May have found my next project M

Ken Christopherson

Well-known Member
After a while of searching, I may have found my next project M. I'm looking to recreate the tractor my grandfather had when I was young, and have already found the loader that the tractor had (Farmhand "Standard"). The year of the M is a 1942, and it is on cutoff rear steel. Tractor looks to be very complete, motor is loose, and it has really nice tin work on it (the grille has a couple of bent bars). Other than that it looks good. Rear tires are old, black, and round, but fronts look to be in decent shape.

I'm looking at giving $700 for the tractor. Seeing as it has pretty decent potential to run for an economical price and it is complete, I am looking at making the deal and getting myself this M.

One question: The tractor does have a block heater on it. Has anyone ever removed these? I have no desire to keep it, even in the cold climate of MN. (I owned an M before, and the block heater helped only minimally).

Future plans would be to install a few upgrades: Live hydraulics, and maybe power steering. I'll keep everyone updated as to what I decide. I'm looking forward to getting back into the 'red'.
 
The F-11 Farmhand is a different loader from the "Standard". The F-11 I believe was a newer version (could be used with narrow or wide front). The Farmhand "Standard" loader was a light-duty, all purpose loader that had a lift capacity of 2000 lbs. I have enclosed photos of each. The first photo is of the F11 Loader (found on the forums here), and the second is of the "Standard".
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Also, here is a few photos of the original sales brochure for the Farmhand Standard loader that I happened to find on eBay... Hope this helps!
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I assume it's a 'tank heater'.Yes you can remove it. Just put the block drain and return port plugs back in. Wheather it be in the water temp fitting(most common place),or or the thermostat houseing. No problem.Sounds like a fair price. You didn't say if the rear are 36 or 38 ".However I think I would try to replace the 'cuttoffs' with a set of cast wheels. Cuttoffs are cool,but the heavier cast wheels and wheelwts are better for loader work.Post pics!!
 
Delta,

I figured it would be a pretty simple process to delete the tank heater setup. I'll have to get into it more when I get the tractor home. The rears are 38 I believe. It doesn't really matter to me - like you said... Eventually I will be replacing them with cast centers and new rims. I'll probably go with 14.9 or 15.5 x 38 rears. I'd like to stay away from fluid, but will probably put 2 sets of wheel weights on the rear when I get the cast centers. I won't be doing much dirt/rock work with the loader. Mostly just snow removal.

I wonder if there is any desire for cutoff wheels? They look to be in pretty good shape.

Oh... And pictures.. Well, if you insist!
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Thanks , i thought the first Farmhand was the one with the overhead cage, I didnt even know they made that one, Thanks
 
I believe the one you might be thinking of is the Farmhand F10 (pictured above from the forums). This is a photo of what this loader looks like. There are so many vintage loaders out there, it can be hard to identify them. The Stanhoist loader looks very similar to the Farmhand Standard loader, but there are subtle differences. It took me over 15 years of searching to be able to identify the Standard.
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Ken looks like a good project. Was your grandads a 1942? I owned a 43 m at one time, now I have a 40 and a 48 m. That farmhand standard resembles a JD 45 loader.
 
You mean you actually bought one out of a junkyard? Man that is a rescue mission! Good luck and have fun. I should talk, I bought a Husqvarna garden tractor two years ago for $700.oo. It is a 2005 with the six speed tranny and a 54 inch deck with 21hp Briggs. I just got the engine back today. Have rebuilt the tractor from stem to stern. Have over 800 bucks in parts and welding costs alone! I'm right there with ya. Picture is from when I found out the guy who put a new gasket in the engine to stop the leak screwed up the job. Had the oil pump shaft out of line. Engine would have blown!!!!! Cost $78.06 to have a regular shop fix it right. A 21hp Briggs twin can get a little costly. New on flebay is around $700.oo. And the big thing is.... I still haven't had it running yet! PS it will look cool if I put agg tires on it though!
 
I have a Super M with live hydraulics that I ran a loader off of. Now I decided to pull with it and am running the same loader off my 1950 H. I run it off the belly pump.
I would NOT recommend putting distributor driven hydraulics on a M unless you change the cam gear to the newer one. They aren't meant for that. Plus the cost may deter you too.
The belly pump on the M should be plenty strong for snow removal. Yes, when you hit the clutch in it wont have hydraulic power but its not the end of the world. The belly pump is however, plenty strong and reliable for loader usage.
 
Farmer,

Thank you for the input on the live hyd. I had an M previously with a JD 45 loader on it, and it was run off of the belly pump. I had no issues with capacity, either. It was the constant shifting in and out of gear when I wanted to dump the bucket. I just figured it would be a time saver when plowing snow to have live hyd. Definitely good to know about the cam gear, though. I remember reading a while back that they are prone to breaking. One of the many things I'll have to check over when I get the tractor home.

Thanks again!
 
Jeff,

I did. I like a challenge, and if I can resurrect something that is facing most certain death... I get a lot of joy out of that. My Case SC was left for dead after grandpa died.. Everyone told me it was just plain wore out. Well, after 10 years of wrenching (started when I was 10 years old), I got it looking better than new. Same went for my John Deere A. It was a "looks are deceiving" type of tractor. I bought it for scrap price, but was told hopeful information. When I started tearing into it, I found out just how bad it was. After one winter I had it up and running like new thanks to some good folks on the forums.

Sounds like you took on a much newer adventure with your Husqvarna. I think you are right. Putting some ag tires on it would be pretty neat!
 
Motor is loose and everything is there. Just have to check for the three basics - spark, compression, and fuel... And hopefully you are right!
 
Money pits seems to be my favorite. Every tractor I have torn into was a money pit. I don't restore them to make money, I do it to preserve history. This one is all there, the motor is loose, and the tin is pretty straight (minus some grille dents). I'll tell you what... Let me save you some money and I'll take this one under my wing! (All in good fun)! :) :)
 
Old,

I think it will be a good one. This tractor is a 1942, but grandpa's was a 1940. I found out two years ago that my uncle "gave it away" to a friend of his, but when I ask him who he never answers the question. I personally think he scrapped it out. I was able to get my hands on a 1940 M for a while, and put a JD 45 loader onto it. Loader worked great, but it wasn't the 'same' as grandpa's. I had to sell the tractor (and my 1950 Farmall C) due to lack of space when the family sold the lake property up north. I managed to keep grandpa's '41 Case SC, though. Since then I have been trying to rebuild my collection. This will be the third in my fleet. Not sure how many more I will want, but after this M I'll be done for a while. At least that is what I am told by my future wife. LOL!

Also, the top picture was grandpa's 1940 M with Farmhand Standard, and the second picture was the 1940 M and JD 45 loader I had.
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ken , looks like a pretty straight m. be a nice project. i have my neighbors 42 m that he bought new. (he passed away about 12 years ago) it was a lottery tractor during the war. the person whose name was drawn for the tractor couldnt afford it, and his name was drawn next. he was in the army fighting in germany and they had to wire him to see if he wanted it. i have the original bill of sale too. he never spoke much about the war but after his death we found out he was in a glider during the normandy invasion.
 
Here is the photo that didn't post. Yea it is always a treat and thrill when you get an almost DOA machine running again! Kind of makes you feel like you have a magic wand in your hand! That Husqvarna, aka American Yard Products, is pretty heavy. It has a larger frame and a few other things here and there. That six speed tranny weighs more that the engine. I will have the biggest bad a$$ Garden tractor on the block when I get it done. I have a pretty big collection of chainsaws and love my Mc Culloch 600 series saws. I pick them up at flea markets and give them TLC. You can't beleave how much saw dust and oil can impound itself inside of the covers. I do mean solid. Have a pile of parts and the only thing that kills most any chainsaw if a destroyed cylinder. Can't change the head on these saws. Not enough oil in the mix or running a big saw on a 50/1 mix. I only need one or two ....not the twenty plus that I have! That is just the 600 saws. The big tractor I have is my CUB. She needs the head gasket changed this spring. Now she is still in her work clothes and I have only touched her up a little here and there to stop pitting. A little rust gives her a nice look. Post your finished photos for us.
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Looks to me like if you want cast wheels and proper rims that you should get them at the same junk yard where the tractor is. Maybe get a deal since you are buying the tractor there? Where is that place at?
 
I was going to do that but when I check on what they wanted for a price, I figured I would pass for now. These will get me by until I can save up more funds to do that. The main thing was to find a decent complete tractor. This is Biewer's Tractor Salvage in Barnesville, MN. Probably about 30 minutes from Fargo on I-94.
 
Those cutoffs look like they could have some weight to them. Are those cast centers? I have ten M cast centers I don't need, but transportation is a killer.
 
(quoted from post at 00:19:18 01/29/16) I was going to do that but when I check on what they wanted for a price, I figured I would pass for now. These will get me by until I can save up more funds to do that. The main thing was to find a decent complete tractor. This is Biewer's Tractor Salvage in Barnesville, MN. Probably about 30 minutes from Fargo on I-94.

If you don't want those tires I may be interested in buying them off you, if they dismount from those rims ok.
 
I'll have to consider it once I get a good look at the condition of the rims. If they are still solid, I may consider removing the spoked centers and reusing them on cast center wheels. I will definitely keep you in mind, though!
 
(quoted from post at 15:18:54 01/29/16) I'll have to consider it once I get a good look at the condition of the rims. If they are still solid, I may consider removing the spoked centers and reusing them on cast center wheels. I will definitely keep you in mind, though!

If you don't want the spoked centers I would love to get those off you. I would guess that they are about 100lbs less than cast centers.
 

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