Free tractor

[jdcrawler]

This is something that has never happened to me before ..... I was given a free tractor last week.
It is a Toro Master, model-A, golf course tractor.
I have a gas tank sitting on it behind the bus seat that will fit it fairly well.

The front axle, engine, transmission and steering column are from a 1928 to 1931 Ford model-A 1-ton truck.

The channel iron frame, rear axle, steel wheels and radiator are supplied by the Toro company to build the tractor.
It is missing the front grille, gas tank, hood and seat.








Here is a copy of an old Toro advertisement.
This shows a tractor with rubber tires but they came with steel or rubber tires.

 

[Sawdust]

Oh wow what a project this is going to be.

 

[BMaverick]

It has an impressive look with those really nice wheels. How did you donor get those old school railroad wheels like a steam roller?

 

[BMaverick]

On another forum, someone believes those nice spokes rims are off of an actual Ford Model-A truck. Those fat steel tires were an option back in the day too.

The Toro Master A and the Jr. Model A are both related.

Toro Jr. Model A - Google Search

Chances are, you model is the dump tractor.

 

[BMaverick]

Yes, the Toro Jr. Master had the metal wheels and the Master A had the truck tires.

Either one is a really nice find !

 

[1967Craftsman's]

Pretty cool machine there, I like it. It reminds me of a doodlebug tractor.

 

[UncleWillie]

I can't wait to see what you do to it.

 

[MNGB]

I like it JD will be following

 

[Sawdust]

I was looking at the hood and grill pics in Brett’s post. It looks like especially with your experience in fab work you could fab hear with a few pics and measurements.

 

[BMaverick]

I was looking at the hood and grill pics in Brett’s post. It looks like especially with your experience in fab work you could fab hear with a few pics and measurements.

Happy he can fabricate. I'll be watching here too.

The tricky part is, finding enough good images to know what to fabricate.

From 20-wheels, snag these images
1929 - 1930? Toro Tractor Vintage

From barnfinds,

Ghost Of A Golf Course Past? 1932 Toro Tractor

The Toro Company has a long, ninety-nine year old history of producing tractors designed specifically for golf course maintenance purposes. Early Toro golf tractors used automotive parts in their design, primarily from the Ford Model A. This Toro, for sale here on Craigslist in Vermont for...

barnfinds.com

Master-A,

1930 Toro Tractor | Proxibid

Bid in a Proxibid online auction to acquire a 1930 Toro Tractor from Owls Head Transportation Museum.

www.proxibid.com

Oh, this is a really NICE restore for color and balance. I like it!
There are enough images there to do the restore. Save them off, all 47 ! And the 2 vids at the end!

1930 TORO JUNIOR TRACTOR Auction Results in Kirkland, Illinois

Buy Less than 40 HP Tractors - 1930 TORO JUNIOR TRACTOR in Kirkland, Illinois 60146 at TreeTrader.com

www.treetrader.com

It even has the ID plate!

 

[Sawdust]

Great info Brett, I like the black one too with the red wheels. Thanks for digging this up.

 

[BMaverick]

Great info Brett, I like the black one too with the red wheels. Thanks for digging this up.

I just hope this INSPIRES @jdcrawler to take next steps. Sure it's a plain ugly machine now. Restored it can be a 100 year old SHOW PIECE.

I have a co-worker who recently restored a 100 year old aircraft. At the 2024 EAA Oshkosh world airshow, his plane was picked as the oldest plane in the show and was placed in the show exhibit in front of the Vintage aircraft hanger. He won the Lindsey award easily. There are not many AC registered and flying 100 years or more planes out there today. Just 2 months ago, the plane passed the FAA mechanical certificate for flight. He was nervous that he would miss this year's show not passing.

So with that said, a 100 year old Toro restored as a show piece would turn heads too. These old Toro's set the stage for other brands to spin off from. Look at the early Deere Fairway mowers and other brands . . .

@jdcrawler I believe in your talent. Make your artwork on this machine a real Master piece.

 

[jdcrawler]

Look what I just got to go with the golf course tractor.

 

[Technautic61]

That is really cool. Mad respect for anything connected to early Ford anything. Going to the Henry Ford museum is on my bucket list. As is seeing the great lakes in person.

Good luck on it. I'm sure you will make it a worthy working machine. Thus allowing others to learn about history.

 

[Jazz]

This is something that has never happened to me before ..... I was given a free tractor last week.
It is a Toro Master, model-A, golf course tractor.
I have a gas tank sitting on it behind the bus seat that will fit it fairly well.

The front axle, engine, transmission and steering column are from a 1928 to 1931 Ford model-A 1-ton truck.

The channel iron frame, rear axle, steel wheels and radiator are supplied by the Toro company to build the tractor.
It is missing the front grille, gas tank, hood and seat.

View attachment 85871

View attachment 85872

View attachment 85873


Here is a copy of an old Toro advertisement.
This shows a tractor with rubber tires but they came with steel or rubber tires.

View attachment 85874

Im sure you could fabricate that hood and grill

 

[jdcrawler]

It's nice that I have more than one project to work on because now I'm waiting on parts for two of them.
So I decided to pull the reel mower in and start working on it.

With the hinge for the outrigger mower mounted to the underside of the frame, the outrigger will only come up to where the outside wheel on the mower is about 2 foot off the ground before the two sections of the angle iron frames touch each other.




The whole mower is 13 foot wide so I need to get the two outriggers to fold up higher so I can load it on a trailer and haul it down the road.

I have cut all of the hinge mounts off both outriggers and the main frame.




These hinge mounts are welded to pieces of angle iron so that they will all set at the same distance away from the frame.




Welding the first hinge mount in place.




Here are the two hinges on one of the outriggers.




And two of them on the main frame.




Here's how they look with one of the outriggers attached.




Closeup of the hinges.




Now the outrigger will lift up and tuck in so I can haul this mower on my trailer.
I'm going to set this up so that the outriggers will be raised and lowered with a hand crank winch mounted on the center of the main frame.




This should only be about 6-1/2 foot wide with both outriggers folded up.

 

[oldedeeres]

My Olde Deere would have really enjoyed seeing how you're dealing with this Ray. He always appreciated innovation and ingenuity.

 

[UncleWillie]

Waiting on parts is the story of my life.

 

[jdcrawler]

The other outrigger is mounted on the main frame.
If you look close at this photo, you will see that the bottom wheel of the left reel mower does not come in as far as the bottom wheel on the other mower.




I found out that the center mounting bracket for the left reel is bent.
This bracket being bent will not allow the reel to rotate up and down properly when going over uneven ground.




I removed the reel on that side to get into the bracket.




The bracket is heated up and straightened out.




The reel is mounted back in place.




A hole is drilled thru the angle iron frame of the outrigger frame that holds the reel mower in place and a 1/2 inch I-bolt is fastened into it.




I've made up a tripod bracket to support the outrigger frame when it is folded up.
This also has a pulley on it for the cable to go over that will raise and lower the outrigger frame.






Holding a pencil in the pulley to show how the cable will line up with the I-bolt.

 

[Lily'sDad]

Do the reels leave an uncut gape between them?