Made-It-Myself Lawn Tractor Cab

2021 - Volume #45, Issue #1, Page #03

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Todd Schminke likes clearing snow for elderly and homebound neighbors, but he doesn’t like getting hit in the face with snow. His total visibility Wheel Horse tractor cab keeps the snow out.
“I wanted to be able to see when doing driveways around town, but I couldn’t find a cab I liked,” says Schminke. “I decided to build one.”
At first he planned to build a cab that could be easily removed. That changed when he found a second, 1976, C160 automatic Wheel Horse identical to the one he had. He decided to dedicate the machine to snowblowing.
Schminke used 1 by 1-in. steel tubing to frame in the 3-ft. wide, 4-ft. long and 5-ft. tall cab. He used 1/2-in. plexiglass for hinged components and 5/8-in. for the remainder. Aluminum angle brackets bolt everything together and give added stability. He added LED lights on front and clearance and marker lights on back. He did not add a heater, as his main concern was wind and snow.
“One entire side is hinged for a door,” says Schminke. “I wanted it to be easy to get in and out. The bottom third of the front side is also hinged so I can lift the hood to access the gas tank. With the plexiglass walls and door, I have unlimited visibility.”
He fitted a 2-stage Craftsman blower to the tractor. He had to make a quick-tach bracket with a belt drive and a hydraulic lift to mount it on the Wheel Horse.
The bracket design was complicated by the fact that the Craftsman drive pulley was underneath the blower and the Wheel Horse drive was to the side.
“I used 1/2-in. steel plate for the mounting brackets,” says Schminke. “I wanted them heavy enough that they wouldn’t buckle if I hit an obstacle in the snow.”
Schminke used a similar bracket to mount a dethatcher to the front of his remaining Wheel Horse. Initially a pull type, he modified it with the bracket and hydraulic lift. He also added caster wheels on 1 by 1-in. aluminum tubing brackets to the front of the dethatcher.
“The caster wheels keep it level and stop it from digging in,” says Schminke.
This past year Schminke upgraded his snowblower tractor. He picked up a combination gas tank/seat from a 1978 Wheel Horse. “I replaced the seat on my ’76, and now I use both gas tanks,” he says.
Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Todd Schminke, 403 5th St. E, Newhall, Iowa 52315 (ph 319 223-7586).

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Made-It-Myself Lawn Tractor Cab TRACTORS Cabs Todd Schminke likes clearing snow for elderly and homebound neighbors but he doesn’t like getting hit in the face with snow His total visibility Wheel Horse tractor cab keeps the snow out “I wanted to be able to see when doing driveways around town but I couldn’t find a cab I liked ” says Schminke “I decided to build one ” At first he planned to build a cab that could be easily removed That changed when he found a second 1976 C160 automatic Wheel Horse identical to the one he had He decided to dedicate the machine to snowblowing Schminke used 1 by 1-in steel tubing to frame in the 3-ft wide 4-ft long and 5-ft tall cab He used 1/2-in plexiglass for hinged components and 5/8-in for the remainder Aluminum angle brackets bolt everything together and give added stability He added LED lights on front and clearance and marker lights on back He did not add a heater as his main concern was wind and snow “One entire side is hinged for a door ” says Schminke “I wanted it to be easy to get in and out The bottom third of the front side is also hinged so I can lift the hood to access the gas tank With the plexiglass walls and door I have unlimited visibility ” He fitted a 2-stage Craftsman blower to the tractor He had to make a quick-tach bracket with a belt drive and a hydraulic lift to mount it on the Wheel Horse The bracket design was complicated by the fact that the Craftsman drive pulley was underneath the blower and the Wheel Horse drive was to the side “I used 1/2-in steel plate for the mounting brackets ” says Schminke “I wanted them heavy enough that they wouldn’t buckle if I hit an obstacle in the snow ” Schminke used a similar bracket to mount a dethatcher to the front of his remaining Wheel Horse Initially a pull type he modified it with the bracket and hydraulic lift He also added caster wheels on 1 by 1-in aluminum tubing brackets to the front of the dethatcher “The caster wheels keep it level and stop it from digging in ” says Schminke This past year Schminke upgraded his snowblower tractor He picked up a combination gas tank/seat from a 1978 Wheel Horse “I replaced the seat on my ’76 and now I use both gas tanks ” he says Contact: FARM SHOW Followup Todd Schminke 403 5th St E Newhall Iowa 52315 ph 319 223-7586

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