All things tractors thread

Well, I got the radiator in, but getting that lower hose on took too long. It was an incredibly frustrating endeavor. Instead of using a hose clamp like there is on the top of the hose, they used a spring loaded clamp on the bottom end. I had to have my wife help me get it on the right place, and then it went too far over, it’s partially off the hose and on the metal flange of the radiator. I bet we wasted an hour trying to get it back in the right position, and still didn’t get it done. My tools just wouldn’t do the job, so I went to borrow my BIL’s tools, but it was dark by then.

I was going to get up early this morning and try to get out there and beat the heat, but was awoken by rain, and it’s coming down harder now. We were supposed to get some scattered rain later this afternoon, so they missed that one. Good thing I threw the tarp back over the tractor last night…

Can’t believe it’s raining again, here’s my shocked face: :fearful:

1 Like

Damn, that was fun! I had to buy a 1 11/16 inch ratchet, a 3/4 drive wrench and two extensions. A 4 inch and a 10 inch to get over the gearbox. I fanally after WD40 and a serious breaker bar. My wrench handle is a slip type you can use from either side that slides through the wrench head. Some serious work with the breaker bar and the bolts on the Landpride mower deck holding the blades in place came lose and I have been able to remove them. Hopefully I’ll be able to get them back on! Unfortunately I bent them both on stumps. I must say they were severely rounded and didn’t have a lot of metal on them anyway. This is my first time changing them on my own and I would definitely appreciate any tips from some who have done this before, thnx…

1 Like

How many trips to the hardware store?

2 Likes

Hahahaha…so very lucky this time. I had everything here and the trips were zero. Quite proud of myself on this one!

3 Likes

Are you talking about your bush-hog? I couldn’t quite get the gist of your post.

If you are, I don’t know that much about them myself. We have one, it’s been here on the farm for years, long before I got here. But it works, although, it needs the PTO shaft cover replaced, it’s pretty much in tatters.

I’ll let the others who have more experience with such stuff to answer your question.

Btw, all I have left on my tractor repair is to get a spring-loaded hose clamp to attach to my lower radiator hose properly, get the upper hose attached, fill it with coolant, and that should do it. My bro-in-law said he’d help me with it soon.

2 Likes

I guess i just thought bush hog but never typed it. Duh… Yes sir i am talking bush hog.

1 Like

OK, the tractor’s all put back together. My BIL helped me get that stupid hose clamp on a few days ago, and I got the rest of the hoses and other stuff hooked up.

All I need to do is put some coolant/water in and it should be ready. A question though: I can’t seem to find the block coolant drain plug, just one by the oil cooler, and the radiator drain plug. So, there’s a little bit of the old green coolant (maybe less than a pint) left in system. I have some new pre-charged coolant that is pink in color.

Would it be OK to just add this new coolant/distilled water mix to the system, and be done with it? If I could find the block drain plug, I’d like to put some regular tap water in, let it warm up, and drain that out as a flush. Then I would put the new coolant/water mix in. The instructions for the new coolant says it’s OK to mix other coolants with it.

What say y’all?

1 Like

I’d want to fill and drain a couple of times, or run it and add water while it drains until it comes clear. But you will be left with extra water if your coolant is pre-mixed. So your final coolant will be a weak mix. Better to do fill with undiluted coolant and adjust the amount of water used.

3 Likes

For a small rotary cutter, it can sometimes be less expensive to replace the whole PTO shaft (driveline) than to replace the guard.

Agri Supply has some very inexpensive ones.

2 Likes

Thanks, Murky. I’d do that if I could find all the drain plugs, but am having trouble finding the block drain. My stupid owner’s manual shows a pic of a drain, but it’s not on the same spot on my tractor. Plus, it’s been tough finding it online.

I think the coolant is the concentrated version, no water that I know of. I’d like to do just a water flush at first and then fill it with the coolant/distilled water mix for keeps.

Yes, I’ve seen those covers, they are not cheap. Haven’t looked for a complete PTO shaft + cover yet. I don’t even know what brand the BH is, it was here long before I got here, and the label is wore off. Prob would just take a standard shaft/cover, tho.

1 Like

I’m suggesting you do what you described, for fill and drain, but probably more than once, until the last “drain” is clear water.

Look up or figure out your total coolant capacity. Add half that capacity of undiluted coolant and top off with distilled water.

As for the PTO shaft, there is no “standard” cover. Even the so-called universal ones only work on some and are expensive. You need to know what type of connection you have on the tractor and what type you have on the brush hog.

After much scrolling up thread, I see that you have a John Deere 2040 which looks like it uses a 6 spline on the tractor end. How is the current driveline attached to the brush hog? You probably need to match diameter and shear pin.

2 Likes

Oh for Christs Sake. It’s a tractor. Fill it up with 50/50 and run it!

1 Like

I’m not necessarily disagreeing with you Daemon. But, I worry a little about mixing colors. Doesn’t necessarily mean the coolants are incompatible, but I might try to do a little investigating before mixing.

I am actually more concerned with the care of tractors than automobiles. I view automobiles as disposable, but a tractor (if taken care of) can last a lifetime (and often do).

I plan to start using the factory brand oem coolant for my tractor. I used to use the supposedly high quality Pennzoil extended life, but have since read that it can slowly eat some seals on older engines.

1 Like

You could probably run it on straight water if you wanted as long as you put anti freeze in before cool weather

The coolant I have is Fleet Charge with SCA added from Peak, made specifically for heavy duty diesels. It was about $16 a gallon at Tractor Supply. Just add distilled water to get the proper mix. The little bit of coolant that’s still in there is green. This new stuff is pink, but supposedly can be mixed with other coolants.

I think I may have figured out where the block drain is. There is a block heater on the engine, and I believe it’s hooked up to the block drain on one side. Of course, I can’t verify it now, but I’ve been looking at system diagrams, and compared it to my manual, and I think I know where it is.

2 Likes

Well, the tractor ordeal of 2017 has been resolved! I put in about 5qt of coolant and 4qt of distilled water in the radiator, and cranked it up. To my delight, no horrific, untoward sounds @ startup.

After about 15 minutes to let it warm up, the coolant level dropped a bit, which meant the thermostat kicked in, so I topped it off. The temp gauge was running about midrange. I took a spotlight to check for leaks and everything looked good. I was worried about the water pump gasket, but it was fine.

So, I drove it over to the barn with no issues, and unhooked the disk that had been still attached since the shutdown. Tomorrow I’m hoping to get the bush hog hooked up and get in some much needed mowing. Hope it can handle that chore.

Don’t want to get too big-headed, but I’m happy I was able to pretty much do the work on my own, with a little bit of help from my brothers in law. Thanks also to this forum for your help and encouraging comments.

6 Likes

That’s most gratifying feeling, isn’t it. Congrats.

2 Likes

There is definitely something very gratifying about doing things yourself. I try to do my own work as often as possible. Glad you got it working properly.

2 Likes

@murky, and @speedster1, thanks. I should’ve got it done sooner, as it broke down in April, and I got the replacement parts the first of May. But, we really didn’t have a need for it, and there were other more pressing chores to tend to.

Our driveway got huge ruts from some flash flooding in late May and again in June, so there was an incentive to get the tractor fixed then to grade it. And like I said, the pasture has 3ft+ weeds in it and needs to be mowed desparately.

It took a while to get it started, not because of what happened with this issue. It seems to have a wonky neutral shifter interlock, and I have to manipulate the two shifters just right or it won’t start. But, it eventually cranked up. It was very cool to hear that old diesel turn over and see everything doing what it’s supposed to. I like to just sit there and listen to the thrumming of that 3 cylinder.

1 Like

I think I saw your rig on another thread, but don’t you have a Kubota, with a front end loader? What kind of chores do you typically do with it?

My BIL has a larger version of my Deere (a 2355, I believe), and he’s been looking for a bucket for his rig. But, finding a used one on Craigslist or other site has been extremely difficult for him. Folks just don’t want to part with them once they get one.

A bucket would be nice to have, but for what we do, I think what he have is sufficient.

1 Like