Model M manual question

Hello all,

I am working on cleaning up my grandfather's model M and need some advice. The main thing it needs is a new exhaust manifold but I figured if I'm doing that then I might as well go all the way since he has told me before it hasn't had any fluids changed in 20-30 years. (it's used to plow 1/4 acre one day every year). I have the exploded parts diagram manual, the aftermarket shop manual (i think), and the original owners manual (again I think, this one is very worn.) One thing I have noticed is that none of these is very helpful for actually performing basic maintenance on the tractor. I don't think any of them even mention what oil to use or where the different drain bolts are. So my question is, would the 320-page service manual from the manual page on this site be more helpful? I was just hoping to get an idea what was in the book before dropping $50 on it.

Thanks,

Try an look it up on u tube. It is cheap
and there's lots of guys on there telling
on how to work on things. It is now the
new way to learn on how to do it. A book
on it also is very helpful on working on
the m.

The original owners manual should have all the info on maintenance. I wonder if you have some sort of a reprinted copy that is not complete ?

Agree with [b:654c4848f0]Mike M[/b:654c4848f0] that "[i:654c4848f0]The original owners manual should have all the info on maintenance[/i:654c4848f0]".

Take a look at the lubrication list below for "Sparky" our 51M.



Hope this helps.

This is the lubrication chart for the model M.
mike

that's no good. Any one know how to make it bigger?
mike

Wow, Thank you everyone for the replies. I have certainly learned a thing or two from youtube in the past but so far in my search, have not found as much about this specific tractor.

For making the picture bigger, in the past, I have uploaded pictures to google drive and posted a sharable link so everyone can view it at full resolution but not sure how that works on the forum.

I will take a closer look at the manual that I have, I only found it a short time ago and have only skimmed it.

I'm sure I will be back with more questions once I have time to tear into the tractor.

Thanks,

Hi all,

I just wanted to run a few more questions past you.

I read through the original manual now and it does cover almost everything but it did leave me with a few questions.

For changing oil, I assume is it drained through a drain plug around the oil pan under the engine, I'm not around the tractor to look for a few weeks. For filling, do you just fill through the crankcase breather on the right side by the gas cap?

For the transmission fluid, I saw the drain plug is down by the clutch pedal, but where is the fill plug, how do you check the level and are there any other drain plugs for this area (final drives?). Along with that, how many final drives are there? The manual says like 3 pints of oil for each.

The hydraulics look pretty straightforward with everything, drain, and fill being behind the seat, as does the coolant.

Along with all of these, I was planning on pulling the oil pan to clean any sludge. I was also planning on repacking and checking the front wheel bearings as well as all the other basic lubrication points.

I was also considering removing the valve cover and checking the valve (rocker) clearances, would this be a good idea?

And along with that, is there anything I'm missing that would be good to check/change while doing the rest of this?

Sorry there were so many questions at once, but thanks for all the help,

Charles

might not be a horrible idea to replace the points and plugs and set the timing. check/adjust the clutch and brake pedal freeplay. Make sure that the steering box has oil/grease. Do check the valve clearance (it is as easy on this engine as it gets). Maybe drain and refill the radiator so you know what is in it.

you will want to use 30wt NON-detergent oil. Its getting harder to find, be sure it says NON-detergent, not just premium. If you use detergent oil it will clean out the deposits that help seal the rings and you will have a huge amount of blow by. My dad dumped in a quart of high detergent diesel engine oil and we had to rebuild the engine. Good point to check the steering gear box, most people would not think of that. It is probably dry.

Good point about the non-detergent oil. I have seen that a few different places. I am hoping the local NAPA has some.

should I use non-detergent gear oil in the trans as well if that even exists?

I am going to clean it up this weekend and see what all I have. I was told it was running rough last year so I will probably rebuild the carb as well, probably can't hurt, I just need to figure out what model it is.

I am also planning on replacing all the basic electrical parts, plugs, wires, points, since they are all quite cheap I don't see why not.

(quoted from post at 07:32:45 06/12/20)

should I use non-detergent gear oil in the trans as well if that even exists?
I am also planning on replacing all the basic electrical parts, plugs, wires, points, since they are all quite cheap I don't see why not.

Click to expand...

Straight old 90 wt gear oil is what was in it. If you replace battery cables be sure to get heavier gauge ones for 6 volts, 12 volt cable are smaller diameter and if used are one reason for slow cranking speed.