My 1966 Massey 135 Tractor (Pics)

[MasseyWV]

Where did you find a glow in the dark tach?

The electroluminescent tach and other gauges were installed at the factory, and pre-date the more traditional gauges that use light bulbs, but were phased out in favor of the latter. In the 1960's, ectroluminescent gauges were also used in some cars.

 

[Mike476]

Great post, haven't been on the site as much as I'd like but I'll be earmarking it for when I start tearing into my 135, a visual kind of guy so seeing a pic is very useful.

As you stated your oil is nice and clean but do you plan to remove the aft cover to expose the pump / filter and check the linkages and lift cylinder or do you plan to wait until the next phase of the rebuild. I decided to do mine after realizing the oil had been contaminated from a split shift lever boot, only to find that the pump standpipe o-rings had failed and over lubing the three point arms had contaminated the oil with grease. The filter was a mess.

After rigging the levers, replacing the o-rings and flushing the oil I was amazed at the difference, made lifting 10-12 foot 20" white pine and spruce logs onto the mill a piece of cake where it was all the old girl could do prior to my doing the work.

 

[The kid]

The electroluminescent tach and other gauges were installed at the factory, and pre-date the more traditional gauges that use light bulbs, but were phased out in favor of the latter. In the 1960's, ectroluminescent gauges were also used in some cars.

None of my factory manuals mention this feature. All the gauges mentioned in print where filament bulbs. It reminds me of backlighting on modern day instrument panels.

 

[MasseyWV]

None of my factory manuals mention this feature. All the gauges mentioned in print where filament bulbs. It reminds me of backlighting on modern day instrument panels.

Your manuals aren't old enough, or if they are reproductions, they didn't include any mention of electro-luminescencent lighting. I have a 1969 factory owners manual and a reproduction of the 1966 factory owners manual for the Massey 135 which both state the following about the instruments:

The easy view instrument panel contains a tachometer, water temperature gauge, ammeter, oil pressure gauge and fuel gauge as standard equipment. These instruments are lighted by electro-luminescence. With this method of lighting, the instrument dial becomes the lamp, eliminating the need for separate bulbs.

 

[MasseyWV]

As you stated your oil is nice and clean but do you plan to remove the aft cover to expose the pump / filter and check the linkages and lift cylinder or do you plan to wait until the next phase of the rebuild?

Since the fluid is clean and the hydraulics seem to work fine, I was planning to wait until the next phase of the rebuild. The hydraulics do bleed off in about 15 minutes if the engine is off, but I've read that it's common so it doesn't cause me much concern.

 

[Mike476]

I've read the same, bleeding off is normal and if you've not had any issues with lifting power you shouldn't have any issues.

 

[MasseyWV]

I've been giving more thought to the gauges and haven't decided if I want to replace them with new ones or try to find matching OEM electroluminescent replacements. I like the look of the existing OEM gauges, so if I can find new replacements that look the same, or very close, I could live with replacing them.

I'm especially fond of the tachometer, which is simple and easy to read, unlike some of the replacement tractormeters I've seen, which are cluttered and overcrowded. I only need to see the RPM's and have no use for MPH indicators.

 

[MasseyWV]

Today, I didn't have much time to work on my tractor, but I did manage to perform some small tasks like further cleaning of the head gasket mating surfaces and checking them for warpage using a straightedge and feeler gauge. Fortunately, both are within .002 of being perfectly flat, which is well within the allowable tolerances according to the shop manual. I had previously checked them both for cracks, but had a small scare after I noticed what looked like a crack in the cylinder head. After closer examination using a magnifying glass, it turned out to be a minor scratch so all is well.

The batteries in my camera were dead so I didn't get to take any pictures, but since everyone loves pictures, here is a picture of me driving my tractor for the first time.

 

[flusher]

Mighty nice looking 135:thumbsup:

 

[frankroberts]

here is a picture of me driving my tractor for the first time.

You look happy. nice picture.

frank