Introduction and the start of my restoration!

[Thehunter 9]

Hi All, I am a new member here, this is my first post.  My name is Dave, and I live in Massachusetts.  I recently bought what I thought was a 702 from a friend in the hopes of restoring it to its former glory.  I found out it was actually a 704 after talking w/ a fellow member (gumshoes) and purchasing a 702 frame from him along with a few other parts.  I'll be documenting my restoration here, I hope you enjoy the ride.  This is my first WH, and I'm sure it will not be the last.  EDIT*** Engine is a 753 (1963 model year).

 

A little about the tractor... I bought it a few months ago, and it was in very solid mechanical shape.  I actually plowed with it during the big blizzard we had this year.  I stripped it all down last week, and started documenting what needed to be done.  The rear transaxle mount had been welded at some point, so I started looking for a 702 frame.  I bought one from Dave (gumshoes) and when I got home I realized it was different from mine... the front axle didn't fit.  Further research indicated I a 753???, so I'll be building a 63 w/ a 62 frame and front end.

here she is as i got her...

 

 

during the start of the blizzard...

 

 

 

getting stripped down...

 

 

motor pulled...

 

[chevyaddict83 39]

Welcome to the looney bin! I'm dave too, and close by to gumshoes (great guy) Glad to see you got biy by the bug too! Sent from my 416-8

[Thehunter 9]

Hi Dave, nice to meet you.  Dave (gumshoes) is a great guy, we talked for over an hour and a half when I met him to pick up some parts.  He was very helpful and informative, and was more than fair in his dealings. 

[TT-(Moderator) 1,131]

  Dave!

 

That tractor isn't 100% 702 and it is definitely not a 704.

 

What I do see is a mixture of '62 and '63 parts, but without clear, close-up pictures, it's hard to tell exactly which parts from what year.

Can you post more pictures of the hoodstand, gas tank, dash, etc.?

Is there an ID tag on the engine? If so, could you post all of the numbers please?

[Thehunter 9]

Hi Terry, that's interesting.  I'll definitely take some pictures tonight.  Any help would be appreciated, I have alot to learn!

 

dave

[KC9KAS 4,741]

Thehunter,   , and thank you for the photos!

[Jake Kuhn 1,554]

  looks like a nice project. And looks like it will be very easy to restore from the shape it was in too!

~Jake

[Mr. 856 170]

sweet little rig. Yah I hope my "restoration" looks as good as yours did BEFORE you took it apart. Had it been painted prior to you taking it apart? Sure looks clean in those pictures.

[Sparky-(Admin) 21,300]

Whatever model it ends up being, good luck with it!

Mike.........

[Ken B 3,164]

Any idea if that tractor ever spent time in CT?

[Ken B 3,164]

I'm going to answer my own question, that tractor without a doubt spent time in CT

[Thehunter 9]

that's funny, the tractor did actually come from CT about 2 years ago.  If that is my tractor, they PO must have swapped out tires etc, because alot of the parts are different than mine I can see.  Muffler is different, hood has a large dent on the RHS, right clutch is missing, fuel filter is different...

[Thehunter 9]

blood, sweat, and tears.  that was the name of the game last night.  I knocked the battery box off of the frame (it was rotted and thinned out) and when the last weld broke I drove a sharp broken corner directly into my thumb.  closeup of the bloodshed below

 

 

 

got the wheels and the frame over to the sandblaster today, too much work for a small cabinet...

 

[Thehunter 9]

a few asked for more pictures to try and determine the model year, i ran the engine cover numbers and the engine is definitely a 753...

 

 

here's the tank

 

 

here's the hood (bottom tab will need to be fabricated since it's broken off)

 

[Thehunter 9]

on the right side of the engine (looks like the camshaft bearing) there appears to be some chip out where it was pressed in at 3 o'clock.  would this be a stress riser for a potential crack in the future?

 

also, some of the fins near the exhaust are very "thinned out".  is this common for a motor of this age?

 

[buckrancher 2,679]

what you are looking at is the soft plug over the governor gear for replacing the governor gear shaft

Brian

on the right side of the engine (looks like the camshaft bearing) there appears to be some chip out where it was pressed in at 3 o'clock.  would this be a stress riser for a potential crack in the future?

 

also, some of the fins near the exhaust are very "thinned out".  is this common for a motor of this age?

 

[Thehunter 9]

i took the day off today to run some much needed errands, and decided to build an e-tank at lunch.  I think it came out pretty good.  The first culprit was one of the footrests.

 

here's the tank...

 

 

 

starting to "cook"

 

 

here she is before the dip...

 

 

 

i'll post pics when it's done, hope it comes out good.

[Thehunter 9]

6 hours in the tank....um, wow!

 

 

 

[stevebo-(Moderator) 8,330]

Ken-

If that is the one I am thinking.... It was my "first" round hood I think....

[Ken B 3,164]

And it had black electrical tape around the fromt plastic caps when you had it!

[groundhog47 347]

Dave, your E-Tank work came out lookin really great for such a short time, you must have a good setup. Thanks for photos of a nice beginning and   

[smoreau 658]

Your going to need a bigger e tank for the big parts! I did a 66 Lawn Ranger and e tanked everything! Worked great and if you don't have a sand blaster, it's the next best thing!Looking good!!!   and

[dbartlett1958 96]

Dave,

 

Nice looking job you have going on. E-tanks rock. Just put the nasty piece in and walk away. Multi-tasking is how I look at it.

[Thehunter 9]

hi all, made some progress this weekend.  Pulled the motor apart with the help of two friends and got it stripped down to the bare case.  The bore was badly scored, the main bearings were shot, and the valves were at the edge of their service limits.  So it'll be getting sent out for a .010" over bore, a hot dip, new valves and guides, new piston, rings, rod, reground seats, and all new seals/bearings.  Should be nice and pretty when it comes back.

 

 

pulled the flywheel and oil pan from the e-tank and got them ready to be shot w/ primer.

 

[Thehunter 9]

picked up my wheels and frame last night, does anything beat freshly blasted steel?

 

the bad part is once the frame was blasted it was evident that there were 2 small cracks just starting to form at the 2 bottom transaxle mounts.  I'm thinking of cutting out the entire section and fabbing up a thicker plate there instead of just bracing the holes with a washer plate.