Gravleys

[jbaker]

I just talked to a friend who told me I could have for free about 12 gravleys and misc parts if I come and get them out of his way, only about an hour away. So in about 2 to 4 weeks ill head that way, work prevents me from going sooner. when I get them pics will be posted. I dont know anything about gravleys except I heard they where good equipment at one time.

 

[cjames]

Cool, yes when you get them make sure to post pics.

 

[mbounds]

Jeff: Just in case you don't know: like Cub Cadets were made by the IHC, Graveley's at one time were made by the Studebaker Corporation. Good equipment, almost as tough as Cub Cadets...

Myron B

 

[jbaker]

Finally after a year and a half I finally went and started picking up these gravleys.

They are all walk behind models I think 11 of them total and many attacthments such as, brush hogs,spinning ground cultivators,spring cultivator,snowblower, snow blade,and sulky for the back

Here are a few initial pics of the first load

 

[jbaker]

Also I am not finding a whole lot of info on the web, anybody got a friend into these machines?

 

[wshytle]

I finally got my ole Gravely out today and took it to a friends house. He knows these monsters from end to end and we got her running well in just a couple of hours. We found some carbon deposits had settled under the exhaust valve keeping it from seating. I could/would have done the repair myself but I wanted to run several other things by my friend plus I just didn't care to take the time. I've been too busy with cubs.

When I got it home I mowed a bit and it performed just fine. Those are some torquey machines. I'll take some pics sometime in the near future but I'm bushed for today.

 

[kharvey]

Jeff there was an write up in Lawn&Garden collector mag a while ago. They are collectable I'm sure. Sorry I don't have the magazine anymore. When I finish reading I give them to a guy I work with for his dad.

 

[aschumacher]

Jeff, look up top for the ad for Lawn & Garden Collector and click on back issues. I saw at least 3 issues referring to Gravleys.
Mar/Apr 2009
Mar/Apr 2010
May/Jun 2010.... $5 or $10 each issue.

 

[bjamison]

We had a Gravely 2 wheel tractor growing up on my Grandparents farm. It had the Gravely engine (vs Kohler) and was a good machine. It had a 30 inch bush hog deck and a front cultivator - which I never saw used. To start the engine, you had to wrap a rope around a pulley and give it a pull. If you had to much wrap and the engine kicked-back, it could be a painful experience. It took a really hard jerk to get the tractor to start.

There was a belt from the pulley to something on the engine - perhaps a generator? The belt went vertical on the rear face of the engine. I had an uncle tinkering with the tractor and managed to get his finger in the belt and it took a 180 degree ride around the pulley - beneath the belt. It didn't wack off his finger as the belt was forever loose, but it did bloody it up. My Grandmother was at the farm house and my uncle shouted he needed a large rag to put on his finger ASAP. My Grandmother said all she had that was clean and white was a bed spread - but she didn't want to get blood on it - LOL!!! Sometimes I think there could have been a reality show on that farm from time to time!

I've got an 8 hp Gravely 2 wheel tractor. The engine is a Kohler and is about a 1982 model. It has a 30 inch bush hog, riding sulky, rotary plow and rotary cultivator. It's a great tractor, but it really takes a young man to handle it.

I've used moldboard plows on garden tractors, have an use a Troybilt Horse tiller and my Dad has a very nice, large BCS tiller. All of these do a nice job turning/working the ground in the spring - but none hold a candle to the rotary plow on the Gravely. Don't know if anyone has ever run one of these rotary plow, but they shread the toughest of sod. Just don't have your body between the hand rails if you hit a large rock, else the Gravely will whip sideways and try to knock you over!

I've never been there, but I'm pretty sure Gravely tractors were originally made in Dunmore West Virginia - within a couple of hours striking distance from my neck of the woods. I think Studebaker bought them somewhere along the way. I still see a fair amount of these 2 (and 4) wheel tractors around these parts.

 

[kide]

Bill - just read your post about the grandparents Gravely. These pics are of a custom, handbuilt motorbike that a guy from Nashville Michigan built a couple of years ago and turned up with at the Vintage Motor Bike show in Portland, Indiana last July. The frame is a modified Simplex, which were built in New Orleans - the motors were their weak point and can be difficult to find parts for. The gentleman that built this bike used a late 40's Gravely engine as the basis, obviously with mods - he is a real craftsman. The thing that caught my attention about your post was the rope start - he was still using rope start on his. Those motors are monsters !! IIRC he said it was 30 cubic inches.. BTW - the guy didn't really intend on selling it but an impromptu bidding war started and it sold - reportedly for 15 large...

 

[wshytle]

I have had the pleasure of a Gravely kicking the crap out of me when pull starting. I learned the trick is to hand turn the starter pulley until right before TDC. It's easy to feel because these engines have so much compression. Then wrap the rope and pull. If not the thing can fire when you don't want it to and jerk the rope so hard it will hurt you kicking back.

I went yesterday and bought two and 1/2 Gravelys for a friend who is out of town. The 1/2 is a parts tractor the seller and I found in the barn. The two I bought are the same two I got running last winter for a lady (seller). Her husband died recently and he worked a small organic farm with both tractors. She tried to continue farming with the help of a Mexican but both Gravelys are worn out. I could move the piston back and forth in the bore on one of them and it's been bored to the max. I'm not sure what's wrong with the other one but my friend is a Gravely expert and will have it diagnosed in no time.

Bill J.-

The belt just turns the cooling fan and operates the governor. Some earlier models didn't even have a governor. The engine uses a magneto and even the electric start models didn't have a charging system. They had to be charged periodically. The later models with the Kohlers were good machines as well.

I can hardly wait for the rain to get the heck out of here so I can get to some mowing with my Gravely. I reinstalled the dual wheels the other day between showers. The gravely is a great hillside mower with the duals. It's almost impossible to turn them over and will just slide when the grade proves too much.

Gerry-

That Simplex with the Gravely engine is quite impressive. I never thought about a Gravely engine being used as such but it looks good sitting in the frame. The builder did a very nice job.

I guess I'm just sort of rambling this am.

 

[wshytle]

Anyone out there have enough experience with Gravelys to know whether the engine can be resleeved or not?

Between my Gravely buddy and myself we have 3 or 4 jugs that need it.

 

[elincoln]

I picked this gravely up about a month ago, the engine and transaxle is the same set up as the newer walk behind Gravely. The trans has a open clutch on each side of the trans. It has a hand clutch, one of the clutches makes it go forward and the other backwards. It has a shaft drive mower deck that is pretty noisey. There is also a pto stub that sticks thru the front axle. Someone backed into something and broke all the fins off the flywheel, they have all been welded back on. The engine runs very good and smooth. It has one of the ugliest fender pans on earth.