Martin 2,132 #1 Posted May 1, 2011 well i decided it was time to stop messing around and get started on tearing the 1054 apart. ive been wanting to get started on it for a few weeks now but just couldnt bring myself to stop riding it and start rebuilding it. everything else that needs fixing is better done with it apart, the rust in the back as well as the normal wear everywhere there is movement or play etc. this is going to be a worker rebuild. all the rust, dents and holes not needed will be fixed, but im not getting carried away with real nice paint etc. its going to be powdercoated as much as possible, it will still look nice, just with the process of powdercoat theres no filler or hi build primer etc. so the metal substrate has to be really good or its gonna show. and this tractor isnt perfect to start with so we will see how it turns out. i am gonna try to make it look nice, but i also want to use it and have some fun on it too. here it was a few hours ago..... how i finished up tonight..... the 875 is just looking on, as bit by bit the 1054 slowly disappears..... 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
bitten 134 #2 Posted May 1, 2011 Good Luck and keep us posted. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Gene_S 93 #3 Posted May 1, 2011 Looks like you have a good straight 1054 to start with. The rear fenders on my 1054 are beat up pretty bad and would be a chore to straighten out. Good luck and have fun... :thumbs: Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Martin 2,132 #4 Posted May 1, 2011 made a little more progress today..... trans is now seperated and just the steering and front axle/wheels to go. wheels make it easy to wheel around though! took it outside to give it a wash, make it a little easier to work on the metal.... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
can whlvr 993 #5 Posted May 2, 2011 it looks like it will be a good candate for a powder coat Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Martin 2,132 #6 Posted May 2, 2011 heres the couple of the worst areas that need attention the pto control mounting area...... and the rear fender area has quite abit of rust........ im also thinking of mounting the battery in the back rather than up under the hood, give me a little more room. i would make a nice area for it in the rear section. this area needs to be cut out anyway and the current battery tray bottom section is bad. im interested in everyones thoughts on this. pros and cons etc. all stripped down ready for some bodywork.... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Martin 2,132 #7 Posted May 4, 2011 powdered a few things today. frame and rear section hopefully will get blasted tomorrow and then some metalwork for me this weekend..... 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Lane Ranger 10,972 #8 Posted May 5, 2011 Martin: You are going to have the best looking "working" 1054 on Red Square! Keep sending out the photo updtates. It looks great. :thumbs: 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Martin 2,132 #9 Posted May 5, 2011 well lane, that remains to be seen....... still, im hopeful that it will be a nice rebuild and something i will enjoy using. its good to be able to give a piece of machinery another lease on life.... thanks for the comments. martin Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Martin 2,132 #10 Posted May 5, 2011 got the frame/rear section blasted along with some other stuff today. now the real work is gonna begin....... lots of rust to cut out. also while blasting my gas tank found quite a few pin holes and one 1/4 inch size one as well. so im either gonna patch it (which will not look very good) or have to find another. im almost thinking of just finding something new or plastic and save all the hassle of patching something and always worrying about it leaking. plus its a pain in the a$$ to change it out if it does start leaking.... have to drop the trans and all... would be nice to keep it all looking fairly original though. guess im sitting on the fence at the moment. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jasoncracer 0 #11 Posted May 6, 2011 Coming along very nice! cant wait to get mine together! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
corn53 4 #12 Posted May 6, 2011 :thumbs: Nice work so far!!! Cant wait to see the it done!!!! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Martin 2,132 #13 Posted May 7, 2011 well the metalwork has started. cut out the rust from the rear box area and replaced with fabbed up pieces. i made the box a little different than original, though if you havent been around 1054s very much its not real easy to see the differences. the lip on the top is sort of obvious but i tweaked it bit elsewhere as well. lets see how good you guys are. the box is tacked in as i left it tonight and ill start fresh in the morning on the rest of the metal to be replaced. as always heres some pics.... one thing that does concern me is being able to get the rear fenders straight enough for powder coating. not being able to fill and hide stuff in the metal makes everything stand out when its coated. well thats gonna be my next challenge. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Martin 2,132 #14 Posted May 8, 2011 well today i tackled the pto mount on the body. it was torn out and the whole section needed replacing and a bit of reinforcement. then numerous other cracks and missing pieces were fixed. also placed some triangle braces at the trans plate to frame rail area. this one didnt have any cracking in the trans plate, but the frame to plate welds were starting to. heres the pto mount before... fabbed up panel to replace that area, this pic doesnt show it but i placed some 3/16 plate behind it and welded the two together to strengthen the mounting area. also welded some nuts for the bolts to thread into. battery box was cut out and a new one will be fabbed up. pto mount done.... massaged the fenders a little more and finished welding up the back storage area... i have to keep in mind that i want this to be a worker and its going to get used. i would have liked the rear fenders to be better to start with... but somebody had flared the backs of them and butchered with pliers or some sort of clamping tools and gouged them badly, also splitting the bottom edges in a few places. also this thing had a lot more rust in it than i could first see with multiple layers of faded, weathered paint on it. its not until you get the blaster out and strip it down naked that all the bad stuff comes out..... sort of like people i guess!!!! anyway im sure its not going to turn out perfect, im not prepared to put in the time on this one. thats why this thread is called 1054 rebuild and not 1054 restoration. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Martin 2,132 #15 Posted May 10, 2011 made up the battery box, tightened up the clutch linkage bushings in the rear of the frame, and messed around with the fenders yet again..... i think im done now with the surface prep for the frame and fenders. whatever i missed, too bad. its gonna be used so im sure it wont be long in use and ill forget about all the areas that arent perfect. well, at least it will be shiny. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Martin 2,132 #16 Posted May 10, 2011 well i went ahead and painted it today. did the rims as well. rims turned out good. not much else to say about the frame/rear section..... i guess you could say its red and glossy..... looks good in the pics though. few areas im not real happy with. i went fairly heavy with the powder to cover alot of the rust pitting and its got a lot of paint on it. powder will flow and fill low areas to a certain extent. i guess im gonna look at it as another 1054 saved. i tossed around getting rid of the whole rear section altogether and fabbing something up with trailer fenders (even went ahead and got some fenders) but i just couldnt do it. i didnt want to lose the 1054 style and those fenders would be fun to reproduce with my limited metalwork skills. i also didnt want to go as far as finding another parts tractor. who knows what i would have come up with. i figured id work with what i have and make the best of it. i also wasnt prepared to put alot of hours into something i want to use and let my ten year old loose on it. the body was filed as much as i felt safe doing but theres not alot of metal on those fenders to begin with... one day in the future will be the time to do a real nice one (really would like a nice c-160 to do) but now is not the time. the finish on the 1054 could have been better with wet coat instead of powder, because primer and fillers would have hidden alot of the bad metal but powder is a no brainer for me because i work with it everyday and $0. i also need to learn to stay away from work while im on vacation, because i seem to get dragged away from doing my own stuff and then end up rushing it so i can get out of the place!!! anyway enjoy the pics, i think when its all done it will look 100% better than it did and i know i will enjoy working it and not worrying about messing it up...... i think i got fairly close with the wheel color. its IFS/Klinger oyster white that we dont use very often. its just a touch lighter than the color that was on the inside of the wheels. will be interesting to compare with the wheel colors that others have used. camera doesnt show it well though. the last pic shows a white bag for contrast. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
smokin joe 31 #17 Posted May 10, 2011 Lookin good :WRS: Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
bitten 134 #18 Posted May 10, 2011 Looks like you are doing a good job for what you have in mind for it. Keep up the good work. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Martin 2,132 #19 Posted May 14, 2011 well, heres a update.... been working on getting the rear tires looking good. got them mounted, then mounted some new deestones on the fronts. worked on getting the trans ready for paint. was going to split the case and go through it, but the thing works well and looks really clean inside through the shifter hole, so i just cleaned up the case and painted it. this is the first part ive done so far that isnt powdercoat, i didnt want to subject it to the 400 deg oven that cures the powder. we have moderate success at work regarding seals and gaskets on painted assemblies going through 400 degrees, but i didnt want to mess with the trans replacing seals etc. so i just aerosoled it. forgot how much mess wet painting is. guess ive been spoilt with the ease of powdercoating at work. hers some pics. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Martin 2,132 #20 Posted May 18, 2011 heres some more....... got tank and trans in........ just had to see what a wheel looked like against all that red.... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
clintonnut 126 #21 Posted May 18, 2011 Looks really good! Makes me want to pull my 1054 out of the shed and do some work! Charlie Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
HorseFixer 2,012 #22 Posted May 18, 2011 Looks good Martin! Cheers ~Duke :WRS: Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Martin 2,132 #23 Posted May 21, 2011 starting to look a bit like a tractor again...... all work is being done under the watchful eyes of........ Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
c175inMA 8 #24 Posted May 21, 2011 Nice the tractor looks good the dog looks like it's having fun :WRS: Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Martin 2,132 #25 Posted May 26, 2011 yesterday powdered the engine tins and assorted other engine parts that i wasnt worried about throwing in a 400 degree oven. rattle canned the engine block tonight. will leave it till the weekend and assemble as much as i can until i get rest of engine parts Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
