How Do I take an IH-300 out of Storage

I have the oppotunity to get an IH-300 (unkown vintage). It has a narrow front, and that is about all I know about it at this point. It "may" have last run in the early 80's. It has been in a barn out of the elements for its whole life.

My questions: would this tractor be much of a headache to get going? Would it be worth the headaches? Would it be able to do what I need it to do? Could a FEL be adapted for use, or is it just going to be too hard on the unit, and me? Would there be a solution that would work in substitution of the FEL?

I have no idea what IH 300 means other that its an IH. Does anyone have details about specs on the 300?

I am very mechanically gifted, but I have never worked on tractors. What would I need to do to successfully bring it out of storage and into at least running condition?

What would I need to do to bring it up to spec for what I need it to do?

What would be some easy, cheap mods, that would improve its function, ease of use, and safety?

Thanks for the help. I was looking at compacts, and then I looked at the pricing. Me no can afford new compact tractor. Some body told me to look at old utlity tractors, so here I am. Any help would be much appreciated.

Does an IH 300 have a CD changer or mobile entertainment system? Sorry, just kidding, he he!

The tractor is not going anywhere for now, so I have time to prepare. I was looking around the website for parts and stuff, however I was having trouble.

What number and letter combinatios do I need to look for to find appropraite parts and manuals?

A friend said to drain all the liquids, and refill all of the associated cavities completely full in order to rewet the dry gaskets. Then drain again and fill to the proper level.

This sounds like an extreme. Would this procedure be of any benefit?

Speaking of trannies and hydraulics... engines and hydraulics don't scare me in the least. Trannies however do. What do I need to look out for as far as identifying problems with the tranny and drivetrain? How hard is the tranny to work on? The thought of splitting the cases doesn't thrill me, but I would do it if it were't that involved (I.E. expensive specialty tools) a thing to do.

What is the likelihood there will be no... oops, almost jinxed it, ...few problems with the tranny, and what are they likely to be?

Would it have a 3ph and pto compatible with today's implements? If not what could be done to modernize it? Or would it need to be modernized? Would there be a "work around"?

I guess the tractor is inherently a mobile entertainment system, from what you guys are saying. I am almost frothing at the mouth to be out there on that thing. I must however be patient. This will come in time, and hard work.Thanks again, and keep 'em coming. My wife is patching my coveralls as I write, bless her.

As for transmission work, one of the other guys will have to help you. On my Super H, it had set for several years outside, so about half the fluid in the trans was water. Will I have problems with it...I don't know, but I do have better luck with tractors than I do with trucks and cars. BB

I have a fair amount of mechanical ability and tractors are generally silly simple to work on unless you have to do major work. I get great enjoyment out of getting non-running tractors running again...almost as much fun as using them. So I think it is worh the headaches involved.

If the price is right (it shouldn't be priced any more then $500 or so...there are too many good runners out there for $1500 or so if you look a little) Having said that, I spent more than that on both of mine, but 1 had the asking price in implements and the other had the asking price in the wide front end.

If you get it, buy the operator's and service manuals first. Change ALL the fluids. Then i would squirt some oil into each cylinder and give it a compression test to check for stuck valves, etc. Drain old gas and check for junk in the tank...too junky you need to either clean and coat it or replace the tank. I would pull the carb and take it apart and soak in laquesr thinner and clean it thoroughly and rebuild it. If you have good compression and gas, pull a plug and check for spark by grounding it against the block. If you have a strong blue spark, all is well...no spark and I would replace the coil, points, condensor, distributor cap, plugs and plug wires (Actually I do that anyway.)

Check your tires and the condition of the sheetmetal before you buy...Tires are about $700 or so new and mounted. Sheetmetal is getting harder to find and more expensive. Look for missing parts...they will eat you alive at about $25-$150 at a time. Bad tires or bad sheet metal or several missing parts almost ensure I won't buy one...A complete, straight tractor with original paint that is not running can be a great bargain (maybe).

I know others have gone there, so they will no doubt add more info. Just beware of 2 things...

1. You will never get your money out of a tractor what you put into it unless you get a real bargain.

2. You will probably want more after you get the first one so bring your wallet...

1 - Drain the oil, install a new filter and refill the crankcase with fresh oil. If the tractor has live hydraulics check and refill the hyd reservoir.

2 - Remove the spark plug and squirt a couple ounces of motor oil into each cylinder - leave the plugs out for now.

3 - Remove the valve rocker box. Dump a quart of fresh oil over the rocker assemblies and leave the cover off.

4 - Using a hand crank, turn the motor over a few revolutions. Observe each pair of valves looking for any that are not moving (stuck open). If any are stuck try to free them up with some light tapping or turning with a vicegrips.

5 - Once your are satisfied the top end is OK, replace the rocker box, stick a new battery on and try cranking the motor (spark plugs still out). Crank until the oil gage registers anything above 0. This is to precharge the filter and internal oil passages.

6 - Remove the sediment bowl under the tank and clean it out. If there is any gas left in the tank, drain it out and discard it - it'll be NG. Reassemble the sediment bowl - good idea to use a new gasket when you do.

7 - Dump a few gallons of fresh gas into the tank and open the fuel shutoff. If you are lucky the carb won't begin dripping gas. If it does, shut off the gas and plan on doing a carb rebuild because the float is stuck.

8 - If the radiator is empty, fill it to about 1" of the top with plain water.

9 - Replace the plugs (recommend installing new ones....).

10 - Cross you fingers, turn on the ignition and crank her up. If you are lucky you'll be rewarded with a large cloud of oily blue smoke and a running tractor. Once you get it going, check for oil pressure, oil and water leaks.

Good luck!!

PS - The 300 was never offered with a CD player. However "open air conditioning" was standard equipment!