Jump to content
Sign in to follow this  
Butch

314-8 rebuild

Recommended Posts

Butch

I was and still am in need of another garden tractor. My other one rotted away in my wifes garden. 5 years ago the steering around the dash broke and I just left the tractor there. Now I need to move dirt again. I found a decent chassi on Ebay and my plan was to rebuild my current engine and throw it in the new chassi. So much for that. The tractor has been completely disassembled including the engine. All parts have been sandblasted outside or in my cabinet blaster. The engine block and it's exterior parts also have been blasted. The engine block has been painted with Por15 and it looks good but isn't complete. All of the tractor parts except for the fenders and hood have been given 2 or 3 coats of Por15 rust prev paint and either 3 or 4 coats of Por15 Tie Coat primer. This has been a very long process. Working with Por15 is like working with granite. It's tough. Thes 314s have a ton of parts. This has actually become a job more than a project because I need to put this tractor to use. But I already have the bug to buy something older with the rounded hood and do some sort of custom job. I don't know what. But it surely won't be as involved as that 418AA. That is way out of my league. I've never used a paint gun before but I plan on using one for the first time on the hood, floorboards, side covers and fenders. The other hidden parts will get the rattle can. Weather is also a factor in this job.

DSCN9921.jpg

This is the donor tractor with the engine removed.

DSCN9924.jpg

Some parts treated with Por15 hanging from the garage door frames. Had to unplug the opener. Tape over the garage door button wouldn't stop my family from opening the door!!

DSCN9926.jpg

Rear end with new 8.5" wheels and 23x10.50x12 Carlise turf chiefs. Nice wide foot print and I like the offwhite better than the silver wheels.

DSCN9929.jpg

This is the backside of the transmission plate. Although there were no cracks in this plate I thought I should have a welder weld in a thicker plate to the inside for strength. Cheap insurance for $25. But what he did on his own was put a hole in the center of the main factory plate and weld it to the added plate on the inside. You can see it in this picture. I thought it was a great idea for strength. I still have to drill the 4 holes for the tranny bolts.

DSCN9934.jpg

Here is the inside of the frame showing the added plate. You can also see the mark in the center made from welding the centers together from the other side.

DSCN9937.jpg

Here is a pic of the edge with the plate added. I just picked up the frame this morning in the pouring rain and it picked up some rust on the way home. I'll hit it with the sand blaster again and also treat it with Por15. But I have a long way to go before this job is done.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
 
kpinnc

Now that is the way to do it. :hide:

Good idea on the tranny reinforcement. I did something similar with one of my tractors.

Keep those pics coming!

Kevin

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
 
Duff

Hey, Butch!

Having had my 312-8 in itty-bitty pieces all over the shop last winter, I feel your pain and sense of accomplishment. Looks like you're doing a great job!

Keep the pics coming. The net result will be well worth the effort!

Duff :hide:

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
 
sorekiwi

I like that reinforcement on the frame. Nice welding too.

Its getting there - get that frame painted so you can start hanging bits on it as soon as their dry - I seem to lose the bits if they lie around too long.

Most of the small stuff on my Ranger was sprayed with a rattle can. So much easier to pick up the can, spray it and your done. The Valspar Restoration series rattlecans seem to match the paint sprayed with a gun pretty well.

Nice job!

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
 
Brian1045

Looking good Butch!

Believe me when I tell you, the resto will go a lot quicker than you think. I've been working a few hours a week and I'm being pretty thorough during my re-assembly.

I'm a little less than 3 months into mine and I'm just about done. I'm just waiting on a steering wheel and the motor assembly.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
 
Butch

Here are the wheels before and then after I sandblasted them, zinc coated

them and then 3 coats of Por15. Tomorrow I'll prime them.

tireremoval3.jpg

DSCN9943.jpg

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
 
Butch

I may learn to like this. I've never wet sanded before. What a difference

it makes. I'm just gettin practice on the small stuff first. It's also a perfect

match for the rears. Painting metal is new to me. I'm normally painting or

staining something house or furniture related.

DSCN9952.jpg

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
 
KyBlue

Not to get too off topic, but whats under the car cover???

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
 
stevebo

:hide: i just picked up a maroon stripe 312 with 42 inch deck and rear wheel weights for $50 tonight... is this what i am in for.....again??? good luck...looks great

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
 
Butch

Not to get too off topic, but whats under the car cover???

My wifes 66 Vette.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
 
Stigian

WOW.. wet sanding the wheels!!

You are going for a perfect finish Butch :hide:

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
 
Butch

You're not supposed to? Does that mean I wasn't supposed

to wet sand the frame either :hide:

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
 
Brian1045

I never got around to wet sanding my frame or wheels. I mostly concentrated on the panel areas. My wheels are a little more dull Than I like (looks like over spray)so I may go back and do them.

I'd just do what seems best to you. When I wet sand I just knock "the top" off with 1500 or 2000 grit.

As soon as I see and feel everything getting really smooth....I quit. I use a garden hose to make sure I have plenty of water.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
 
Butch

I was using a spackle size bucket of water to sand with. I couldn't believe

how smooth it got and how fast it worked. Plus no build-up on the sand

paper. It almost felt that if you didn't rinse a lot that the wet paint would

dry back up on the pieces. So why must you keep rinsing? I saw where

someone uses a sqweegy to clean the wet paint off with.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
 
KyBlue

You keep rinsing so you dont get the sanding sludge drying on the panel you just sanded. The rubber Squeegee is used to check your progress on sanding, as most sand until the panel is flat (dull) and all the orange peel, runs, dents, drips, sags, bugs, dirt nibs, etc etc etc (primer or finished paint) are gone

You really dont need to do this, thou it is much faster than wiping down (be sure to keep the rag clean, you run the risk of scratching if you let it get too nasty with sludge or it gets dropped and picks up something..)

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
 
Stigian

You're not supposed to? Does that mean I wasn't supposed

to wet sand the frame either :hide:

If i was building a WH for showing i expect i would wet sand my wheels for that smooth look :D

My WH's tend to get worked hard and smooth paint on the wheels would get scratched up quite quickly :hide:

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
 
Butch

This ain't gonna be a show horse. It's got a busy next year planned.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
 
Duff

This ain't gonna be a show horse. It's got a busy next year planned.

Yeah, but if you've got it restored to "show" condition, then keeping it maintained even when working becomes that much easier! :D

Nice work!

Duff :hide:

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
 
Butch

Knowing me I'll cry when I get the first scratch. :D :hide:

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
 

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
Sign in to follow this  

×
×
  • Create New...