I'm debating a 127
 

I've got yellow fever and I don't think I want to get better! :bash2:

I found this 127 with a blade, chains, and rear lift for $350. The guy says it runs, he had bought it a while ago (a year or so?) for a restoration project with his son but time isn't allowing so he's going to sell it. He says it runs, just needs the carb cleaned, a battery, and a rim and tire for the front left.

http://quadcities.craigslist.org/bar/3842114714.html

So what do ya'll think, good buy or should I pass? Pics are a little dark but it APPEARS to be in decent cosmetic shape, I don't see much rust at all. So, what do the experts think? If its' a good buy, it'd be my first IH built CC :biggrin2:

Go for it! The 127 will be a great first tractor for you and it has some good extras already--chains, 3 point, and blade (Did you say you live in Illinois?....that blade and chains will come in handy this winter and it's cheaper than the price of a snowblower that you have to walk behind!). You will still have a cub with great utility beyond snow removal. It appears to be in good shape and a cub that has sat for 6 months doesn't necessarily need a carb rebuild. Use some Marvel Mystery Oil to help clean up the fuel system and lubricate the upper engine and see how it performs after that. However, I would certainly figure out something with the owner first before I went for pick up.....a 3 wheeled cub can be a real challenge to move!:bigthink:

Let us know if you are the proud owner of a 127!!!....Of course we will want pictures of its arrival.:biggrin2:

Cub Cadet 123

Wouldn't be my first tractor, but my first IH built CC. But I agree, it's hard to pass up. I've had my eye on it for a while so either nobody else around here wants it or the guy isn't telling me something. Either way, I agree, if all is as it appears to be, to have a tractor with a blade around would be worth it on its own!

Looks to be in decent shape! The 127 would make a nice first IH built cub for you. Hope you get it. :beerchug:

That almost looks like my old 127. If it is it was pretty stout and just had the head trued up and new headgasket shortly before I sold it. If you get it you will love it I can almost garentee it. I wouldn't worry to much on the carb a good cleaning and a 10 buck gasket kit for it and you will be set!

Well I talked to the guy today and made an offer of $300 to which he accepted!! Going to pick it up Saturday morning, I'll be sure to post pics :beer2:

I did find out, however, it's been parked for about 2 years so I'm going to bring some Marvel Mystery Oil with me and put a bit in the tank and crank before firing it up. Anything else I should keep an eye out for before we fire it up for the first time in 2 years? I've never tried to bring a sitting tractor back to life after that long so I want to make sure I cover my bases, don't want to mess anything up after all

Great news! Looking forward to your pics.

Very nice. I had my 127 for almost 2 weeks now and love it. I hope you enjoy yours!!

Those are my favorite series of cubs. Great find!

So how is the debate going? Is the 127 winning or are you? Just had to go there LOL :biggrin2:

Well...it won :bash2:

I go pick her up Saturday morning and hopefully she'll be pushing brush by the evening! I even got her for $300 instead of $350 hehe

when I go to pick up the new addition to my family, as suggested in earlier post I'm going to bring along some Marvel Mystery Oil.correct me if I'm wrong but as far as I know there are 3 places to put it. Put a couple ounces in the gas tank, a couple ounces in the oil, and remove the spark plug and put about a tablespoonful in there and then crank the engine over by hand a couple times. Are these all appropriate places to put the oil before I fire it up for the first time? And is there anything else I should do that would be good? This is my first time resurrecting a fallin friend so I want to make sure I do it right.

I only put it (MMO) in the fuel tank at first. I would not put it directly into the head or crankcase at first. If I was trying to get one started that sat for 2 years, I would take a well charged battery, a new spark plug, fresh fuel, a quart of oil (just in case it is low on oil---check this first before cranking), and some carb/choke cleaner. Check the oil for appropriate level and viscosity....may be a little thick, that is ok but should not be molasses thick, put some fresh fuel in (I put the MMO in my gas can before purchasing gas so that it is always mixed in my fuel), hook up your well charged battery, pull off the air cleaner and leave it off--squirt a couple of small shots of the carb/choke cleaner in the carb (with the choke body open), and then go turn the key!! Always practice good safety and do not have anyone standing close to the uncovered carb or have it close to any wood, etc. as sometimes the carb spray-if too saturated--will shoot a flame out of the carb. You don't know anything about this engine, so the settings on the carb might not be correct, so it could even backfire. Always err on the side of caution!:bigthink: I didn't see a deck or anything hooked up to the front pto, so I would also use the release to engage the front pto if no belts are hooked up to it. If I forgot anything, then someone else please chime in......I hope the 127 fires up for you right away and makes you smile.:beerchug:

Let us know how it goes for you....

Cub Cadet 123

Just curious, what makes you say it looks like your old 127? I think it'd be awesome if this was a previous forum members tractor!

Just the rusty looking fuel tank and painted footpads. But if that hasn't been ran in two years there is no way its mine. I sold mine a little under a year ago running and driving

The 127 is a nice tractor. Ours came from our aunt in Columbus Ohio. About a four hour drive. Similar condition and had not been started for a couple years. Lots of carb cleaning and fuel system. Fresh Battery. new plug, checked the oil, The 127 fired right up, mowed the lawn, loaded it up and brought it home that was 10 years ago. It has been rebuilt and is the current go to tractor for mowing the lawn.
Good luck with your new tractor!
Regards,
Chris

Good score.

NIK,

my 127 is ol' reliable. always starts and always does what i ask it to. once its running good you will love it. good luck!

Well, good news and bad news: Good news is I got her home and she is in great cosmetic shape! Bad news is...well..she doesn't run :(

It could be as bad as the piston being seized and/or a rod broken. The guy I got it from didn't seem like the sharpest tac in the bunch and said that he tried turning it over the day before I came. I pulled the dip stick: no oil. Agghh!!! So, I added oil, drained the gas and put fresh gas in with some MMO. Sprayed the carb, freed it up, put a fresh battery in and turned the key: nothing. Just a click under the dash and that was it. So, he pulled out a car jumper and hooked it straight up to the starter and she turned over, but sounded sick in doing so. I checked the spark plug and it was loose. Tried tightening it and...well...it's stripped. So, I threw the towel in there as far as trying to get it to run on the spot. Also, it's missing the air filter. And one more thing - the sub-frame for the blade needs a weld because one side broke off. At least that's an easy fix, I know a guy with a welder.

So the guy says he'd take $200 for it since he thought it ran and in all honesty, I was about to walk away. I walked around it, took note of the physical shape of it and saw a thatcher in the corner. So I said I'd give him $160 for the tractor, blade, and chains. He said $175. I said well...how about $180 and I take the thatcher in the corner. He said deal. So, all in all, I got an ok deal as I see it.

I got a pretty darn good shape 127 that needs work but is 97% complete, I got a blade that will come in oh so handy, I got a set a chains that will be useful, a set of new tires on the back of the tractor (did I forget to mention that? :P) and a thatcher.

I'll post pics later once this darn rain clears up and more details, but is there anything simple I could check for to try and find out more? I hope it's nothing TOO major that needs fixed.

You got a good deal! Good luck with your 127.

Alright, as promised, pics of the 127. Here she is on the back of the truck sitting outside of work. I really do think she's in pretty good cosmetic shape. It almost looks like someone started a restore on this before. That, or the thing has been garage kept and not run much it's whole life.

https://imageshack.com/a/img836/2219/pqnm.jpg

Quick pic of the right hand side, does that wiring bundle look right to you guys?

https://imageshack.com/a/img534/6848/ond4.jpg

This side is the worst part of the ol' girl. I don't know how they manged to get it so dirty but here it is. The choke and throttle cables are in need of a little TLC, they are very stiff and not mounted to anything as it sits right now.

https://imageshack.com/a/img827/3444/rkf1.jpg

https://imageshack.com/a/img818/9707/i84v.jpg

The spark plug. I want to get a new one because it's hard to tell if the spark plug is stripped or the hole is stripped. I do lean towards the hole being stripped, though, as I don't see a whole lot of thread when I look into it :bash2:

https://imageshack.com/a/img203/4076/2oc6.jpg

Engine plate

https://imageshack.com/a/img195/4097/orpx.jpg

Transmission plate

https://imageshack.com/a/img46/3392/4l52.jpg

Dash, a bit faded but all there. You can't really see it in this picture but there is a wear mark where the hydro lever rubbed against the tin

https://imageshack.com/a/img24/8651/ieq9.jpg

Well, there she is. Honestly, I don't even know where to start. This is my first NF and beyond that, this is my first tractor with this type of ignition. Ugh, what did I get myself into!! :bash2:

Oh well, it'll be a new challenge for me. My first step is going to be to go more into depth with the basics; make sure that it's got enough, and the right kind, of oil, make sure ALL electrical connections are solid, get the choke and throttle cables situated correctly and loosened up, and give the carb a little TLC. Aside from that, I'm open to any and all suggestions. I'll gladly post progress as I continue with the 127. I'll have a little time tomorrow to work with it, then I have a 4 day weekend starting July 4th so hopefully I'll have a little time to work with her then.

I almost forgot, the accessories!

Here's one of the top side of the blade

https://imageshack.com/a/img839/3348/qfzx.jpg

And the bottom side. She needs new trip springs and the weld fixed on the sub frame as well. I'm going to try to get a WF sub frame because I'd like to put the blade on the 1050 in the mean time but I don't know where to go for the WF sub frame so I'll just keep an eye online.

https://imageshack.com/a/img13/6008/jg42.jpg

And my new 36" De-Thatcher. With all the foliage and shade my back yard gets, this will come in handy in the fall and/or spring, I haven't decided which yet.

https://imageshack.com/a/img27/2072/ea78.jpg

I didn't get pics of the chains or my other bonus item: a new hood ornament! I know it's cheesy and little but that kinda thing makes my day! And I needed that, too. When I was using the 1050 to pull this around and do a little work today, she started sputtering when I'd throttle up. Doh!! :bash2: Guess it's time to clean/check the carb and run a little MMO in the next tank. I'm still deciding if it was a good day to Cub or not!! :biggrin2:

Your 127 is in nice shape! With some TLC, you'll have a great tractor for many years.

looks to be in good shape. start with the easy things. spark plug, clean the carb out, check all the wiring. you will get it running.

I think you got a good deal. A few $$$ and a little TLC and you will ride again.:beerchug:

That looks great! My favorite series, the 1X6/7. Did it come with the air cleaner?

As far as the wiring harness goes, it doesn't look terrible- I've seen worse. Check the grounds/connections and make sure they are clean/tight.

Putting a wide frame sub frame on your blade will work, that being said, you might run into an issue with the bracket that the lift rod connects to on the main frame of the blade. That's changeable.

drglinski - no unfortunately it didn't come with the air cleaner :(

On the plus side, I snugged up a few connections and shell turn over now.

But that still leaves me with my biggest problems - the spark plug is stripped and the cylinder doesn't seem to be moving. So what's the best parts site out there for this machine? It seems as though I need a new head and crank/piston rod? This will be my first time getting into the motor of a CC so I'm asking for help from you guys, what should I do?

Someone please correct me if I'm wrong.....

I think that if you cut off the brackets on the blades subframe. The ones at the front that connect to the quick attach, then weld them back on the outside of the frame instead of the inside. Then, cut the "pins" out and weld in a solid bar in their place.... So the bar goes across all the way... Then it would fit either tractor.

If that doesn't make sense tell me and I'll explain better. Or if I'm wrong I'll concede.

The 127 looks really good!

Don't the arms that slide back into the tractor frame have to be angled up as well?

I have a blade with the WF subframe modified in that manner, so someone out there is making the same mods. However, I've never had time to fit it to any of my tractors, NF or WF, so I cannot state whether it works or not-sorry.

Now, if the threads are stripped out of your head, you can use a helio-coil to hold your spark plug in. I had to do that on an old 107 that I had. Your cub seems to lack compression if the plug is removed or not seated well in the head, so it might seem like you need to replace the piston and rod at this time when in reality, you may not need to do so. Get the head/spark plug fixed first and then see if you need to tear into the engine. If it is turning over now and you don't hear any weird metallic sounds, it could be just resolving the plug issue.....and cleaning that carb, might be the quickest fix for you! You can rebuild that carb for about $12 for a new kit and about 15-30 minutes. Congratulations on your first NF. It appears to have been restored at some point--one clue is that someone painted the treads on the footrest yellow because they couldn't get them off--they should have always been black. Thanks for posting pics....keep us informed on your progress!

Cub Cadet 123

So the piston not seeming to move doesn't necessarily mean the rod or something else needs replaced?

Either way I agree with you, I think getting a good seal on the spark plug is worth a shot. I checked around and found a kit at O'Reilly's for about $35. I told the guy I talked to that I have an Autolite 216 spark plug and a Kohler K301 motor I need the Helio-Coil for. Just to make sure I got the right one, the guy I talked to on the phone said that a kit sized at M14x1.25 is what I'd need. Does that sound about right?

Modifying a NF subframe to fit a WF tractor would work, but it'd be easier to just get a WF subframe as most of the components where they attach are different.

Great news!! I don't know what I was thinking but I removed the spark plug that wouldn't fit correctly and tried a new one I picked up. Lo and behold, it fits snug as a bug! So inspired by this wonderful news, I decided to see if I could get her to fire. I cleaned the carb up a bit, removed the fuel bowl and cleaned the (completely covered and unusable) screen, and tightened up a few electrical connections. Gave her a shot of starter fluid and she cranked over for a few seconds. This is great news to me!! After checking things over again I found the carb isn't getting enough fuel. Let me explain why: the fuel bowl seal is shot. It's leaking fuel like a sieve. So I need to get a new fuel bowl seal and hopefully, with any luck, she'll get enough fuel to run for me!! If spray starter fluid in the carb she'll run but once those vapors are gone, she dies again.

So once again, thank you to everyone. I now know that the motor is good, the spark plug isn't stripped out, and my problem lies in the (gummed up) fuel system. I can't wait to see what the week brings :beerchug::beer2:

Now this is my next problem once the motor gets running

https://imageshack.com/a/img854/1796/fm2j.jpg

Glad to hear the engine wasn't a huge problem. WHAT is going on with that trunion lever? Never seen a PO mod like that before!

Don't play games with it. Rebuild that carb, not just a gasket....in the long run, you won't regret it! Besides, the gasket is so much easier to put on there if the carb is off the engine, so while you have the carb off....rebuild it with a rebuild kit! For a few bucks more I'd probably put a new fuel line in, too. I'm glad to hear that you are up and running with a quick diagnosis and a fairly quick fix!!:beerchug:

Cub Cadet 123

Well, I'm ordering parts today. I'm going to order a carb rebuild kit, fuel bowl gasket, retainer clip for my missing choke cable retainer (hopefully I'll be able to make this work), and the compression springs and damper spring guide pins for the trunion pic I posted above. Hopefully, with a days work and these parts, she'll be given new life after sitting for 3+ years. :beerchug:

Which reminds me, could someone post a picture of the carburetor and choke/throttle lines going to the carburetor for reference? I want to know how the choke and throttle cables are run so I know how to set them up when I get my parts because right now they are just kinda sitting there not hooked to anything. Thanks!!

Does anyone have a picture of the carburetor and choke/throttle lines going to the carburetor for reference? I want to know how the choke and throttle cables are run so I know how to set them up when I get my parts because right now they are just kinda sitting there not hooked to anything.

Well, yesterday on the 4th I had the morning to tinker so I got the carb off, marked my screw turns, got it all taken apart, and cleaned cleaned cleaned. I have to say, this wasn't nearly as bad as I had thought going into it, actually pretty easy. All in all, everything inside and out is 1000% better. Things were so gummed up in there before, no wonder it wasn't working. Hopefully my parts (carb rebuild kit included) will arrive today and I can get this thing back on and going again! I was running out of cleaner and time so there are just a couple places where I couldn't get the paint off. I also did the fuel bowl while I had things apart, it probably needed it worse than the carb did :biggrin2:

Enjoy the pics :beerchug:

Before:

https://imageshack.com/a/img19/2741/dsrr.jpg

After:

https://imageshack.com/a/img443/5429/uslb.jpg

https://imageshack.com/a/img802/8742/oftm.jpg

https://imageshack.com/a/img6/1366/yyuo.jpg

https://imageshack.com/a/img802/5443/9ciq.jpg

https://imageshack.com/a/img12/5224/kz2y.jpg