3 of the herd

[ohiofarmer 3,157]

[ohiofarmer 3,157]

So here is the herd of the older ones. the Electro12 has a slightly noisy engine, The Raider10 can be moved back and forth with the transmission in gear a total of 9 inches, and the unknown 12 runs the best but has rough paint and checked tires. As I have said in other threads, i will probably swap the 10 engine to the 12 Electro and just have the unknown 12 for a reliable platform. All three tractors will run and drive [if I borrow a few parts from the electrical system]

 The mystery tractor does have the engine iD all there. It is a Kohler  301AS   Spec47648d Serial 9095476

 

Please do not make fun of the Raider seat. It replaces the OEM with which i could barely mount the tractor. It actually tilts and has springs from the beater MTD which it came from so the teeth i have left stay in my head.. There is some paint under that rust on the mystery 12 and a Harbor Freight polycarbonate brush  seems the tool to bring up the color . I really think that I hit a home run with that tractor for $250. Very smooth and tight despite its appearance.http://www.harborfreight.com/4-inch-150-grit-shaft-mounted-wheel-brush-91372.html

The Electro does have all its parts, including the fuel tank and hood. I just wanted to hear it run and used a fuel tank i knew to be clean. I still need a double d pulley for the SD42 mower as the original pulley was broken.

Edited October 28, 2016 by ohiofarmer

[oldlineman 1,450]

Nice tractors it might be a c101-8 looks alot like my 1979 101-8 

[GMan 82]

Ohiofarmer,

 

If the engine in the mystery tractor is original then the tractor probably is a C121 model. Is that the tractor that was recently on CL around Wapakoneta? If it is I wrestled with that one in my mind for two months. I just knew somehow it would be a good one but I am tractor poor right now and would have had to move to my barn and slept with it had I bought it. An excellant price too! I couldn't understand why it took so long for it to sell. I would much rather tackle one like that than one someone has halfway painted then tried to sell it. I'd be willing to bet that tractor is all original..............Anyway, good luck with it....................Gary

Edited October 28, 2016 by GMan

[ohiofarmer 3,157]

3 minutes ago, GMan said:

Ohiofarmer,

 

If the engine in the mystery tractor is original then the tractor probably is a C121 model. Is that the tractor that was recently on CL around Wapakoneta? If it is I wrestled 

with that one in my mind for two months. I just knew somehow it would be a good one but I am tractor poor right now and would have had to move to my barn and slept with it had I bought it. An excellant price too! I couldn't understand why it took so long for it to sell. I would much rather tackle one like that than one someone has halfway painted then tried to sell it. I'd be willing to bet that tractor is all original..............Anyway, good luck with it....................Gary

Yep East of St Marys just North of SR 33. The gentleman who sold it to me was in his 80's and his bum ankle kept him from restoring it. The sheet metal is really straight and this tractor is ready to work only needing an oil change in the Uni-Drive

[Jerry77 1,218]

38 minutes ago, ohiofarmer said:

Please do not make fun of the Raider seat

To the contrary, it gives me an idea for my bathroom seat that is too low for my old bones...

[roadapples 6,981]

Nice tractors.. Looks a little chilly though for that first one to be topless.... 

[ohiofarmer 3,157]

I have to think that Gman is right about it being a C-121. I looked up a resto thread on here and everything looks the same as the 121 that is being powder coated.. I did find that a little light wet sanding with 220 takes the rough rust off and leaves a nice looking [a bit leathery] surface that has enough red patina to look more like paint than rust.

 

 i got the tan sludge out of the gear box by lifting the front end nearly vertical and then after a time, i used a cleaning tool to shoot some kerosine mist down the fill tube. I fastened a vinyl clear tube to the vent nipple on my old gas can and then sucked the rest out with a shop vac. Easy, fast, and efficient.. i sprayed kero on the uni-Drive and it cleaned up quite a bit and that makes it more fun to work on. i will take a few more dirty and clean pictures of the 121 to show what a difference a bit of elbow grease can make.

[Elkskin's mower junkyard 1,117]

nice looking machine

[Retired Wrencher 4,877]

ohiofarmer  Nothing like a mystery tractor for a fun project. To save a lot of rubbing try Marvel Mystery oil. works well on old rusting tractors. NO Rubbing needed. Enjoy them. They look like keepers.

[Wheel-N-It 2,967]

Yep, that mystery tractor is a C121

[ohiofarmer 3,157]

On 10/29/2016 at 8:40 AM, Wheel-N-It said:

Yep, that mystery tractor is a C121

 

I finally found the ID plate when cleaning it up. It is a 1978 C-i21  The iD# is 81- 12K801.

 

 That little beastie was such a pig to clean up as it was used to pull a small auger on the farm to load corn into the grain bins. If any of you have ever been around the farm. the dust and chaff can be corrosive because it sticks so hard and then glues itself on with moisture.

 

 Really the only way to get it clean includes painting it . I tore it down to sub-assemblies and now the transmission case is already painted with a brush which suits me fine for cast iron. My plan is to get the frame rails done and make it a rolling unit and paint the thin metal with a spray gun. I think that painting the rough stuff like the frame rails with a brush is a good idea just because traces of oil in the corners combine with the paint [Rusteoleum] and bond in well. I prefer to spend the lions share of my efforts on what shows and that is the sheet metal.

 

 A body shop man advised me on how to fill in the small pits in the sheet metal, so now I am hoping for a very pretty finish on the important parts that show. Wish me luck--this is gonna take a while.

[Wheel-N-It 2,967]

OK, good news. It sounds like you are on the right road to bring that old Horse back to a good life.  You do know we like lots and lots of pics, right???

BTW, I too think the frame rails and such are better off painted with a brush and multiple coats of a good quality paint.

[ohiofarmer 3,157]

 I have been taking pictures as I go and will post some later. The frame is clean and that was quite a job. we used the Framer's Friend solvent and a paint brush repeatedly to get the grease off and then attacked the rough stuff with Harbor Freight poly wheel discs and poly wheel brushes. It took off probably 95% of all the areas that needed cleaned. Way back under the inside corners of things I did get out the sand blaster, but the metal is not nearly as smooth as with the poly wheels. A bit of hand sanding on the pegs and that frame is as good as can be. I will probably use a bit of very thin body filler on a few pitted areas after applying etching primer. All in all the paint should exceed the durability of the factory finish.

 

 Well, the frame and axle group are in primer. If i can find a way to shoot paint in 45 degree weather, the color coat may go on tomorrow.

Edited November 9, 2016 by ohiofarmer
add info

[ohiofarmer 3,157]

First, here are the go to tools to prep metal on a rusty Horse. The disc grinder has the Harbor freight poly abrasive disc and the drill has the abrasive brush. If the disc hits a projection, it shreds pretty easily, so use it an flat work. Degrease everything first as that is an important step for these tools to work. these abrasive tools from Harbor Freight are 5 bucks or so and what they save in sandpaper is really worth it. They leave hardly any scratches behind either

 

Look at the before and after of that nasty "doghouse" that holds the controls. Just unreal how much of the nasty stuff comes off with power tools. The last picture shows going from primer to paint. I used Regal Red Rustoleum thinned with about 30% zylene. It might take longer for the solvent to evaporate, but it works well for me. The primer is rattle can etching rustoleum primer, but the big pieces will probably be shot with a gun both the primer and the finish coat.

 I also used a rust converter product that turns the rust slightly blue and left it on for five minutes and then added water with a paintbrush to thin down the sticky film--- and then wiped off the residue with a towel. The primer sticks fine once all that is dry.

 I did not plan to do all this prep work, but brand new paint on the outside tins would probably make the visible undercarriage look really horrible by comparison.

 

On edit, I did have to use a sandblaster for some tight corners and then do a little hand sanding, but 95% of the crud came off with the tools pictured above

Edited November 15, 2016 by ohiofarmer