Bolens 1050

[Triumph66 1,256]

I collected the 1050 from the lock up this morning and bought it back to my house where I gave it a a quick wash to get rid of the grime. I drained the transmission oil and it wasn't as bad as I thought. After a an hour, I used my air line to blow out any excess oil into the container. It was replaced with new oil. I think the previous owner, a mechanic, serviced it from time to time. I emptied the fuel tank of cider vinegar and was impressed with how clean the inside of the tank was. I rinsed it out with cold water and then added carbonate of soda to neutralise the acids. I also rinsed the tank with petrol for good measure. The tank was installed with a new fuel line. I poured in fresh petrol and cleaned the spark plug and ensure everything was in place, I turned the key. Unfortunately, the battery was weak even though the engine turned over slowly. I am now charging the battery over night and hopefully I can fire up the engine to warm her up in order to drain the engine oil.

 

 

[slf-uk 914]

Looks like you will soon have it running great. That really is a tidy 1050

 

I am looking forward to seeing some of your tractors when I pop down for a visit, even though it will be a six hour drive each way.

 

Iain

[HeadExam 1,783]

She looks really good Andrew, you are fast becoming the "Bolens" guy. 

[HeadExam 1,783]

Andrew, is the 1050 a 1966 or a later 1967-1969? I know the first year they used the TR-10D engine which was actually a 8 or 8.5 hp engine and in 1967 they switched to the new TRA-10D which had a longer stroke and a different piston that produced 10 hp.

[Triumph66 1,256]

I charged up the battery yesterday evening and then rigged it up to the 1050 this morning. She started first time but was quickly enveloped in blue smoke! The pepper pot exhaust is well loud  and it was exaggerated by the proximity of the surrounding houses. I think that will have to come off and a stack exhaust installed at some point.. It was difficult to run it smoothly as there's no choke cable connected so it kept spluttering and stalling. However it was enough to tell me it's alive with vigour. I let it ran for several minutes before draining the oil. It was thick black oil with some sludge in the bottom. Leaving it for several hours to drain, I greased up where necessary. On filling her up with fresh oil, I fired her up again and  I am pleased that there is a lot less smoke but it still obvious. Chris thinks it sounds like piston rings so maybe that something else that will need doing at some point.  I did engage gears and it moved under it own power very slowly but there was a lot of screeching which I thought was my wife but wasn't.  I think a set of belts are on the cards too plus a new red seat cover. There is some surface rust here and there but I can live with that.

 

Some more photos with a better backdrop this time.

 

 

[HeadExam 1,783]

Andrew, If you believe that the rings have worn, do yourself a huge favor and do not fool yourself into thinking that the cylinder and ESPECIALLY the connecting rod has not worn as well. Often with a fresh set of rings the newly added compression can snap a connecting rod and end up doing extensive and possibly permanent damage to the engine. I know many people have replace the rings alone with claimed success, however I would be very leery of not doing a complete rebuild if the cylinder wall and crank diameter are not within specified clearances. In addition to the above concerns, do not overlook valve guide wear, as this is where much oil can get into the combustion chamber and cause the smoke you have described.

[Triumph66 1,256]

Been reading around the subject on various posts on GTT Alain and I agree with what you say as I always take the view that if a job is worth doing then do it right the first time especially as the engine will have to be taken out and dismantled so logically I would look at doing the valves con rod etc... The key thing is that the engine 'runs' and got compression so I am happy with that for the time being. I am thinking of attending an evening class on basic engineering skills such as valve lapping etc as I would like to extend my knowledge. I think you can actually take your own engine with you to work on. 

[HeadExam 1,783]

A good class is well worth the money, especially if you get to take your engine. It is also an opportunity to fellowship with other enthusiasts. A very often missed repair is not just valve lapping as just cleaning them is often enough, but valve guide replacement. The valve guides are like little cylinder walls and your valve stems are like thin pistons, when wear becomes excessive oil enters the combustion chamber and will produce similar situations, i.e. blue smoke as worn rings. What many do not see is that while a cylinder may look smooth and clean years of wear can produce a taper and a out of roundness that only a rebore will address. again it surprises me how many will take all the steps to remove an engine and slap in a set of rings and then degrade the engines reliability after it fails shortly after  their halfway rebuild. If you don't have the money to do it once right, you surely wont have the money to do it a second time right or wrong. I am not trying to get on to any folks as there are many in this hobby because it is a cheaper alternative than buying the newer expensive tractors today or even the poorly built cheap ones, however, good decisions will always be rewarded and poor decisions will be suffered long after the cost of doing the job right.

[Triumph66 1,256]

Update. Back in 2017 I replaced the seat cover with a red cover. I tried to fir it up but to no avail. I put in a new battery and though it turned over it just did not fired up. In 2018 I took it to my mate Chris who swapped the engine over with another Wisconsin. He swapped the carbs over and a few ignition components plus replaced the exhaust with another pepper pot one. It turned over but would just not fire but hampered by time and lack of space I collected it back off Chris and displayed it at Tractor Fest today. The smell of stale petrol was noticeable and the chap who was running the Howard's parts store suggested that I drain the stale fuel. With his help the fuel was drained (golden yellow)  and  with the help from Scott who is a member of MOM and a Bolens 850 owner, replaced the plug and reset the gap. I refilled the fuel tank with fresh petrol with added Redex. It spluttered and farted but came alive with clouds of smoke which eventually cleared. The long and short of it is that it fired up and runs very well and all the gears moves smoothly. A few tweaks such as inserting a new choke and throttle cables for example.

 

Up to date photos will follow shortly.

 

 

[HeadExam 1,783]

I've had tractors like that months of siting not knowing what was wrong and a couple hours after digging into it, puff, cough, sputter, running. I was afraid you were going to say you sold it

[Scottwilson 76]

It was great meeting you this weekend it was nice to see the 1050 running. Also thank you very much for helping me get one step closer to getting the 850 going with the addition of the new exhaust.

[Triumph66 1,256]

9 hours ago, Scottwilson said:

It was great meeting you this weekend it was nice to see the 1050 running. Also thank you very much for helping me get one step closer to getting the 850 going with the addition of the new exhaust.

 

Likewise it was good to meet you too. Looking forward to hearing more about your 850 as you start working on her. Cheers Andrew

[Triumph66 1,256]

A few more photos back at the yard after I unloaded the old girl back from Biddenden. I also attach a video too.