Rideawaysenior 25 #1 Posted January 28, 2008 Hey crew, when you get a chance, take a look at my site www.tractorjack.net in the pictures page. My friend Mike and I are restoring his B80 and I have posted some before and after pictures up till today. We are in the process of reassembling it. There are still a couple of parts to complete, the hood needs paint, and the dash tower is in the process of being blasted and prepped for primer and paint. We have been using Valspar IH red purchased from Tractor Supply. Looks great and almost an exact match to the color used on the B80. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Kelly 1,029 #2 Posted January 28, 2008 Nice looking tractor I like the att. to detail taking it all apart, doing it right. I've used that same paint it looks like a good match to me also. But it takes along time to fully cure you have to be carful with it for at least a month. Again nice job Keep us posted. Kelly in MI. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
TT-(Moderator) 1,131 #3 Posted January 28, 2008 Jack, it really looks great! (and definitely RED !) If you want, I'll send you guys up another one to work on since you now have B-80 experience. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Rideawaysenior 25 #4 Posted January 28, 2008 Send her on up. We do this as a hobby. Mike and I have been working on the bigger machines as a side business mainly restoring vintage Farmall, and McCormick Deering, and some green stuff now and again. We have a network of people who have certain specialties that help us out. I mainly do the mechanics, and Mike does the body work. Although mechanics on a Wheel Horse are relativley easy except for a D250 as I am learning. This has put me behind the paint gun on more then one occasion. We have not charged allot for what we do, just enough to keep a good stock of supplies ie paint etc, and some spare capitol to buy some new tools as well as heat the shop. I recently bought two new abrasive blasters which are quite fun. One is a blast cabinet which will fit most of the smaller items, and the other is a self reclaiming abrasive blaster which recycles the blast media and seperates the debris as I work eliminating the task of having to refill the hopper and sift out the garbage. Those two items have been a time saver. We still do allot of wire brushing cuz lets face it some times it's just easier then letting the compressor charge up to blast a few small pieces. My next item on my to buy list is a gantry crane. This is mainly for the bigger tractors we do but even on the smaller end, bucking around some of the engines that Wheel Horse uses are not that light. I'm not old but I sure can't buck around a cast iron K block like I used to. We do most of our shopping at Harbor Freight which has an outlet store not too far from me. This is mainly because the items there are very reasonably priced and their quality is not that bad. (Not a plug for the store) LOL. I plan to keep posting our progress as we move along. I like the interaction I get from other membery. I can't tell you how many old school tricks I have learned over the years from other people who I have talked too about what I do. I like to pass along what I know as well as keep my mind open to learning more. Our up and comming projects are, a 197? D250, 197? D160, 197? D200, 1969 Charger 10, 1980 C125, 1988 516-H, and a 1991 312-H Classic. All of the above with the exception of the D250 are running so there won't be to many mechanics involved to show. I am going to be rebuilding an 8 pinion rearend within the next two weeks and will post some pics of that. I have never seen the inside of one before but I have my manuals and the group to lean on. Thanks too for all the nice feedback. Jack Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Rollerman 290 #5 Posted January 28, 2008 Jack the B 80 is looking good. I'll 3rd TT's comment and offer up my B 80 8 speed to your talents...LOL If I were closer I might lean on ya for some help with one of the 46 Pond Levers I'm going through. As I'm spray gun defeicient still maybe you can add some info ii another thread as to how Mike & you mix your paint any tips etc,etc. I have all the equipment other than I need to seriousl clean the 2 Binks guns I have before there usefull. Thanks for the update on the progress....looking forward to seeing more pics of the B 80 & others. :P Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
T-Mo-(Moderator) 4,496 #6 Posted January 28, 2008 You want to do a C-141? My needs to be redone as the previously owner thought everything had to be cover in red paint....everything. Too bad it would take a fortune to get it from MO to MA. But, nice job you're doing on that B-80. Looking good. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Rideawaysenior 25 #7 Posted January 28, 2008 Stephen, I use pyrex measureing cups and mix the paint. Valspar has the recommended mixture measurements on the back of the paint can and thinner can. I just go by that. Big thing is, don't guess, read the directions. Having a clean gun too is imperative. I don't have an automatic gun cleaning cabinet so instead I clean them my self. I run thinner through the gun and every so often will test spray on a piece of white cardboard. This is a good way to make sure that there is no more paint residue left on the inside. I also invested in a brush kit for cleaning the air and paint injection ports. Having clean regulating needles really makes a difference. Some other tricks I have learned are, buy a regulator that you can mount to your gun. You can regulate pressure from your compressor, but by the time the air reaches your gun, the pressure is not consistent especially if you have a long hose reel like I do. Also have a water seperator installed in the line. I have a tool oiler I use for when I'm using pneumatic tools. When I paint, I remove the oiler, and use a hose line I bought for "dry" applications. Another tip to getting a good finish is climate. My friend Mike is an oil burner tech and came across a hot air furnace that was removed from a 3,000 sqft home. We installed it in my garage now and that keeps the air warm and dry. We have found that if we let the metal surface to warm to room temp, the finish result is much better then if it were cold. Using a good heating source is pretty important too. Prior to the furnace, I had a wood stove which we still use on occasion. The best thing about these types of heat are, no interior emissions. Oil salamander heaters are no good as they will vent exhaust which eill contain some unburned oil into the room which can affect your painting results. Also a clean shop is good. The less dust flying around also means a nice smooth finish. Tacky paint is a magnet. If you have the luck I do everything and anything in the air will land on it. My full time employment is in the risk management field in the insurance industry and in my travels, I meet some interesting people. Reacently I was working with an autobody shop that needed some assistance with OSHA compliance regulations. To make a long story short, the owner of the shop is an old school body tech who passed along some good info to me. We got into talking about fiberglass work which his shop does alot of. I received an offer to bring my fibergalss pieces to him, and he would work with me and show me some old school techniques. He made it clear that I was going to be the one getting dirty, he was just going to watch and direct. I'm looking forward to when I begin the restoration on the D250 because the rear fender has some bad patch work that was done and I'd like to fix. I'm always open to suggestions and new ideas. If anyone has some please share. I'll also do the same. Jack in MA keepin it red. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
