In short, yes, the old girl WILL start! I'm getting ahead of myself, but I couldn't leave you in suspense...
Here I am removing the castellated nuts that hold the rod caps onto the connecting rods. "Now let's see, where'd I put that cap??"
I've been up to the Cabin twice this spring/summer so far. The first trip was in mid May. I went up with Dad, Gramps, and my uncle Jeff primarily to haul out building materials to install a metal roof on the Cabin later this summer. I decided that I would disassemble a few things on the B that first trip. We ended up hauling out the head and manifold, pistons, rocker arm assembly, valve cover, lower water pipe, tappet rods, and the brakes off the JD A.
I was in for a major surprise when I removed the water pipe. The cooling system was nearly full! And not with antifreeze, mind you, but straight water! I couldn't believe it. Gramps and I left water in the A for one winter and busted out the block and head. The B sits with water in it for 20+ years and there isn't so much as a leak anywhere!
A little rust, here and there, but the important parts are clean and well-preserved.
I brought out the parts to clean them up and make sure everything was in ok shape to run the B. The carb was already back home so all I was lacking a working magneto to complete the tractor.
I made a trip up to Willmar, MN to visit my grandparents there. Morrie and I made a run out to Schwanke's Tractor Parts to see about exchanging my old mag. The mag I had was in terrible shape. Cracked caps and rotor, corroded points, the coil may have been ok, but I wasn't going to bet on it. Schwanke's had a rebuilt Wico C mag in stock and they actually took my old sparker as an exchange core. Cost? Only $110! I thought that was pretty cheap!
Dirty pistons, no corrosion, and smooth bores. All that from what had been a stuck motor.
I also picked up a stud that threads into the oil filter cap as the original had broken off when it was removed. Morrie and I then made a trip over to Paynesville Tractor Parts in Paynesville, MN to look for a Wico C magneto housing (for the JD A, you can read about that on the AW pages) and also for a replacement governor housing vent tube which was also broken on my tractor. No luck on the mag housing, but I did get the vent tube; since I had already picked up the appropriate gaskets I would need for the project from Deere, I now had all the parts I needed to put the tractor back together and attempt to start 'er up!
Serial number B47511, not a pretty site..yet.
Here it is, the historic first picture of my B running! (See the little puff of smoke aft of the fan?) Funny, the cooling system leakes like a sieve after I put it back together - typical. I shoula fixed those holes beforehand. (Notice those shiny new brakes on the A, Dad did an A1 job of restoring those babies.)
The next trip to the Cabin would be over the 4th of July. Parts, tools, and oil were all hauled out in the event I got to the point where I could attempt to fire it up. Reassembly went smoothly, - just like everything else has up to this point. Is that an omen? It wasn't long before I had nothing else to do but fill her with oil, gas and start cranking. One thing I had forgotten was new plugs and plug wires. But it didn't seem to matter as I had a hot spark at each cylinder.
I filled up the radiator, watched most of it flow back out before I realized I needed to reinstall the drainplug in the head! Now I was ready to crank. And crank, and crank, and crank...I ended up cranking the afternoon of July 3rd away. I welcomed a few small pops, and one pop-pop that spun the flywheel a couple revolutions, but no sustained firing.
My forearms and wrists were so sore at the end of the day, I could barely fish that evening. But they quickly recovered when I had to haul in a few bass! The next morning, I was back at it, wrists begging me not to go back to that tractor. But that hunk of steel is like a magnet drawing me closer to give it just one more crank. And crank I did. I don't know how long it took me, but during the process, I stole the carb, plugs, and plug wires off of the A and fitted those to my tractor in hopes that the culprit lie there. I decided she wasn't getting enough fuel, whereas with the old carb, I sensed the needle valve wasn't closing and was flooding one or both cylinders.
Running though it was, I had to nurse the choke to keep her going at times.
With the DLTX 18 carb fitted to the B, I cranked until my wrists screamed. As a last desperation attempt, I cranked at half choke. And wouldn't ya know it, she popped, then barked, then started running! Yeah, for the first time in, well, who knows how long, the old B was running. Well, barking was more like it. The exhaust pipe had been an old water pipe which was no longer installed. Exhausting through an open manifold created a deafening roar if standing in front of it. But it still sounded like a Deere.
Gramps came around to do some fine tuning on the carb, and adjust the timing. The B ran for a few minutes just beautifully, as if it hadn't been sitting neglected for so long. Then, without warning, she started spitting and backfiring, running unevenly. We tried to adjust the mag, Gramps fooled around with the carb adjustments, and the choke, but nothing seemed to cure it.
A 9/16" and a 5/8" wrench are required to loosen the mag. I've seen more efficient ways of doing this.
The tires are shot, but the tubes still hold air; I had planned to take a short drive in the yard, but the clutch was way out of adjustment and wouldn't stop spinning without throwing my full weight on the lever. Guess that's a project for next trip.
Gramps eventually killed the engine while adjusting the carb, so I went back to cranking. And cranking and cranking...well, Gramps wasn't about to wait for ME to get it running again. So he steps in, turns the crank once and she pops. One more spin, and she's off and running again! He's got the secret I haven't been able to duplicate...yet!
We spent a little while longer messing around with adjustments but didn't make any progress. I had to use the small gas tank to feed the carb as the fuel shut-off was frozen in the off position to the main tank. I filled it up a couple of times, listened with enjoyment, taking mental notes of what will need to be planned for next trip. I gazed at the rusted 63 year old oil pressure guage, amazed to see healthy oil pressure registering the entire run.
What next? New tires for one thing, I need a new rim as well. Let's see...gotta get the DTX 10 carb working correctly. I have a feeling the float was adjusted too low and the engine was starving for fuel. I also need to repair the water tube, get a new exhaust pipe, fix the clutch, and...oh, I know I'm forgetting something. Oh well, that'll be enough to keep me busy for a while!
Gramps adjusting the carb. Me looking on hoping to learn something by watching an experienced had at work.
The important thing is I learned that this old beast will indeed run. Not that I doubted it would run eventually, but I was seriously doubting I would get 'er going that trip. My wrists have since recovered. I was probably asking more of myself in trying to get the B going on this trip without having yet rebuilt the carb (I have the parts, just haven't installed them) or picking up new plugs and wires. But when you're on a roll, you wanna keep moving. So I just couldn't stop cranking no matter how much it hurt. I think you tractor guys will understand that. Of course, I could only work with what I had available as the nearest Deere dealer or salvage yard is only 30 minutes by boat and 3 hours by car!
I cranked for two days to get it started once! Here is Gramps' SECOND spin of the flywheel; a successful spin as she fired right up for him!
Here Gramps and I are discussing something. I can't remember what it was since the roar of the tractor preventing any such banter. Can a 2-cylinder John Deere "roar?" That doesn't sound like appropriate terminology, but let one run unmuffled and that's the only word I can think of to describe the sound!
More to come on the continuing saga of a unique project involving tractor rescues in the North Woods of Minnesota....
