D-200 Automatic restoration project (re posted)

[JamesBe1 80]

I've never seen a Datcon hours meter on a Wheel Horse before. If it were on this side of the pond, I would be inclined to think that it was an aftermarket addition. But since it is in the U.K., it's less likely that someone would order an hours meter from the US and have it shipped all the way over and install it on a tractor. I don't know, but I wouldn't think 2" hours meters are scarce in the U.K. The plot thickens!

Also, I've never heard of a solid badge on any of the D-Series. I would love to be wrong on that (I usually am). It would be kinda cool to see a solid badge on one of these.

Speaking of bling (badges), were there ever any hubcaps on any of the D-Series?

[JamesBe1 80]

Just a quick note. I was checking out my D-180 today, and remembered about the holes in the side of Andy's dash. Sure enough, the same holes are there in mine. Three on one side and two on the other. Looks exactly like his (from what I remember). I'll try to get a couple of pics and post them. They look 'factory' to me.

Andy, you might have a look back at the pics in Jeff's thread. He has some good close up shots of his dash.

Pics to the rescue again!

[wheeledhorseman 573]

I've checked it out and as far as I can tell there are holes in Jeff's dash panel as well. So we must assume whatever these were intended for was cancelled after the tooling up and pressing of panels had begun and this was from the start with the introduction of the '18'.

Mystery remains - what were they for and why three on one side, two on the other? Hmmm

Certainly factory but covered over by the decals on a 'D'.

I've never seen a Datcon hours meter on a Wheel Horse before

Thanks for that James - I kind of suspected as much. The hour meter has a similar stainless bezel but it is different to the other gages and it wasn't fixed in properly.

I suspect when it was changed a NOS item was used hence the odd year in the date stamp.

we had a little trouble taking my dad's steering wheel off until we purchased a bearing puller , took the one that fit just under the wheel tightened it then used the puller and it poped right off

Thanks for that Eric, they can be very stubborn to move even with a puller and knowing my luck I'd have damaged the wheel. As it would be very difficult to find another to replace it over here I took the easier option - to work round it.

Andy

[JamesBe1 80]

I noticed a D-200 for sale on ebay. It has a Datcon hours meters on it (with only 16.3 hours on it).

I guess I learn something new every day.

[Trouty56 565]

I missed a few updates Andy...nice job on that tensioner and front hanger for the deck. I was looking at the pile of rags and the dash/steering wheel assembly and thought...what the heck is he doing??? Then I realized the tractor was under it all....hahahaha....

[Trouty56 565]

I guess I learn something new every day.

Somebody on here has in their sig...if you don't learn something new everyday then you are not paying attention...lol

[wheeledhorseman 573]

I noticed a D-200 for sale on ebay. It has a Datcon hours meters on it (with only 16.3 hours on it).

I guess I learn something new every day.

Yes, and Coldone's has a Datcon as well so maybe mine is factory after all and th tractor really has just the 900 or so hours on it.

I missed a few updates Andy...nice job on that tensioner and front hanger for the deck. I was looking at the pile of rags and the dash/steering wheel assembly and thought...what the heck is he doing??? Then I realized the tractor was under it all....hahahaha....

Learned the hard way when I did the C-120 that if you're going to spray something on the tractor towards the end of a project then cover the whole thing up - it's amazing just how far overspray in the air will travel and still stick!

So, on to a little update:

Leaving the primer on the dash to completely dry out and harden I moved on to the matter of fitting a cutting deck to see if the hanger I made would work or not. My first thought was to simply use an old deck waiting to be welded up or scrapped but last year I picked up a NOS 500 series deck. I don't have a 500 series tractor but it was too good an opportunity to miss as Toro had stopped making any more decks for the WH range.

The hanger assembly is much larger on a 500 series and will not fit a standard tach-matic hitch but the conversion was pretty straight forward. I raided the cradle (for want of a better word) from an old deck and put it onto the 500 series shell together with the hanger I fabbed that's needed for a 'D'. The bracket mounting holes at the front were reusable but I had to drill four new holes to take the brackets at the rear. Amazingly straight forward.

Woo-hoo! It fitted.

Even the adjuster seems to work.

I still need to make the extension plates for the rubber bumpers and 'll need to dismantle it again anyway to paint the old mounting frame but the day's work was a success. I'll also need to measure up for a belt as the belt for a 500 series is a bit too short on a 'D'.

Did a bit of restoration work on the gages but I was surprised how good the wiring and connectors were - mainly down to the use of brass connectors rather than bright plated steel. So it looks as though I just need to put back the safety inhibitor wiring rather than the complete re-wire I was anticipating.

My son was itching to make an 'A' frame adaptor for the point hitch so we came up with some dimensions and a design based around some stock that we had.

We kind of guessed at the dimensions for one of these but it seems to have come out ok and it was the first time the hitch could be properly tested lifting heavy loads. The design we came up with is reversible. The bottom cross-member is 'C' section, the idea being to mount a standard tow hitch on the side showing and drill a row of holes along the bottom edge on the other side.

The rear WH decal isn't factory but I think it looks better than the originals which were simply the same as the hood decals cut down to fit. Mark (Meadowfield) did a 'special' for me.

So most of the decals are now in place including the tiny ones at the front of the hood. (The light was getting so bad with the weather that I had to use flash by now)

And the dash is reassembled though 've got to do something to fill the crack where the panel has split over time.

Must give the steering wheel a really good clean up next.

That's about it for now. With a bit of luck the hood catches will turn up soon but there's still a list of things still to do - haven't got to the end just yet.

Andy

[Anglo Traction 759]

Nice work adapting The Deck Andy !. Also see you have left the Bolt Heads bright/unpainted ....gives it that Assembled Engineered look.

[meadowfield 2,545]

Looking great Andy ! Same idea as me for the A frame....

[coldone 35]

Thats looking great Andy. Glad to see the 500 series deck fits, mine is almost shot so i will be on the look out for a newer one. Now i have options on decks.

[JamesBe1 80]

Fantastic work Andy. It looks like it should be on the showroom floor! I'm sure it's going to be tough to take it and and use it the first time.

I see the latches haven't arrived yet. Hope they get there soon.

James

[wheeledhorseman 573]

Thanks for the compliments guys - as always I'm not certain they're totally deserved.

Thats looking great Andy. Glad to see the 500 series deck fits, mine is almost shot so i will be on the look out for a newer one. Now i have options on decks.

The deck wasn't originally purchased with the 'D' in mind but it was a must have at the price in the belief that it must be possible to convert - which it is. My only regret is that I didn't also pick up the SD deck that had also come to light when the dealership had been clearing out their parts store. It was cheaper as it had been used as a 'demonstrator' but still pretty minty to look at. It's an odd feeling to turn over a deck and see the same shiny paint job underneath - won't last long though! I have to say yes it does appear to fit but I haven't actually used it yet as I've got to get a belt first but I can't see any obvious issues at this stage.

Fantastic work Andy. It looks like it should be on the showroom floor! I'm sure it's going to be tough to take it and and use it the first time.

I see the latches haven't arrived yet. Hope they get there soon.

James

Been through that pain barrier with the C-120 which looked like new till I started using it. Still looks pretty good a year on but now has signs of fair wear and tear and gets filthy with mud, dust, and cuttings. It's what they're made for so it won't really bother me too much with the 'D'. I'll let you know when the latches arrive - we've just had a long bank holiday weekend for the Queen's Jubilee which will add a couple of days to the usual ten to fourteen days it usually takes.

Nice work adapting The Deck Andy !. Also see you have left the Bolt Heads bright/unpainted ....gives it that Assembled Engineered look.

Undecided as to which way the bolts will end up Richard. I'll probably paint the ones under the fenders and the like but may leave the ones on the panels. To my mind it's kind of a balancing act, I agree about the engineered look but parhaps too much creates a 'meccano' effect.

Looking great Andy ! Same idea as me for the A frame....

Reassuring to know it can't be too far off the mark then Mark. (sorry for that)

Long story - I'd been looking at the various designs that appear on RS and elsewhere including yours with a view to planning to build one. My son initially wanted to crack on and convert a boom type crop spayer I've bought for the 'D' from Cat 1 to Cat 0.

I said no, not until we get the geometry sorted out by fabbing an 'A' frame. Result was OK we'll do that then. So I didn't get to fit the deck that day, didn't have any reference material to work from other than mental pictures of what I'd seen and what came out was governed by available materials and a battle of designing minds.

I wanted a second brace half way up the frame, he decided it wasn't needed. He didn't think it needed a brace across the very top above the hitch pin, I insisted. I wanted three holes so that it could be used with different geometries, he said we'll do that on the next one, this is just a trial model and in a way it is just that, though I may just add the extra braces one day when he's not around.

I suppose I should measure it up as I suspect the dimensions are different to a GT-14. Will put it on my list.

Andy

[wheeledhorseman 573]

I guess an update is well overdue but the truth is that I haven't been able to spend much time finishing off the project over the last few weeks. The grass is growing like crazy with all of the rain we seem to have been having since way back and we've just bought another adjoining field that's been very neglected so there's been a lot of physical work (+seat time ) but not much resto time I'm afraid.

A few bits and pieces have got done though.

Having worked round the issue that the steering wheel wasn't going to be easy to remove I was inspired by another thread and decided to have a go.

The details are in the thread so I won't duplicate it all here but from this......

to this ......

was achieved using this.....

and the use of diesel as the penetrating fluid.

It would have been nice to have removed it earlier in the resto but better late than never as I've been able to clean up the steering wheel properly and investigate the worn bush which really needs replacing. I'm thinking (hoping) that I can find a suitable sealed roller bearing but if not then I guess it's a matter of making a solid nylon bush. If anyone with a 'D' has a neat solution then please chip in. The steering wheel is back in place for now as it's a job that can wait for a while.

The deck looked pretty good in the previous photos but largely out of view was the somewhat rusty hanger frame I robbed from a scrap deck so it had to be dismantled, painted, and then reassembled again.

Even managed to find a suitable plastic handle for the 'D' specific front bracket I made. Not quite identical to the OEM but it looks ok and is functional. Just need to measure up for a belt now but that's another task that can wait a while.

Another bit of painting was the hitch adaptor which although an experimental version got painted none the less.

Having got the tractor out to take a photo it then refused to start up again and when it finally did the engine was hunting. It appears that the electric fuel pump is giving up the ghost as it tends to tick away long after it should have stopped when the engine isn't running. Fortunately its the type you can dismantle to get at the diaphragm and valves so it's now another job on the 'to do' list.

From past experience it is sometimes possible to clean the valve seats and flip the little paxolin discs over to use a better surface but if not then I'll probably go for a modern electronic pump as they seem much more reasonably priced than the old SU style pumps.

The other issue with this little trip to the grass and back was that one of the blanking plugs I'd used on the hydro motor where I'd disconnected the hoses to the damping valves decided to start leaking oil. The issue here is that the ports are NPT and rely on the taper to make a seal - a system that I gather is largely frowned apon these days. The blanking plugs were plain BSP with sealing washers but they'd served their purpose so I've put the hoses back and remounted the damper on the rear fender. The original intention of getting some new hoses made up first will have to be passed over for now.

Oh well still lots to do - I must sort out the gage wiring next.

Andy

So there's still plenty of things on the 'to do' list

[coldone 35]

Andy, looking great!

My D200 takes a 107 inch belt and the D160 takes a 103 inch belt. I dont know how different yours will be but maybe this will help give you a starting point.

[Anglo Traction 759]

I'm sure you'll find solutions for all the little setbacks Andy, but it's a fine 'Propper Job' your doing there.

The Deck look's great and will compliment the 'Beast'. Am i right in recalling the old SU Pumps were fitted to Minis?.

The old trick of flipping the Paxolin Disc valves worked for me as well on the old Raider 12's Fuel Pump.

Would be interesting to know the Dims of the Steering Bush, as maybe I could make one up for you.

[wheeledhorseman 573]

Andy, looking great!

My D200 takes a 107 inch belt and the D160 takes a 103 inch belt. I dont know how different yours will be but maybe this will help give you a starting point.

Haven't had a chance to use a bit of rope to get a measurement yet but thanks for that. Bearing in mind that it's a deck for a 500 series tractor (or so I was told) it will be interesting to see if it comes out the same as one of the standard decks for a 'D' series.

I'm sure you'll find solutions for all the little setbacks Andy, but it's a fine 'Propper Job' your doing there.

The Deck look's great and will compliment the 'Beast'. Am i right in recalling the old SU Pumps were fitted to Minis?.

The old trick of flipping the Paxolin Disc valves worked for me as well on the old Raider 12's Fuel Pump.

Would be interesting to know the Dims of the Steering Bush, as maybe I could make one up for you.

Having just got back from a long weekend away at a Military Vehicle show I've got my work cut out to get the beast moving again if I'm going to get it to the Ardingly Show this coming weekend. I'll be stripping the pump down to see if it can be patched up tomorrow.

The gages still need wiring up but at least the oil leak has gone away since refitting the damper valves using the old hydraulic hoses.

Yes, the SU type electric pumps were used on minis. Located on the rear subframe they were the short draw, long delivery variety as opposed to those used on the Morris 1000 where the pump was located on the bulkhead behind the engine and was a long draw, short delivery type. I guess there was some difference in the valving but really can't remember beyond the fact there was a difference. It was all a long time ago now. There's another twist I came across i.e. pos or neg earth types given that on an SU pump the casing is used as the ground connection.

The pump fitted by a PO has two terminals (+ and -) so can be used with either pos or neg earth but tends to indicate that the armature in this style of pump is a magnet so polarity is important. Hopefully I can patch it up to keep going for a while. In the long run I'll replace it with a modern elctronic pump designed for carb rather than injection systems.

Haven't had a chance to measure up the steering bush yet but if using a flanged bearing isn't an option then I'll take up the offer. Thanks for that Richard.

Andy

[meadowfield 2,545]

good luck and hope to see it on saturday !

[Hodge71 663]

Keep at it Andy, you'll have it in "good nick" in no time.....

[wheeledhorseman 573]

Never thought for one minute that getting a tractor to a show (that was running) would end up as a last minute challenge but it's a mere nothing compared with Ian's efforts with the 6x6.

Realise now that I should have ordered a new electronic pump before I went away last weekend but have manged to patch up the old pump for now so fingers crossed. In the rush I forgot to bleed some fuel through before reconnecting the pump to the carb with the result that some dislodged grot got stuck in the float chamber needle valve and gas eneded up everywhere. A real pain as to get at the float chamber you have to remove the air filter complete and remove the carb from the manifold. The whole thing took a day to get back to where I should have been in the first place.

I've got a rental van booked for the weekend but there's no way even with the longest available that I can get a D and a C inside so it's just going to be the D as I guess that's what you guys will want to see. Today I've got to build a ramp to load it that's strong enough to support the beast oh and turn the rear wheels inside out to get the narrower configuration so that the rear wheels will follow the front wheels up the same planks and into the back of the van.

Looking forward to meeting you all at the weekend. Should arrive at the show ground late tomorrow afternoon.

Andy

[Anglo Traction 759]

Andy, look forward to meeting up again and seeing your 'Big D' that you've worked so hard to get ready. Hope the drive is trouble free for you.

[Stigian 1,234]

It will be good to catch up Andy, oh and see your "D" :D

[wheeledhorseman 573]

Well the day came for the D to go to its first show and as I couldn't use the Jeep Cherokee to pull the box trailer and our caravan, a rental van was used. The loading ramp was a bit Heath Robinson but the D managed to climb the ramps (a 30+ degree incline) with no trouble at all so it kind of confirms that there's not much wrong with the pump or motor - the reversing issue just has to be the check valve.

It was in and ready to be strapped down.

At the show ground the real challenge was to get it out again but we managed as it kind of tries to go backwards when asked so with a bit of a push as well it came back down the ramp.

and was soon on display in the area set aside specially for Wheel Horses.

The weather was good enough on Saturday for us to cruise some of the the horses down to the arena for a drive round and then cruise back again along with the other tractors and walk behind machines in the Horticultural section.

The D attracted quite a lot of attention from both the WH guys who had never seen one in the flesh so as to speak and from visitors to the show. One guy came over and told me that he had a D-200 and for quite a while we dicussed things like the problems he was having with the PTO bearing, where I had got the vinyls from etc. His wife who had listened patiently to the conversation came up with a most wonderful one liner to her husband when we had finished - "Is this what your tractor should look like then?" I took that as a complement! So thanks to all who have helped in one way or another with this resto, particularly those in my extended 'family' on the other side of the pond.

We had a great time at this first UK WH roundup despite the weather and I have a strong suspicion that it will become an even larger gathering next year. Sadly it was time to load up and head home all too quickly.

Andy

[Trouty56 565]

Bet you were proud to display your tractor Andy. Sure looks good sitting there amongst the other Wheel Horses....

[coldone 35]

Andy,

Thanks for the pics. Is that a dozer frame i see in the last pic kinda stuffed under the D?

[Lars 526]

That D came out realy good.. u did a realy nice job on it

And i have just checked the dash on my brothers D180 about the hrs meter and that must be the right one.

the tractor i have here also have the same and it has 690 hrs on it