Cubs are FOR KEEPS!!

[mello741970107]

Hello fellow IH Cub Cadet enthusiasts! This is my first time here, and I am the proud owner of a 1970 Model 107. This tractor was built in late Sept./early Oct. 1970. My Great Grandfather purchased her brand new in early 1971, along with a QA 42 snow thrower, 42" mower deck, and roto-tiller w/ one extension. It is my understanding that at that time, he paid just under $3,000 for everything. A lot of money in 1971! He was a business man, a florist with four of his own greenhouses. Being agriculturally oriented, his estate of 17 acres was 14 acres wooded, mostly old growth maple, oak, etc., 3 acres of field, of which at least 1/8 acre was garden. The moral of this story is, along with a wood heated home, and a large driveway, the Cub has put in some serious hard labor hours over the years! He passed in 1982 when I was 8, and I remember back as far as four yrs. of age, going to visit him w/ my parents, and the first thing I would do upon entering the garage was get up on the Cub, as I was very drawn to it, and loved it, even being so young. Upon his passing, my Grandparents inherited his estate, and My Grandfather, who had always been a farmer, instilled in me his deep love for the tractor, and why, it's being so well built. He then started teaching me everything there was to know about the operation of the tractor, and it's attachments. How to install and remove them, etc. There are so many memories I have with this machine, that it is absolutely priceless to me, no amount of cash in my face would even make me ponder the thought of selling it. This 10 hp Kohler has never ceased to amaze me with it's pulling power, and reliability. I am kind of surprised to hear of your starting issue with your 107. This old girl of mine still has the original condenser, points, plug wire, etc., has NEVER had a timing adjustment or anything else done to it, ignition wise, except spark plugs, and as long as the battery is fully charged, even on the coldest morning, here in NH, you pull the choke, move the throttle up half to three quarters of the way, and as fast as you can turn the key, and simultaneously push the choke in, she fires right up, every time. No exaggeration here! I did rebuild the carb.! two yrs. ago, as the high speed needle had broken tip, that's the only reason. I always run Mobil 89 octane, with an ounce or so of Lucas fuel sys. treatment, a cocktail which she absolutely LOVES! Highly recommended, as it has noticeable performance increase, and fuel consumption decrease. And I ALWAYS fill the tank after each use-IMPORTANT! This Kohler, I couldn't begin to tell you how many hard hours it must have on it, wish the tractor had a gauge all these years! It hardly ever uses a drop of oil. She has been well cared for maintenance wise over the years. The heavy loads of stove length maple, oak, etc., some of which you couldn't put your arms fully around, would be hauled often times up hill in the woods by my Grandfather and I, and usually didn't even have to full throttle it! I was about ten, when his 1975 Mercury (TANK) stalled at the end of the drive one cold winter night, and wouldn't start (BATT.) The Cub chained up to it, and pulled it all the way into the garage, I couldn't believe it! You can't beat a shaft-driven IH Cub, last summer, I had some trees to clear out, avg. diameter of 3", and some as high as 20'. Chain, full throttle, and a few good yanks, roots and all- out! My cousin and I tried the same thing with TWO modern Craftsman tractors, one 2010 18 hp, one late 90's 10 hp, chained to the same size tree, simultaneously, and it was a comedy show! They wouldn't even budge the tree.... pathetic excuses for a tractor! As far as the IH trailer My GFather and I used to pile with wood, I should note that he had built a wood extension on top of it, creating a second tier, thereby doubling the capacity in volume. This trailer I had filled with various sized rocks (GRANITE) last summer, to haul off in the woods and well, you know the rest of the story. My fondest memories, and some of my favorite hours spent on the seat of that wonderful machine, would have to be mowing the three+ acres of field in the summer, and all the times I spent in the woods with my Gfather. The last few years of his life were not pleasant health wise, due to diabetes, heart problems, so living with them, I did all the upkeep to the tractor, and the grounds. My Grandfather and Grandmother both passed in 1996, and I have had sole custody of the Cub ever since. Getting kind of watered up right now, next time I'll talk about how I want to restore her appearance to new again, (paint, etc.) Thanks to anyone who cared enough to "listen", it means a lot. I would love to hear others' stories with their Cubs, or whatever, I am a very sentimental person, and so my appreciation for things of that nature run deep with me. I am sure I'm not alone. Remember everyone, go out of your way, each and every day, to buy things made ONLY, in the USA! So long for now! Dave.

[Cubcrazy]

Enjoyed your story Dave and Welcome!
Would love to see pics of your 107!

[ACecil]

Welcome to OCC! Enjoyed your story! Hope to see some pics of your 107.

[gardenpest]

That touching testimony tells why a few years ago this united states was the uncontested number one manufacturing country in the world....quality !
looking forward to seeing pics of a one owned family cub.........

[Sugarmaker]

Dave,
Welcome to OCC. Great family story about the history of your Cub. My first Cub was a 106 purchased used in about 84. Its still plowing snow at my sons place.
Regards,
Chris

[cornelius cubs]

great story i can see why it means so much to you. i could only wish i had memories like that. corey

[johncub7172]

Nice to meet you, and welcome to Only Cub Cadet! I feel the very same way about my 71 and 72. I would never go to a belt drive Sears tractor, or and silly bs belt drive tractor. Very nice story, thank you for sharing!

[cub149]

Great story. I wish I had a story about a cub from my early years but it was more on the order of a Ford 8n (man the thing would pop some wheelies). BUT, I can relate to your sentimentality as far as memories from the past. I have several things from my grandfathers and my father that are priceless, some on display and some I use, and I think about them every single time I see or use them.

Welcome and we need to see some pics!!!!!

[mello741970107]

Hello again everyone. Thanks so much for such a warm welcome, and taking the time and care to read my story. You are a wonderful group of folks! Still learning how to navigate this site a bit, so I hope this reaches you all! I will post pics. as soon as possible. I can't wait to come up with the $$$$ needed to restore her, as I want it done right- no rattle can restorations! We got almost 30" of snow here in NH over the weekend, can't remember the last time we had such a good old fashioned Nor' Easter! The banking at the end of the drive from the road plow was over 5'! From midnight to 8 am two feet of it fell. and was still coming in at that point! Had I known it would come in that fast, I would've had the old girl out there at 4 am to take care of the first foot! I woke up to 30" instead! My QA 42 works great, but I can't use it right now, as it needs some fabrication/welding repair done to the auger housing where the cutting edge bolts on, unfortunately, it was used for a few seasons in the past with the original one gone, and did some damage to that area. It is fixable though, I must find the RIGHT candidate for the job though! So I recently picked up a 1969 105 with a 42" spring trip blade, chains, and wheel weights for $100. Couldn't go wrong I thought! The 105 runs great, but needs a lot of TLC. So the plow is on my Great Grandfather's 107, and in spite of the fact I didn't get a jump on the depth of snow, halfway through the storm, though it took longer of course, she handled it like a champ! I must admit, it was real fun working my way through the embankment at the end of the drive especially! With that much at once though, I much prefer the thrower, as it doesn't accumulate in front of you as you move along, cutting your time and space consumption from the snow in half. Working on finding NOS parts needed for restoration, starting with the hardest to find first. Got lucky on a dash tin from an awesome guy in Iowa, through ebay. They are hard to find for the 107. It is mint, protective film still on it. Decals are next, not repops, but original, wish me luck, again, not an easy find for the 107! Still searching for an NOS PTO bearing, my original one is getting worn, wow, 43 years of countless RPM'S and it is still usable. Says NICE PHILA on it. As the replacements w/ locking collar from MTD are Made in china. I WON'T DO IT! There will not be so much as a chinese cotter pin used on my American made Cub! Sad, but I'm finding it a challenge to find that specific bearing made in USA, so I need to find an NOS one from IH. Shame on MTD for not only discontinuing some parts on us, for the old girls, but having at least some of the parts they do still offer coming out of china. And their slogan was "use the parts it was born with" well, chinese made ones weren't it!! I wish things could be like they once were here in America. All the more reason to treasure the IH Cubs, as we all know, sadly, they will never again be made like they once were. Had problems this month with defective mouse touch pad in this Dell laptop I bought NEW barely a year ago. Had to send it out for replacement, so I wasn't able to come back here sooner. No surprise, it was made you know where! So long for now! Dave.

[mello741970107]

Thanks so much for your warm welcome, and the time and care you took to read! I will get some pics. as soon as I can and post. Can't wait to make her look new again, like she was in the seventies/eighties! Sincerely, Dave.