Hello Everyone,
I am new to the forum and will have pics posted soon. I have been on a forever search of my Grandfather's 1957 TO35 for over 25 years. While it doesn't appear that I am going to find it, I settled for one he owned, however briefly, and sold to our neighbor. It is a 1956 Ferguson TO35 serial no. SGM 171565. The neighbor passed and his daughter mentioned that she would sell me the tractor for a very reasonable price, especially considering that according to another neighbor he had performed a rebuild to the upper end of the engine for the owner just before he passed. So, I bring it home, and upon unloading it from the trailer i lift the oil fill cap and it is solid, full of dry, hard packed dirt like residue that required scooping out. The fuel tank was gummed up solid, carb was full of solid dry material, this thing had not been touched in years much less a complete top end within 12 months. I had the block tested and it passed and from there we had the entire engine rebuilt. New cam, valves, rings, everything was re-machined and/or replaced. Rebuilt the generator, new governor, new carb, new tank valve bowl and screens, new gauges, new switch, new clutch, the transmission seals, everything I could find that may need replacing. New front end, pin & bearing, new tie rods, new front axles, rear axles pulled, new shims, packed, greased and set. The radiator was a bear!!!! ended up getting one and the shop cut and welded the part and pieces back together to make it work. Although I do still have the original I hope one day to find someone to rebuild. Where I am now, someone has welded on the hood and taken the temper out of the metal and warped it bad. Also there is some rust in it as well as the aprons on the side. My hood has the two button push pins, one on each end to release the center in order to refuel, water, etc. Does any know of a place where new sheet metal can be found. I can find clamshells everywhere, but no hoods. I have found a place that said they can sell me new old stock for the entire tractor but it is nearly $2,000 for everything. Any help here would be greatly appreciated. I am already way over $9,000 in this tractor and still need the sheetmetal and find someone to blast the chassis so we can disassemble and begin the paint. I have some paint that was mixed by a local shop to match the metallic grey chassis, and even used the old paint code numbers to do so. I will need to get the Bamboo Beige and the Aluminum Codes which I am sure I have written down somewhere. But metal is my hang up. my fenders are eaten up on the bottoms as well as the brackets for my lights and in fender tool box is shot. I can find and piece a lot of it together aftermarket but this new old stock is intriguing and expensive. However, I would love to know if anyone has a lead on the entire hoods. I would even take a good clean used one if I could find it, but it HAS to have the two button push pins. AND, I need the two lift arms for the hydraulics. They have been obliged on each end from years of work and although I may be able to drill out a larger area and press in bushings, I am not sure that I can't just find good used or new ones out there. HELP!
I am new to the forum and will have pics posted soon. I have been on a forever search of my Grandfather's 1957 TO35 for over 25 years. While it doesn't appear that I am going to find it, I settled for one he owned, however briefly, and sold to our neighbor. It is a 1956 Ferguson TO35 serial no. SGM 171565. The neighbor passed and his daughter mentioned that she would sell me the tractor for a very reasonable price, especially considering that according to another neighbor he had performed a rebuild to the upper end of the engine for the owner just before he passed. So, I bring it home, and upon unloading it from the trailer i lift the oil fill cap and it is solid, full of dry, hard packed dirt like residue that required scooping out. The fuel tank was gummed up solid, carb was full of solid dry material, this thing had not been touched in years much less a complete top end within 12 months. I had the block tested and it passed and from there we had the entire engine rebuilt. New cam, valves, rings, everything was re-machined and/or replaced. Rebuilt the generator, new governor, new carb, new tank valve bowl and screens, new gauges, new switch, new clutch, the transmission seals, everything I could find that may need replacing. New front end, pin & bearing, new tie rods, new front axles, rear axles pulled, new shims, packed, greased and set. The radiator was a bear!!!! ended up getting one and the shop cut and welded the part and pieces back together to make it work. Although I do still have the original I hope one day to find someone to rebuild. Where I am now, someone has welded on the hood and taken the temper out of the metal and warped it bad. Also there is some rust in it as well as the aprons on the side. My hood has the two button push pins, one on each end to release the center in order to refuel, water, etc. Does any know of a place where new sheet metal can be found. I can find clamshells everywhere, but no hoods. I have found a place that said they can sell me new old stock for the entire tractor but it is nearly $2,000 for everything. Any help here would be greatly appreciated. I am already way over $9,000 in this tractor and still need the sheetmetal and find someone to blast the chassis so we can disassemble and begin the paint. I have some paint that was mixed by a local shop to match the metallic grey chassis, and even used the old paint code numbers to do so. I will need to get the Bamboo Beige and the Aluminum Codes which I am sure I have written down somewhere. But metal is my hang up. my fenders are eaten up on the bottoms as well as the brackets for my lights and in fender tool box is shot. I can find and piece a lot of it together aftermarket but this new old stock is intriguing and expensive. However, I would love to know if anyone has a lead on the entire hoods. I would even take a good clean used one if I could find it, but it HAS to have the two button push pins. AND, I need the two lift arms for the hydraulics. They have been obliged on each end from years of work and although I may be able to drill out a larger area and press in bushings, I am not sure that I can't just find good used or new ones out there. HELP!