that thing ended up razor sharp. I don’t think it needs to be that sharp. Hahaha. Cuts flawlessly now though. Thanks for watching and appreciating what it took. I want to do another one now.

[@variousvisfineart]

@@spiderlovesbeerohyeah4760 I have one I bought 17 or 18 years ago. I have a small yard so it is good enough. I was paying a small shot to sharpen it every few years. But a couple years ago I decided to use a file and sharpen it myself. I paid $20 for it all those years ago. I was impressed with how you tore yours down and restored it.

[@variousvisfineart]

Small shop

[@spiderlovesbeerohyeah4760]

@@variousvisfineart I kind of impressed myself. It’s intimidating not knowing what I’m doing but so satisfying when I figure it out. I’ll never turn down a challenge ever again. Success or fail, I’ll learn something.

[@VB-bk1lh]

Any idea where to find new tires for one of them? I was given one thats in rough shape but fixable but both tires are split and off the rims with most of one tie missing.

[@spiderlovesbeerohyeah4760]

I looked everywhere for some. I couldn’t find anything. I wish there was a standard size way back then so new ones would fit. I guess no one thought we’d be restoring these 72 years later. If you find some, let me know Thanks for watching. Good luck on your restoration. It’s a fun one.

[@travisbrueck9076]

Spiderlovebeer where could I get tires for this type of push mower I'm trying to restore mine

[@spiderlovesbeerohyeah4760]

@@travisbrueck9076 I’ve looked everywhere. I can’t find anything. I would love to have balloon tires because these solid ones are so old & weak. I huge piece just fell off the other day. If I ever find a source, I’ll definitely post it here. I know we’re not the only 2 in the world that are look’n. Have fun with your restoration. It’s a very interesting things you’ll learn. I learned so much. Have fun

[@delwoodkelp8590]

I have nearly the identical model... Has been cutting the lawn since 1956... same year we bought the house. Operating instructions says 4-56 on the bottom right of front page. Under "adjustment" it says "To tighten cutter bar. 1. Loosen top nut (5) one quarter turn. 2. Tighten lower nut (6) 3. Bolts (7 & 8) must be tight after adjustment. OK, that is clear, but those nuts and bolts seem frozen. Have not been moved in 24 years since last sharpening ( I know...too long) I have sprayed the nuts and bolts with Liquid Wrench and will see how it is in a day or so. Any other ideas on how to unfreeze those nuts? I have original tires....but they are kind of smooth by now. Recently the mower is not working well.... new thatched grass, just freezes the blades when they hit the cutter bar. For now i just want to tighten the cutter bar to see how it will cut with less space between the cutter bar and the blades. Might work on sharpening the blades as well. Nice job you did on the mower. Your bar from the wood handle to the mower is slightly different than mine. My Operating INstructions and Parts List says mine is 123.81721 (18-inch Cut) I like the "parts list' showing and designating 61 parts. #61 is the wrench. (I'm not sure I have that part) I don't see a Warranty, but if there was one, I'm probably over the effective time limit... Plus Sears is out of business.

[@ahorsenamedoaks1377]

123 is Yard-Man manufacturing code for Sears

[@spiderlovesbeerohyeah4760]

Yup. I’m used to the 102,103,113,115 123 is a new one for me. I learn something old everyday. Thanks for watching. This mower was a fun one and now I don’t mind mowing the lawn. It’s fun now.

[@chrisweld2903]

I bought one just like this yesterday and one tire,wheel is locked up. Any advice on how to break it loose?

[@spiderlovesbeerohyeah4760]

You’re gonna have to take that wheel off. There’s a little anvil in there that’ll hook up to the drive gear. Fast forward my video to the part where I take the wheels off. It’s pretty straight forward. Just make sure you put it back together (after cleaning & lube) exactly how you took it out. Thanks for watching. I hope my video helps you. That’s why I make them.

[@chrisweld2903]

@spiderlovesbeerohyeah4760 thanks,the screws are rusted to the dust cover,gotta get those out somehow without stripping them.

[@spiderlovesbeerohyeah4760]

@@chrisweld2903 Oh ok. Just turn it on its side then spray some penetrant on it then let it soak. When you put your socket/wrench on, turn it left & right to break the rust loose. Once it breaks loose, loosen a half turn then tighten 1/4 turn. Then loosen again. That’ll make sure you won’t snap the nut or strip the threads. Take your time. I just used my mower this morning. I love that thing.

[@almartinez8172]

do you know the hoc. I just gotthis model and and 8165

[@spiderlovesbeerohyeah4760]

Horizontal Overscan Correction???

[@davidhakes5141]

Looks like your yard needs a lawn. Not much there for your mower to even snack on.

[@spiderlovesbeerohyeah4760]

Yeah, It’s a small backyard. That’s why this mower is perfect. If it were any bigger, I’d have to sharpen the blades 2 times a year. Thanks for watching.