Montgomery Ward lawn tractor

Anonymous Poster · Nov 3, 2002

I have an old monkeywards 16hp riding lawn tractor that still runs as good as the day it was built. However I would like to find one that is reasonably good shape for parts.

I need a drive shaft (shaft between the motor and rearend) and a set of blades. or a whole deck assembly

Does anyone still even have one of these fine pieces of machinery or do I have one of the lasts ones..?

Rick Jay · Nov 4, 2002

Handyman,

Did Montgomery Ward actually make the tractor, or did they just "rebadge" other units? My dad has a 1973 16 hp Gilson tractor with mower, snowblower and roto-tiller that's still going strong. I seem to remember that at the time Montgomery Ward was rebadging some of the Gilson products...but that was a long time ago and I was only 13 then! Not quite as "tractor savvy" as I am 30 years later.

What else do you know about the tractor?

~Rick

Anonymous Poster · Nov 13, 2002

Hey Rick,

From what I understand is MTD finally bought the rights to the mower several yrs ago.

What I do know about mine is that it has the old huffy rearend, (almost indistructable). I still have info and the # for Montgomery Wards for parts, but some things aren't available any more. Right now all I need to get is 3 new blades and a drive shaft and air up a tire and mine would still probably out last all the John Deeres in the neighborhood.. LOL

pajoube · Nov 14, 2002

Check with Sears Service Center, I heard that they have taken over the repair and service of Wards lawn products.
PJ

r0GuE · Nov 18, 2002

W o w... Who would have thought it would outlive the monkey! /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif
Soulnds like you got an exceptional value there. Good luck with the parts quest.

ChuckinVA · Nov 18, 2002

I understand that Simplicity manufactured some garden tractors for M.W. through the mid sixties. You might post a note at www.simpletractors.com those folks may be able to point you in the right direction for parts etc.

robert_f · Jan 21, 2004

Hi Rick !

Is there any chance that you could send me a copy of the manuals for the Gilson tractor ?
I recently purchased one without manuals.
Best regards
Robert

Rick Jay · Jan 30, 2004

robert_f,

Did you have a Gilson tractor or a Montgomery Ward? Do you have the model number?

I'll check with my dad to see what manuals he has.

His Gilson has been a good machine for almost 31 years now. His single cylinder Briggs 16 hp engine has only needed minor tune-up work so far. Other than belts, it's mostly original.

~Rick

jinman · Jan 31, 2004

The Montgomery Wards tractor was made by Gilson which was bought by Toro and now owned by Lawnboy. You can still get some parts for those old mid- '70s models, but some things you have to make, adapt, or find an old tractor for parts.

There is a Yahoo! user group for these tractors at:
Gilson & MW Tractors
Recently this site has been the target of a lot of SPAM and XXX Crud, and a new group has sprung up to conteract the smut peddlers. Drop an email to jackofonetrade@yahoo.com and he will set you up with info on the new group.

Don't dispair, there is a whole family of Gilson lovers out there that want their tractors to last for many more years. They are dedicated to helping with just the kinds of parts you need. Check out the picture of my Gilson in the attachment.

rtb · Feb 2, 2004

Hey Rick my name is Richard . My grampa has a M.W. tractor m#gil33154c s#12388, 16hp lawn tractor. I would really appreciate it if you could maybe see if your dad has a manuel on this he could e-mail me. I am especially interested in the electrical schematics since my dad and gramps are trying to figure why they dont have a spark and neither are familiar with sort of beast. I dont know if my e-mail is post so just incase . peanut732688@hotmail.com. Thanks a lot either way appreciate your consideration. nice sight too. hope to talk more in here.