The Tractor That Says "Ni!"

[Sprint60]

Or
147 Woes Turn to Triumph!

After some effort, one of the 147’s is finally fit for service. I started out calling this one the Beaver (the kids call the other one WallE because the head lights are a little wonky).

First problem to sort out was the starter; all it really needed was a good old fashioned cleaning and it ran OK.

The next problem was the wiring, it was completely rotted out. And no battery. But I wasn’t wild about spending a lot of money on it until I knew the motor and transmission were good. The carb was clogged so it spent a night in the solvent can. Also had to clean the points and set the gap (timing on this critter is hard to do since the observation hole is behind the starter bracket not on the cover side as is usual on a 147.) It would run though, until the squirt of gas was burnt. Once the carb was cleaned the motor ran fine using my rocket-launching battery wired directly to the coil and using the boat battery to whirl the starter. So I drove it around the yard a bit.

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But only a bit, because it would only go in one direction; reverse. That turned out to be a stuck relief valve. I didn’t have to pull ‘em; I was able to work the forward one loose using some light machine oil and working the valve. It would pop up when the engine was running. So I spent thirty minutes walking around beside it in the driveway going both directions. Walking because the seat/fenders were off to gain access to the valve tops. It sat around like this for a bit waiting on me to have time to work on it again and for parts to show. Every time I walked by I would stop and work the valves a little. They both eventually freed up fully.

So, confident that the major components were serviceable, I started ordering and installing parts. A fresh wiring harness, a headlight, tail lights, a battery (stolen from 147-WallE), a drive coupler and pin, fresh oil, fresh spark-plug, fresh transmission filter and hy-tran, two new tires and a new follower pin & bearings in the Ross unit. New tie-rod ends all around. Upgraded the steering with a ball bearing at the top and thrust bearing for the rock-shaft while I was at it. Many bolts in various places were getting badly corroded so a good number were replaced as well. I painted the muffler since it looked mighty shabby. More paint on the front grill so that doesn’t look so disreputable. I had pulled the engine to facilitate installing new wiring; took the covers off and cleaned it before I put it back in. Had to have a bolt extracted from the oil pan and so replaced the gasket. The trunion was welded, filed and new springs and guides put in. And at this point the thing would run but still wasn’t fit for work.


The next problem to tackle was the electric lifter. I’d had it apart earlier and found it full of water, rusted out brake parts and gunk in the brake compartment kept it from turning. Brushes OK, gears OK (thankfully) but bearings and bushings bad. I had put it back on the machine to get it off the bench and to hear and see it run. More parts ordered and replaced while other work was going on.

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I think I’ve mentioned the charging problems in another thread. Two main problems with that - the ground lead on the regulator from the base looked OK but wasn’t. This caused the voltage to be really jumpy and for the adjustment to go from “off” to “on” (and stay off or on) within a hair. The points were cleaned (carefully!), the air-gaps set and spring tension adjusted. When I figured all that out then the problem with the ammeter became apparent; it had a crack in the lens and some corrosion had set in causing it to behave badly. Replaced that and now the regulator behaves and the meter does what’s expected.

At this point I wanted to hang a tiller off the back but the PTO was busted. More parts ordered, surfaces machined and some paint applied.

While that was going on I kept finding a big puddle of hy-tran under the thing. Daily. Lots of it. Rats. So it was split and the cork gasket replaced. The rag-joint also turned out to be torn; just as well, duly replaced. I put the rear end back in it but didn’t have all the brake linkage parts placed correctly so it had to be pulled apart again. After about three tries I finally got it all connected and the bolts back in. It was getting pretty late so I went to bed. Next evening I went to push it back a little so I could get something past it but the little handle for the relief valves was clear around the wrong way. Guess what I had to do to get that where it belonged? How in heck did it get flipped over anyway? So its new name is NEE. (Monty Python fans should be laughing.) Nothing’s Ever Easy! You know how it goes - all those little torments that make a 10-minute job take two hours. Like the stuck clevis pin in the brake to hydro control plate linkage. It’s down in there where it’s hard to reach and harder to get a punch on and still be able to hit it with a hammer. The clevis then spreads instead of the pin coming out and as it spreads it offers more resistance making the pin grab that much tighter. Never been there? Longer punch? Not long enough. Finally found some cold roll, put a vice grip on the clevis, sprayed some PB on the pin and pop! Oy!

Also, while I had it all apart for the cork, I decided that I would fix the bad pitting in the metal under the foot plates - I was already working on painting the plates. Anyway, that became one of those, “well if I’m painting this then why don’t I go ahead and paint the whole fender pan.” So the fenders got sanded down, primed and painted. It’s not the correct color, I wanted to match what was used by a PO so it doesn’t look so blotchy; it has several layers of various shades of yellow. Krylon’s Old Equipment Yellow matched pretty closely so that’s what I used. The long term plan is to strip it down and give it a real paint job sometime in the not too distant future. The white parts are Rust-Oleum Canvas White. I also painted the front rims since they had that redish patina so many tractors have.

At some point the starter generator bearing starting singing. I think I caused that - I cleaned the whole mess with kerosine but I didn’t take out the bearing while I was at it and grease it. For some reason I thought that the bearing was a sealed unit. Nope. I put in a set of brushes too. Time and money well spent since it runs a lot faster now and so starting is much improved.

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So, engine running, lifter lifting, PTO powering and major leaking stopped: fit for service! Finally. Mounted the tiller, set it up for working and went up to mend the mess the plumber and his minions made in the yard. Then I took it up to the garden and turned my Young Lovely loose with it. Like a duck to water! She’s got quite a garden tilled! Howdy - I’m looking forward to a mess of turnip greens to go with our fried possum innards this Summer! I’ve been telling her to put one kid on the 147 tilling, the other on the Yanmar moving the mountain of leaves I collected last fall to be tilled in while she sits back in the shade with a mint julep to watch the action. She’s suddenly on board with these old rusting bits of iron! (And honestly, the kids haven’t had a crack at it - I’m enjoying running it too much myself.)

Now on to the mower deck which needs a good cleaning, new wheels and roller, minimum. I want to splash some paint on it too. The deck, hanger and mule drive came off of 147-WallE. The mule is being used to run the tiller, too. I’ll paint the tiller at the end of the season.

So thanks everyone for the encouragement and especially for the technical know how - would have been a lot harder to do without all the help!

[Yosemite Sam]

Wow that old dog turned out really nice.

Congratulations

[Dirty Steve]

Great save on that one. It should serve you well!

(Now, about that shrubbery.....)

[john hall]

Great save! Sounds like you got quite an education on that one. That tiller sure could use a coat of paint, if you find yourself bored with no Cadet to work on now.

[Terry C]

Great work!!
Steve took the best line.
Tim the sorcerer could not have done better

[Sugarmaker]

The 147 looks great! You did a lot of work on it to get it back in shape.
They are a good machine! You saved it!
I need help on why my tiller just doesn't work that well? Maybe our tough clay soil??
Regards,
Chris

[cubcadet]

Looks real good.

[Jeff122]

Fantastic job. Looks great.

[darkminion_17]

Nice work!

[drglinski]

Me likely. 147s are my favorite, save for the e lift flub. You did a great job on yours. When I split mine it took 3 times as long to get it back together, but I'm glad I did the work, and now I can look back on it and know I did the work myself and I know the ins and outs of the machine. They are great for mowing, tilling, pushing dirt/snow, etc. They just keep on going.