Recent content by mmranch

I take a wad of fresh dryer sheets, wrap a stiff wire around them and hook them somewhere in the engine compartment out of the way. The varmints don't seem to like the smell and stay away. Changed the dryer sheets in my truck the other day because it had been a couple of years and the wad was...

A great relief indeed! Thanks again to all!

Finally... this problem is solved. Turns out, the starter had bad grounding when the tractor (engine and transmission) were cold. But that grounding improved when the tractor was warmed up. When the tractor got cold again, the grounding was bad again. I added a wire from the starter mounting...

Thanks for the ideas! Not sure what I should be 'marking'... the crank pulley? Not sure why it would start perfectly every time when the engine has been running and is warm? Attached are a couple of photos of the ring gear from when I did the split a few years back. Not the best photos but...

Sigh... This problem continues to plague me and I'm about to the point of splitting the tractor (again) to replace the ring gear. I now have 3 starters (all identical - they all work fine but the original is the most worn): #1 - original starter #2 - replacement starter #3 - replacement...

I split my cabbed tractor a few years back (posts here on the forum somewhere) and I'd do it again... but it wouldn't necessarily be fun. Tractor was split to replace leaking input shaft seal. Dealer gave rough estimate of 5K back in the day. Plus hauling the tractor there and back pushing...

My TYM backhoe is a larger model than yours, but I broke the lockout pin on mine as well. Welded that pin back together (needed the welding practice). It broke again (still needed more welding practice!). Bought a new pin from Tractor Supply... it hasn't broken since.

Just a follow up on this... I replaced the bucket cylinder seals and fixed my messy leak (the dust wiper seals had damage which is what caused the leak). Naturally, I did make a mess in the process but I learned a lot!! Info for others... The bucket cylinder is very accessible because of it's...

Thanks very much to all for these tips... greatly appreciated!

Thanks for your thoughts on this!

Howdy folks! It's been a while. OK, so it's not that I'm a slacker... it's just that I bust a$$ all the time and there are some projects I never seem to get to. I've been 'kicking the can' on my leaking backhoe cylinders for years. I have a bunch of cat litter pans that I keep under the...

Many years ago, not long after I got my tractor, the bucket was bowed on the bottom from backdragging, etc. Had my welder replace the bottom of the bucket and cutting edge with armor plated steel. The abuse hasn't let up but it is still straight as can be. I have a tooth bar (that goes over...

That is one stout looking plow... almost looks like a dozer blade (my plow in my icon is a 9'). Definitely need the skid shoes. I don't use float (and my drive is 1/2 mile long and 150' of elevation gain so lot's of bumps) and plow even more carefully during shoulder seasons when the ground's...

Many years ago (shortly after I got my tractor) the wear edge and bucket bottom was worn/bowed from heavy use. I had my welder replace the bottom and wear edge with armor plated steel and it's been straight and un-worn ever since.

I use railroad ties cut to about 4' long. I position the rear ties behind the rear wheels and back the tractor up onto the ties. Use the FEL to raise the front wheels then position the front ties and lower the front wheels onto the ties. Then put the bucket edge down as well as the brake lock...