Backhoe....

[sjoemie himself 2,918]

5 hours ago, ri702bill said:

more than substituting a M8 bolt for a 5/16

Erm.. yep.. it's built mostly of square tubing. Well if I change the size of that to get to metric everything that gets connected to it has to be changed aswell. Few mm here and there stack up pretty fast.

 

7 minutes ago, wallfish said:

an American tape measure

Not a bad idea, I actually have a Lufkin 'double action' tape meausure, reads both imperial and metric.

Still I feel a lot more comfortable converting the drawings to metric first before starting to build.

 

That being said, i've still got enough work to do on my Murray to IH 1468 project so the FEL has to wait.

[Wild Bill in VA 1,366]

22 hours ago, wallfish said:

. This tractor was built to work so it was like having Secretariat waiting here in the stable but only being used for pony rides. Just didn't make sense. 

 

 

John, it is interesting that you used Secretariat as your analogy, I live only a few exits down off I-95 from the place Secretariat was in a stable. Secretariat was the best of the breed, and no other racehorse was faster! It was not until Secretariat's death and autopsy was performed did, they find out why. The average horse has a heart that weighs 6 to 7 pounds, Secretariat's heart was over 21 pounds! So yeah, I can see why you compared Secretariat to your Wheel Horse front end loader/back-hoe! 

Wild Bill in Richmond VA

Edited September 20, 2022 by Wild Bill in VA

[ebinmaine 63,116]

2 minutes ago, Wild Bill in VA said:

John, it is interesting that you used Secretariat as your analogy, I live only a few exits down off I-95 from the placed Secretariat was in a stable. Secretariat was the best of the breed, and no other racehorse was faster! It was not until Secretariat's death and autopsy was performed did, they find out why. The average horse has a heart that weighs 6 to 7 pounds, Secretariat's heart was over 21 pounds! So yeah, I can see why you compared Secretariat to your Wheel Horse front end loader/back-hoe! 

Wild Bill in Richmond VA

I believe that to be a realistic comparison.  

[Wild Bill in VA 1,366]

Here is John on the Front-End Loader/Backhoe during the 2011 Annual Wheel Horse Show Parade .... Enough Said!!!  

Wild Bill in Richmond VA

[ebinmaine 63,116]

2 minutes ago, Wild Bill in VA said:

Here is John on the Front-End Loader/Backhoe

AWESOME. 

Thanks for posting this!! 

[Pullstart 59,690]

1 minute ago, ebinmaine said:

AWESOME. 

Thanks for posting this!! 

Now it’s a race for EB or BBT to master the reproduction pictures in 2022!

[ebinmaine 63,116]

5 minutes ago, Pullstart said:

Now it’s a race for EB or BBT to master the reproduction pictures in 2022!

Oh we'll get some pics and videos on in the next few weeks.  Won't be any attempt at reproductions though.  

The @wallfish can't be copied!!

 

[DBlackston 295]

Jealous!

[ebinmaine 63,116]

On 9/18/2022 at 7:03 PM, ebinmaine said:

new tank cap/fuel gauge. We'll remove the tank and clean it out. 

 

 

 

@wallfish and anyone who's had these '80s models apart.

I need to get that seat bracket out so I can try to remove the fuel tank vertically.

My plan is to get in there with a vacuum and then also with compressed air to get as much debris off the top of the transmission area as I can and then remove the bracket.

 

I believe that it's just the two bolts that hold it on but then I'll have to get that dipstick tube out of the way.. I think??

 

 

Any hints advice or information there?

 

 

[Pullstart 59,690]

Hmmm…. It seems there is a tank bracket from the rear that bolts onto the sides of that U shaped one.  It doesn’t make sense to me why it needs to come out first, it just always seems it does.  All 3/8” fasteners I think, 9/16” tools.  I might be off, have some 1/2” on standby 

[953 nut 51,657]

I think you should get in there with a cleaner and parts cleaning brush to get all the dirt out before removing the two hold down bolts. If you have a pressure washer that would speed the job up some. The dipstick can stay in place, there is a hole in the support for it to slide over the dipstick.

[lynnmor 6,776]

After taking out a bolt in the transmission top, replace it with a set screw to keep debris out.  The second one will be the worst since the support will be completely loose, just try to prevent any movement till the second set screw is in place.  No matter how well you clean, there will still be something ready to fall in.

[Handy Don 10,595]

And don't forget that on several models there are two bolts into the bottom of the tank (this tank is from a 518-H) holding the tank to the bracket

Edited October 19, 2022 by Handy Don

[lynnmor 6,776]

4 hours ago, Handy Don said:

And don't forget that on several models there are two bolts into the bottom of the tank (this tank is from a 518-H) holding the tank to the bracket

 

Don't you just love how they managed to put one bolt directly over the hydraulic filter? 

[ebinmaine 63,116]

1 minute ago, lynnmor said:

Don't you just love how they managed to put one bolt directly over the hydraulic filter? 

I understand the fact that when they built these tractors that particular bolt probably was not high on the list of things that would need to be removed at regular intervals but now that we get to deal with the ethanol contamination and our fuel tanks need to be removed on a much more regular basis..

Well I guess it's good if we can just combine the hydraulic system and fuel system maintenance into the same step.  

 

Lucky for me this particular tractor is an 8-speed so I don't have that wonderful source of irritation.  

 

 

I've got at least one extra spare fuel tank that fits these tractors but if I wanted to try to clean the inside of this one how might I go about doing that? Handful of small rocks and shake it to death?

[The Freightliner Guy 1,326]

Yeah put gravel or small rocks in it than strap it to the tire of a tractor and drive around that’s an old farmers trick 

[lynnmor 6,776]

2 minutes ago, ebinmaine said:

Lucky for me this particular tractor is an 8-speed so I don't have that wonderful source of irritation.  

 

I've got at least one extra spare fuel tank that fits these tractors but if I wanted to try to clean the inside of this one how might I go about doing that? Handful of small rocks and shake it to death?

 

I find a lot of debris caked around the gas tank from mowing or leaf cleanup.  If left in place, winter duty will keep that mess wet causing rust.  I like to do a complete seat, fender and tank removal at winter changeover.

 

To clean a dirty tank, just toss a handful of clean nuts with some soapy water inside and find someone in the household that wants to play catch.

[Handy Don 10,595]

54 minutes ago, lynnmor said:

 

I find a lot of debris caked around the gas tank from mowing or leaf cleanup.  If left in place, winter duty will keep that mess wet causing rust.  I like to do a complete seat, fender and tank removal at winter changeover.

 

To clean a dirty tank, just toss a handful of clean nuts with some soapy water inside and find someone in the household that wants to play catch.

Avoiding sharp edges on whatever you use is a good idea to lessen the chances of creating scratches in the plastic. I used a bag of glass marbles which I knew wouldn't reach into the smallest corners but my tank wasn't that dirty that I worried about it. (Also, if you have a fuel level sender in the tank, get that out before cleaning!)

 

1 hour ago, lynnmor said:

Don't you just love how they managed to put one bolt directly over the hydraulic filter? 

Yeah, and there isn't room for it to come out even once its loose. Getting it restarted is so tedious -- probably took me 5 mins. Like @ebinmaine suggests, that likely won't get done again until I'm changing the filter.

[ebinmaine 63,116]

1 hour ago, Handy Don said:

if you have a fuel level sender in the tank, get that out before cleaning

I have a new cap with sender on it. I figured on maybe taping the top shut?? 

[Pullstart 59,690]

Grab you a box of 1/4-20 nuts.  They are usually cheaper by the 100 and seem to go quick enough for me.  They will get into those small corners, but won’t beat up the plastic 

[ebinmaine 63,116]

46 minutes ago, Pullstart said:

Grab you a box of 1/4-20 nuts.  They are usually cheaper by the 100 and seem to go quick enough for me.  They will get into those small corners, but won’t beat up the plastic 

@OldWorkHorse

Steve and I are texting this morning about the possibilities of leaving the tank loose but in place.

 

In order to remove the tank I also have to remove the hydraulic filter and several hydraulic lines that go to the backhoe. 

 

It would be nice not to have to remove it until later if I could avoid doing so.

He's thinking maybe I could take some degreaser and pressure washer and use it at a bunch of different angles to get into the tank without having to take it off the tractor.  

 

Maybe combine the quarter 20 nuts idea and let them spray all around inside there?

 

 

Anyone else got any thoughts or comments about that?

 

 

[Pullstart 59,690]

On my Poppy 552 build, we put degreaser in the tank with no agitators and Rylee towed me around the field for ahhhh we’ll say 20 minutes.  I followed with just the garden hose and that flushed it too.  

[Pullstart 59,690]

[Handy Don 10,595]

2 hours ago, Pullstart said:

and Rylee towed me around the field for ahhhh we’ll say 20 minutes

Surprised you didn't just pick up the tractor and shake it like a rattle can  

 

2 hours ago, ebinmaine said:

bunch of different angles to get into the tank without having to take it off the tractor

Looking at your pictures and seeing that some hydraulic plumbing would have to be removed to get the tank out, I'm agreeing that a "clean it in place" process is the best compromise.

I don't think you'll get a pressure washer nozzle able to get around the corners of that tank, though, and towing that beast around over bumpy ground is gonna be something worthy of a video!

[lynnmor 6,776]

9 hours ago, ebinmaine said:

@OldWorkHorse

Steve and I are texting this morning about the possibilities of leaving the tank loose but in place.

 

In order to remove the tank I also have to remove the hydraulic filter and several hydraulic lines that go to the backhoe. 

 

It would be nice not to have to remove it until later if I could avoid doing so.

He's thinking maybe I could take some degreaser and pressure washer and use it at a bunch of different angles to get into the tank without having to take it off the tractor.  

 

Maybe combine the quarter 20 nuts idea and let them spray all around inside there?

 

 

Anyone else got any thoughts or comments about that?

 

 

I would try removing the two bolts, the fuel hose and possibly the dipstick tube and see if the bracket can be tilted up far enough to pull the tank out.  The dipstick tube should have wrench flats at the bottom.  After having an incredible amount of rust next to my tank I will always recommend that disassembly, cleaning and painting should be done.