SS 12 restoration

bobcat2

Tractorologist
Senior Member
Member
Hello all,

Figured I may as well do a full restoration thread instead of scattering it out over the board...

Here is the day I picked it up...
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I tore it down pretty far on the first day...
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I started wire wheeling and doing some metal work...

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Started to get some priming and painting done...

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Pretty much only have one coat on this stuff, been a little humid lately, I'll try to remember to take pictures along the way.

Thanks,
bobcat2
 
I never really considered how fragile the grill was until you mentioned it, now I'm pretty careful when I handle it, lol, I think having the plow on it spared it. I got the foam and vinyl off of the seat, it's pretty pitted and thin, I may fabricate a pan to stiffen it up a bit until I find a replacement, I can see that being a painful event down the road.

I started working with the Rust-Oleum AC orange paint, it's so much easier/better than the Majic IH white, but I'm sure y'all know how well orange doesn't cover, and will require several coats.

I finally got around to looking at the 2 spare engines that came with it, they aren't 12 hp, they are 10 hp. One turns over nicely and has compression, the other one is pretty stiff. I added an ounce of engine oil to each cylinder, turned them over a few times and put them on the back burner for a winter project.
 
Haven't got much done, took a week off for fishing. I did pull the front axle off, that bolt was almost worn through. I also tried breaking the beads on the front tires, but I was lifting my truck off the ground using a bottle jack, I'll take them to work and use the backhoe to try to break them. Spindles have a bit of up and down play, but I can shim them up with some washers, I'm just glad they don't have much side to side play.
 
Yes, be careful with that grill! They are made of glass or something! Almost everyone I find has a broken and rigged up grill.

Mine is sort of in one piece. I was able to repair it well enough that it looks good till you flip up the hood!
 
Actually that year grill is cast metal, they aren't that fragile. Now if it was the fiberglass uppers from 1973-1980, then you handle like glass.

Look into really thin thrust bearings and washers. You can place them on the steering spindle before inserting into axle. They call it "poor man's power steering".
 
Actually that year grill is cast metal, they aren't that fragile. Now if it was the fiberglass uppers from 1973-1980, then you handle like glass.

Look into really thin thrust bearings and washers. You can place them on the steering spindle before inserting into axle. They call it "poor man's power steering".

You wouldn't happen to have the part numbers for those would you?
 
Thank you very much... I've dealt with McMaster and Carr before when I needed bolts for the tranny pan on my truck.

Dumb question: where and what sequence do they go? Top or bottom of spindle? Seems the bottom would be the most beneficial place for them.
 
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Kenny can answer that better than I can, since he has actually done this, but my understanding is that they go on the bottom, between whatever your specific spindle uses to bear on the axle, and the axle. The stack is washer-bearing-washer.
 
Slowly getting some work done, I still have to pull the engine and transaxle out so I can start working on the frame, but here are some shots of the first and second coats of paint on the fenders, rims, and plow parts. I may scrap the seat on it, I don't think it's original. I may find a pan seat for it and put a orange and white Allis Chalmers seat cover on it. I put a few coats of spray on bed liner in the tool box, and ordered some 1/8" grooved rubber matting for the foot rests.


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Been a while since an update, still painting, but I did pull the engine off to remove the flywheel to repair some wiring and check the ignition out. Didn't get the flywheel pulled yet, but noticed the crankcase gasket was leaking, so I pulled that to check the internals as well. Pulled the head for a decarbing, valves and piston feel tight. Ordered a gasket set, oil seal, and a roll of heat resistant wire.

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I never really considered how fragile the grill was until you mentioned it, now I'm pretty careful when I handle it, lol, I think having the plow on it spared it. I got the foam and vinyl off of the seat, it's pretty pitted and thin, I may fabricate a pan to stiffen it up a bit until I find a replacement, I can see that being a painful event down the road.

I started working with the Rust-Oleum AC orange paint, it's so much easier/better than the Majic IH white, but I'm sure y'all know how well orange doesn't cover, and will require several coats.

I finally got around to looking at the 2 spare engines that came with it, they aren't 12 hp, they are 10 hp. One turns over nicely and has compression, the other one is pretty stiff. I added an ounce of engine oil to each cylinder, turned them over a few times and put them on the back burner for a winter project.
Your grill isn't fragile.
Yours is metal.
The 73 and up grills are fiberglass and notorious for breaking at the hinge do to the hood stop being unhooked.
Your metal grill is plenty strong.
 
Starting to get the engine broken down and cleaned up for paint. Figured I'd have issues with the pulley, but after a day of soaking in kroil, I pulled it off by hand. The flywheel was a different story, I soaked it for a day in kroil, put the puller on it and was getting pretty nervous, so I decided to soak it another day and just bumped it with the impact gun, it took 3 bumps, but popped off.

I bench tested the starter/generator, it works but sounds rough, not sure if it's dirty or I have a bad bearing. I found a site ( www.isavetractors.com ) that sells bearing/brush kits for it for $25. I'll probably just buy a kit and rebuild it since I'm tearing it down for cleaning and painting anyway. I also ordered a gasket set and oil seals for it, they keep bumping my delivery date, so who knows when they'll show up.

Starting to get some painting finished up and storing finished parts. I enjoy doing this, but I can't wait to reassemble it.

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