[thom]

I just bought this Speedex (I believe) walk behind. The numbers on the Briggs 8R6 engine show April 1954 as it's birthday. The engine turns and has some compression. It will be restored and will keep my Speedex S24 riding tractor company.

 

[FrankIII]

Cool! Don't see many of those Briggs engines with gear reduction.

 

[thom]

Yeah, but some machines, walk behinds especially require them. Otherwise they don't have enough power to do any work and you would have to be an Olympic class runner to keep up with them.

 

[thom]

Here's what the Speedex should look like when I'm done. Obviously the gas tank is different as is the control lever. I guess differences in year models.

 

[EricFromPa]

Why Speedex made the engines slide back and forth to tension the drive belt is beyond me lol. IMO that is an overly complicated, bad design with many components that will wear out.

I had a Speedex tractor that the belt was tensioned by sliding the engine back and forth. When I got it the engine cradle was worn significantly and the rollers on the bottom had worn into the frame and caused the engine to violently jump around and randomly throw the belt off. It was a square hood tractor with that funky round transmission. Pretty much the same as an S14 but with the mid 70s hood and squared off fenders.

Very neat little tractors though. They were quite unique from any other machine of the time.

 

[roymilner]

Why Speedex made the engines slide back and forth to tension the drive belt is beyond me lol. IMO that is an overly complicated, bad design with many components that will wear out.

I had a Speedex tractor that the belt was tensioned by sliding the engine back and forth. When I got it the engine cradle was worn significantly and the rollers on the bottom had worn into the frame and caused the engine to violently jump around and randomly throw the belt off. It was a square hood tractor with that funky round transmission. Pretty much the same as an S14 but with the mid 70s hood and squared off fenders.

Very neat little tractors though. They were quite unique from any other machine of the time.

The older David Bradley I inherited from my dad has a very similar belt adjustment to it. We tried using a little bit longer belt to get the weight out in front of the tires when plowing, but it didn't really help so we put it back like it was.

 

[thom]

With some help I have figured out that the tractor is a Pond.

Here's a good clue. P-G-T Co cast into the control lever..
Pond Garden Tractor Co.
Duh, there's my sign.