Tractor rebuild project

[dcyrilc]

Great job.:thumbsup::thumbsup:

...and your wife found the tractor. I'l give her three thumbs up.:laughing: :thumbsup::thumbsup::thumbsup:

 

[jandpp]

OK, we're approaching the current state of affairs right now.

Major mistake #2. After a few days of testing it out and moving it away from the oil soaked plastic covered floor area, I noticed a leak coming from mid-axle area right underneath the engine front. Could this be an axle leak up there? I tried to ignore it hoping it would go away but it got worse. I had to admit it. There was a leak in the engine coming from the front. It appeared to be from the front oil seal which surrounds the crank spindle. It presses into the inside of the front gear cover. I was going to have have to pull off the cover and replace it.

This actually goes back to a previous mistake I made. I had the front gear cover on with the gasket glued in place. Looking around at the parts I noticed an extra cir-clip. Where did that come from? Looking carefully at the parts diagrams I guessed that it was off the end of the fuel cam gear and I had forgotten to put it back on. But I'm in luck. I could take off the hr meter cover and gain access to the end of the cam. Sure enough, I opened it up and there was the cam and there was no cir-clip. I carefully extended the noses of my ring pliers into the hole ... and dropped the ring down into the engine! I had to remove the cover, mangling the gasket. I was so worried about the gasket that I didn't pay too much attention to the oil seal. I probably nicked it on the key that aligns and holds the crank pulley. I used RTV to repair the gear cover gasket and moved on. Now the oil seal is leaking.

So I ordered a new oil seal and cover gasket. I was able to access the engine front by removing the grill and radiator. Also had to remove the frame bolts and raise the engine out of the frame a few inches. The first oil seal was indeed ripped. I replaced the seal and put everything back together. That was a total of about 5 hours. The hardest part are those little springs that connect the governor to the throttle spindle.

I fired it up and ... it still leaks I surmise that it is one of 3 things.
1) I messed up the seal once again. Not impossible. I did have to install the gear cover 2 times with the new seal. But this time I removed the pulley key.
2) There is a groove or nick in the crank collar where the seal rides causing a leak and/or a seal rip.
3) I'm not tightening the pulley nut hard enough. The book says 160 ft/lbs. I'm not sure I'm using that much force. I don't have a 3/4" drive torque wrench and I can't get very good purchase on the nut anyway. Especially hard now that everything is back together. I was able to tighten it more and the leaking reduced. There is an o-ring behind the collar so maybe that really needs to be compressed.

So I'm thinking that I will purchase a new seal and collar and try to replace it a third time. And this time either rent a bigger torque wrench or at least ask a friend to help me apply more force to the nut.

Anyone have any better ideas?

 

[hawkeye08]

Great job, sounds like you learned a few things and will have a nice tractor.

The starter was probably on its last legs after the previous owner tried to start it a bunch with a seized bearing. Good to get it replaced now.

 

[radioman]

wow! great story! :thumbsup:

 

[jcliburn]

This is a great read, jandpp. Thanks for sharing.

Your writing skill is excellent, by the way. (I found your use of "purchase" in relation to the pulley nut most refreshing.) I'm curious what your day job might be.

 

[Johndeere3720]

Wow, very interesting thread. I have a tractor that wont start but turns over and gets fuel to the injectors. What may the problem be? It may be the the rings. any ideas? It is a compression issue.

 

[varmint]

Very interesting tale! I wondered if you could grind off the thickness around the end of your 32mm socket, so it would fit more into the recess around the pulley?? Hopefully, the third time will fix your oil leak. That's a shame, after all that work. In general, though, you will really have a hard earned understanding of your engine, and a good as new one, at that. Hope your next post is one that brings a "well done"!

 

[Bluelick]

On the subject of torque wrenches of different drive sizes, I bought a set of socket adapters at Harbor Freight for about $4.00 so I can use whatever socket with whatever wrench. I don't even have a 3/4" ratchet or bar, so part of this was to be able to use some big sockets with the tools I have, I also use them with my torque wrench.

3 Piece Impact Wrench Adapter Set - Sockets & Accessories - Hand Tools

BTW, I have also found an air impact wrench to be very helpful with lots of disassembly work. When I pulled the radiator on my B7100 to clean it out I used the impact wrench to get the philips-head mounting screws loose on the side brackets. I only have a small "pancake" type compressor, but I usually only need to use the impact wrench for short bursts so it works OK. And again all the adapters come in handy. I used the screwdriver bit and adapter from my handheld impact driver for the radiator screws:

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[apease]

Wow! I'm amazed not only that you'd tackle such a project having "not done major engine work" before, but also that you'd succeed! Inspiring.

 

[weathda]

Thanks for taking the time to write this up and post the pictures. It's amazing what you can do with a great place to work, the right tools and little bit of know-how. It's got to make you feel good knowing you could sell it and make some serious coin or use it, sell it later and still make some coin. :thumbsup: