New Wheel Horse for the kids to ride around at shows!

[Ken B 3,134]

That just might work Jeff, it has certainly worked with my kids! I can't wait to see this Ranger done, I know its gonna be an awesome one.

[SALTYWRIGHT 859]

HI.......YANMER SELLS A COVER FOR THAT MOTOR IF YOU DO NOT USE A PULL START. HAVE A GOOD TIME IN PA.

[bowtiebutler956 649]

That little yanmar will be awesome on there! I'll be looking forward to seeing it done.

Matt :flags-texas:

[fireman 1,021]

Spent a few hours today seeing how the diesel was going to fit. First and foremost the hood had to be raised for clearance which means modifying the steering shaft. I made a temporary plate and spacers to hold up the rear of the hood to the correct location. Cut a piece of 3/4" steel rod and made a coupler that will be hidden under the hood to lengthen the steering shaft. Made an aluminum spacer to temporarily hold up the front of the hood to it's correct location. I think I will find a donor hood to lengthen the existing hood for a cleaner look. I will have to notch the one side of the hood to make a little space for the air cleaner to pass by. Here is were I'm at so far:

[Ken B 3,134]

That is gonna be one mean Lawn Ranger. That motor looks killer on there. Any chance it'll be done for the Kent show coming up?

[bowtiebutler956 649]

Wow! Thats going to scare all the other Lawn Rangers away. Thats Mr. Lawn Ranger to you! Thats going to be awesome.

Matt :flags-texas:

[fireman 1,021]

Ken,

I don't see why it shouldn't be ready for Kent. I have to quickly find a donor hood so I can cut and section the front lower portion on to the existing one, then do a little body and paint work. I hope to fire up the engine when I get home from work tomorrow morning. If that goes well, I will make a battery hold down to go under the seat and get the wiring all squared away. I've got a little over a month to finish so we'll see.

[stevebo-(Moderator) 8,264]

Looking veyr nice Jeff. Should be a nice little set up.

[fireman 1,021]

I picked up off of Fleabay a brand new Yanmar fuel tank with built in valve and the mounting brackets. This is the one that is supposed to mount on to the side of the engine. I won't be mounting it there because it won't fit under the hood. I am going to mount it behind the seat and above the hitch. Went to the store today and bought some fuel line, clamps and a new fuel can for the diesel. Couldn't find a small "yellow" diesel can so I opted for a red one and I will just paint it yellow. Stopped and picked up some premium diesel from Sunoco. Brought everything home and sectioned in a small piece of hose just to test run the engine.

I'll take a step backwards and also say that last night while searching for a wiring diagram, I found out that this specific engine was setup for the military and they run 24 volt systems in there generator sets. So I will have either have to find a small 24 volt battery or run two 12 volt in series. I am starting it with a 12 volt car battery but when I let go of the compression release, the compression of the engine just about stalls the starter.

So today I got the engine set to give her first try and here is the results:

[bowtiebutler956 649]

Very nice!! You weren't kidding when you said it stalls the starter when letting go of the compression release! Thats going to be an awesome diesel for your kids Ranger! I can't wait to see it all together.

Matt :flags-texas:

[clintonnut 126]

It would be cool if you could run a piece of tight bend exhaust pipe out of the second hole in the hood and mount a low profile oil bath air cleaner. Would give it a good tractor look!

[Jake Kuhn 1,554]

That thing sounds cool!

[fireman 1,021]

Well spent part of the day sanding and repainting my new lift. The second half of the day was spent working on the Ranger. Figured out the best exact location to actually bolt down the new diesel. Made sure the shaft is perpendicular to the frame for accurate belt tracking and bolted it down. Had to shorten the belt guard due to the new engine location. Then remove the bracket that bolts the front of the cover to the engine from the piece I cut off and welded back onto the cover aligning with a bolt hole on the engine. Also removed the little tang that keeps the belt in place and welded that back on too. Sanded and primed where I had to weld. I replaced the aluminum block that was holding up the front of the hood with a piece of wood I milled in my milling machine. I contoured it so it would match up with the angle of the sides of the hood. I will use this till I can find a donor hood to modify the existing one. I used the previous belt and figured out it will now need a 65" belt with the diesel which I'll pickup on the way home from work on Sunday morning. I hope Sunday I can fab up the bracket to mount the fuel tank on the back of the tractor and actually take the tractor for its maiden voyage.

[bowtiebutler956 649]

Very, Very Cool !!!! Your a very skilled craftsman.

Matt :flags-texas:

[Jake Kuhn 1,554]

:bow-blue: :bow-blue:

[fireman 1,021]

Spent a few hours today working on the tractor. Had to cut off and relocate the two lower belt cover mounts on the frame. Layed out how I was going to mount the fuel tank using the rubber isolating mounts that it came with. It is now rock solid on the back of the seat pan. Installed the new belt. I also picked up a key starter switch and mounted that. I ran out of time tonight but tomorrow afternoon I plan on taking it for spin. I still have to fab up a stack for the exhaust and machine a spacer for the air cleaner so it will clear the hood. After that it just needs the wiring and battery and repaint the areas that need it and it will be all set!

[bowtiebutler956 649]

Looking Good !!!!!! So, you going to give us a video of it in action tomorrow?

Matt :flags-texas:

[fireman 1,021]

If I can bribe the wife or one of the kids I should have a video up sometime tomorrow late afternoon!

[whfan74 2,052]

Simply awesome Jeff! I remember seeing that at PA.......I really like what you have done with it and I am sure your kids will absolutely love cruising around on it! Looking forward to the video!

[fireman 1,021]

Well it's 11:30pm and I just got done with a marathon 7 hours working on the tractor. I was trying to decide wether to use the stock muffler or just a pipe. I spoke with Russ who put the Diesel in his tractor and decided to leave the stock muffler on for now and run a pipe off of that up and out. This meant modifying some things that were already done. To make a long story short because I'm too dam tired to go in more detail, first chance I get tomorrow morning she is getting rolled outside and fired up. Everything is now done except battery, wiring and some paint touch up (off course till I see something else I want to change). I'll try to the video done too.

[fireman 1,021]

Here it is! The long awaited video of it's first ride. After I took the kids to "meet the teacher day" at school this morning, came home and started clearing a path out of the work shop. I had been working so much down there I didn't realize the mess I had made. SInce I added a longer run to the fuel line, I had to disconnect it from the engine and get all the air out and make sure fuel was right to the end. Reconnected it and proceed to crank her over. It fired after just a few seconds. So without further adieu, here is the video. The kids and I have named it Diesel Ranger.

[whfan74 2,052]

That is awesome Jeff! Congrats on a job well done!

[bowtiebutler956 649]

:woohoo: Looks great!! I bet that little ranger has plenty of torque now. Very nice job!

Matt :flags-texas:

[stevebo-(Moderator) 8,264]

Jeff-

That really does look and sounds nice. It is a perfect size for the boys too!

[Ken B 3,134]

That ia way cool Jeff, it sounded awesome when he cranked it up.