WWII Farmall H

[bbranstetter]

And a few more.

 

[bbranstetter]

And a few more.

 

[kmcconaughey]

Brian, wow, you mounted that tire by hand! Impressive.

 

[bbranstetter]

Rear tires aren't too bad but the fronts are a little harder in my opinion. What really threw me for a loop was the lock out bolt that came up out of the operator platform with a half rotted out shoulder.

 

[mhomrighausen]

Brian B. A coworker says that on rusted steam engine bolts they use a torch and heat the bolts or nuts to almost red and then spray water on them. I'm glad that you posted a picture of the bolts that hold the rim to the hub. What a lot of farmers don't realize is how badly worn those bolts are.

 

[mfrade]

Good work Brian. It's coming along, piece by piece.

 

[bbranstetter]

Marlin-

Dad taught me that trick when I was a teenager working on my first car. Works great on stuck bleeder valves!

All the wheel hardware will be going back new. I'll probably start with some inexpensive grade 5 for now but I plan on ordering the correct dot bolts later as reproductions are readily available.

Mike-

Thank you! Can't get enough time off to get some of this stuff done, this is taking <u>forever</u>. Need to get this knocked out so what's left of my family can see it done. The kids are getting up there in age and I've already lost an aunt and an uncle. Times a' wastin'.

 

[mfrade]

I share your pain there Brian. I just came to the realization that it's the middle of August and I've done nothing on at least 3 different projects but am hard pressed to explain where the time went!

Chris goes to visit her friends in New Mexico next week and I'm off of work for the week, there's so many thing I want done but we'll see what can get to.

 

[bbranstetter]

So much for brand new tubes.

Tech 2 to the rescue!

 

[bbranstetter]

Wheels back on! Will be prepped soon to go in the shop.

 

[mfrade]

OUCH! LOL... I hate when I crack a hole in a new tube!

Good thing Tech2 was on-site to bail you out!!!

 

[bbranstetter]

I would have been ticked if I had lost that new tube.

 

[mhomrighausen]

Brian B. It looks like your H's drawbar has the same bar welded to the bottom to give it extra strength as my Dad's H did. Unfortunately when I bought the tractor back in pieces the U shape piece was gone. I was fortunate and found a very nice U shape piece on another H at a friend's salvage yard. I almost didn't want to remove it since I noticed the piece still had the factory bend in it. The bend is an upward curve from the factory on every H and M drawbar. Over time and usage the drawbar eventually flattened out. (To visualize... think of a new flatbed trailer on a semi without a load and how the trailer bends upward.)

 

[bbranstetter]

Marlin-

Yes, you are correct about the reinforcement on the frame. Like everyone else back then, you just did that to keep the manure spreader from bending it. This one has a newer draw bar judging by the hole in it but the rest of it has been welded numerous times. The braces were also replaced a number of times if I remember the stories correctly.

 

[dfrisk]

Brian - Manure spreaders were just one thing that tested drawbars, balers were another. Dad bought a brand new '47 H and engine driven IH #50-T baler when he got out of the Army after WW-2. He did custom baling for 3-4 years. After the first drawbar broke he bought two new horse shoe drawbars and a new swinging drawbar and reinforced them. Made the swinging drawbar quick detach too. Both still on my '54 Super H he bought May of '68. 3/4" thick stock drawbar just not heavy enough. M used 1" and held up better but still too light for the bigger tractor. I've seen the drawbar on the '51 M deflect close to an inch in a hard pull.
Dad doubled the horse shoe completely except for 3-4 inches from the very front where it bolts to the angle iron. Swinging drawbar has 3/8" x 1" flanges welded on both edges of the bottom to stiffen it. SH and '39 H before it both used as spreader tractor, auger wagon, 2-wheeled smaller version of today'so huge grain carts, also brutal to drawbars, used to get rocking back and forth enough to almost lift frt tires of tractor off the ground wide open in road gear. Had to back off the gas, Slow down 3-4 mph and speed back up.

Your making good progress. Keep plugging away on it!

 

[bbranstetter]

A few more things stripped off the chassis getting prepped for sand blast.

 

[bbranstetter]

A few more.

 

[bbranstetter]

A quick clip of getting the brake band free and working again.

https://youtu.be/T4cLuJ9Jw58

https://youtu.be/dVOEUT04mac

 

[kmcconaughey]

Brian,

 

[mfrade]

from me too Brian, it's coming along.