Stock up on MH 44 Parts?

EPU MH

New User
My wife works for a horse rescue and rehab farm in central Ohio, and they had a 1954 MH E44 donated this year. It's a great little tractor and does exactly what they need (spreading manure mostly), but it and the manure spreader both seem to go down fairly regularly, mostly with electrical issues on the tractor. I'm considering stocking up on a few parts that we know will be the most common culprits, but don't know the system well enough to know which to stock up on...besides the obvious consumables like belts and such. Anyone have continual trouble with any specific parts that you would suggest stockpiling?

Also, If anyone has a spare tractor and/or manure spreader and would like to donate to a good 501(c)3 (especially for an end of the year tax write-off), I know a place.
 
I have a lot of tractors be they this brand or others and most of the time they are trouble free as long as you make sure things are set correctly. I have tractors that I have for the last decade been pretty much a turn key and go with out doing any thing to them other then check oil and maybe replace the battery one every 5 or so year. Points carb etc I have not had to touch in years on most of what I have
 
A fairly good tractor for the day. I would stock up on ignition and carb parts and forgo the cheapie kits that some retailers offer. If this is one of those tractors that they want to run forever then I would suggest buying a couple of parts tractors that good usable engine parts could be gotten off of. I would not anticipate trouble for the chores that it does but some of the hardware is getting difficult to find currently.
 
(quoted from post at 14:05:56 12/29/16) I have a lot of tractors be they this brand or others and most of the time they are trouble free as long as you make sure things are set correctly. I have tractors that I have for the last decade been pretty much a turn key and go with out doing any thing to them other then check oil and maybe replace the battery one every 5 or so year. Points carb etc I have not had to touch in years on most of what I have

Unfortunately, that's what I'm assuming is part of the problem: too many hands making too many incorrect "adjustments" over the years before it was donated.
 
Most of my tractor are ones I got out of a fence row that had not been running in years and brought them back to life and well I can pretty much depend on each and every one because I took the time to fix the problem areas and then they have run well since. Last one I got I winched on the trailer and drove it off. Ya I had to fix the fuel line and then clean the points and set the gap and play with a could thing with the carb and well it has run just fine since. If the engine on it is still sound the rest is pretty much a fix it now and it will run fine for a very long time unless something odd happens
 
The 44 is not a finicky tractor, should be able to get it running good.

Post pictures and comments, we will help.
 
(quoted from post at 00:17:53 12/30/16) The 44 is not a finicky tractor, should be able to get it running good.

Post pictures and comments, we will help.

Will do on the next repair. Thanks.
 

Well here comes the next new issue: My wife came back and said the radiator blew up today. I will try to get pictures tomorrow in the day light.

Does anyone happen to have a radiator for a MH44 (Part No: 763554M91) or any tricks to repair it right away?
 
EPU MH, did anyone check the anti-freeze protection point? It almost sounds like the 'juice' froze and possibly split a radiator core. Never, ever assume that a previous owner had things "right". Someone on the forum may have one from salvage. The store on this web site has the radiator you need if you can't get it repaired or find a replacement locally. http://www.yesterdaystractors.com/Massey-Harris-MH44_Radiator_763554M91.html

Do not feel obligated to keep this tractor "original" either. Tractor manufacturers frequently made improvements to their equipment to make it more functional as farm equipment and use changed, and to make it more reliable and user friendly as technology changed.

There are numerous improvements you can easily do to make it far more electrically reliable. Twelve volt conversions are common and make starting easier, as well as making all kinds of other 12v parts readily available (battery, lights, winch, radio, etc, etc). There are alternator kits (some sold here on YT, or you can devise your own) that keep the battery charged better and are much more reliable than generators and the now common low quality voltage regulators There are electronic ignition sets that can improve starting and, in theory at least, increase fuel economy.

You may even find someone willing to trade parts and/or labor for a horse. If I were closer, I'd consider it if the option was open.
 

Thanks for the ideas. I completely agree on some "upgrades". Unfortunately, being a non-profit organization tends to severely limit funds available for such endeavors.
 

Condensers for sure , half the new ones don't work , the other half that do only last a short while . I try to collect ones from old distributors , forty year old condensers seem to outlast four week old ones .
 
(quoted from post at 00:45:19 01/07/17) Does your place have a web site we could check out?

Yes: http://www.equinepartnersunlimited.org/

The facility is a rescue organization run out of what used to be a thoroughbred racing facility.
 
Unfortunately, I haven't quite figured out how to post an image from a camera instead of online. So, sorry no pictures of the radiator as promised, and since, I wasn't there when it happened, I don't know for sure, but it looks like the radiator crack is on top, right above a seam. Ironically I've never actually blown a radiator before so I've never had a chance to used a radiator stop leak, but I'm wondering if that would fix the problem. Has anyone had any luck with them in the past?
 
Stop leak is a bandaid at best. "can" work for very small leaks but a crack in the tanks it wont do anything but make a mess. If you have a local radiator shop you can take it to them and they might be able to braise it up depending where the crack is and how bad.
 
The top seam just separated on my MH44 radiator, took it to shop and got it re-soldered.

You can buy new radiators for about $700, but tractor is not worth much more than that.

The good thing is they are easy to work on, the bad thing is parts are as rare as hens teeth. A 1954 is a very late model, please post pictures. I might be interested in buying it from you as parts if it has disk brakes. I want to get enough spare parts that I can keep mine running indefinitely, or until my estate sale, whichever comes first.
 
(quoted from post at 22:18:12 01/08/17) I might be interested in buying it from you as parts if it has disk brakes. I want to get enough spare parts that I can keep mine running indefinitely, or until my estate sale, whichever comes first.

Well, unfortunately, I can tell you that only the right side break currently works anyway. Sorry.
 
I can fix things, just like spare parts.

Does it have disk brakes and lever by right fender?
 

Totally agree , stop leak is an emergency measure at best and a nightmare at worst .
44024.jpg


This is what I found in a radiator I refurbished , the stop leak forms balls that float about , it clogs water tubes and seems to stick to everything that it shouldn't , thermostat included.
Great stuff if you are stuck in the desert ,otherwise it would take the Devil and a pitchfork at my neck to make me use it in any other circumstance .
 
Sorry that I haven't given any updates in a while just been very busy.

Unfortunately, the tractor is still down. Still haven't been able to do anything with the radiator at all since she now won't start. We've ordered some replacement electrical parts (simple spark plug wires, distributor cap/rotor...etc.) hopefully we can get it back up and running and fix the radiator issues at the same time.

It's sad to see how little maintenance she's had for so long. Just hasn't been taken care of.
 
Well, replaced a bunch of electrical components (distributor...etc.) and against better judgement, the farm director decided to put stop leak in it anyway. Did stop the leak for about 2 days, but looks like the whole seam is busted now. Either way, the starter has now gone out anyway and is being refurbished. Hopefully we can at least get it all in working order all at once.

Unfortunately, though, David, the brakes are drum brakes and not disk breaks. If you're still interested, though, we would definitely be interested in trading, but I don't know about an outright sale. Need to have something around the farm to use and unfortunately can't find anything great on the market to replace it with right now.
 

We sell tractor parts! We have the parts you need to repair your tractor - the right parts. Our low prices and years of research make us your best choice when you need parts. Shop Online Today.

Back
Top