Simplicity 3415H Repairs

Sawdust

Sawdust

Jim from Kentucky
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Since I just got this back in the summer I need to give it a good going over along with some routine maintenance. When I work on my tractors things tend to snowball. It’s hard putting dirty, oily or rusty parts back together without tending to them. This already is going to be one of those.

My first problem was not charging. I have good voltage coming off the S/G. I took the VR off and found out this one has a Three-Unit Regulator. The center coil which is called the Current Regulator has an open contact which should be closed. I’m going to adjust that closed and hopefully this will correct my problem.
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The design of these Simplicity’s are bad at the dash box and battery tray for collecting water, dirt, grass and perfect for nests. I had to take the battery, fuel tank, wiring, and cables off to free up the dash box.
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I have ten bolts that are covered in rust, and debris that are holding the box to the frame. At first I thought these will have to be drilled out. I soaked them with some PB Blaster then had some lunch for about an hour. I used my cordless impact starting slowly and they all came out with no problems. It looks worse than it is. I was real happy to get it off and find out I won’t have to patch weld anything. I scraped the heavy stuff off and quit for the day around 4:00. I’m not sure how I’m going to paint this but I can’t put this back together like it is. I’m thinking firing my torpedo heater up without the wood stove to get it real warm inside then prime one day then do it again to paint the finish. I used this orange paint on the deck and I had to use several coats to get the color to pop using gray primer. Has anyone used white primer before. I might look into that. It’s going to dip down to single digits tomorrow so I may not be in the shop.
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Next up will be some wire brushing and spot putty.
 
I always have and still do very much like the looks of those tractors. I know I've said it before but there is no deck out there that makes your lawn look as good as one of these old Simplicity decks when it is set up right. Those tractors are sure worth the time and money to fix up If they are in decent shape.
 
Cvans said:
I always have and still do very much like the looks of those tractors. I know I've said it before but there is no deck out there that makes your lawn look as good as one of these old Simplicity decks when it is set up right. Those tractors are sure worth the time and money to fix up If they are in decent shape.
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I agree Chris when I cut for the first time with my 7117H when I looked back I thought this is definitely the best. The deck on this 3415H was in very good shape but I went ahead and dismantled it, sand blasted and painted it.
 
I’m kind of embarrassed to say this but for the last few days with everything I’ve done I could have left my pajamas on. With the playoff games over the weekend and down to single digits the past few days things have dragged.

I did something we use to do dealing with rust years ago before all the anti rust products came out. I soaked the dash box with a 4/1 mix of vinegar to water in a spray bottle. I did this on Tuesday and again yesterday. I rinsed it this morning, blew it off then sit it next to the wood stove to warm up along with my primer. I’m using some red oxide primer for heavy rusty metal from Rustoleum.
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I wire brushed the frame and soaked it the same way. It’s not near as bad as the dash box. I’ll probably clean and prime it tomorrow.
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While the primer was drying I took the hydro shift lever off and cleaned it up.
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I put a finish coat of the orange inside the dash box yesterday just to see how well it covered the red oxide primer vs the gray as before on the deck. I like it, it only took three light coats. I did a little spot putty on the dash box and put a coat of primer on the frame. Running my torpedo heater along with the wood stove is just too much trouble. I have to keep the metal warm along with the paint. I’m thinking about just finishing the dash box with primer and do a finish coat on top of the frame then put it back together. When it warms up I can concentrate on the areas that will be seen.
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We’ve had a few good days after the storm passed by. I was able to keep the shop above the 60’s for paint drying. I put four light coats on the dash box. Even though the orange covers the red oxide primer better than the gray I used on the deck it still took four light coats. This paint comes in cans also so I think when I paint the fender pan and frame I’ll use that in a HVLP gun.
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I sandblasted the rear wheels one was covered with rust while the other one wasn’t bad at all. It’s the same thing in the front so I’m thinking this sat with exposure to one side a long time. I had plenty of Rustoleum gloss black so I used that on the inside of the wheels and the Rustoleum Pewter Gray on the outside. This gray looks like a really good match comparing it to the gray on the hood. Remember this gray was only used one year on the earlier version then Simplicity went back to the cream color because of customer feedback not liking it. I actually like this gray better than the cream that’s on my 7117H.
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I was able to break the bead on the front tires with no problem using the bumper Jack method. Getting them off the wheel was another story. One came off but the other had to be cut off. This was the first time I’ve never been able to remove a tire. It also had slime in it and was a mess!
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Today I’ll sandblast the front wheels. I’m going to give the rear wheels a week or so to cure before mounting tires. I’m going to check the clearance for some ATV tires sometime today also it’s going to be close.
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Yesterday I sandblasted, primed and painted the front wheels. Now all the wheels are done. My rear ATV tires are 25x10x12 so no problem fitting. I’m going to put tubes in these because I’m not sure if they have any leaks so I ordered a pair of tubes today. I’m not sure on the fronts yet. I wanted to go with snow blower tires but the suppliers I had picked out are out of stock. I also cleaned up the front wheel bearings which were well greased.
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A lot of cold weather preventing shop time and several days of nice weather working outside has hurt my progress.

I got my inner tubes from a regular buyer on eBay that I’m pleased with. The ATV tires mounted up good. One of the tires had a small slit about a 1/4” inch so I patched the inside of that before mounting.
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I went ahead and painted the dash panel since I had it off. This was the first time I used the Ace Hardware primer with their finish coat. I should have known like many times before using the same brand paint for both gives much better results. I only had to give this two coats.
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Now the dash box makes the frame look bad but that will have to wait for warmer weather. The wiring is done and I have to make up a couple of battery wires to get rid of the post type cables. I’m waiting on a contact about some type of aggressive ties he has for the fronts. If this doesn’t work out I’ll order a pair of Carlisle Snow Blower tires.
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I mounted up the rear wheels and love it ! I have exactly an inch between the highest rib and outer most lowest point of the fender. I leveled out the frame and front axle. I have 8 1/2” of height to the center of the spindle. Now I have to decide between the factory 16” or 18” front tires. I think I could go either way without effecting the height of the mower deck. I really like the look of the 18” front tires.
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I know of two but since we moved they are too far away now. I bought some from a guy about 45 minutes away last year that had a yard full but he is lazy to respond or don’t return my calls at all. I wait a little while on him. While waiting on that I’m going to put the mower deck back together that I rebuilt for this.
 
Sawdust said:
I know of two but since we moved they are too far away now. I bought some from a guy about 45 minutes away last year that had a yard full but he is lazy to respond or don’t return my calls at all. I wait a little while on him. While waiting on that I’m going to put the mower deck back together that I rebuilt for this.
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Jim I think you bought a Bolens from ole Glenn in Okeana before you moved south? I heard last fall, he had to move and all his stuff is gone now.
 
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