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Wow..... What A Disappointment!

B

Bryce Frazier

Well-known Member
Well, title says it all.... Spent some time with my new Farmall M yesterday. Started tearing things apart, and first things first, I pulled the cover off of the bottom of the torque tube (where the hydraulic pump would have been). There was LITERALLY a foot of insulation, rotting mice, and all kinds of other trash INSIDE the bell housing! The clutch was completely covered, and it all rusted up... BAD!

Next, we try to drain the coolant out of it, only got about a gallon of green, so, okay, guess he had drained it out and not gotten all of it or something.

Then, we took a turn for the worse... Popped the oil plug off of the pan, and drained TWELVE GALLONS OF WATER out of the engine!!!!!! TWELVE!!! ONE TWO!!!! Where did it all come from?!?!?!?!

Took the gov cover off, and it is all rusted into one piece, the engine is of course stuck, and more than likely has a nice big crack inside of it somewhere......

SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SO upset!!! Was so excited to have this M, don't think it is worth saving now...

Haven't taken the head off of the engine, but if there was that much water in it, it has to be trashed inside... Has to be...

Right now, I am planning on just selling everything and getting my money back out of it (which I think I can barely do) then starting the hunt all over again!

Anyway, just thought you guys might like to hear an update! :

Bryce
 

I had a Farmall H that wasn't quite that bad, but still beyond saving. That tractor is now totally disassembled. Salvaged a few gears and bearings from the trans/rear end and stored those away in a dry place. The rest of the tractor is in a pile out behind a small shed.
 
I have bought several "stuck" tractors and walked away from twice as many. I always take wrenches with me when I go look at them and crack the oil plug just to see how much water is in them. The last one I bought, I drained about 3 qts of water out of it. Most of it comes in through the exhaust if it isn't covered.
 
Crap.......That's too bad.Since you're this far,pull the head and drop the pan.Go ahead and pull the thing out back and sit on it a while.Calm down,dont panic.You may come up with a solution...A 'repower'?You dont have much in it,you can afford to keep it a bit. "Sometimes you get the bear.Sometimes the bear gets you!"We've all been there. Steve
 
I have an H I bought on a consignment sale a year ago that just won't settle down and run as smooth as it should.

I've gone through everything I can think of with no result, including ignition, had two freshly cleaned carbs on it, new intake gaskets, checked valve lash, etc. It has a serious growl in the trans, also. It's a straight old H, though, not beat up or butchered up like some of them get, so I'm not ready to give up on it yet.

There are both a good looking H and an M on a retirement sale this weekend, so I'll have to check them out. I'd be willing to pay a fair price for a decent looking, healthy, H or M that I could put right to work. My plan is, I have another H with a nice hydraulic bucket loader on it that's been in the family for over 50 years, but the paint is gone on it. I'd like to buy another good H or M to transfer the loader onto, and restore the one that's been a family workhorse over the years out of respect for my father-in-law who bought it originally.
 
You win some and you lose some. Don't let it bother you; along the way you gain knowledge and experience that will give you better paybacks as you grow older. Just keep thinking: "I'll make it up on the next deal".
 
Well, I am trying to buy an International V8 out of a Scout down the road... It is running and driving great, but the car is TRASHED.. Think I can get it very cheap, and it should pretty much bolt right in huh?? :)

The other option, I could keep the Schwartz wide front (turns really sharp, and is a NICE front end!) and the power steering pump, sell the rest of the tractor for as much as I can, THEN go and buy my buddys restored M for $800 (what I should have done in the first place....)

He just wants to get rid of some tractors, and is willing to make me a great deal on it. It does need a few little things, drawbar, etc. Just little stuff. He restored it about 10 years ago, and has just been sitting in a barn since. Tires are rotted off of it, and it has a wide front on it as well, but I think that it is a Norden? Anyway, I could put my nice wide front and power steering onto that machine, and then sell the Norden that is on it, and probably when all is said and done be doing pretty well! :)

I am not worried, I can dig my self out in a heart beat if need be... Just don't want to yet! :)
 
Not sure on an M . but an H had a soft plug on the front of the block that would rust through & leak. Might be something to check.
 
As long as you can get close to your $$$ back out of it you did OK as all of them can't be a bang up deal 3 steps forward and 1 step back you're still gaining ground.
 
You maybe bought some experience, or maybe parts for the M you'll have someday. Keep your chin up and stay in the hunt, no telling what you can find out there. I know my Dad's Super M had a rear end failure, wicked ugly as "stuff" popped out the bottom of the rear end. Our good Super M motor ended up on a M that had a bad motor, far as I know it ran another 10-15 years as a hybrid. We kinda got skunked when we bought he Super M and ended up replacing the engine a year after we got it, ran it for another 10 years or so before Dad sold it to a neighbor he used for a couple of years before the rear end went out and he married the engine to another M he picked up cheap from one of his Nephews.
 
Just spent a little time out in the shop now, and got the power steering stuff all taken off and cleaned up... Seals and all that look pretty good, hoses are fine... Will this setup fit onto my H? It is a Charlyn, there is a pulley that somehow goes onto the front of the crank shaft pulley. Resivor under the front left corner of the hood.

I think that I will just hang onto it, for when I get another M! Did they work all that well, or were they just kind of helpful once in a while!? :)

I was kind of surprised at how well the wide front end turned (schwartz). It turned fairly easy without the loader on it, and it turns VERY sharp! Might turn harder than my C!??
 
Might as well tear into that engine and see how shot it really is. Can always find another engine if the rear end don't look to bad if and when you take the covers off of that. Same engine as a W/T6 if want to transplant. If you keep digging and it still gets worse, write it off as a learning experience. Then find another tractor and keep what you can for parts. Good luck to ya.
 
Sounds like you got your head on your shoulders to me. Taking a moment, looking at things with fresh eyes and making decisions that make sense. What interested me was your comment that you could get an M for $800. Im in the center of MI
if I can find an M for less than $1500 I will most likely be buying someones headache. Have heard you mention other prices as well. I have a farmall H with a dual loader, trip bucket. I also have John deere B that I have rebuilt 90 over that just sits because I cant get the bracket right to run a one wire alternator. And I need the clutch assembly tightened up as the handle has WAY TO MUCH PLAY. I never seem to have the extra money to do the repairs. Wife has been sick the last year. Pancreatic tumors (cancerous). We got her pancreas removed and all is good other than the meds that she needs to survive are very expensive. Am thinking of thowing in the towel and let someone else have the project. Then I could go and find a nice older restored tractor to take tractor rides and hopefully drive across the mackinaw bridge. A 5mile span that connects the upper and lower pennisulas. In September they have up to 1000 tractors drive across using one lane northbound. Been wanting to do this since its inception 5 yrs ago. Your doing fine young man. You are ahead of this 48 yr old in many ways. take care
 
You're learning what to look for before you seal the deal. If you can spare the room consider keeping it as a parts source for the next one you find. Especially if they happen to not be common in your area. You may even find one with a good motor and bad rear.

Also the fresh water may have not done as much damage as you think. It depends on how long it has been in there. Certainly it's not a runner now but down the road you may need a crank or rods or even the head. Tear it down and see how it is.

On a final note, last year an H showed up that hadn't run in a while. It had been sitting in East Texas where it rains a lot. I drained about 3 gallons of water out of it. I dropped the pan and cleaned it up. Crank was sitting cross wise and was above the water line. Oil pump was messy but not hurt. The rest of the story is that it ended up running good with no major surgery.
 
Be sure and get that bracket that the Charlyn TG bolts up to. And the shortened steering shaft.Did you get a pump also? A complete Char lyn setup will bring close to 600 on flea bay.
 
Yep, I have everything for it... GREAT shape too! Pulley that goes on the crank, bracket, pump, lines, fluid tank, and the unit itself.. Tanked everything today and cleaned it all up nice. The actual "motor" still has the big sticker on it that says "Charlyn Power Assist Steering" Pretty cool! Can't wait to put it on my own M one day... Did they work pretty good?

Bryec
 
Wow! That's to bad, I don't know how you got this thing, but dident you bother to check the oil, or antifreeze before you bought it? I can't even believe an M engine can even hold 12 gallons of water in the crankcase! Lol, I guess you learn something new every day.
 
Anything can be brought back to life> Our FFA did 5 basket cases one even had burned up and sat in a pasture for 5 years. All depends on how much you want to put in it. but in east centra; Illinois you can get a decent running M for 1000 to 1200
 
You know, I always have, and for what ever reason, I trusted the guy, his story seemed legit, the situation made sense, everything just felt "good". He told me that he was running it in 2007, and he even has a picture of him using it, in 2007. Then it was parked in a barn for 5 years, then the barn collapsed, and the loader saved the tractor! Then it was outside. Had cans on it, and it even had a tarp on it!!

We couldn't believe it... Pulled the plug, and it just started roaring out! Filled up my dads 6 gallon drain pan, and we panicked, because it wasn't slowing down, and shoved the plug back in, dumped the pan, and pert near filled her up again!!!

He said twice, where is it all coming from??

Live and learn though... Told the seller what had happened and he said he was "shocked" even offered to try to make it right with me, and I said no, I was still happy with the deal.

He was asking $1000 for it, and had people beating down his door trying to give him that much, but he sold it to me for $500, "because I really like you" he said. Fair enough I think! :)

Real nice guy, even dug around and came up with the old manuals for it, which I need to pick up sometime...

All in all, the power steering and wfe are worth WAY more than I paid for it, so I am not worried... All is well! Just wish I had a good tractor! :(
 
Yes that's good getting the wide front, I also have a Swartz wide front on my H, as you said may as well keep it for parts, can't go wrong for a $500 part source right. Lol, I want to pull out my H one of these days.
 
Charlyn power steerings where the "cats meow" My dad has several tractors that we use with them.
<image src="http://forums.yesterdaystractors.com/photos/mvphoto18841.jpg"/>
 
Here is a picture of the pump on this one. As you can see, it bolts onto the left side of the tractor, on the Governor plate...

Also saw this yesterday! (link) it is a an M on TractorData that has the same setup! COOL! :)

You can also see the HOME MADE block heater this thing had on it! CRAZY! :

<image src="http://forums.yesterdaystractors.com/photos/mvphoto18842.jpg"/>
 
Yes it is! You can look at the picture I just posted below of it.. You can still see the tag, and can JUST BARELY read Schwartz though the red paint...

You can also see on the tag, and it is a model 400, and as the story goes, they totaled the IH M wide front that was originally under the tractor (because of the loader I am sure) and they bought this one off of a 400 at an auction!

I really like it... Looks VERY sturdy, and turns REALLY sharp! Great setup! :)
 
Oops! Forgot the link! Foo..... :)

Not sure if it will work right or not, but if it takes you to the page with pictures on it, click on the top picture of the M, then click on the right arrow to see the next picture of that same tractor, and it will show you the power steering... Bryce
Tractor Data Farmall M
 
Bryce, your thread caught me off guard. I thought you were going to tell us you had too many marshmallows in your Lucky Charms. Regardless, I'm sorry for your troubles. We all pay for our education even if it is from the School of Hard Knocks. Hang in there.
 
TOO MANY MARSHMALLOWS?!?!?

Amazingly enough, my mother doesn't buy my Lucky Charms, or Coco puffs... Says that they are "a touch too much for you" :)

I suppose I don't REALLY need that much sugar in the morning...

Thats what coffee is for.... hehehe :p
 
Lucky charm marshmallows. I have a friend who along with her sister's would sort them out of their uncle's lucky charms. Because that was his cereal their cousin's only got cheerios.
 

Offer the M to "young fella" Old. He has unstuck so many engines in his short lifetime that he must do a couple a day. Being stuck makes them worth more to him.
 
(quoted from post at 20:47:07 04/06/15) TOO MANY MARSHMALLOWS?!?!?

Amazingly enough, my mother doesn't buy my Lucky Charms, or Coco puffs... Says that they are "a touch too much for you" :)

I suppose I don't REALLY need that much sugar in the morning...

Thats what coffee is for.... hehehe :p
Click to expand...

That is dissapointing, finding out that you put sugar in coffee.

Rick
 
OH no! I drink mine black... Not a lot of it either. IF I have coffee in the morning, it is usually when I am REALLY like getting up and going, and then I fill my big cup up at the truckstop, then that is all I need. Too much of the stuff and I spend the whole day getting rid of it every 10 min!
 
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