Just picked up a 1988 414-8

[nylyon-(Admin) 8,273]

Found a great deal and picked up a pretty good condition 414-8 with 42" side discharge deck, 48" plow, front and rear wheel weights, rear AG tires, front dethatcher (non-wheel horse) and a pull behind sweeper (non wheel horse) and all the original manuals including sales receipt ($3,526.62) all for $225. It is in really nice condition only a very small rust spot on the fender and it will need a battery, but it runs really nice. I suspect there is something with the charging circuit since after a jump start the tractor runs, but the lights won't work unless its hooked up the jumper cables. Thoughts on that?

It looks nice sitting next to my 416-Hydro, but a little smaller.

I think I got a good deal all the same, too dark for pictures tonight maybe tomorrow.

[Sparky-(Admin) 23,729]

WOW!! Thats a great price on a sweet tractor. It does sound like your charging circuit might be messed up unfortunately. Have you tried installing a good battery like the one from your other tractor just to make sure that it isnt the battery. I had a similar problem with a Jeep I was tinkering with and it turned out that the negative post of the battery was rotted off just below the connection point and also just outa sight so it was'nt easy to find. Everything was workin with a set of jumper cables on it but went dead when I removed the cables. After I decided to remove the battery the post fell off and that turned out to be the problem. Make sure the negative cable is making a good connection where it attaches to the tractor frame.

Good luck and let us know what you find to be the problem.......Mike

[nylyon-(Admin) 8,273]

I'm pretty sure the battery is shot, but I will put a charger on it tomorrow. The way I figure it (if there is a charging problem) it is the rectifier, stator, or a wire somewhere. Any of these shouldn't be too big a deal, but I bought this for the deck, tires, wheel weights and plow anyway, so the tractor is a bonus. It sure is a nice looking one though.

[nylyon-(Admin) 8,273]

Woo Hoo! I put the charger on for an hour, the battery sure is shot didn't even charge enough to turn it over once BUT it did give it a little juice. I jump started it again, took off the charger, lights work and the volt meter goes to 14V at full throttle, drops down to 12 at idle so it seems to charge. Just need a battery and it's all set.

I had a chance to look at this in the day light. The mower deck is like NEW, not a speck of rust or missing paint. The blades, anti-scalp and gauge wheels need replacing, but the deck and spindles are PERFECT.

I hooked up the plow and I have a little work to do there. It seems that the hight-o-matic (or what ever it is called) seems to be frozen. I am soaking it with some PB blaster in hopes to free it up. I then have to work on the blade height. It doesn't raise nearly enough. It looks like I'll have to take a link out of the lift chain to get it higher.

Brian in NJ, if you happen to read this, thank you again, I'm a happy guy!

I took some pictures, I'll post them later.

[nylyon-(Admin) 8,273]

Here's some pictures the 414-8 has the plow the other is my 416-Hydro, both need a good cleaning!!:

[Sparky-(Admin) 23,729]

You did great! Thats a sweet lookin tractor. Your gonna love snow-plowin. I cant get enuff after a snowfall. Kinda feel like a heavy equipment operator but on a small scale. My son is going to try plowin with Ag tires and weights but I'm not sure how well it'll do. I think a softer tire like a 2 ply turf is the way to go. I run a pair on my plow tractor with 50# cast iron weights on each rear rim and no chains and have very little trouble with traction. I keep the air presure at 8#s max.

Mike...waiting on the first snow.

[nylyon-(Admin) 8,273]

If the AG's don't work out, I'll switch the plow to the 416 and get a set of chains.

[Sparky-(Admin) 23,729]

The rear tires on yer 416 auto are the same as what I use for plowin.

Mike

[nylyon-(Admin) 8,273]

It was such a nice day out today. I got the Height adjustment knob thing freed up, I was able to adjust the blade to it lifts fully. Found a couple of small items that the tractor needs, I guess I'll wait for them to show up on e-bay. It needs the hood brackets in the front and a new hood hold down rubber strap. Still didn't get a battery though.

After fixing a lot of little things, I decided to go plow some weeds and an old grass pile I've been wanting to flatten. This tractor does an excellent job, plenty of power and great traction. I'm really looking forward to some snow, but until then I'll plow down some more weeds and pricker bushes (I've got plenty of those to keep me busy for a long long time).

[nylyon-(Admin) 8,273]

Got the new battery in, decided to check all the fluids. The engine oil looks clean, like it has been changed very recently. I checked the trans and found it very milky, so I changed it with some 80W-90 gear oil. I suspect that this machine was used mostly for snow plowing and got some snow in the trans. I'll ride it for the winter and change it again in the spring. Not sure if I am going to use it to cut the grass or not. Those AG tires seem to dig up the lawn a lot more than the turf tires do.