HeadExam

Can anyone tell me the length of the rear tiller drive shaft on a 1963 Bolens 600, or if it is the same length as the later 1254, 1256, 1257 tube frames? Thanks

Still getting the old girl in fighting shape. I bought an original seat spring and new drag link. I'll have the original seat recovered. I'm selling the snow caster and tiller as they were for a smaller tractor, and I'm buying a flat back tiller like the one on my Large Frame 1476. She starts right up and sounds great.

The plant nursery is just over a kilometer away from the house and they had a huge sale along with free food and drink, several hundred townspeople in attendance. I drove the Massey MF-14 with the cart attached and the wife walked along side, she wanted the exercise, but from the looks everyone gave me I guess they thought I was a jerk for not letting her ride in the cart or drive.

My tunnel cover and dash tower are fitting tight, no way to move it rearward, unless the tower can go over the tunnel cover, I haven't got that far. I am also out of room to adjust the slot slot as well, its at its furthest point back.. I'm hoping I can adjust with the slots on the hood. Your doing fine mate, were all muddling through most of this anyway, and that's the fun of it.

Really helped ALOT, I never thought about moving the entire tower, I just thought about angling the dash. THANK YOU, Alain

Whats the trick to get the hood and dash to mate up flush and not overlap on my 1556. I tried putting spacers in the front where the hood attaches, but that didn't help, now I'm thinking its the dash that needs adjusting. Anyone have that issue? Thanks a bunch, Alain

Thanks for the advice about the screen enlargement, size is not the problem, just blurry, I had a "feeling" it was a 900, just a lucky guess

Wish my eyes weren't so bad. I miss being able to see details in picture like levers and such. Good call OB.

I think you got it. I'm more up on the later models, but it sure looks like a 900 to me, but I think the 1000's also had the same seat pan, so might want to try and look for numbers on the engine to determine HP. That would give an age and tell us the model number. The 900 used the 8hp S-8D and the 1000 used the 8.25 TR10-D, the manual says its a 10hp, but the engine is actually a 8.25 and marked so. Also the 900 had a 3 speed transmission with a locking Diff. and a high-low flipper switch. The 1000 had a true 6 speed tranny and a High-Low selector switch that was built into the tranny along with the locking diff.

It didn't happen to me the first time, I guess I didn't inhale but it really took hold with the second, third, and fourth time.

Happy birthday Ian, I'm not far behind you. Hope you had a good one.

I would love a Gutbrod in my collection, maybe one day.....

That was to contain the over head valve engine, it added around 4 in height.

It is a 1556-01 that means it has a metal petrol tank, during the year they made some small changes like a poly-carbonate tank for the 1556-02 and 1556-03 models. The trip was further than I anticipated, by the time we made two extra stops for my co-pilot to look at tractor salvages, it came to about 1125 km round trip. The snow caster was from a smaller model Bolens, but with the weather here in Oklahoma, not a worry, as I am probably going to sell it anyway. It was really the tractor I wanted, I have already acquired the right muffler for it, reversed the rear pull hitch to allow the tiller to raise further, installed a new choke cable that I had for another tractor, changed the oil and air filter. The tractor is 43 years old, only made in 1972 and was the 27th tractor off the line. I also got the original seat, and have much needed new dray link, but for 43 years old this is in amazing shape with the original tires. This is what I collect and want; original well maintained old single cylinder hydros WITH implements. It runs and drive very, very nicely Short video of running tractor:

I like both, very nice primitive pieces, well primitive for around these parts. Looks like the inter-plant hoe might give a workout

And a Happy Easter to all and theirs from Oklahoma

I paid 700.00 US for the Massey MF-14, its a much bigger tractor than the 10/12s and is hydro only, Then I did the restoration, not the best, but good enough to slow the aging process. The original MF641 dump cart is super rare, I gave 50.00 for it, this dump trailer has one inch axles and was made with three tire/wheel options

I've seen a number of them over in France, might keep and eye on the adverts over there

Well she wasn't a Hog or a Hot Rod, but I brought the old girl anyway, oh yeah, I brought the tractor too

Its amazing how you guys across the pond recycle and re purpose old machinery and the parts with your fabrication skill. Did you fellows know that the plating process was fully developed over in Britain, they used it as a reverse process in taking rust, scale and fire off of machinery the Germans bombed and that which was damaged my the rust set in by the fire hose.

Thanks to all. I'm sorry but the Bolens 1254 is not mine, I used the picture for reference, all my tractors are 14-16hp. If you look closely you will see the hood on the Homelite is an upside down version of the Allis/Simplicity hood. This particular Homelite was built in South Carolina by Allis Chalmers for one year only (1973), and it is different thn the Homelite models built by Simplicity. It has been estimated that fewer than 500 Homelite T16H's were built before the factory closed and production returned to Port Washington, Wisconsin to the Simplicity plant. Allis Chalmers was sued for being a Monopoly business on 1966, one of the results of that suit was the diversification of many of its businesses such as Simplicity. In 1967 they opened the plant in South Carolina and continued to make virtually the same tractors as Simplicity until 1968 with the introduction of the HB series. In 1971 they introduced the the Homesteader series and 300 series Garden Tractors and in 1973 they introduced the 400 series. The 300 series was dropped in 1972 and the 400 series like the Homelite was only built in 1973 as the federal monopoly lawsuit was reversed in 1974 and Allis closed the plant, Interestingly there are very few 14hp 414 Allis tractors as 1973 was the year the 16hp kohler k341 was introduced and Allis had committed to a certain number of those new Kohler 16hp K341 engines, but since the 14hp k321 was an older production engine they had no such commitment. Upon finding out production was ending due to the lawsuit being overturned, Allis put the 16hp Kohler k341 in many tractors that were originally slated to be 414 tractors. In the end Allis produced around 1500 of the 416 hydros and shuttles, hard to say how many 414 tractors were produced, but suffice it to say, very few, maybe only a few hundred.

The steering wheel is the quickest way to tell. The 1973 and older Bolens wheel is a 3 spoke flat all the way to the center, the 1976 and up have a removable tall center cone. Without hydraulic or electric how do you lift any implements? lol, I don't have a "armstrong" lift.

The 1556 was built in 1972 only and included three variations, the 1556-01, -02, and -03 which were small changes made during the model year. The tractor was powered by a 15 hp Tecumseh OH150 overhead valve engine and used a foot-pedal operated Eaton 10 hydro. It was replaced by the H16 in 1973, ironically they halted production of the the H16 in 1974 and 1975, then resumed production again in 1976 and 1977. The H14 was in production 1974, 1975, and 1976

I pick up the old girl Saturday morning 4 hour drive but at 1000.00 US for the tractor, deck, tiller snow blower, and blade I think I got away cheap. They only made the 1556 one year and it fits into my collection. I sold one of my Simplicity's to fund this acquisition, but I wanted an older Simplicity anyway

GREAT find Chris, I'm sure you will have it back in fighting shape very soon.