Archive through June 23, 2009

[bnolte]

Kraig,
Gotta do a little touchup work on the runs and the nibs, but the paint is still too soft to work with. With new hardener it turned out a lot better than the first couple attempts at priming. Completely dismantling the spray gun and soaking everything in lacquer thinner overnight, then cleaning out the passages helped a bit as well.

As for that red tractor in the background I'm not sure what it is, I'll ask my neighbor sometime or check it out if it makes a reappearance behind his barn again. He runs a used construction and farming equipment business, so he's always bringing up something to play with, such as a bobcat, front end loader, and various tractors, ATVs, backhoes, and the like. I don't mind the stuff there, if I need any digging or grading done, he'll either let you borrow it, or come over and do it for you. I'm not sure about how it affects "property values", but I tend to value my "good ole boy" neighbors, though some of the wannabe developers around here consider him a nuisance.

 

[sstanton]

Have been busy here! Monday I moved the 104 from acrossed the street into my shed. All went pretty well and I managed to do it without scratching any paint on the 104! I also have been "cooking" my gas tank and I must say I'm pretty impressed! Even my wife thought it was impressive, which in turn impressed me that she was! She thought I was going to blow up the shed or something like that. Any way I have posted these pics of "the move"!

The 104 just fit on that cart! I strapped it down so I didnt end up with a 300 lb. paper wieght in the middle of the street!

 

[mfrade]

Porter. AH, NOW I GET IT! I tried for a day or so to see in my head what you were getting at. Just never got there. Did you also see the 100 in Rochester for 1800?!?!? , it was a pretty tractor, all re-done, BUT 1800? It was also on craigs. If I had seen that other tractor first you would've gone home empty handed. I promise you that! LOL..

 

[sreinbolt]

Still trying to level the deck on my 71. Below is from the FAQ, but I can't figure out what a "lift rockshaft" is. If it's what I think it is, bending it up in the air would force the rear of the mower deck down, not up, giving me less height adjustment. Any insight?

"If you run out of height adjustment at point "C", remove the sub frame and bend the arm that slips over the lift rockshaft up in the air another 1/2"-3/4", you will need a torch for this. The extra bend will lift the subframe higher in the air at point "C" and allow you to properly level the mower fore/aft."

 

[jstorma]

Hi, Just wanted to confirm. Is a QA42 snow thrower the correct thrower for a 122?

Thanks!

Jim

 

[kmcconaughey]

Scott R., the lift rockshaft is what the manual lift arm is attached to (it's part of the tractor) and it what the mower deck sub frame or "scissor frame" would be attached to when mounting a mower deck. The mower deck sub frame or "scissor frame" is part of the mower deck setup. The part that is bent to raise the rear of the mower deck is part of the mower deck sub frame or "scissor frame", the part that has a fork on the end of it that slips over the rockshaft. I'll post a photo in a few moments...

Jim S., a QA42 will BOLT right up to a 122. The QA42 is a Quick Attach snowthrower however, it does have the holes in it to bolt it to your 122. I believe the CC42 would be the "correct" snowthrower for a 122 but they are harder to find and basically it's just a "bolt on only" version of the QA42.

 

[kmcconaughey]

 

[bnolte]

Well guys, it looks like I'm now the proud owner of a 125. The neighbor who lives behind me was having problems with his old green lawn tractor, and heard my neighbor who lives across the road had a almost brand new LT1045 for sale. I've worked on the 125 before for them, and know it pretty well. He didn't want to fool with it, so his wife called and said she was giving it to me.

I went down to check it out and maybe bring it back, but the battery is dead, and fuel was leaking from the carburetor. I dealt with similar problems with it several years ago, and it ran like a champ once I took care of the carb issues and cleaned the points. It has the usual trunion issues, the steering could stand to be tightened up a bit, and the right side mower support is monkey rigged with straps, but it's all there. Did I mention it has an EZ Vac on it?

My neighbor's LT1045 looks good, but I told him it wouldn't stand up to abuse like the 125 would, but at least for a while it probably won't need as much tinkering to keep her going. I guess he can borrow the 125 when he breaks his new tractor in a few years.

Here is a shot of it:

 

[kmcconaughey]

Bruce N., very nice 125!

I thought it was a well known fact on this forum that all 125s were to go to me.

I had to go out and play with K4K tonight. Thought I'd see how well it would plow with turf tires. I was going to mount up a set of wheel weights but I found out that the bolts are for 8.5" wide rims and they are too long for these 6" wide rims. Oh well I tried plowing anyway. Granted I was plowing garden soil that was tilled earlier this spring and had just grown over with weeds but it did quite well with turf tires and no weights.

 

[bnolte]

Kraig,
Nice plowing with the O there. The 125 is gonna need a little rehab, and I'm not sure I really want to use the EZ vac all the time and deal with the clogs, emptying the clippings, etc all the time, but I figure the platform would be just perfect to mount my ATV type sprayer, or to stack boxes of grapes come harvest time in the vineyard.

 

[talbertine]

i'm currently having an issue with my 127. the hydro lever (control) keeps coming loose. i tighten up as much as i can and it keeps slipping. do i need to replace the set screw, the bar it locks on, or the handle itself? any ideas?

theo

 

[jthompson]

Question on adding hydraulics- Will the ported hydro units off the Cubs w/ hydraulic lift replace the non-ported units on Cubs w/out hydraulic lift? I have the rearend w/ ported unit off an old 1650 and I was wondering if I could swap it over to a 107 along with the valve and cylinder to add hydraulic lift. I'm assuming they are the same units, but wanted to make sure. Thanks.

 

[sreinbolt]

Kraig: Thanks for the help and the great diagram. But it still seems to me if I bend the part "up" at the end it will lower the rear portion of the subframe, and from what I can tell right now, I need the rear of the subframe to be higher, not lower. Maybe my geometry is off, but I want to make sure before I take a torch to it.

 

[kmcconaughey]

Bruce, thanks.

That platform must be kind of like a wheel-less trailer, that could be real handy at times.

Theo, when you tighten up the setscrew is the lever tight? If so I'd try a new setscrew first, that's the cheap way out. When it does loosen does it just slide up or is it REALLY loose in every direction? If it's really loose I'd say the handle is worn out and you'll need to find a good used one.

Jim, it should mount up just fine. The only issue I believe, would be mounting the control valve, and the linkage to the hydro trunion might also be different.

Scott, typically that needs to bend up so that it raises the front of the mower deck as the two support clevis' run out of adjustment and bottom out with the front of the deck raised one can then lower the two support clevis' and level the deck. It's very possible that your deck is opposite the norm. Here is a repost of some info that Steve Blunier posted a while back:

<blockquote><hr size=0><!-quote-!><font size=1>quote:</font>

I changed the front tires on the 782 a month ago and finally got around to re-leveling the deck. The Multi Trac CS 16x6.50's were a touch shorter than the old Good Years, and the deck was running way "nose-down". Wouldn't you know it, the eyebolts were all drawn up tight...no more adjustment.

You guys have heard me explain Big Steve's fix for this, but it's hard to explain without pictures....so I took some this time.

To fix a "nose down" deck you need to remove the portion of the subframe that engages the eyebolts and the tractor's cross shaft (the pickle fork part). This needs to be bent upwards as shown in the picture to increase the lift on the front eyes. Heat the "pickle fork" about 2/3 of the way from the end with a torch and bend it as shown (the keystock is the original "straight" part and is there to demonstrate the bent).<!-/quote-!><hr size=0></blockquote>

<blockquote><hr size=0><!-quote-!><font size=1>quote:</font>

This tiny little adjustment (along with the rebuild of the pickle fork prongs and build-up of the tractor shaft) changed "no thread left" to "fully adjustable".<!-/quote-!><hr size=0></blockquote>

 

[kide]

Scott R:
Remember that the rockshaft and the fork stay the same in relation ship to each other.. The bend forces the front part of that scissors UP more... Remember the lift links are between those two points..

 

[talbertine]

when i tighten the set screw i have the parking brake locked. hold it in n and tighten the screw until i can't turn it anymore. its good until i push on the bar hard at one point and then it "slips". after i do that its loose. have to push the lever all the way up to where it hits the steering wheel to go forward, but reverse seems to be fine. what size set screw is that?

on a odd note, how hard is it to find a lever for a 127?

theo

 

[bnolte]

Kendall,
The platform mounts on the rear axle housing, and the tow hitch. When carrying a full load of wet grass, it really makes the front end of the tractor light, making it difficult to make sharp turns at speeds faster than a crawl. My brother in law has a tow behind type for his Gravely, which carries the equivalent of a couple of very large garbage cans, and has an 8 horsepower engine driving it.

 

[kmcconaughey]

Theo, ah!, sounds like the splines are striped out, most likely in the control handle as it's softer metal (pot metal?) then the steel splined control shaft that is sticking up out of the dash. If you remove the setscrew the handle should lift up and off, you should then be able to inspect the splines on both the shaft and inside the control handle. Used control handles show up now and then. CC Specialties has a REALLY nice used one (looks new to me) for $40. I might have a usable one kicking around here somewhere that I could let go for less... I might have to buy the one at CC Specialties for my 125 refurb...

 

[kide]

Kraig:
"a picture is worth a thousand words....."

 

[kmcconaughey]

Theo, I have this one that is a spare. Not pretty (it might clean up to look OK, I think it has OEM dirt on it

) but it does have halfway decent splines left in it and the setscrew hole has good threads.

After using the plow on K4K I'm thinking I might want to install this...

Kendell,