Oil Pan Gasket

Goodmorning,

I really want to give my Great Grandfathers 9N (Purchased used at John C. Stewart Ford in Cuttingsville, Vermont in the early 1950's) a cleanup, but before I hit it with the sandblaster, primer and paint...I have an oil leak to attend to. See photo below.

I've cleaned the area up and pressed a bit of copper silicone into the leaking seam. I am assuming that this will not fix my problem.

I am curious. What kind of a job is it to split this little tractor and drop the oil pan. Is splitting a 9N much like removing a standard transmission from a GM or Ford car? The transmission in this case being Simply bigger and heavier. Is the clutch located in a dry area?

Other than being a cast iron oil pan...does it remove just like a small block chevy? All engine internals are unaffected?

The tractor runs great by the way and I have no reason to believe that it needs a clutch.

Check out tip # 39.

If you have a 60+ year old tractor, you really need to get the manuals. We can tell you how to split the tractor all day long, but there's nothing like have the pictures & written explanation w/ you 24/7.

Be careful w/ splitting the tractor to fix a leaky oil pan gasket; that is an open invitation to mission creep! It's about a 3 hour job if you are good w/ a wrench & have the tools. The oil pan is the "frame" of the tractor & probably weighs 50+ lbs.

You'll need a lot of cribbing & 2-3 jackstands (I use both) plus the usual assortment of hand tools.

And, do not get a sandblaster any where near the tractor. It's not a new vehicle w/ tight seals; you WILL get sand in places you don't want it.
75 Tips

HI Bruce, Some random thoughts and questions.

Thanks.

I checked out Tip 39. Hmmm. Now that I think about it I might actually have a manual, but haven't laid eyes on it in....years. I'll go digging for it. That just goes to show you...other than carb cleaning...these are good old tractors.

I have to say. I appreciate your comment on mission creep. And I can see how that could be a real issue for guys (and gals) on this website. I've never done a project that didn't suffer from major mission creep!

Oh!.....I can just imagine how hard it would be to keep sand out of the nooks and crannys. So...how do people get these old tractors clean? Mine is rusty..scaly and a bit scary looking. I suppose I could spray with degreaser and then trailer it to a car wash for a pressure wash. But that won't get me quite as clean as I'd really like to go.

It needs new tires right now. So maybe I'll just remove, gently sandblast and paint the rims before putting on the new tires. And call it good for now. Maybe have the tinwork done too. I'll stay away from the tin with my sandblaster!

The tractor was painted to look like an 8n before my family acquired it. Where would be a good place for me to buy the 8N version of gray paint? To me it looks like a mix of gray with a hint of tan. I think I'd even like to have clearcoat on the tin.

BTW: Sure love this old tractor. And cant tell you how it pleases and honors me to have the tractor that belonged to a grandfather that died the year I was born (In 1967).

Thanks for the input guys.

Justin

Like Bruce says... Some people remove the oil pan without removing the engine. I prefer to remove the engine and place it on a stand. The oil
pan is quite heavy. With the engine upside down on a stand, I think I can pay better attention to the seals and the gasket. Which ever way
you do it, you have to block the tractor up with cribbing under the transmission and remove the front axle (the oil pan is part of the
tractor frame)! Drain the oil and coolant. Next drain the gas tank, disconnect the gas line and remove the hood. Next disconnect the drag
links and radius rods, remove the hoses and then you swing the front axle out of the way. Next disconnect the choke rod, oil line to the
gauge, and wiring and you can remove the engine.

I've left out lots of details, the I&T FO4 manual has all the details and pictures too.

" .how do people get these old tractors clean?"

Pretty much one part at a time.

Mine get totally pulled down to the transmission, rear end & trumpets. That gets wire brushed. Everything else gets in my electrolysis tanks & taken down to bare metal. The machine shop hot tanks the block.

Do you want to paint it 9N grey (as it came from the factory) or 8N red & grey? Big difference in colors!

Lots of places sell the correct paint; someone will come along soon w/ the paint codes.

Not sure if this site sells paint, but nnalert's does.

75 Tips

Justin.........would you believe just the HI-PRESSURE wand will remove most of yer crud and flakes? No need fer de-greaser. As fer paint, depends upon yer originality sphincter factor. As fer clear coat/top coat think about yer tractors environment. You'll be washing and waxing and polishing it to keep it clean. Me? Ain't gonna happen. I just hoze the dirt off and letter bee. It drys by itself. Paint it enny color that pleases you except green'n'yellow .......painter Dell

You have worked on more Ns than I ever will but I would have never considered removing the engine to replace a pan gasket. Not easy or fun but the 50+ # pan can be raised and lowered on a jack..IF I ever have a need to pull a pan I won't pull the engine..Different strokes for different folks..

I went out and mowed with it for a while today. The oil leak has stopped for now. The high temp RTV that I squeezed into the seam...seems to be working.

I still need to put tires on this machine and wanted to clean up the wheels. So I jacked it up and pulled the wheels.

This is when "mission creep" started to set in. As a result my little 9N is sitting down by the cellar door stripped of many of it's parts. Tomorrow I am going to run down to TSC and pick up a pressure washer. I'll clean it best I can with that, then start wire brushing and carefully sand blast items that I have removed. I'll wipe things down with lacquer thinner and put a coat of prime on them. As far as what to use for paint and the proper method of spraying it on.....I don't know. But I'll do some homework on that.

I do have a spray gun and I'm not afraid to......well...on second thought....I AM afraid to use it.

But this is the project to try it on.

If I can figure out how to actually post a picture I will, but didn't have any luck earlier?????

hey Local Yokel.......heres an idea fer painting sheet metal. When you spray paint you haffta "thin" the base paint so it sprays properly, depending upon the current temperature. yada-yada-yada ...but... I've seen some very nice sheetmetal painted with short nap rollers like you use fer walls in the house and you don't haffta thin ennythang. You can even add "hardener" to the paint in the roller tray. This trick only works on TOP of sheet metal. (hood, fenders, etc) NOT the backside. Then I use regular paint brushes (2&3") on the cast iron stuff. You'll never see brush marks on cast iron. Of course, iff'n this a trailer Queen, grab yer spay gun and whizz away. .......painter Dell

Hey Painter Dell,

My neighbor said the same thing about brushing it on. I believe it could turn out quite nice.

I guess I'm going to try my spray gun though. (I've never used it before. My Dad got if for me about 15 years ago specifically for this project.) So....it's time.

I picked up a Dewalt pressure washer today at home depot. 3,400 PSI. That thing is a hoot! My tractor is quite clean....and sure enough...the old paint was washing right off.

Next move is to carefully clean up the little areas I missed and get some primer sealer sprayed on.

I'll go to nnalert's to check out paint.

Justin