BradKahler 362 #1 Posted July 23 (edited) Well....it looks like I've got my winter project lined up, just picked it up today Found this one on FB and after thinking about it for a few days I contacted the seller and we made the deal. The ad listed the tractor, 5' pto mounted finish mower and possibly a push blade (if he could find it!). While I was on the road going to pick it up he texted me and mentioned they found a few more implements and I could have them if I wanted them. Heck yeah!! Included in the package was the tractor, finish mower, snow plow, Brinly disc harrow, what appears to be a Ford 3pt plow and a homemade 3pt plow, and what might be a homemade box blade although it looks pretty decent. It has the optional 15" rear wheels with rear wheel weights. The snow plow is for the B and C series tractors and the sad part is according to the seller, his father bought the blade in new condition from someone who never used it. So basically it's a brand new blade that's been sitting outside for at least 20-30 years. Oddly enough the seat looks almost brand new. It turns out every fall his dad would take the seat off and store it inside, putting it back on in the spring. The gas tank looks solid but there is a distinct possibility it will need to be boiled and then sealed inside to make it useable. The story behind the tractor is the sellers dad bought it 30 years ago and used it for 12 years before parking it, they started using a zero turn which was faster. For 11 of those 18 years that it sat outside unused. Seven years ago he moved it into his basement with the hopes of restoring it. Unfortunately he never got around to it. In theory, it was running and driving when parked. Oh yeah almost forgot, included was the original operators manual AND an original parts list. For the past few days I tried searching for a downloadable parts list and couldn't find one. I am going to scan this one and if possible upload it to the forum. Possibly someone could explain how to do the upload. One quick question, it needs mufflers, are there suitable replacements available that don't cost $603 each as shown on the Toro site. Thanks! More to come.... Edit: it also came with a 3 pt cultivator and what i thought was the operator manual is actually a service procedure manual that describes all of the new features of the new 18 HP model with detailed descriptions and pictures. The manual was intended for the mechanics that went through their service school. Edited July 23 by BradKahler 3 3 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ol550 869 #2 Posted July 23 IMHO Owning a D series is similar to owning a boat, well at least for me, it's more than a winter project. It is more like every winter. In my case with the boat and D series. About as happy the day I got it and the day they left. Good luck and enjoy the adventure. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BradKahler 362 #3 Posted July 25 Got everything unloaded today and used the air gun to blow out all of the years of debris accumulation. The tractor is actually in overall pretty good condition considering it sat outside unused for at least 12 years. The engine does turn over and has compression so the first task will be to replace the fuel line, fuel filter and probably pull the carburetor and clean it in the ultrasonic cleaner. The engine oil looks good and the same for the gearbox oil. I plan on changing the engine oil before trying to start it and once the engine is running I'll change the gearbox oil and filter and then see if it will move under it's own power. After inspecting the gas tank I realized that it's not the original tank So I'm now on the hunt for an original replacement tank. I also found that while the air filter base is correct, it had the wrong filter and was using a hub cap for the cover So I'm also on the hunt for the correct air filter cover. While fiddling with the front grille I noticed that there were no holes for the bottom pins to fit into. Looking closer I found that the lower front cross member was installed upside down. I have since rotated the cross member and now the grille fits properly. I wonder how many years it has been like that. It doesn't have a battery tray so I've been searching for some sort of replacement. More than likely I'll just fabricate one myself so if anyone knows the dimensions that would help tremendously 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
rjg854 13,248 #4 Posted July 25 Looks like it's all there, so the bones are good. Are you planning on restoring it? 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BradKahler 362 #5 Posted July 25 4 hours ago, rjg854 said: Looks like it's all there, so the bones are good. Are you planning on restoring it? Other than not having the correct gas tank and air cleaner cover it is in remarkably original condition. I think the seat amazed me the most, it's still soft and pliable and so far there aren't any cracks in it that I can see. Not to many 53 year old tractors still have the original seat in that condition For the time being, I'm just going to go through it mechanically and electrically to get it running and driving. I'll fix what needs fixing and after that's all done, if I have time then I just might try restoring it. I do have some questions. What size battery would have been installed? What size is the battery tray? The battery tray is missing so I'll likely have to fabricate one, but I have no idea on what size to make it or what it even looks like. Thanks! Brad Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BradKahler 362 #6 Posted 3 hours ago (edited) I've been tinkering with the tractor the last few weeks. I totally rewired the tractor, installed a new coil, new voltage regulator, new ignition switch and a new amp meter. I also replaced the entire fuel system including a new Facet fuel pump. The fuel tank that came with the tractor was not the original and I don't know what brand mower/tractor it came from. I opted to find a replacement tank on ebay. It was a bit pricey but it's immaculate inside and out. Oh, and I also cleaned and rebuilt the carburetor and changed the motor oil. Ultrasonic cleaners definitely make short work of cleaning a carburetor. A couple of days I was able to start the engine for the first time and it sounds great! No mufflers at the moment so it's kinda loud but it runs nice and smooth and doesn't seem to smoke. The next task I tackled was a leaky left rear axle seal. This is where things got interesting and depressing. The hub was a total disaster. It had been welded to the axle in three places. As you can see by the pictures it took somewhat of a butcher job to get the hub off. I had to use a cutoff wheel, portable band saw, a hammer and punch and a few swear words. The next step is to access the condition of the axle to see if it can be salvaged. My initial thinking is it might be. When I slid the remaining piece of the hub off the axle I found that the inboard end of the bore of the hub was still close to original spec. When sliding that piece off the axle I found high spots that I massaged down until I was able to slide it all the way off. Until I get a replacement hub the most I'll be able to do is take shaft measurements and to get an idea of what I need to do. The following video shows what it looked like when I first discovered the problem. Edited 3 hours ago by BradKahler 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BradKahler 362 #7 Posted 23 minutes ago This welded hub problem because real expensive really quick Now that I've had time to look at things I've discovered just how messed up the left axle is. The first thing that clued me in was the parts manual listed both axles as the same part number and there is supposed to be a spacer between the axle and the housing on both sides. Only my passenger side has the spacer. What I couldn't figure out at first, was if both axles are supposed to be the same length, then why where my wheels centered properly. It turns out the wheel on the right side was installed correctly, i.e. the valve stem was towards the inside. On the drivers side, the valve stem was pointed to the outside. With the shortened left axle minus the spacer and the wheel mounted backwards provided the same wheel spacing on each side. There must have been some catastrophic accident on the left side to require that much modification to the axle. The outer axle bearing seems nice and tight, the only issue is the seal is leaking and of course a bad axle. Bottom line is it looks like I'm going to have to pull the gearbox out and do some repairs. Not what I was expecting, but oh well.... So I now need to source an axle, hub and spacer. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
