A herd of Gravelys and a couple of questions

Zachary Hoyt

Well-known Member
I have been keeping a bit of an eye out for a Gravely 2 wheel tractor for some years, and on Saturday I stumbled upon an ad on Craigslist for 5 Ls and 6 implements for $500. They belonged to a man who had a Christmas tree farm and used them mainly for mowing, but they had not been used for 8 years or so as the man had retired from the Christmas tree business. They were stored under a tarp for all that time. One was gotten running by the son-in-law of the owner, and there are two others that perhaps can be made to run with some work. The other two have been sitting out in the weather and are stuck, and may be better parted out. There are two 30" mower decks and one is one the running tractor so I know it works, a reel mower and a sicklebar that are rusty but may be repairable, I think, and an MA-210 snowblower and an older snowblower. I will probably sell the older blower, though i doubt it's worth a lot, but the other one might come in handy. The first few pictures are of the rest of the load, and the last several are of the running machine and close-ups of some parts that I am trying to understand.

The running tractor starts easily and does not smoke, but the oil pressure doesn't get out of the LOW part of the gauge. I have done a bit of reading and am still confused as to whether it has the low pressure or high pressure oil system. The son-in-law said he had put 10w30 in it. I am planning to change the oil filter and am wondering if anyone can advise me as to what else I should check to try to address the low oil pressure. It could just be worn out, but it seems to run nicely so I am not sure what to think.

The other thing I am wondering about at the moment is the lever under the right handlebar of the running tractor. It's rod goes down to the axle and moves a little lever down there. I am thinking this is probably another high-low shifter of some kind but I am not sure what to make of it. This lever was held in the forward position with a piece of wire. I found the site with the free manuals so I will have some reading to do there too. I am thinking of taking apart one of the parts machines to get a better understanding of how it all works, when I have time.
I will be very grateful for any advice on how to proceed.
Zach
a276113.jpg

a276114.jpg

a276115.jpg

a276116.jpg

a276117.jpg

a276118.jpg

a276119.jpg

a276120.jpg

a276121.jpg

a276122.jpg
 
If you want all of the information in the world about Gravely model "L" machines go to this web site. Gravely Tractor club of America. Look around till you find manuals and literature listing. Everything ever printed is there. That little leaver is for the Swift-O-Matic two speed differential. Very nice thing to have. One half speed drive system. For $500 bucks take everything that is not nailed down!!!! The one that is running you can change the oil pump easy enough. Get on that web site and download the PDF files. Tons and tons of information.
 

The low oil pressure issue may be related to a bad gauge, improper oil (try straight 30 or 40W), old filter if it has one or it could be a worn engine. These things never had a lot of oil pressure. They were more of a volume pump than a pressure pump. And the replacement "high pressure" oil pump just gives more volume. It's a pain to put in because you have to split the case to do it and they are EXPEN$IVE. I'd check out the gauge, blow the lines clear and rinse the sump good. Then add fresh oil and see what it says. If it's got a good flow of oil when running and you look down into the oil fill (you may get a face full of oil if you aren't careful) and she sounds good with no knocking, I'd bet on the gauge being bad.

That Swiftmatic lever probably needs adjustment. It may require some cleaning and lubing to get it working right. The lever over-centers to lock. You should be abale to find the adjustment instructions on line.
 
Thank you very much. I ran it for a bit longer yesterday, about 10 minutes, and the pressure crept up into the lower end of the Normal range. I'll pick up a new filter and some heavier oil
next time I'm in town and see what that does. I am not sure about how to clean out the sump on this one, does the Swiftamatic make it harder to remove the right axle to get at the screen?
The others I have are just plain LIs without the extra lever, but they'll need a lot more work to get going so I won't get to them till the fall most likely.
Zach
 
Thanks, I'll check out that website. The seller advertised it as a package deal, he wanted to sell all of the Gravely stuff together, I guess. It's enough to keep me busy for a good while. I'll probably part out one of the ones that was sitting outside, and that will help me understand better how they work internally.
Zach
 

IIRC there should be a drain plug either on the bottom of the main case or out one of the side covers where the axle bolts in. Drain it, fill with diesel and slosh it around (don't run it!) drain the diesel and fill with fresh oil. Yes, the Swiftmatic makes it more difficult to get at the pick up screen, but the diesel flush should help clean that. A lot of these old girls will be found with sludge in the bottom of the case that will rinse out.
 
Forgot to add....that snow blower is the meanest thing you could want. They are built like a brick!
 
The one I have is the newer one with a chute and a direction crank handle. The one in your picture has a drum body that turns to change direction. The more horse power the further they throw powder snow. With my 10hp gravely it blows close to 100 feet. The snow never hits the ground it just makes it's own snow storm in the air. Way cool! Just check the bearings are lubed and are in good shape.
 
I thought the sickle bar cutter was pretty neat. Predecessor to the DR Field and Brush mower. I'll take the DR over the sickle however. Course the string trimmer does a super job on grass only. I have their push type and the tow behind for riding mowers. Great machines.
 

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