Craftsman gt18 trail mower build

How are you liking the SUNF Power II's? I just picked up a set and so far really like them so curious how they are holding up for you. As soon as I was somewhat confident the tractor was going to run, I ordered up the tires. lol. Love your build btw.  

I have the same issues needing weight in the front, better steering, and the tires catching the hood when flexed out. I had to trim the rear fenders. Hate to trim the bonnet but I may have to, or widen the front axle to get the tires out of the sheet metal.

Adventurewagen wrote:

First up is tires, found the most cheap / biggest ones off Amazon.

I'm building a 4 inch wider axle for mine. The sunf tires are great! They really hook up even in the loose dirt I'll pull wheelies!

Have a few plans for improved steering, looking for a used vw bug steering box to get rid of the weak steering gears and tie rods and such.

Something to help keep the nose down on these Craftsman's,

My personal opinion:
If you are going to modify the steering are not going to return it to mowing service, remove the front mule and move the front axle forward.  What I do it move the back bolts to the center bolt location and drill new holes for the front 4 bolts.



Here is what the new stance looks like.



Then you can liquid fill the front tires to help hold them down as well.

How does the stretch effect the maneuverability? That's the only reason I've kept a short wheelbase.

This mower is gonna stay a trail mower so mods are ok, the deck got hauled off last week with a load of metal.

With the 4 inch stretch, I don't really see any difference (unlocked). Locking the rear on the other hand pretty increased the radius, but that is the norm for a locked rear.

I think I did the same stretch as mighty on the GT6k. Like he said, you don’t really notice the difference besides what’s from the locked rear end.

I would fill the front tires with fluid first and see how that helps.

New tool! Been wanting one for years, side job money paid for it and holy crap! This thing cuts like a hot knife through butter.

Been many times I would love to have something like that.

Axle has been moved forward roughly 2.5 inches, working on a wider beam as well, waiting for welds to cool to slap it in. Also beefing tie rods.

Made a skid plate for the trans out of an old truck gas tank skid plate I had laying around.

Testing time, working well!

Man, I should build skid plates for a couple my tractors. One day I'll get to it. Not too many rocky places here where I live that I have seen.

Really diggin this build!

Great work man that's looking awesome!

Making a new exhaust, want it a bit louder. Have to see how it sounds once done. Also was having issues with the rear wheels coming loose, the og lug bolts didn't engage the spacers very well so I took some used lug nuts and peeled the faux chrome cap then welded a 7/16 bolt in them. They hold much better and long enough to run a jamb nut on the backside of the flange.

We've been getting some rain finally, mud hole behind the shop is a blast. Wish I had trails around here to hit up.

Nice fix and it sounds really good, I'm a little jelly! Lol

Thanks! I ended up pulling the little baffle, was way too quiet with it in there. Muffler was a deal for only 36 bucks. Like that it sits higher up and out of the way too, more room for maybe a hitch in the future.