A few pics

[Gregor 4,846]

from the show today. I'll get more tomorrow. These are just a few of the many Gravely tractors coming up for auction. Turns out this guy lives in the same city as I do. All of

his tractors will be on displaly at the fairgrounds for viewing.

 

h

 

Don't make this guy mad. I think he could do some damage with that chainsaw.

 

I thought this was interesting. Don't know why it couldn't be incorporated on any tractor with a little fab work. Adjust your front wheel width as needed.

 

I learned Gravely was bought out by Studebaker in 1960. They are still being made to, as a commercial line I think. If you look long enough at this tractor

kind-a looks like a Studebaker Lark, with the azz end cut off. Dual front wheel drive. Rear tires steer.

 

Home made steam engine. Seemed to putter around pretty well.

 

Did I already post these? I don't remember. Oh well worth a 2nd look.

 

[slim67 2,735]

Gravely offered a million different attachments including the Terramite backhoe. I’m a fan for sure as a Commercial 12 was one of my tools in snow removal for the school system I worked for at the time. I don’t beleive the Gravley walk behinds are produced anymore and haven’t been for some time as far as I know. Thanks for the pics.

[Gregor 4,846]

33 minutes ago, slim67 said:

I don’t beleive the Gravley walk behinds are produced anymore

According to this collector, only commercial mowers are still being produced, no, walk behinds are not. Todays Gravelys are manufactured in Canada. This is all according to him. I know nuttin'.

[slim67 2,735]

18 minutes ago, Gregor said:

According to this collector, only commercial mowers are still being produced, no, walk behinds are not. Todays Gravelys are manufactured in Canada. This is all according to him. I know nuttin'.

Yes that’s correct. I thought you were referring to the walk behind tractors. There is a member here that has a Mountaineer which has something to do with Gravely after the walk behind tractors stopped production. I don’t know what he ever did with it.

Edited September 26, 2021 by slim67

[Jeff-C175 7,202]

5 hours ago, Gregor said:

damage with that chainsaw.

 

How exactly would that be used I wonder?

 

Does the bar turn 90 degrees for sideways cutting?

Edited September 26, 2021 by Jeff-C175

[Gregor 4,846]

You can turn it to any position you like, and lock it there.  Although I don't know what you would do with it turned 90 degrees. The tractor won't move sideways.

 

I guess you could swivel the tractor.

Edited September 26, 2021 by Gregor

[Achto 27,571]

2 hours ago, Gregor said:

Todays Gravelys are manufactured in Canada.

 

Actually Gravely was purchased by Ariens in 1982 and is currently manufactured in Brillion Wisconsin.

[oliver2-44 9,747]

@Gregor what is this cool tractor. The writing on the yellow front label gets blurry when I enlarge it. 

[Gregor 4,846]

That apparently is one of his pride and joys. Again, I am only relaying information he told me. As I mentioned earlier, all these tractors are being auctioned. He told me a tractor like this, but not as nice sold a few ears ago at auction for 9K.

 

I also was not aware that Gravely made their own motors.

 

He also told me the motor in this tractor ha a 5 piece crank, that somehow bolts together. The more he explained, the more confused I got. I have tried to google it, but no luck as of yet.

Edited September 26, 2021 by Gregor

[Gregor 4,846]

I did find this breakdown. Interesting that all this stays in time I think. There are 2 cams as I understand it, one for intake, one for exhaust.

[ranger 1,750]

1 hour ago, Gregor said:

I did find this breakdown. Interesting that all this stays in time I think. There are 2 cams as I understand it, one for intake, one for exhaust.

The multi piece crankshaft is how many of the old British single cylinder motorbike engines were built. Usually having tapers on the crank pin and flywheels, roller bearing ‘Big end’ and one piece Conrod. A big end repair kit would include a new crank pin. After tightening the crank pin nuts the assembly was ‘trued up’ by setting up between “centres”, checking with dial gauges, remove from centres, ‘gentle’ whack on a flywheel with a hammer, then ‘rinse and repeat’ until no run out measured!

[ebinmaine 67,484]

Some very cool rides there G. 

Thanks for taking the time to post them. 

 

[Gregor 4,846]

I asked my wife to buy me the Junior, she declined. I told her she was right. We should wait for a Senior to come along. She's gonna wish she had bought the Junior, me thinks.

[Gregor 4,846]

The guy with the Gravelys and I were talking yesterday about refurbished tractors. If you have 2 identical tractors, equal in every way mechanically, is one more valuable than the other, because it's all painted up and pretty?   Maybe to a collector who simply wants to park them in his shed, and take them to shows, it is. To someone who wants to use the tractor, maybe not. There are 2 schools of thought on refurbishing a tractor. Some like the original, nice patina look, while others prefer the bright shiny look of new paint. I belong in the latter group. That being said, once a tractor is painted up, bright and shiny like a new penny by someone else, all the fun is gone out of it for me, and holds little value. I guess that could be one reason we never regain the money we have spent on some of these tractors. Mine on the other hand are worth a million bucks to me, unfortunately, not to anyone else. But that's OK.

[oliver2-44 9,747]

Thanks for the info on the Estate tractor. I’ve never heard of them before

[ebinmaine 67,484]

43 minutes ago, Gregor said:

once a tractor is painted up, bright and shiny like a new penny by someone else, all the fun is gone out of it for me, and holds little value. I guess that could be one reason we never regain the money we have spent on some of these tractors. Mine on the other hand are worth a million bucks to me, unfortunately, not to anyone else

We build ours because we appreciate the old machines' ruggedidity. 

We use them. They work for us and with us. We scratch them. We repaint them. 

Regaining the money isn't an issue to us but is understandable. 

I'd spend $4000 restoring an old machine before spending the same buying a nice new disposable one. 

Every. Single. Time. 

 

[Gregor 4,846]

7 hours ago, ebinmaine said:

I'd spend $4000 restoring an old machine before spending the same buying a nice new disposable one. 

I did spend 4K+ for a new one a few years ago, only because I wanted power steering, and a mulch kit. Power steering is nice. You don't realize how nice, until you get on one of my Masseys.

[Gregor 4,846]

I promised more pics from the show today, but honestly, when I got back there this morning, there wasn't much left to take pics of. All the other Wheel Horses were gone, as were the Gravelys, and a large portion of the other GT's. There weren't a lot of them to begin with. Today was mostly hit & miss engines. Looking at these hit & miss engines got me to wondering. Why hasn't anyone ever put one on a garden tractor, just for shitz and giggles. Then I got to talking with a guy who had one mounted on a trailer. It was BIG! He guessed about 1800 lbs. The horse power? About 10. I guess that's why no one ever put one on a garden tractor.

[ebinmaine 67,484]

1 hour ago, Gregor said:

Looking at these hit & miss engines got me to wondering. Why hasn't anyone ever put one on a garden tractor

They're out there. 

I have a 1933(?) Fairbanks and Morse ZC 3 HP dual flywheel engine. 

Weighs maybe 500, 600 lbs?

That 3 HP don't sound like much but it has ABSOLUTE PILES of torque. That HP is at a very low RPM. Maybe 700, 800 RPM?

 

I've thought seriously about building a chassis specifically for that engine. 

Here's one from the interwebs using the same engine as I have: