G’day and welcome
I’m sure someone with more experience restoring these great machines will be along soon.
With the Deutcher, last time I checked they were still being manufactured so you’re in luck in that regard. Furthermore, all the body parts are relatively straightforward engineered components so fixing one up shouldn’t give too many headaches.
With the engine it really depends on your goals. If you’re just after a workable machine then you can pick up a suitable vertical shaft engine that provides similar output as the original and drop it in. Depending upon how you want to do this you might hunt about for a second hand unit or purchase one new.
If originality is important to you this same motor was used in a variety of machines and, so long as well-maintained, was very durable. If you keep an eye out at markets and in various sales forums you could pick one up quite cheaply by buying a ride-on with rotten bodywork. Even if you don’t want to go down the transplant route, old ride-ons can be good parts donors.
Should you want to go into a more involved project these engines are not particularly complicated to rebuild. As the gxv400 is reasonably well supported you should be able to locate the parts you need to rebuild it. The least expensive option is, of course, to source non-wear items second hand from an old clunker.
My caution with this is to avoid some sellers who habitually break down old mowers and sell parts on online sites. You can accidentally pay more for a single component than an entire junk mower with most of the parts you need would cost if you waited and hunted around.
I don’t know anything about the power pony but look forward to seeing some photos.
Cheers
Ironbark
