Jump to content
PeacemakerJack

"Blackbeard"--Zach's GT-14

Recommended Posts

Pullstart

Aldon is so fast!  Use a washer front and rear, bushing in the dash panel if needed/desired :handgestures-thumbupright:

  • Like 1
  • Thanks 1
  • Haha 1

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
 
 
PeacemakerJack

Thanks for the link Jim.  I’ll have to get one of those ordered! For now, I’ll get it together with a bushing and washers.  

  • Like 1
  • Excellent 1

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
 
WHX??
27 minutes ago, PeacemakerJack said:

I’ll have to get one of those ordered!

Let me know you order from ther Jack I'll have you throw a couple things on for me. Split the shipping. Its 8 bucks no matter how much stuff.

  • Like 3

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
 
19richie66

I had to use a bushing and epoxy on skittles for the ignition switch. Someone hogged it out. Of course I filled the choke and throttle cable holes because I switched to levers.

  • Like 2

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
 
ebinmaine

:popcorn:

  • Like 1
  • Thanks 1

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
 
Pullstart

Second in line for the show!  :popcorn:

  • Like 2
  • Thanks 1

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
 
19richie66

Nothing like a little pressure.

BD50B075-0837-47F4-B860-261922590296.gif

  • Thanks 1
  • Haha 4

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
 
PeacemakerJack

That’s probably what I need Richie to stay on task😁

  • Excellent 1
  • Thanks 1
  • Haha 2

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
 
953 nut
10 hours ago, pullstart said:

Second in line for the show!  :popcorn:

Maintain a six foot or greater interval please,                  :angry-tappingfoot:               social distancing you know!                :hide:

  • Haha 6
  • Heart 1

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
 
ebinmaine
19 minutes ago, 953 nut said:

Maintain a six foot or greater interval please,                  :angry-tappingfoot:               social distancing you know!                :hide:

And be sure to wash your hands 748 times per day.

 

  • Haha 2

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
 
PeacemakerJack

Today...we started to do something that I’ve had in mind for about 5 years...putting steel on my shop walls!:text-bravo:

 

9897BCBF-7161-4518-B43C-6BF9D22DBAF2.jpeg.8c79e0687442b67cc5a3c692912f0873.jpeg

Our local retailer was selling their in house panels at a sale price and so I bought enough to do half the ceiling and two of my walls.  I could’ve bought more but I feel it is better to accomplish this task in sections based on the amount of stuff I have in there!!!

51A1A03E-496B-463A-8389-D34A7D149350.jpeg.8295fc9d10ffb5ae14227133c002f906.jpeg

@Coulter Caleb was a great help hanging the panels while I was cutting them!  It is awesome to have such a great sidekick!  I am sure gonna miss him when he grows up and moves into the next stage of his life.  

 

It is amazing already how much brighter and cleaner it all looks.  Now I’m going to have to keep it more organized.  Hopefully in a couple of weeks we can get going on Blackbeard🤞🏻

 

 

  • Like 2
  • Excellent 4

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
 
19richie66

He needs more stuff on his tool belt. :laughing-rolling: Tell him hey for me. 

  • Haha 6

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
 
PeacemakerJack

Finally got to working on the mechanical end of Blackbeard yesterday when the kids had finished school.  Zach and I routed the choke cable and I dabbled up a be longer support bracket for it.  We got it fit in place and it works great.  

 

D6F8F7CF-030F-4CF2-A481-22BF48764966.jpeg.3b261f27c596eb75a3c50e71371aca25.jpeg

Then I downloaded a Kohler M16 manual to try and figure out why this tractor starts so hard and lacks power.  I went through the carb settings and realized that I only had about half of the idle setting richness that I needed and about a quarter more on the main jet then what was needed.  Then on to the Governor sensitivity adjustment...I was off by a hole there.  Amazing the difference that made!  Now it seems to start better and certainly idles better.  As for power, I’ll let you know when I have a mower attached.  

 

FA87B627-4925-4F2D-A962-8FE4CAD0AC37.jpeg.371f805ce9d778d2b0f91c847edc3ab5.jpeg

Zach is pretty excited though!

  • Like 3
  • Excellent 4

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
 
19richie66

Great to see him working on it and smiling. Looking forward to following along.:coffee:

  • Like 3
  • Heart 1

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
 
Pullstart

For anyone who’s unsure, Zach is a very smart young man!  His father has taught him many mechanical bits and he grasps the information about as fast as you can throw it at him!  I had a blast staying up way past midnight with him working on @Coulter Caleb‘s Comanche 854 last fall getting ready for plow day!

  • Like 1
  • Heart 1

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
 
PeacemakerJack

Thanks for that Kevin!  He is a great little guy and I’m so glad the he got to work on Comanche with you and learn some stuff.  I showed him your post and he said that he remembered you asking him if he knew what a needle nose pliers was and he said he knew and went and got one out of my tool chest for you!  

  • Like 1
  • Heart 2

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
 
Pullstart

And what a carburetor does, and where the cables should go to work right, and...  he’s like a sponge!

  • Like 3

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
 
PeacemakerJack

We have used Blackbeard for a variety of yard tasks over the last several days. It seems like everyone wants to use him for something.  Anyway, I decided to hook the cultivator bar on the back and dig up last years plowed under strawberry bed.  I bought a project Cub last spring that had a Cat 0 on it and a Brinly A-frame adapter.  As noted earlier in this thread, that adapter has gotten use on this tractor since it is the only one in our herd with an installed and functional Cat 0.  I know that I needed to start working up that garden but I wasn’t sure which machine I wanted to use.  

563A4A4F-CD97-4B48-B981-30D2A1765235.jpeg.5b372fea23e2d1ab4053af9e0b130d87.jpeg

Why not try the Mighty GT-14?  Several things to note about one of these tractors if you have never been around one...

—they are big tractors.  Lots of iron with a solid presence.  I noticed just how solid as I was traveling over the uneven plowed ground to start with.

—they have full hydraulics.  It is so nice to be able to lift implements with literally the flick of a finger.

—all the controls are either on the dash or the center of the tunnel cover.  The designers placed the lift lever within inches of the direction/speed control. This allows the operator to control the precise speed of the machine while lifting and lowering the implements as needed without having a third arm for the steering wheel!

33072FEB-0137-4869-A13B-807FF4021649.jpeg.09c271983fe991c9ef69063351c3f136.jpeg

Im sorry these pics aren’t better but we were working in the shade already and it doesn’t make for the best photos.  I really liked working with the Cat 0 because I could create down pressure with it.  Last year when we used JackRabbit for the same purpose, we had to add weight to keep it in the dirt. 

D630176E-F87B-47C3-9475-4D67236BEA06.jpeg.19528034c7eebc0c7bccd1d8bec22248.jpeg

Next up, I need to get the tiller pulley situation figured out and try out the awesome tiller on this dude before tearing it down to be repainted.  On a side note...the only thing that bothers me with this tractor right now is that the hydro seems really noisy.  It still has good pressure but I’m afraid that when I blew that line a couple of years ago that I either trapped air in the system or just plain caused some damage.  Maybe it is just nerves...?  

 

81A860EA-DCEE-4093-B5F7-FDA3BC13F3BA.jpeg.8b9a7e041c9bdab0c5beb5b7ccfc1b03.jpeg

This is a fun bonus pic!  I picked up this 982 IH Cub last year for the super low hour replacement engine in it and a hydro turn 54” blade for my buddy.  Now that I had what I needed it was time to sell.  These genuine IH produced Supers are hard to come by and I’m sure someday I’ll regret selling it. However, someone wants to buy it and so we had to tow it out to the ditch and load it in the pickup bed for the trip to IL. Blackbeard was up to the task of towing the Cub and @Coulter Caleb was up to the task of driving!

  • Like 1
  • Excellent 3
  • Heart 1

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
 
ebinmaine
4 hours ago, PeacemakerJack said:

they are big tractors.  Lots of iron with a solid presence.  I noticed just how solid as I was traveling over the uneven FOREST ground

 

And now we know why I'm building a "big-wheel".... Super-sized tractor.

 

I feel a HUGE difference between the weighted and non-weighted versions of Cinnamon Horse.

 

4 hours ago, PeacemakerJack said:

nice to be able to lift implements with literally the flick of a finger

Oh noooooo....

The luxury getting to you ?

:lol:

 

 

Neat Cub BTW......

 

  • Like 2
  • Thanks 1

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
 
PeacemakerJack

Time to resurrect another older thread!

 

We haven’t used Blackbeard much in the last 24 months because the tires on three of four corners are shot.  It is time to get some new treads for Zach so he can use his tractor again.  The natural fit for it would be AG tires but I’ve noticed that it is getting increasingly difficult to find AG’s for 15” rims.  Also, Zach really wants to use this tractor for multipurpose use (mowing, snow blowing, plowing, grader working, etc). The ever burgeoning ATV/UTV market has supplied us with a bunch of options when it comes to tires that weren’t available just a few short years ago.  I’m looking for opinions on what you guys would go with.  Here is a couple of tires that I found last nite…

B6557914-97F7-41EE-851C-1DECDF71C996.jpeg.c4fe42f332371f2d6ef97d58b2ab9e3b.jpeg

 

92C9FCC7-BE35-4F4E-9182-F30246062D12.jpeg.4d81c6a84297b6a504f9768f51b9d6eb.jpeg

 

These are similar to the tires that @19richie66 put on Skittles.  I tried to find those that he used and apparently they are no longer available in the size we need.  @Pullstart and I did discuss the possibility of changing to 5 lug hubs and going with a 12” rim which has a TON of options both inside and outside the ATV market.🧐🤔 what think you men? If you have any leads on good priced 15” tires—I’d be interested!

 

 

Secondly, as I stated earlier in this thread…I had one of the hydraulic lines blow off Blackbeard while mowing a few years back.  I only ran it one long pass before turning and realizing that HyTran was gushing out and I shut it down.  I replaced the hoses and refilled but it seems to me that it has been weak since then making a high pitched whine while in operation.  I have another Sundstrand pump from an early Blackhood, does anyone know if it is the same?  I know that is a strong hydro and I’ll switch them out if it will work…

 

 

Zach is a good kid and after seeing Eric plowing with his GT-14 at Jim’s last weekend, I’ve got to get this thing rolling for Zach.  Plus the wrench time with him will be far more beneficial than screen time👍🏻

  • Like 2
  • Excellent 3

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
 
ebinmaine

Good to see you back Man!

 

The wheel n tire aesthetics are a catch 22. 

Although I understand the appeal and practical consideration of using ATV tires .... I REALLY like the look of TRACTOR tires on a tractor. To me that isn't necessarily an AG tire though they would be the king. It's a shape issue. A good square look. Tires that look like balloons don't belong on a tractor.... IMHO.  

Also, the original look of certain models dictates a certain size wheel.  Big wheel Wheelhorses.  See that? Big. 

Gotta stay 15" or even 16" wheel.  

 

Given the choice of the two pics above I'd lean towards the lower one. The bite will be good along with the ride. Good overall traction in multiple conditions.  

 

  • Like 2

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
 
Pullstart

These tires are nowhere near as aggressive as those ATV/UTV tires Josh, but with no added weight did pretty OK.  Not great but they are just all terrains.  I have a feeling that fluid filling, or adding wheel weights, would do great improvements.  The tires you show above have much larger lugs, much larger spacing too.  I bet they’d impress even the plow dogs.

 

 

6EDB9546-B213-4898-9212-24B1615A2334.jpeg

8ECAB9C5-A665-4794-AE7B-ACBA1FFFB345.jpeg

  • Like 3
  • Heart 1

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
 
Pullstart

And this is where I can agree, disagree and maybe even agree some more with EB, all in the same breath.

 

AGs are classic.  I’m sure Josh wouldn’t go any other way, if there was an affordable solution.  These are UTV tires, Interco Interforce II, 27x10.50-12.  Small wheels on a big wheel.  Big tires on small wheels on a big wheel.  I would ALMOST argue that it looks even more “Big Tractor” now with more rubber.  Either way, we need to find that balance between yard chores and the occasional furrow.  I can’t see either of the tires you found @PeacemakerJack as letting you down as an amazing all purpose tread.

 

 

3827B113-C3A2-4C73-BEB8-E1955FAB7CE5.jpeg

F07B70CB-2A5D-4061-8994-F1D772A6347E.jpeg

  • Like 3
  • Excellent 2

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
 
19richie66

The second tire is closer to what I have. I guess if you had 14” wheels you would have a ton of choices. Guess they got away from 15” in the UTV sector. 

  • Like 4

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
 

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now

×
×
  • Create New...