Re: 444 case demorstrater

Tom Arnold

Well-known Member
Correction....... to my earlier post. The term Black Knight
actually came from the marketing department of J. I. Case. New
information came my way recently that confirms the origin of the
term.

The serial number on your tractor means very little in
relationship to the "CHART" that everyone relies on. The serial
numbers in that chart were begun at the first of the model year
but Case produced hundreds of tractors for that same model
year in the 4 months preceding the New Year.

There are two types of tractors out there. One type is called the
"Survivor". A survivor tractor only needs to be cleaned up
because there is next to no rust on it, the tin is in good shape
and the paint is pretty decent.

Anything else becomes a "restoration" because of the poor
condition of the tractor cosmetically. A survivor tractor should
be worth more than a restored tractor because a tractor is only
ORIGINAL when it was first built.

You are the only person who can make the decision as to
whether to keep this BK in original condition or to dismantle it
for restoration. It all comes down to what you personally will
tolerate cosmetically.

The advice you got regarding the hood and fenders is 100
percent correct. The ONLY thing that differentiates a Demo
tractor from any other tractor of the same year/model are the
graphics. No one at Case ever kept track of the serial numbers
of the Demo tractors.

Therefore, the only way to prove that you have a Demonstrator is
to preserve the original hood and fenders PLUS.... creating an
album filled with photos of the tractor presently along with a
pictorial of the restoration process.

You need to find another set of fenders and a hood that are
correct for the build of your BK and use those for the restoration.
Just so you know, there are FAKE Demo tractors out there but
those owners do not possess the original, untouched tin.
 
Tom, thank you for the information. The 444 BK that I just got is not nice enough to be a survivor tractor, it needs paint bad. Most of the decals I can live with but the paint has to be fixed. The engine is blown up and will be replaced anyway so I guess I will repaint it and save the decals along with all the pictures I have taken of it. It will be a restored BK with a replacement engine, I am not ready to sell it anyway so it really doesn't matter to me other than I like the fact that it is different from the rest. I want to use it around the yard to pull yard trailers and such, so unless it is something that is really worth a lot of money the way it is I will keep it and redo it. If it is something really special the way it is I would make a deal with someone for another 444 and just repaint that one the right colors and they could have the original. Again, Thank You for the info on this tractor.
 
It is special... on the basis that all BK models are getting tougher
to find. As the years go by, this BK will escalate in value faster
than any 444 of the same year so you would be smart to do
whatever is needed to protect that value.

You will need Desert Sunset paint from the local Case/IH dealer.
One quart should be enough.

You will also need a quart of Power Red for the frame and
undercarriage items.

The hood and fenders use a semi-gloss black.

You can buy the hood and fender decals from the link below. He
also has the other decals used on the 1973 models for the dash
etc.

I cannot emphasize just how important it is to be 100 percent
accurate with your restoration. Failing to zinc plate the control
levers, wheel lug bolts, Snap Fast pins/springs etc is a bad move.
I also suggest using NEW zinc plated nuts, bolts, washers and
screws. Do not paint over any hardware that was not painted
originally.

If the engine block is not damaged, then rebuild it. The tractor
is worth more with the original engine because the serial number
tells the year of manufacture. Do not be tempted to change
things or add things that were not there originally.

The current issue of Lawn & Garden Tractor magazine features
an article on two 442 Black Knight tractors. You might want to
try finding that issue.
Maple Hunter
 

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