I also worked on the engine cradle and the modification. Ground all the old paint and scum from the rails down to bare metal. Welded the cross member in. Added a few coats of primer and a few coats of Satin Black Paint. Yes I know it is supposed to be yellow, but, I have plenty of black and no yellow and no $$$ at the moment..LOL.. The black kind of blends in with the engine anyway. You can also see the cleaned up frame better. The engine is actually sitting in the tractor now, but I did not get a picture of that yet. I was going to put the drive shaft in, but noticed on both ends, some serious wear from the end bushings. So I'll be picking up some 5/8 stock tomorrow and making another drive shaft. I hope I can get the holes drilled straight. Still haven't figured out how to do that yet, unless I can make a holder/template out of some aluminum angle with pre-drilled holes for alignment. The new flex couplings are mounted. One to the flywheel and two to the hydro. I had read on here somewhere that putting the drive shaft in was easier to do this way. At any rate, that was all I could get accomplished today.
Engine cradle:
Can someone tell me if I have these bushings oriented correctly.
Starting on the left, the flywheel end, and then the ball goes into the hydro end followed by the second bushing in the picture? The shoulder on the second bushing should face to the rear of the tractor?
