How to learn from the beginning how tractor systems work.

manya77 · May 24, 2015

I posted earlier about starting problems with my 9n. I have owned
many tractors over the years, most were new and required very little troubleshooting so I looked at them much as I do my driving vehicle. I did not have to understand HOW they worked, as long as they did. Now retired on a raggedy farm with a tractor almost as old as I am, I need to understand HOW the systems work so I know what I am talking about. Is there a Tractors 101 course, manual etc ? Thanks for any advice.

R Geiger · May 24, 2015

The best place to start is having the correct service manual. Quite often how it works is included with how to repair it.

This would be a good start for your 9n,

http://www.yesterdaystractors.com/39FTSM_6369.htm

beastlybirdie · May 24, 2015

I&T service manual FO-4, I believe.

manya77 · May 24, 2015

I have downloaded a service manual but it assumes I know what I am looking at and what the parts are called. I do not.

Bruce (VA) · May 24, 2015

" Is there a Tractors 101 course, manual etc ?"

Yes.

I told you about the manuals when I replied to your previous post:

And when you place your order, consider buying a set of manuals too. (see tip # 39)
75 Tips

manya77 · May 24, 2015

What I have is the Operators Manual, not as detailed as the Service Manual. Have already placed an order for it. Thanks to all,

Bob · May 24, 2015

John Deere published a set of manuals called "FOS" (Fundamentals of Service) for various tractor systems. They are "generic" in that they don't only apply to DEERE machines.

In addition to a service manual for your tractor, these would be a GREAT help in understanding how various components work.

I've linked a section of "FOS20" below to give you an idea of how they are written.

I'm not sure if they are still sold by the DEERE bookstore, they can often be found used on ebay and such. Search for "DEERE FOS".
FOS 20 Electrical

old · May 24, 2015

If you can find a true Owners manual for your tractor you would not believe what all it will tell you. Back then they did in fact put info into them that you needed to service your tractor not like they are today. Just an example of what I am saying. I have the Owners manual for the NAA which was made in 1954. It tell you how to service the air cleaner, how to set the points etc etc. Shoot it even shows you how to change a tire as in take one off the rim and put one back on

manya77 · May 24, 2015

As a livestock breeder I understand how biological systems relate and interact. Mechanical systems not so much. A new challenge.

I have ordered a Service Manual, I am hoping it does not say connect "this" to "this" when I do not know what "this" they are talking about. For all of you well versed in tractor language
understand for me this is like reading in a foreign language that you do not understand. Thanks,

Bruce (VA) · May 24, 2015

That's why I suggested that you get the
Master Parts catalog as well as the I&T FO4
manual.
75 Tips

manya77 · May 24, 2015

Case in point : what is an I&T FO4 ? I get no hit on that or even know the proper search.

old · May 24, 2015

I-T FO4 manual is a manual put out by Intertec Publishing company and EO-4 is the one made for the N series Ford tractors. This site sells them as do many farm and home stores and tractor dealers.

Ultradog MN · May 24, 2015

There is no manual, no book, no publication of any kind that will give you the Aptitude for fixing old tractors. Aptitude, like brown eyes, height or red hair is genetic and you can't buy it.
But even without a great aptitude you can still learn a lot about these systems.
One of the best pieces of advice I ever got about wrenching was from John Muir - the great mechanic and humorist who wrote: "How to keep your Volkswagen alive" "The manual for the complete idiot".
On the first page or so he said to take the manual and read it cover to cover like you would a novel. Doing so would familiarize you with all the systems in a VW so that when you got to doing a particular repair you would know there was a section on that and could refer to it as needed.
It has been suggested by several people here that you get yourself a manual. The I&T is very good. I prefer a paper copy.
But remember, it will do you NO good if you buy it and let it sit on a shelf.
I suggest you take John Muir's advice and read it. Maybe not word for word. But go through it thoroughly - every section. You should also get a copy of the owners manual and read that too. The OM is chock full of great info that pertains to your tractor and is often overlooked as a great source of basic maintenance procedures.

manya77 · May 24, 2015

(reply to post at 16:06:02 05/24/15) [/qu

So do you have a contact for this John Muir guy ? ( joke )

WW2N · May 24, 2015

youtube is a great place to learn.

Ultradog MN · May 24, 2015

Since I first came here there have been a lot of fellows pass through this place.
Some of them stayed and are the backbone of this site for answering the day to day questions about these great old tractors.
Some folks fixed their rig and moved on. You never see them any more.
Others you knew weren't cut out to fix up one of these old things. You knew in your own mind they would have been better off buying a more modern tractor that doesn't need all this fixing.
I don't think there is any shame in any of the above types of folks.

I've had a lot of years of opportunity to learn how to do my federal income taxes and more years than that to learn how to play golf.
But I haven't learned how to do either of those things.
And by now I probably wont.
I haven't shown that aptitude.
As for John Muir; he died at the age of 59 in 1977.
So we can't pester him now with questions about Ns.
He was a natural mechanic and a trained engineer besides.
I'll bet he could have fixed an N as well as anyone here, even though he wrote the book on Volkswagons.

NoNewParts · May 25, 2015

needing to learn something today, you have it made.
google, youtube, etc
It used to cost a fortune in manuals and such for every new project.
As others have suggested, when reading a manual.....read it.
.....until you get the.."oh, I see...simple" feeling.
(supplement with youtube to actually see inside is great)
Once you have the 'I got it' you can toss the manual on the shelf and get to work. (you still will need it for specs)
The archives here are truly great too. manual like instructions and even more valuable....lots of tips on gotchas and watch out for this..advice.

got a farm, or some land? You'll need another tractor or three.
get another one. learn/work on one while the other is doing the work.
(and after a difficult day in the shop working with Murphy and gremlins.......a putt around the trails on another tractor is very soothing.....)

nice thing about old tractors. Once you know your way around em, you can figure out them all. Most are just a little different variations of the same idea.

Tim PloughNman Daley RIP · May 25, 2015

My email is open so reply to it and we can discuss further.

[i:654c4848f0][b:654c4848f0]<font size="4">Tim *PloughNman* Daley(MI)</font>[/b:654c4848f0][/i:654c4848f0]<table width="100" border="1" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" bordercolor="#000000"><tr><td height="25" colspan="2" bgcolor="#CC0000">

</td></tr><tr><td>

</td><td>

</td></tr></table>

BlackThumbHomesteader · May 25, 2015

(quoted from post at 16:06:02 05/24/15) One of the best pieces of advice I ever got about wrenching was from John Muir - the great mechanic and humorist who wrote: "How to keep your Volkswagen alive" "The manual for the complete idiot".

I have 5 different editions of that book(all but one came in Beetles I purchased) and can say that Muir knows how to write a manual better than anyone else.

Ultradog MN · May 25, 2015

Do you still have any of those Beetles?
I had 3 different beetles and a couple of the Kombi Vans.
Those were my favorites. I still think about getting another van once in a while but everytime I get the extra dough I find another tractor that I want and as they say, it's all downhill from there.
All of those modern "For Dummies" books the idea was taken from John Muir.

BlackThumbHomesteader · May 25, 2015

(quoted from post at 07:13:35 05/25/15) Do you still have any of those Beetles?

I certainly do! Currently waiting on drier weather so I can start sandblasting my '67(with factory sunroof) and prep it for paint. I've owned 11 of them since my 20s. One of the reasons I married my wife is because she has a love for the early VW Rabbits. We have one of each flavour currently in addition to my poor little Bug.

Oh, and a Ford. I have one of those things. Somewhere.

manya77 · May 25, 2015

Thanks to all for helpful input. I think what I need is a "big picture" schematic: when i turn the ignition key this happens
and then this happens and then this, etc so I can understand the progression of events that create the miracle of a tractor. If I understand what is supposed to be happening I can understand what is not happening. just the way my mind works.

manya77 · May 27, 2015

My service manual arrived today, first glance at the electricals demystified my previous misconception. Very exciting.

Caryc · May 27, 2015

(quoted from post at 17:39:08 05/24/15) youtube is a great place to learn.

Unfortunately it's also a place to learn what idiots some people are. Take anything you see there with a grain of salt.

auggy53 · May 27, 2015

maybe while your sitting around you could read through the archives on this site , i do and i learn alot so i dont have to bug the smarter guys so they can spend time with others

and the guys/gals have really help.
they are so sood at helping

phil_n · May 28, 2015

"www dot oldfordtractors dot com" is also a good site for learning/fixing things. Also, if you are in "classic" mode on this forum there are lots of helpful links in the left-hand side bar.

phil n

greywolf224 · May 28, 2015

(quoted from post at 19:06:02 05/24/15) There is no manual, no book, no publication of any kind that will give you the Aptitude for fixing old tractors. Aptitude, like brown eyes, height or red hair is genetic and you can't buy it.
But even without a great aptitude you can still learn a lot about these systems.
One of the best pieces of advice I ever got about wrenching was from John Muir - the great mechanic and humorist who wrote: "How to keep your Volkswagen alive" "The manual for the complete idiot".
On the first page or so he said to take the manual and read it cover to cover like you would a novel. Doing so would familiarize you with all the systems in a VW so that when you got to doing a particular repair you would know there was a section on that and could refer to it as needed.
It has been suggested by several people here that you get yourself a manual. The I&T is very good. I prefer a paper copy.
But remember, it will do you NO good if you buy it and let it sit on a shelf.
I suggest you take John Muir's advice and read it. Maybe not word for word. But go through it thoroughly - every section. You should also get a copy of the owners manual and read that too. The OM is chock full of great info that pertains to your tractor and is often overlooked as a great source of basic maintenance procedures.

Ultra,
I can not agree with you more. I'm a fanatical reader of any documentation I can get my hands on before I tackle anything new.
Heck In the last week or two after seeing KirkNj's Ford 961, I have read every owners manual, service manual and parts manual that I was able to get my hands on so when I finally go take a look at the one I saw I wont look like a complete idiot trying to shift the 5 speed, or be caught looking for the square can coil.

dactura · May 29, 2015

I read his "for idiots" book. My favorite part was "How to get the oil light to go out". VW's all had the oil light going on and scaring people when the oil light was faulty or going on when the oil pressure was ok. The solution was to get some dark paint and paint over the oil light. Brilliant!

How to learn from the beginning how tractor systems work.

Member

Well-known Member

Member

Member

Well-known Member

Member

Well-known Member

Well-known Member

Member

Well-known Member

Member

Well-known Member

Well-known Member

Member

Member

Well-known Member

Member

Well-known Member

Member

Well-known Member

Member

Member

Member

Well-known Member

Member

Member

Member

Member

Similar threads