Tractor Stories

Today I finally got a chance to do some more painting on the tractor(s). I put Ferguson Gray on the grill for the 9N, Gray on the grill and the air filter funnel for the 8N, and a bit of red primer on the spare top link that I had repaired. The top link had one end stuck and it would not unscrew. The ball falls out of the end so I will get to fix that by using a steel punch to make a burr in three or four places to hold the ball in its socket. It that does not work I will have someone weld a few spots on the socket to accomplish the same thing. The top link was given to me so it is no big deal. The 8N grill is a replacement for the one on the 8N which is not original. The 9N grill is also original. Both had some rust and one needed some straightening. I am happy. Tractor Boy

The pictures tell it all. I figured out how to mount the rear blade on the 8N and then how to make the hydraulic lift work. Then I tried it out in the garden to see what it would do. There is a learning curve here. Aleia and Nancy are here for interest and color. J Speaking of color, those wheels never looked better since it was new. Tractor Boy

This is what I accomplished today before it got too hot to work. I was out after 7 a.m. and quit before 11:30 when the temp got to 94 degrees. I think it got to about 100 today. Anyway, you can see a decal above the PTO and a nice decal on the fender of the Ford 640. Also I managed to get the metal part of an old gear shift knob off the shift lever and put on a new one. I also managed with great effort to put all new gauges on. The ammeter was easy but the rest required a variety of sweat and effort. The temperature gauge was the hardest since the sensor end came off in the engine and I had to remove the battery box to get it out. As soon as it came out a flood of coolant came behind it. The oil gauge was another challenge. Finally the proof meter took a lot of work. I needed three hands or four for most of the work. It was a good day. Tomorrow I put some more together. Tractor Boy

This evening I got a few minutes to work on the 8N again. This time I replaced the Proof Meter (tachometer), added a gas gauge which is like the one riding mowers have – a float extends into the gas tank and sort of tells the gas level when the vehicle is still. I would have replaced the steering wheel, but so far have not figured out how to get the old one off. I removed the center nut and used some Parts Blaster liquid to loosen the fifty-three years of rust. No luck this evening. I drove the tractor around the yard, enjoying both the new ammeter (which I think I have wired correctly now) and the Proof Meter. I also greased everything I found that had a grease fitting. I found a few more after I ran out of grease in one of the grease guns. I have two full size grease guns and a new air powered one which I have not yet used. The one grease gun is empty now. Tomorrow I will work on the Ford 640 and remove the rear wheels and fenders to paint them, hopefully remove the gas tank and add ...

This evening I decided to mow the grass while it was 90 degrees and managed to do about a third of the yard inside the fence before I lost interest. Then I decided to tackle the wheel on the 8N by myself. I got the bolts and new battery holder today from Just 8Ns so could do this – I thought. The wheel center weighs about forty or fifty pounds, I think. I put it in the tire rim and put one bolt at a time in place. Of course it did not fit any better than the one for the other wheel so I got the trusty sledge hammer out and adjusted the center to fit the rim. This time I wore ear protection as it gets pretty loud when the steel meets steel. With just a few light taps (and several hard smashes) the center fit perfectly in the rim. The air impact tool snugged it in place using the new bolts, nuts, and washers. A few squirts of gray paint and the wheel was ready to go back on the 8N on the right side. Okay, here is a challenge for you. How does one person hold a 200 pound wheel in place wh...