Getting over 40hp from a '52 J.D. B

I am getting ready to start my next tractor project, a 1952 John Deere B. My brother has a Farmall H that has 350 kit in it. I basically need to build my B to compete with his H. We dont do much sled pulling, but do alot of plow days. I have a set of .125" over aluminum pistons and a head that has BBC valves it it as well as the ports cleaned up. I also have a carb of of my A that I can use. I was thinking about having the cam reground also. I would like to have 40-45 hp? Any idea what kind of hp I can expect out of these parts? Thanks.

Apparently there are no rules to worry about by the sounds of things so why not do what John Deere did when they had the "B" as far as they could go , and use the head and dual induction from a 520 / 530? They did it for a reason! Then with those pistons (assuming they are adding a little compression also) and a little cam work , I think you are pretty much there. And reliable also. If he went with a "350 kit" he shouldn't have a problem with you going this route.

38 I would guess with what you describe. To get 45 you really
need to throw a short stroke in it. I know of a cheap easy build
to get you to 45 if your interested give me a call 9892775366

Good idea but the head from a 520 won't fit, different bolt pattern.

Just saying you are starting a little short. I always thought a B John Deere was to compete with a C farmall and a A John deere was built to compete with a H farmall. So what ever you do to compete with him you still have a handy cap. Build an A John deere like he has his H farmall and be ready for his crying.

A 5" Power Block, with a good Cam and head work (+ a little more compression) would get you there..

Adding More Stroke would really make him Cry..!!

Ron..

(quoted from post at 07:01:46 03/05/12) 38 I would guess with what you describe. To get 45 you really
need to throw a short stroke in it. I know of a cheap easy build
to get you to 45 if your interested give me a call 9892775366

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When you say a short stroke, How much are you talking. I am not opposed to the idea at all. But I do need some reliability, as I do work my tractors some. I know the tractor that I got the head and pistons out of made in the high 30's on the dyno.

Guess I wasn't aware of that , 730, kinda voids my post. Still learnin'.

An "H" Farmall and late "B" JD are within 2 hp of each other. I believe the B is more. A "C" is comparable to a JD "H".

Powerblock, shave head to eyebrows, shape eyebrows back some and clean up ports. Maybe use pistons from 8430 and go 1/8" bigger, adjust rods to compensate for pistons. Cubic inches helps with lugging. Still, with a 52 you have a lower gear range than early hi-lo models. Maybe use what you have and just get bigger tires for more rolling circumference and still have the power of a low gear. You'd be surprised what a difference that makes.

Call and I'll explain.

Call and I'll explain.

(quoted from post at 19:01:36 03/05/12) Guess I wasn't aware of that , 730, kinda voids my post. Still learnin'.

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Your on the right track, you dont need to change the head just the manifold. An early 50 manifold will work on the late B head and allow the dual industion carb. I have never tried it but know guys who have.

I'm still trying to figure out where you got a 8.5" long Big Block Chevy valve to put in your B head.

the reason the early All-Fuel manifold works on the B head is that it's a SINGLE induction manifold.

We had a 52 B with a power block, and a New 350 Utility, They were about the same. But I would stroke it a lot, just to be sure. You will need a water pump if you already don't have one. Also I would put 14.9 X 38 rear tires on it, to speed up the gears. especially 6 th. Don't want to be left behind going back to the house. LOL Vic

I didn't want to get in on this too soon because I know there
is a lot better advice out there than mine. I am just a
experiment waiting to happen most of the time. And as
well.....I don't like to give away too many secrets since they
have cost so much for me to find. Just a small piece of advice
though. Octane makes a lot more difference than people
realize. I would guess that from having my engine guy do the
calcs that you can make 39 horsepower with the parts you
originally mentioned. Now.....all of the advice you have
received here is going to get you to 45 or more but my
findings have been that going from 97 octane up to 110
doesnt make as much added horsepower as most think but
what we found was that when we went from 97 up to 114 it
added 20 percent on tractors up to 125 hp. On tractors over
125 hp we had to go to 118 to get the same results. We
tested on 3 different major brand tractors and had pretty
much the same results. This testing was done on dyno and
generally speaking they give a fairly accurate reading. If you
equate that to your 39 horsepower tractor it figures to 7.8
added horsepower which puts you at 46.8. So with the
variables figured in I would still say you have your 45 you are
looking for. The beauty of the octane process is that if you
are going to use your tractor to farm with you won't have
mods that will interfere with you everyday enjoyment. Just
add the higher octane when you are having a pull day. Now
to say it is cheap.........not so.... But...probably cheaper in the
long run if you aren't going to plow everyday. I usually don't
share info that has cost so much to find but there it is. Take it
for what it is worth. You will also find that spark plug gap
make more difference than you think if you check them on the
dyno. Watch the gap with 114 octane and those aluminum
pistons. You can also take those pistons and have the
bottoms machined to loose some weight and gain about 2 hp
if you want to spend about another 350.00. Just make sure
they have a scale to rebalance them. All cheap fixes but it's
your tractor. Try octane changes in another of your tractors if
you have some and dyno them yourself before you spend a
bunch of needless money.

I'd say you would loose the road race...!!

My Grandad's "H" was "Turned up" and I could NEVER stay in the throttle long enough to begin to see how fast it would go in 5th..!!
That thing felt like it could FLY..!!!

But, I sure NEVER did enjoy operating that IH "H"..

Never liked that particular "feel" for the Foot Clutch and the gear speeds always seemed odd..

Ron..

(quoted from post at 20:43:22 03/05/12) I'm still trying to figure out where you got a 8.5" long Big Block Chevy valve to put in your B head.

the reason the early All-Fuel manifold works on the B head is that it's a SINGLE induction manifold.

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Both the valves and the head were modified to make them fit. I know the guy who did the work but he isnt going to give me any insight on how he did it, we are both machinists and tractor guys. The theory is that the web is thinner and it allows more flow. I would be curious to see if it makes much difference.

You are right a H is really fast in 5 th. A B would have to turn a lot of RR to keep up. We also had a H before the 350. Dad got one of those big cylinders to go one the back, had legs that flipped down. It would dump the corn wagons. That fall it was a little damp and the roads were soft. The H wouldn't pull a loaded wagon (maybe a 100 bu) in high gear. 4 th was soo slow. Well he just left the H at the crib and pulled the wagons with the 8N Ford and the B. They would pull the wagons in high gear. About 3 times faster than 4 th on the H. I think the farthest field was 6 miles. Vic

Man, THOSE were "The Days" I remember..!!

Hard work, but what good times they were..!!

Ron..