A Massey 14 rebuild

gregww

Well-known Member
A few years ago I rebuilt an MF 14. I found and bought it's twin. Made in '74 (same as my other one) but about 250n tractors newer according to the serial number.
mvphoto63203.jpg


mvphoto63204.jpg


mvphoto63207.jpg


mvphoto63208.jpg
 
Interesting, thanks for posting. Nice looking tractor. I would be interested in seeing lots of detailed pictures at the different stages of restoration.
 
Monday was wet and windy, and not a good day for painting. I spent the day cleaning up small parts, and making a complete new wiring harness.
Tuesday was a bit better, but still windy. Painting outside presents a lot of problems with wind, dust, and bugs. But ya do what ya gotta do. I did get the motor mounted back in the frame. The dash cowling,(twice) and gas tank.
I have seen these tractors with the front spindles converted to hubs with a 4 bolt rim pattern. I would like to find an extra set of spindles and try this myself, but I am not going to ruin the ones I have, without spares.

mvphoto63368.jpg


mvphoto63369.jpg
 
Looks nice so far. When you get that done maybe you can find one of these commemorative Wheel Horses to do next.
cvphoto59398.jpg


cvphoto59399.jpg


cvphoto59400.jpg
 
I don't have one of those, but I do have one of these. It is patiently waiting in the shop, to be the next project. I bought it a couple of weeks ago. Hope the weather holds out a little while longer.
mvphoto63389.jpg
 
I am not sure what I would do to own one of those commemorative tractors, but I am sure most of it would be illegal.
 
I made a little more progress today. Installed the new wiring harness, dash, and front grill, and a few other small things. The grill will have to come back off when the new hexagon mesh screen gets here. Not sure you can see it in the pic, put that exhaust pipe is chrome. It is actually a 1 1/4 drain pipe from a bathroom sink. I like it. May have to add that to my other Massey. I have been searching the web, (in vain) for chrome wheels to fit this tractor. Depending on the price, that may or may not happen.
I am almost to a stand still. I will be waiting on parts soon. The tin has to come back from the painter. (My nephew, we will see how that works out). I also ordered a new carb, and starter.
mvphoto63390.jpg


mvphoto63391.jpg

mvphoto63392.jpg


mvphoto63393.jpg
 
Made a little more progress today. Installed fuel lines, filter, and shut off. Put in the new battery and hold down clamp. It fired right up. Must have got that part of the wiring right also. May have to fine tune the carb. If I do, I will take it to my small engine guy and have him do it. Sometimes he just comes here. Ran it for a bit and my worst nightmare, a puddle under the motor. AAARRRGH It's gas. Fuel pump leaking like a sieve. I don't know why, it didn't seem to be leaking when I got it it, but never fear, I have a new one on hand. I ordered it for my other Massey, and never got around to putting it on. This new one is plastic, seems a little rinky dink, but it works, and it does not leak, so I'm good with it. Drove 30 miles to Rural King and bought a new seat. That's where I got my last one. Replaced fluid and filter for the trans, all seems good there. As you can see by the pics, I need to find dust caps for the front wheels. There weren't any. The front bumper is just temporarily stuck on, it has to come back off. The wires you see hanging are for lights. Now I am to the point where I am waiting on parts. The tin work from the painter. The mesh for the front grille. Plastic knobs for the control levers. New tail lights. Waiting a couple days though is alright as my garage floor REALLY needs to be mopped, and things straightened out a bit.

P.S. If anyone has a set of wheel weights for this tractor, I may be interested in buying them
mvphoto63468.jpg


mvphoto63469.jpg

mvphoto63470.jpg


mvphoto63471.jpg

mvphoto63472.jpg
 
Greg, that tractor is coming along nicely. Really a great looking job you are doing on it. Who made those tractors for MF? I don’t see these come up for sale very often. I have wanted one for some time now but assumed replacement parts would be impossible to find so I have never taken the plunge.
 
They were manufactured by AMF (American Machine & Foundry) in Des Moines Iowa. They show up on Facebook Marketplace occasionally, but most times people want an arm and a leg for them. Sometimes they want more !

click here
 
Thanks for the reply I’ve heard of AMF but didn’t know anything about them. Those are a couple of really nice looking MF-14s you linked to but I didn’t realize those things were gold plated. I don’t believe I can afford to many of them. There is a MF-12 in my area for sale for $300.00 that appears to be all there but it does need a lot of restoring. Suddenly $300.00 doesn’t seem so high but then again it’s a 12 not a 14.
 
Things were going along well, and then, I found a paint I liked better for the chassis. The Van Sickel Massey Ferguson Gary, just didn't look good to me. soooooo
mvphoto63630.jpg

I repainted it. This is a dark metallic gray. I am not a good painter anyway, and metallic paint presents its own challenges. I did not strip the chassis down completely. I covered what I had to, painted what I could, the best I could. The weather turned bad, so I had to do this in my garage. I once swore I would never do that again, but.........

mvphoto63631.jpg


Now I am waiting on a few small parts, and some decals. I am picking up the tin work this afternoon. The tractor probably will not be done tomorrow, as I doubt all the parts will be here, but it is getting closer.
 
I think I screwed up. I had my nephew paint the tin for this tractor. He used automotive type paint. Two coats of red, and a clear coat. It looks so good, I am going to have to have my other Massey repainted.
mvphoto63673.jpg
 

Looks very good.
The recent pics look like just out of the shipping crate at the dealer.
And final assembly before going out to the show room floor 45 years ago.
:D
 
I have literally been waiting weeks for these tail lights to arrive. The original tail lights are still available [color=red:1a752f2375]Here[/color:1a752f2375] Make sure you are sitting down when you look them up, and be willing to wait. I didn't want to post final pics, until the tractor was done. I do have a new starter coming, and another little doodad, and I will post more pics later. For now, this is what I got. As with everything I do, it's not perfect, and I aint gonna win any blue ribbons at the county fair, but I am happy with it.


mvphoto63971.jpg

mvphoto63972.jpg


mvphoto63973.jpg

mvphoto63974.jpg
 
The cost of rebuilding a garden tractor

Cost of tractor........................$350
Paint and media blasting........$500
Spray paint...............................$50
Head lights...............................$26
Tail lights..................................$80
Wiring & supplies.......................$5
Battery & cables........................$70
Seat............................................$80
Decals........................................$70
Carburetor..................................$80
Starter.......................................$150
Fuel pump..................................$70
Oil & filters................................$70
Degreaser sandpaper cleaning...$50
Coil............................................$70
Ignition switch...........................$15
Tires.........................................$170
Condenser...................................,.$8
Front grill mesh...........................$40
PTO switch..................................$25
Ammeter......................................$15
Misc. I forgot...............................$50

TOTAL......................................$2144

Satisfaction......................[b:42099a57a6][i:42099a57a6]PRICELESS[/i:42099a57a6][/b:42099a57a6]

Keep in mind this is my cost of rebuilding the tractor, the way I wanted to do it. There are things I probably did not have to buy, I just wanted them.
The starter worked fine, but the teeth on the bendix did not look good to me.
The condenser was rusty, crusty, and wrapped with electrical tape and I just didn't like it.
It had a 3 position ignition switch. The lights were on any time the tractor was on. It is suppose to be 4 position.
PTO switch worked, but I wanted a new one.
Coil was probably ok, again, I wanted a new one.
I had someone offer me a free seat. It was yellow. I thought that would be sacrilegious.
I bought several cans of spray paint, just to try the color, did not like them.
Tires? What can I say? They are just cool.
There are things I probably could have gotten cheaper, if I searched the net a bit more. I am not one to spend a lot of time searching to save 10 bucks.
I could have painted the tractor myself, like my other 14, but not with these results. It really looks nice. IMHO
 

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