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What to do with the B1's ailing engine


mtoney

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That tractor has been modified somewhat. The rear height adjustment lever is gone. Its not the tractor's fault. How many box store MTDs will you see that even begin to approach this tractors age? For what its worth, nearly any 48 year old tractor will need to be gone through from top to bottom before you can expect to reliably mow with it. Maybe a small commercial walk behind may be a better route for you to go, or a newer Snapper rear engine rider. I used to have higher expectations of vintage equipment but after owning so many, there's just so much that can go wrong. You have to go though all the common wear areas and return them to good condition. I bought newer Simplicity to mow grass with and I'm not looking back. There are bargains on some quality peices of newer equipment if you keep your eyes peeled.
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The newer stuff is no more affordable than a new engine for the old B1. The deck didnt come with the tractor. I have the adjuster lever, its snapped in two. That part I could replace, its the bail assembly that holds up the deck and mounts it to the tractor that isnt correct. The deck rides nose down and there isnt enough adjustment to correct it. If I had a correct bail assembly that I could borrow, I could take it to a local shop here in town and have them make a duplicate of it. The 42" is different. The size of the tractor and mower deck is perfect, if it would all be nice and work. I guess the old lawn boy is gonna get a work out along with my legs. The deck runs nice and quiet. I guess I will shove the old girl in the shed for awhile till I can find parts, if I can find them.
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I can't see the front of the deck, the yokes. With the angle on the deck and the center pulley, it looks like the yokes are disconnected. If the roller is solid at the rear of the deck, you really just need solid at the front of the deck. The deck lift could be removed, or I was thinking, mount it from opposite side of bracket to move it over for belt clearance. If you could hook the front of the deck, in some removable fashion, then it's just drive the tractor thru the narrow gate, and install deck to mow - repeat as required. A 42" would be an R&R solution also. But whatever, it must be safe, or things can go bad very quickly, and with no warning - possible danger to self, others, or machine. You can't mess with that. :O With lawns waiting, I would go to nearest Simplicity dealer for a mod solution with this deck; or at least see if it's possible. The guy I deal with has been known to loan mowers in emergency situations. I doubt that's just a casual Mr Niceguy thing; but it's something he has done for his customers. And those customers are the ones that told me about him - and that's how I came to be one of his customers also. He bailed me out once when I damaged deck hitting a nasty thing. I became priority one. My problems were solved in an hour and a half. I recently had to have a chat with him cos I thought the happy relationship was getting messy - just some minor misunderstanding - no problem. But the pushmower works well after a good meal and in a relaxed meditation mode, no hurry, it gets done in same time. Need to maintain the customer first. And exercise is good for relieving stress. Been there. Not relieving stress can destroy other relationships too. I also learned an olde saying: "Don't push the river". sm03 Do your thing. It's just the process. And the process is already happening. Wait for it to work itself out. You're not alone. It's going to be ok. And I wouldn't be caught dead on an RER. 8)8D:D
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After cooling off, I think the only solution is to take the mower deck bail to a shop and have it heated with a torch and rebent to raise the front of the deck up level with the rear or a hair above. I have the adjustment in the arms all the way up, so I can lower to get the proper deck leveling rake needed. Finding the correct original bail and arms is probably next to impossible. If I had a good torch I could do it myself. I will take the whole tractor with the deck installed so the arms can be heated and pried upwards with a good old 2x4, that should hopefully keep the arms equil as they are rebent since they will be attached to the tractor mounts. Mike
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Exactly. Wish I knew someone near me that has a oxy/accetaline torch. Thats all I need along with some elbow grease to rebend the front arms to correct for the nose down problem. as the arms are now, they angle slightly upwards, I think they need to angle slightly downwards or flat. Still hoping to find a pic or someone that has a B series with the correct 32" deck I can look at to see what needs to be modified.
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According to the attachments catalog for the B1. You have the wrong bail assembly. More than likely for a B 207. I have a friend that has alot of the old stuff in his barn. I will call him and see what he has.
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Your deck is from this Allis equivalent. It is just a matter of finding the correct bail. Should beable to with an ad in the classifieds. http://bsintek.basco.com/BriggsDocumentDisplay/default.aspx?filename=heCBEN8.wM4rE3CGh5kbp796Dq
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Dumb question but are the front yokes on upside down? I'm refering to the L shaped piece that bolts to the front axle. If its on upside down the front of the deck will sit signifigantly lower (2" give or take.
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The yoke is for the B207, its not the correct yoke for the B1, and no you cant flip it over and have it work. I tried that one!! I can deal with the arms not being the correct width, that was easy, its the way they are formed and work with the adjuster arms that will not work on the B1. I hope he has the correct bail Ray, thank you for checking. I am guessing there are precious few 32"s out there for B1's, most folks had larger yards back then and opted for the 42" mower deck. This little guy will be the perfect size tractor for our yard and the 2 I mow. Not to mention the ablity to tend my garden and move snow. I can get this bail modified, but if I can find a correct one, even better. Mike
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No I havent but I believe you messaged him for me. Shame the bail from the 42" wont work. I still think if the front arms were cherried with a torch and rebent to give the front of the deck more upward lift, it would work just fine with the exhisting bail/roller assembly it has. Just dont know anybody localy with a proper torch set up. My little mapp gas torch wont do it, thats for sure! That being said, I have run the deck some, just to put a load on the engine and it looks like its smoking a little less than before at throttle settings above idle. I want to give it one good mowing, then I am going to change the oil and see what happens. Mike
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Well, I took the cave man way and attacked the front arms with my 5 lb baby sledge, got it mowing halfway decent now. Just a bit more of a tweak in the arms and it will be perfect. Thats the good, the bad is the engine started knocking under a load, smoking is back to the way it was and the coil is breaking down, once she is hot, she will just die or almost die then catch herself as I go to idle and disengage the mower deck. Really leaning toward a new engine, considering I mow and work it regularly, a new motor might not be a totaly bad idea. I did that with my old wheelhorse, but I was more cramped on it and those old face gear drive mower decks are LOUD when they are worn and those gears are NLA. This deck runs silent, just need a reliable power plan to drive it. Still want to find the correct mounting bail assembly though. If anybody would like a running but needs overhauled 23A, please let me know as I plan to sell this engine, without the starter generator to offset my replacement engine. Need a payment plan on an engine LOL!
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engine issues has been rectified. I bought the rebuilt 10hp Briggs from Locknut's diesel repower project. Once I visit the store for more engine oil, I will have her running again. Mike
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