One thing leads to another!

[squatch]

I had a couple of fixes I needed to do to my 1872 Super. Replace the broken rock shaft, replace leaking gasket in the hydro to trans again, new tires which lead to having to clean and paint the rusty wheels.
Which lead to new front bearings and steering spindle bushings. So why not pull the front axle and clean and paint that.
Trans is coming out and it's hard to get to rock shaft and I had to fix the wiring in the dash.

So out comes the fuel tank.

Well the motor is only 6 bolts so out it comes. Might as well get the dash tower out of the way which gets all the hydro lines clear.

Plenty of room to work but everything is dirty and rusty.

So I stripped everything off the frame Knocked the broken shaft out of the rock shaft assembly. It came out quite easily.

Today I degreased he frame. removed the rust with a wire wheel and grinder and put a fresh coat of primer on it.

How far I'll get painting I'm not sure. I may just do the frame and axles for now because the sheet metal is easy to pull and may need the tractor real soon.
I love to look of the red tractors so I'm thinking I may try to copy that with late model cub yellow instead. Solid color yellow without the white. I'll probably paint the cab yellow as well. I'm going to replace the worn out rubber treads with DIY bedliner with ground up car tire in it. Same for the pedals. Won't be a job for the purist restorer types but will still be a Cub in yellow. Not much hat I own tends to stay stock for long including the Cub.

[squatch]

Just a little update with some pics. I'm actually farther along than the pics show but still need to unload some more pics from the camara. I got the tires mounted on the wheels and have the frame primed and one coat of paint so far. All my new steering parts are in. Lot's of things keep getting in the way as usual.
Here is the replacement rock shaft still to be paint prepped.


Front wheels being prepped.


Front wheels after paint. Yes I'm leaving them black they will match the rear wheels with plastic wheel weights installed.


Rear wheels painted.


Frame stripped prior to paint prep.


Just a couple of teasers for now.

[ACecil]

Thanks for the update and pics, squatch!

[krisb]

Man you guys make stripping down a Cub and putting it back together look like childs play.

[Diz Jr.]

Nice work squatch

[squatch]

Originally Posted by krisb

Man you guys make stripping down a Cub and putting it back together look like childs play.

Stripping them down is not hard at all. I haven't put it back together yet!

[Methos]

Originally Posted by squatch

Stripping them down is not hard at all. I haven't put it back together yet!

Looking good! Your off to a great start!

[midyearguru]

Squatch.........I've been following all the upgrades and repairs you're doing to your 1872 on various threads. I'm wondering how much all this is costing? You appear to be someone who thinks things through before making the financial commitment, so would you mind explaining your rationale? The reason I'm asking is because I also have an 1872 and your input would help me decide if I want to go the same route.
Thanks.

[Mountain Heritage]

Funny....I don't see anything tagged for rebuilding? Must have a better memory than I do....I normally need to finish things up and rebuild them sooner than later...the old mind is going, might end up with a steering wheel bolted to a grill if I left it go too long. The worst is when you end up with extra bolts!:biggrin2.gif:

[squatch]

Midyearguru, My rationale is probably not real sound for most folks. I grew up poor so everything I had was somebody elses discard that I fixed up. That's what I know. I have as much trouble with new stuff in general as older stuff. I can fix the older stuff. I'm a pretty green guy and made a decision a couple of years ago when I had yet another new truck bought back by the Manufacturer because it wa a lemon. I decided that too many people throw away good stuff and I've lost too much money on new stuff. So I'm back to fixing up old. I consider it enviornmentally sound. Redoing old equipment is the ultimate recycling. I rebuilt my bass boat from a junker. Same with my current truck and now this cub. I usually get in deeper than I wanted but I've gotten used to it.

As for the 1872. I love this tractor. It's the perfect size. Has more than enough power for anything I would use it for. The attachments are still out there for reasonable prices. And new parts are readily available. They don't cost amy more than new parts for a new tractor. I've been lucky getting the things I've needed for the jobs I do. I have a Pintle hook for towing, deck, blade, snowblower, and now a cab. If I need it I can get rear attachments and a 3pt or sleeve hitch. This tractor works like a much bigger tractor. It's stable on my hilly land. There is also nothing really on the market like these Super GTs at this time. And it just plain looks right and I have something unique. Just like with my other projects I get to meet some cool people in my search for Parts and attachments.

As for the cost. Most would buy new before dumping real money into an old tractor. My take is if you want to have a NEW old tractor i'ts going to take some cash and some elbow grease. I've replaced many small items as I've gone along and this is the second round of major go through on the cub. Kinda cleaning up what I let slide the 1st time. The more you fix the more reliable it gets. I also get to pay as I go. The money comes out of my pocket. That's hard to do buying a new scut these days. I figure I still have less invested than this tractor cost new with out attachments back when it was new. But not much less. I fugure I'm around $3,500 total now. How much would this much tractor and attachments cost new today? Everything I do makes it more suited to what I'll use it for. You have to spend money on a new one to customize it to your needs as well.

Mountain heritage, I take things apart as assemblies. That way I only have to remember the given sub assembly I'm working on at the moment. I do mark wires and such. I also take lots of pictures so I have them as a reference. I've also had most of the major pieces of this tractor apart several times now. That makes it a whole lot easier to put back together.