1946 John Deere A

Figured I should introduce myself. A couple weeks ago I picked up a '46 single wheel A. It's my first big tractor. Rescued it from a fenceline in the California desert. My plan is to get it running before anything else so I can better evaluate what it will need. The previous owner made a few modifications, most of which I will be getting rid of.

This is where we found it. I need to find a good used front tire and at least one rear. Obviously some exhaust parts as well. But it was practically free so I'm quite happy.


The wiring is a complete mess. There are about a dozen extra electrical wires and a few components, but not a single connector. Just wires wrapped around each other and smashed down with nuts. First repair was the starter. tI was a bit stuck and had a lot of crud in it, but the armature looks quite good other than minor rust at the pinion gear end. A light sanding and some grease got things spinning again. The starter switch needed attention also and is now making contact.

Here is is at home and after a light cleaning, and one of many questionable electrical junctions.




My big concern was that both stacks were left uncovered and the tractor has been sitting outdoors for at least 8 years. Radiator cap and fuel caps also off but that's not so bad. The California desert is a pretty dry place but it does occasionally rain.

Lucky me, the engine turns by hand. But before trying to crank with the starter I figured I'd check the fluids. Here is what I found in the gearbox. (the photo makes it look worse than it is)


Obviously there was a moisture problem but I don't know if it came in the exhaust, or if it came through a gasket from the cooling system. There is a lot of gunk sitting on the bottom of the sump but once I poked through it oil did come out.

I replaced the oil filter with a Napa 1242 as most suggest but the center opening of the filter is much larger than the old one. I put a larger washer on the bottom as a temporary measure but perhaps there is a filter that fits correctly?

I would also like to clean the gunk out of the sump and oil pump before filling with ATF and cranking it over. Is the oil pump supposed to drop out if I undo the two nuts and one bolt that hold it in? It drops down 1/2 an inch or so and stops. I do plan to buy a manual but for now I'm winging it.

The tractor also came with a 110 Chuck Wagon (mentioned in another thread) on a 963 chassis.

You will need to take the entire oil pump assembly out to clean the crankcase. There is a few oil lines you need to take loose that are connected to the pump. To do this, take the crankcase cover off, meaning the entire starter and bracket needs to come off. Its not a lot of fun, but more time consuming than anything. I would just rip all that wiring off and start over. You can make your own harness, or buy a pre made one. I make my own, but to do as you see fit. Take the dash apart to see how to make your connections. You mentioned ATF in the crankcase, I personally have never used anything but diesel fuel and/or acetone. Much better at cutting the stuff than ATF. Usually I take the pump out and the top cover and blast them with a hot pressure washer.

Is there a 6V or 12V battery being used on the electrical system?

Thanks bigbore, I'll start looking at removing the top cover so I can get that pump pulled off, and see how much goop I can scrap out.

There was no battery, but the voltage regulator bolted to the hood is a 12V unit. There is an aftermarket winch attached to the rear of the tractor which I am assuming runs on 12 volts, so the conversion would make sense. At this point I plan to crank it over on 12V and then decide later if I want to put it back to 6 or leave as-is.

You will want to leave it 12v. Trust
me. Keep posting questions as needed,
we are here for ya! Mike

Here is my Slant Dash. Mine has a cast frame, yours appears to have a steel frame. Out of 11 tractors, this one is the smoothest running I own.

Try to locate a parts manual..... PC-675-(3-60)
I'm unable to share the SERVICE MANUAL #.... I&T MANUAL NO. JD-4 will give you some guide lines but a far cry from a true JD Service Manual

You are fortunate it isn't stuck after sitting open after so long. That left rear tire is ancient; I don't
think they have made that style of tread since the 1950's. Good luck with your project. I grew up on a '46
slant dash A and have many memories of my experiences, some good and some not so good.

Welcome. Where in CA are you?

Here's a link to the styled A parts catalog. You can download it and save it to your computer.

The only Service Manual ever published for the letter series 2 cylinders was SM-2004 for '41 to '52 model B's. Most everything in it pertains to A's except some specs.

NAPA 1242 is the right filter.
PC 675

I didn't notice how different those tires are until David said something. Funny, the BF on the left is an 11-38 and it's far larger than the 11.2-38 Firestone on the right.

Coonie, I'm in the southern half. But the wife, being a strange one, has forbid me from selling that bent up old wagon. I think she wants me to fix it. Like I don't have enough rusty projects around here.

I got the 1242 to fit, but the hole in the center is about twice as large as the hole in the filter that I took out. The 1242 slipped right over the spring and washer. Is something not right here? I had to use a 2" fender washer to seal the bottom of the filter cartridge.

On the bright side, now that the cover is off the top of the engine I can see that everything is in excellent condition. Not a speck of rust in the bores and minimal wear on the camshaft. The inside of the block is coated in glyptol or similar and unfortunately it's coming off in small flakes. I'll have to trust the filter to do its job here.

Moving along, I removed the oil pump for cleaning. My service manual is still a few days away but I'm getting through it. Once the larger pipe fitting is removed from the top of the strainer, should the strainer cap and mesh simply pull away? Or is something else holding it on? There is a lot of goo there so maybe I'm not seeing something.

Heck of a day to run out of hand cleaner.

On my B there was a wire wrapped around the strainer and the two ends twisted together tightly to hold it in place. I cut the wire removed and cleaned the strainer and put it back together with a piece of mechanics wire tied tightly.