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huffy

2012 make over - finally got my seat

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huffy
I bought this '67 2012 Landlord last fall with the intention of fixing it up over the winter but didn't get around to it. Recently while plowing what will become my garden I decided that the steering slop can’t be ignored any longer. I figured since I was going to fix that, I may as well go ahead and fix everything. Besides, I think the old girl deserves a make over since she turned 45 this year and as you can see she's seen better days. Plus, it makes sense to do it this year since 2012 is her number.




The first order of business was to make some room in the garage by moving the attachments out to the shed. I’ll referb all of these later to match the tractor.


With some room cleared out it was time to start stipping her down.




At this point I had to stop, thoroughly wash my hands, and then spend about an hour taking several pics and making copious notes about where every wire, etc, goes so that hopefully I’ll be able to get everything put back together. I’m sure that by the time I go to wire it all back up I won’t be able to understand my notes and need you all to ‘splain some things to me.


After unwiring everything I went ahead and pulled the motor.


It’s amazing how much crud can build up down in there over 45 years. Before this pic was taken I’d already cleaned out more than 2 whole dust pans worth of dirt, mice nests, etc.


I figured as long as I was lifting out heavy stuff I’d go ahead and take apart the rear end. That drive shaft flange was not easy to get off, as the jaws on my puller couldn’t really get a good grip on it.


Dropped the tranny and removed the BGB. They’re both internally tight and sound, but boy are they grimy and nasty on the outside. There’s a healthy layer of gunk under all that blue stuff that my new kevlar tiller belt slung all over everything. Do all new kevlar belts throw that much stuff, or did I not have my tiller pulleys in proper alignment?




Unbolted the front axle, etc. and the frame was finally bare. Not counting the hour I spent making notes about the wiring, and the time I spent hydrating, getting to this point didn’t take long at all. Air wrenches definitely speed up the process and make it so much more pleasant.






Next I removed the spindles, etc. I forgot to take some pictures, but as is normal the spindles have deep grooves in them from the pipes on the ends of the axle rubbing on them. I’m going to try to fix the grooves by filling them in with the welder and filing it smooth. When I reassemble it I’ll use thrust bearings and washers as others have done. The steering arm assembly was also broken and welded back together somewhere along the line, and though it doesn’t really show in the picture they welded it back together pretty crooked. Haven’t decided yet whether I’m going to try to fix that as well or just find a replacement.




I figured that as long as I was in tear down mode I’d go ahead and break down the rear tires. I didn’t have to break down the fronts because I’m abandoning the original wide front rims for a new set of narrow ones. The hydraulic press is great for breaking the bead. On a side note, I built that press when I was 12 years old. It’s a miracle of the highest order that it’s still together. And, it’s been one of the handy-dandiest things throughout the years.








One of the rims was bent; worse so than it looks in the picture. It was bad enough that the tire wouldn’t seat properly and leaked. Luckily I had this section of pipe that fit perfectly inside the rim and made a good anvil. With a little heat and a little tapping I was able to straighten it right up, though I got called to dinner in the middle of all this and forgot to take pics.




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PeppyDan
quote:
I’m going to try to fix the grooves by filling them in with the welder and filing it smooth. When I reassemble it I’ll use thrust bearings and washers as others have done.
I have added the thrust bearings to a few of my tractors and love them. I don't even waste the time to try and weld the grooves, I clean the area very well and put JB Weld into that area and then put the hardened thrust washer in place while the the JB Weld is still wet. I slide the spindle into the top side of the axle (since there should be very little wear to make it unsquare) and let it seat itself square and let it dry. Once it is dry I then file the excess JB Weld off and square off the bottom of the axle and it's done.:) Good luck with your project and keep up the great work! Dan

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huffy
Excellent suggestion Dan. I was worried about making this such a long thread with so many pics, etc, but since this is my first referb and I'm not that mechanically inclined I thought I'd throw everything out there in the hopes of getting some tips. It's already paying off, since you just saved me a lot of grinding and sanding.

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huffy
After I got home from dinner I changed back into my work clothes and returned to the garage to stare at the pile of parts for a while and try to figure out where to begin. I figured I’d go ahead and tackle the frame first. After pressure washing as much crud off as I could, I sanded it down. There was a lot of surface rust, so I decided to sand all the old paint off and go down to bare metal. It cleaned up pretty good.




There was a pretty good crack in the weld on one side of the frame where the BGB bolts on, so I ground it out a little bit and welded it back up. Once upon a time when I worked as an ironworker I was a fairly decent welder. But I’ve spent the last 15 years sitting behind a desk and almost never welding, and I’m more than a bit rusty. I got good penetration, but the weld sure wasn’t pretty. Since I want the frame sleek on the outside, I ground and sanded the weld as smooth as I could. This aesthetically fixed the crack, but of course grinding and sanding the weld down will reduce its strength. So, when I welded the inside I beefed things up by welding in gussets on both sides of the frame. The gussets should stouten things up pretty good, so hopefully there won’t be anymore cracks.






After taking a long break to let the dust settle down, I cleaned the frame up again and shot a coat of primer on it. The next night I went ahead and put a coat of paint on it to see how I like the color.






I have a sprayer, compressor, etc, but am ashamed to admit that I’ve never painted anything and don’t know anything at all about paints, hardeners, etc. (Most of the equipment I have belonged to my Dad, who was a diesel mechanic and who unlike me could do anything, and I’m regretting that I never learned how to use most of it). So, I decided just to rattle can it with Rustoleum Allis Chalmers Orange. And I’m regretting that decision. I like the color, but I’m thinking that it’s going to take forever to harden and I’m really skeptical of its durability. So, I’m seriously contemplating ditching the rattle cans, studying up and trying to figure out what paint and hardener to get, and giving it a try. I’m thinking that I need to rig up a spray booth of some kind, too, because trying to control the dust out there in the garage just isn’t working.

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huffy
For some reason I got the inclination to work on the hood. This was illogical, of course, since the hood goes on last and therefore I should have saved it until near the end, but I’ve done a lot of things that made less sense. Anyway, I started off just as I did the frame by sanding off all the rust and getting down to bare metal.


As you can see, at some point someone drilled two 5/16" holes in the front of the hood to mount a light or hood ornament or something. So I figured I’d go ahead and try to fix those. I started by reaming them out slightly to 3/8", which allowed some #6 washers to fit snugly and fill much of the void.




I was pretty nervous about the next step, since as I explained before I’m extremely rusty with my welding. And, since I left the MIG welder down in Atlanta for Dad to tinker with when he retired and I had his tools shipped up, I had to use the oxy-acetylene rig. Gas was the first welding method Dad taught me when I was a kid, since he was a firm believer that it teaches you metal flow and other principles that are key to all other welding methods, and at one time I wasn’t bad at it. In fact, when I was 10 or so as a learning project I built that big gray tool cabinet you see in some of the pics completely with gas welding, and amazingly it’s held up for 25 years despite being overloaded with tools and Dad having drug it through numerous shops and job sites. But, alas, again that was eons ago and I haven’t tried to oxy-acetylene weld anything in over 15 years. I wanted to braze these to try and limit warping the hood as much as possible, but I didn’t have any brazing rod and as my luck runs I didn’t get to this until about 10 minutes after TSC closed. I did have some welding rod, so even though I probably shouldn’t have I went ahead and welded it. As I expected, my welds were ugly and the heat caused a bit more warpage than I would have liked. But, the welds will hold.


I had to use a little body filler to get everything smoothed out, which I really wish I could have avoided. I have even worse luck with body filler than I do with drywall compound - no matter how hard I try or how much I sand I never seem to be able to get it perfectly smooth and the edges perfectly feathered out. But, I did the best I could.


It felt pretty smooth and looked really good when I shot a coat of primer on it, which I forgot to get pics of. I’m sure that as soon as I lay that first coat of paint on I’m going to notice some imperfections at the edges of the filler and have to try to wet sand them out, but such is life.

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huffy
Sorry for all the long posts all at once guys. But I haven’t had a chance to post this stuff since I started on the project four days ago and I’m trying to get caught up. Anyway, yesterday after work I decided I’d go ahead and try to clean up the grimy tranny


First thing was to roll it outside and spray it down with some degreaser and let it foam for a half hour or so while I tried to tidy up inside the garage. What I sprayed on is Wal-Mart brand “Oven & Grill Cleaner,” which I can generally pick up on sale for less than $2 a can and which works about as good or better than any other degreaser I’ve tried.


The can says to let it set for at least 6 hours, and frankly it does work better the longer you let it sit, but I was in a hurry. So I went ahead and gave it a bath with the pressure washer. It didn’t turn out too bad.




Next I brought it back inside and spent some time wire brushing it. These little air drills outfitted with small wire wheels are great for getting down into those hard to reach places. And as you can see, they did a pretty good job of cleaning her up.






As good as they were, my little air tools still had a bit of trouble getting into the little nooks and between the bolts on the differential side.


I figured that as long as I was at it I may as well go ahead and remove the differential so that I could disassemble it and get it squeaky clean down in those nooks. I’ve never removed a diff before, so I studied the Large Frame Repair Manual for a few minutes and went at it. The right hub came off without any problem.


Unfortunately, though, tragedy struck when I went to remove the left-side hub so that I could push the axle through. I didn’t notice when I removed the set screw that seats in the hole in the axle that about 3/8" of the end had broken off, leaving the hub still firmly locked in place. A couple of turns of the wrench on my puller and crack! A big chunk of the hub broke off.






I guess I’m gonna have to leave the tranny unfinished for now and move onto something else until I can find a replacement hub.

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PeppyDan
I'm glad the tip will help you on the spindles. You have made some good progress on the frame and hood, remember that you can apply more than one coat of primer and wet sand it as needed to get the desired finish. The paint will only enhance any flaws in the body work so if there is something you are questioning in primer you will notice it more after the paint is on. Paint gun are as easy to use as rattle cans and can give a much better job if done correctly and with the right equipment. A regulator and a good air moisture remover are a must. There are many good articles on the web about how to use them and I would recommend a HVLP gun if you need to buy a gun. They will give you a nice finish and will reduce the paint over-spray you have and therefore reduce the amount that you use. Hardeners normally have directions right on the can and are worth the cost in my opinion but remember to clean the gun thoroughly after you finish with any painting weather it has hardener or not. My dad always taught me the gun should look like new on the inside and outside after you finish cleaning it and he has a Binks brand paint gun that is 40 some years old and still looks and works great. Dan

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henroan
You have put a lot of hard work towards your tractor you will be rewarded with your efforts.

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Steve72
Nice job on everything Chris! Restoring (and documenting) at the depth you are can be trying and you will wish a couple times that maybe you shouldn't have gone so deep on your first one---but as already mentioned---you will be glad you did in the end and will be proud of your accomplishment! Keep the faith and good luck--- and we will be here if needed!!

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bowhunt4life
Wow, awesome post, great to see the story!

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Talntedmrgreen
Wow Chris! You've been a busy bee! I never would have thunk that old 2012 would end up the target of a full blown teardown and resto! You're work is looking great, and you'll be thrilled with the finished product (I do understand the paint fears, and now have taken the time to work with a gun and read up on paints and hardeners). I envy your work space too, and had a laugh at your explanation of your thought process...one thing leads to another, then another, and another.... :D I wish I could spend some serious time to finish mine, but things get in the way, and now I'm off on other bunny trails. I prefer to get these types of things wrapped up before mowing season, and now I've cut grass 3 or 4 times!

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huffy
Thanks Steve! Thanks Chris! Thanks Josh! Your words of encouragement really help. I'm in a bit over my head on this one, and it's good to know I've got a support group. BTW, Josh, I owe a special thanks to you for getting this thing running right before I bought it. I'm figuring out the body work and stuff so far . . . but I'm really nervous about the day when I'm ready to start working on the engine. You'd think that a guy who's Dad was a mechanic would know at least a little something about engines . . . but I'm ashamed to admit that I don't. Hopefully I'll get it figured out.

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huffy
After work today I figured that while I wait for a new hub to arrive I’ll go ahead and get the BGB cleaned up. That way I can bolt the whole rear end back together once I get the hub and finish the tranny. So, I started off by spraying the BGB down with some of my cheap Wal Mart “degreaser.”




While that was foaming up real nice I went ahead and used a putty knife to scrape a bunch of the gunk off of the plates that attach the BGB to the tranny. I figured that while I was at it I’d go ahead and do the big, thick plate that bolts to the frame underneath the engine. As you’ll see in a moment, I’m ruing this decision.


After I’d done all I could do with the putty knife I hit them with a sanding disc attached to my grinder, and then used a little finer grit disc on the air sander. I didn’t shoot for perfect since they’ll largely be covered up, but tried to get as much of the pitting out as I could. This was hard on the side of the large under-engine plate since the side that lays on the frame was heavily pitted.


About the time I was done sanding those I figured the BGB had foamed long enough. I didn’t want to pressure wash it, so I just scrubbed it off with stiff brush. Then I gave it a quick once over with those handy air drills with the little wire wheels that I’m quickly falling in love with.


After finishing this I realized that I was out of primer, so I just wiped a coat of oil on the BGB to keep it from rusting over night and went back to work on my plates. I realized that I’d forgotten to sand one of the edges of the big under-engine plate. So, I threw it in the vise and commenced to sanding away. Unfortunately, when I was done I didn’t get a good enough grip on it when I loosened the vise and dropped it right onto a plastic box on the floor where I was storing my cans of spray paint. Yup, you guessed it . . . KABLAM!




And that’s just the little bit that was left after I spent a good ½ hour cleaning orange paint off the door, the floor, my tools, and worst of all me. (It’s a good thing I was wearing safety googles). Let me tell you that scrubbing orange paint off your face and out of your hair with paint thinner is not fun. Rather than head back out to the garage I called it a night and met a friend downtown for a drink. When I walked into the bar she giggled hysterically at the big gob of orange paint on the side of my face that I’d somehow missed during my paint thinner sponge bath. sm00

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GLPointon
Very nice job, your great attention to detail will pay off in the end. Keep the pics coming...very interesting dOd ps, I see Murphy came to visit your paint stash

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Talntedmrgreen
I was going to tell you also, with the tight quarters near the BGB, have used this method for pulling my drive shaft yoke [img]http://www.michaelstractors.com/forum/upload/B112/200914135852_BGBYokeRemoval.jpg[/img]

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johnmonkey
Mighty fine thread with great pictures. I really like the pics with the tools in them, I get a real good idea how it is done. jh

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perry
don't worry about long post. we like to see the progress your making and pictures help. i use kerosene in a spray bottle. pickup a gallon for $3 and it last me awhile. that is a bummer about the orange paint spraying all over. but it will give you a reminder in later years and laugh about it every time you look at that wall or pickup a tool with remnants of orange paint on it sm01.

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TomMaryland
Great looking start! its nice to see a project pics from the start! Here's some things I learned on my 2112 resto: I used a compressor/sprayer. very low air, under 15psi, to control over spray (took me awhile to figure that out) Kano labs exrust really works great on rust and saves alot of time beforehand. I used Martin-Seynour (DuPont?) color match paint for everything, with hardener added. 8 thinner 4 - paint - 1.25 hardener ratio. (any mixed paint with red is more expensive, orange has red in it) I also did the rims in cream, and the rear in black too. Martin Seymour primer with gap filler in it. Once I got the hang of it, it was much easier than I thought! Just have many many things ready to paint beforeyou start each paint session to conserve. Good luck!!

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timflury
KABLAM,,,,, Isn't that why they call them "Spray Bombs???"sm00sm00sm00 Just consider it shop patina. You can tell visitors how it happened and get a good chuckle out of it.

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huffy
Well guys, it looks like I might be stymied on the paint issue for a little bit. I found this sprayer amongst Dad’s stuff. It’s not great, but I think it should do the trick?


I could not find a regulator or moisture separator in Dad’s stuff. I called and asked him, and he said they broke and he didn’t replace them because he didn’t do much painting right before he retired. He said the sprayer was just something cheap that he picked up to do spot touch ups, and that the one or two times he used it he just regulated the pressure by kinking the air hose in his left hand and “squeezing it ‘til I got about the pressure I wanted.” I asked how that worked, and he said “good enough to throw a coat of something on an old dump truck bed to keep it from rusting, but it weren’t pretty.” So, during lunch I went to a place that specializes in automotive paint and equipment. I nearly had a coronary when they told me the cost of what they recommended. I reasoned that they only carry premium equipment, which I don’t need, so I stopped at Sears on my way home. They didn’t have any separators in stock, but they had a regulator so I figured I’d give it a try. I rigged it up when I got home a few minutes ago.




But, alas, I can’t get it to work. (And, yes, even though the whip is unplugged from the compressor in the pic it was plugged in when I was fiddling with it). I dial in the pressure that I want, but then each time the compressor kicks on it just drives it all the way back up to max. I’m thinking the problem may be that it’s not heavy duty enough for Dad’s old compressor. The box for the regulator says 150 max psi, and I didn’t notice until after I hooked it up that the compressor’s 175 max psi. I have another compressor that’s 135 max psi, but I haven’t yet had a chance to have an electrician come wire up an outlet for it. Oh well. Anyway, I looked on line and saw that TSC has this one, which is rated to 250 psi. Think this’ll do the trick? http://www.tractorsupply.com/campbell-hausfeld-reg-3-8-in-filter-pressure-regulator-lubricator-package-3314165 I also noticed that they carry this “desiccant cleaner/dryer.” Is that the same thing as a separator, or will it serve the same purpose? http://www.tractorsupply.com/campbell-hausfeld-reg-air-desiccant-cleaner-dryer-3315030

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dentwizz
The thing to watch for with a dessicant air dryer is they tend to have a large resistance compared to a separator unit. That said, I use a HVLP harbor frieght gun with a regulator mounted on it. The gun and regulator only cost around 30 bucks. The thing with a gun choice is you have to consider what you are spraying and what will be feeding it. A high-pressure gun as picuted will do more work with less volume(good for smaller compressors) but it is sensitive to pressure deviations at the upper end of what the compressor/regulator can handle. A HVLP(low pressure) gun is made to run between 25-40 psi at a higher volume. The compressor pictured sounds like a good(Im jealous) candidate for HVLP which also uses less paint due to better overspray control. My 5hp craftsman compressor with a 30 gal tank is enough to run a substantial HVLP unit on intermittent duty spraying rustoleum. Usually a separator is more toward oil removal, but some can remove moisture. If the gun regulator can handle the input pressure, I would say to run the air line at 90psi or more, then reduce it at the gun itself. What type of paint will you be using?

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huffy
quote:
Originally posted by dentwizz
What type of paint will you be using?
Even though I don't really want to, at this point I'm thinking I'll just stick with the rattle cans for this one. I'd have to order a better regulator and separator, and I just don't want to lose the project time or spend the money on that right now (spare money's low after tax day). This summer I'll get an electrician to add a breaker, etc, to wire up my other compressor and find a regulator and separator. Then I'll be ready to go when I start on the next one this fall.

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dave7016
years ago I redid an Simplicity snowblower and used Fleet Farm allis chalmers orange with a foam roller and then rattle caned the rest of it and the final coats. I saw the unit this year (about 5-6 yrs of use) and it still looked great. Couldn't tell it was painted the way it was and it was used hard. Unless I wanted a show piece I'd do it again.

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YellowB10
WOW...you really went all-out on the resto...I wish i had that kind of patience...!

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huffy
quote:
Originally posted by dave7016
years ago I redid an Simplicity snowblower and used Fleet Farm allis chalmers orange with a foam roller and then rattle caned the rest of it and the final coats. I saw the unit this year (about 5-6 yrs of use) and it still looked great. Couldn't tell it was painted the way it was and it was used hard. Unless I wanted a show piece I'd do it again.
I'm not interested in a show piece, I just thought something with hardener added would be more durable. And, the biggest thing that I don't like about the rattle can paint is that it takes forever to harden. Sure it dries fairly quickly, but it seems to take an awful long time to even begin to harden to the point that you can start re-assembling your pieces without it getting scratched by even the lightest touch. That's the most frustrating thing about it.

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