slf-uk

Today I decided to do some work on the D160. It has been in storage for nearly two years and if I remember correctly the last time it was used was when Tom used it and I believe it kept cutting out.
 
My D160 came out of the factory as poverty specification and it was supplied without a tow hitch or lights and did not have 3pt, PTO shaft or wheel brakes. With the help of friends in the US plus some parts from Harry (via Chris) I have collected a few bits to put on it. It now has lights and a tow hitch and I have most of the parts to put a 3pt on it.
 
Before I started I kicked a few things out of the workshop to give me plenty of space, they are a big machine.
 
 
 
I then pulled the complete fuel system off and cleaned out the horrible smelling fuel. The carb got stripped down and went through the Ultrasonic cleaner.
 
With the fuel tank removed and with no 3pt or wheel brakes you have lots of space at the back.
 

 

 
It is not uncommon for the panels on these to rust under the fuel tank and mine even has a hole in the panel
 

 
I hope to have it running tomorrow and then I can focus on some of the repairs I have planned.
 
Iain

The Ultrasonic cleaner is fantastic tool especially on carbs, the hard bit is finding the right cleaning fluid to use. I have used caustic soda which is the right price
but a bit too harsh for alloy parts. I am now testing a fluid specifically designed for carbs and it appears to work well. Earlier in the week when I cleaned the
1962 RAM carb I also put in the glass bowl from the tank tap/filter and it went from brown to looking like new. When I clean the 1961 RAM carb I will take some before and after pictures
 
 
Thanks Harry, I am planning to make the remaining parts I need for the 3pt but I know I am missing some bits from both of my D-series, just need to remember which bits.
 
Iain

Not sure Iain about the purpose of the brackets but will find out

The Ultrasonic cleaner is fantastic tool especially on carbs, the hard bit is finding the right cleaning fluid to use. I have used caustic soda which is the right price
but a bit too harsh for alloy parts. I am now testing a fluid specifically designed for carbs and it appears to work well. Earlier in the week when I cleaned the
1962 RAM carb I also put in the glass bowl from the tank tap/filter and it went from brown to looking like new. When I clean the 1961 RAM carb I will take some before and after pictures
 
 
Thanks Harry, I am planning to make the remaining parts I need for the 3pt but I know I am missing some bits from both of my D-series, just need to remember which bits.
 
Iain

Glad to see you are recommissioning it. Let me know if you need any more parts as I have doubles of a lot of the important parts, almost another complete hydraulic system! Will look forward to se it up and running again

Looks like an interesting project Andrew. The brackets on the side are intriguing, I assume they are for locating the uprights for greedy boards.
 
Iain 

Iain, that's  a damn fine looking machine that. It's interesting to see two D series WH on MOM at the same time.
 
Just out of interest, how good is your ultrasonic cleaner on the carbs? Also how quick is the turnaround? Keep meaning to invest in one myself

Today I decided to do some work on the D160. It has been in storage for nearly two years and if I remember correctly the last time it was used was when Tom used it and I believe it kept cutting out.
 
My D160 came out of the factory as poverty specification and it was supplied without a tow hitch or lights and did not have 3pt, PTO shaft or wheel brakes. With the help of friends in the US plus some parts from Harry (via Chris) I have collected a few bits to put on it. It now has lights and a tow hitch and I have most of the parts to put a 3pt on it.
 
Before I started I kicked a few things out of the workshop to give me plenty of space, they are a big machine.
 
 
 
I then pulled the complete fuel system off and cleaned out the horrible smelling fuel. The carb got stripped down and went through the Ultrasonic cleaner.
 
With the fuel tank removed and with no 3pt or wheel brakes you have lots of space at the back.
 

 

 
It is not uncommon for the panels on these to rust under the fuel tank and mine even has a hole in the panel
 

 
I hope to have it running tomorrow and then I can focus on some of the repairs I have planned.
 
Iain

Mini Iain does look like he can steer
 
Needs bigger exhaust system
 
I will have to venture up to try it soon 

I just bought an old garden tractor trailer which I hope to pick up in January. I have been looking for a vintage garden trailer for some time ever since the Showman's trailer project earlier this year and came across this old one dating from the 1960s. It will need a bit of welding and new timber and possibly new tyres. It been owned by one owner for the last 40/50 odd years. I plan to do a restoration project not too dissimilar to Chris's project and will do a photo record of it. Does anyone here recognise the make and model?
 
 

We got the tractor back together today and running. To enable the Versamatic to work correctly I made this bracket from some scrap
 

 
To complete the planned work I needed to make a bracket to hold the grill. I cut all the parts and then my very expensive and not very old MIG decided to break. It is still under warranty so not the end of the world, but not helpful. A temporary fix was put in place so we could test the tractor.
 
I did a quick video of the test run on my phone and yes it was cold
 
 
 
Iain
 
 
 
 

Thanks Doug. I will post the updates on threads I have already created for the tractors. Progress is always slow so I try to keep to one thread to each tractor so I can view my progress and keep track of comments and the suggestions made.
 
If you are interested, the threads are:
1962 ride-a-matic http://myoldmachine.com/topic/1333-bolens-ride-a-matic/
Wheelhorse D160 http://myoldmachine.com/topic/1136-wheelhorse-d-160/
and I am yet to create one for the 1961 Ride-a-matic.
 
Planned work on the 1962 Ride-a-matic was completed today, now onto the next.
 
Iain

Thanks Doug. I will post the updates on threads I have already created for the tractors. Progress is always slow so I try to keep to one thread to each tractor so I can view my progress and keep track of comments and the suggestions made.
 
If you are interested, the threads are:
1962 ride-a-matic http://myoldmachine.com/topic/1333-bolens-ride-a-matic/
Wheelhorse D160 http://myoldmachine.com/topic/1136-wheelhorse-d-160/
and I am yet to create one for the 1961 Ride-a-matic.
 
Planned work on the 1962 Ride-a-matic was completed today, now onto the next.
 
Iain

Thanks Doug. I will post the updates on threads I have already created for the tractors. Progress is always slow so I try to keep to one thread to each tractor so I can view my progress and keep track of comments and the suggestions made.
 
If you are interested, the threads are:
1962 ride-a-matic http://myoldmachine.com/topic/1333-bolens-ride-a-matic/
Wheelhorse D160 http://myoldmachine.com/topic/1136-wheelhorse-d-160/
and I am yet to create one for the 1961 Ride-a-matic.
 
Planned work on the 1962 Ride-a-matic was completed today, now onto the next.
 
Iain

Well, it turns out I won't be getting this Deck Drive Unit for my 72 Wheel Horse. Chased them (Shipper) up just before Xmas for an update, got a familiar response. 2 days later I get a full GSP refund back into my Paypal account!. I fired off an Email to the Seller, as I knew they had received the returned item.
Asked if I was likely to get a refund?. No reply, but yesterday got an Email from Ebay saying they have refunded the purchase and Seller's postage charges!.
So I got all my money back, but no item unfortunately.  2 months of hard work fighting for this and I had not used my last options of Paypal's system and Legal-   smug mode. 

Fantastic update and good to see it running well. The engine sounds sweet too even though it's a tad noisy! Your welding is looking spot on !
 
You guys got to be on the home straight now on the RAM?

We got the tractor back together today and running. To enable the Versamatic to work correctly I made this bracket from some scrap
 

 
To complete the planned work I needed to make a bracket to hold the grill. I cut all the parts and then my very expensive and not very old MIG decided to break. It is still under warranty so not the end of the world, but not helpful. A temporary fix was put in place so we could test the tractor.
 
I did a quick video of the test run on my phone and yes it was cold
 
 
 
Iain
 
 
 
 

Merry Christmas and thanks for sharing your family pictures, very enjoyable lain.
 
We may have to band together and have a group intervention on Mr. Norm Scrooge however.....  

As I said Iain, once the presents are open today you can both crack on
 
Sure the boss lady wont mind after Christmas lunch

Iain and Joseph your RAM looks fantastic and I will be very interested in seeing how the carbs cleaned up in the cleaner. Again I am struck at how much of a quality and well built machine these RAMs are. I would love a '62 (?) RAM myself as I do like the front design  of it.
 
You better secure it Joseph when I pop in sometime.....

Paint looks great Ian. My head hurts just looking at that wiring loom, I hope it is not too difficult.
 
Iain

I have not had much tractor time this year mainly due to work and family commitments. I have the time off between Christmas and the New Year so today Joseph and I have hooked out three tractors to spanner. I have no idea what progress we will make.
 
These are the three we choose to look at. From left to right 1961 Bolens Ride-a-matic, 1962 Bolens Ride-a-matic and a Wheelhorse D160
 

 
The previous owner of the 1961 Ride-a-matic added a few "extras" I guess for health and safety reasons, or should that be "elf and safety" this time of the year

 
Joseph really loves the 1962 Ride-a-matic and can't keep off it
 

 
Santa arrived early for me too even if I had to buy it myself
 

 
To finish this post off we took a festive picture of the tractors with the outside Christmas tree in the background
 

 
Merry Christmas everyone!!
 
Iain

Great pictures, a fine pair of tractors.
 
I have been having a similar problem over the last few days with Joseph getting stuck on an identical tractor to the one I was using. I added two wheel weights to each side of the tractor he was using and he was still getting stuck but I wasn't.
 

 
I think I need to either feed him up with mince pies or more to the point eat less myself.
 
Iain

This year has been a very difficult year for reasons that are far too boring to go into, however one of the outcomes was that I agreed with the other half not to buy any more tractors this year and to focus on other priorities. It has been very painful agreement to keep to and I hope you will agree that I did well to last until October before buying two more.
 
The most interesting one is a 1962 Ride-a-matic which has been fitted with a Honda engine and what looks like a Land Rover hitch. I do have the original Kohler engine, which has a broken flywheel and missing the coil. These are a couple of pictures the seller sent to me.
 

 

 
This is my second Ride-a-matic, with the other being a 1961 machine.
 
The tractor has a few challenging issues and missing parts, but I think I know what needs to be done. It works really well with the Honda engine and I may leave it like that while I work through some of the other issues. A full refurbishment and repaint is the long term aim but for now I just want to use it, enjoy it and work on continued improvements.
 
Iain
 
 
 
 

Alain, finding a ride-a-matic that still has the belt guards is always a challenge, someone could make good money pressing out replacements. Two of the RAM's I have I bought as parts tractors specifically because they still have the belt guards fitted, although I can't bring myself to break them up and one day I hope to get at least one running.
 
Your spot on with the wire hanging out the front, this is for lifting the front attachments which is very crude compared to the sophistication of the rear lift. The earlier RAM's had a chain as a front lift mechanism.