Pics of my new (to me) 1700 and some questions

[pacerron]

Thanks for the link to McMaster-Carr. Looks like they have exactly what I need! The current pattern is diamond openings (as opposed to staggered holes). I suppose that has better air flow that the sheets with round holes in them, although I doubt is matters much.

Dealer did not stock the seal, but it will be in on Thursday. Total cost was $21, including shipping. Not bad.

The diamond 1/2" opening in a 24" x 24" sheet is $9.95 at home depot. It is 0.125 thick which is 3+ mm.
Since your broken frame is plastic have you considered putting a couple pins between the broken sides and doing a Stu bondo job on it?
You could even make a plaster of paris cast split with aluminum foil from the non broken part and do the final bondo shape from the mold.

 

[pclausen]

Thanks Ron. I'll check home depot when I head that way Thursday to pick up the seal for the lift cylinder. I'll bring the old one with me to make sure it is pretty close.

I have never been any good at bondo work, but maybe this could be an opportunity for me to give it a shot!

 

[pclausen]

I picked up the cylinder seal today and also tried to find some of that 1/2" diamond metal mesh at Home Depot. They never heard of such a think. All they had was gutter guard which was not wide enough or matching pattern wise. I spoke to 4 different people. Maybe it varies by region what the local Home Depot carries?

Anyway, here is the new seal. Note how the lip points into where the pressure is.

It was impossible to get it on at first, so I decided to drop it in boiling water for a few minutes

That did the trick when using a small screwdriver to work it around the top edge of the piston

Here's the old seal. It came apart when I took it out.

The final challenge was getting the piston into the cylinder, but by tilting it and slowly working it all the way around, it finally popped it.

Putting the whole assembly back into the gear case was pretty straight forward. I made sure to angle it down as much as possible to ensure the push rod was picked up and centered in the piston.

Fired up the tracker and once the cylinder has filled up, the implement raised right up. And no more bouncing! I shut the engine off, and the implement did not drop. Did a bunch of rake work and everything worked great. I left the rake in the raised position this afternoon. Will be interesting to see if it is still raised when I check it in the morning.

 

[JC-jetro]

Jim, thanks for the link to JC-jetro's thread. After reading that, I figured I might as well pop my lift cylinder out. I can't believe how easy it was. Less than 5 minutes.

Here's the tractor after removing it

Closeup showing the rod the piston pushes against to raise the lift arms

Sure enough, my piston seal is completely shot!

Hopefully the local New Holland dealer stocks this item.

I too struck out online trying to locate some similar metal mesh. I'll probably hit the stores tomorrow to see what's available. I went to tsc yesterday, and the only thing they had was this really heavy gauge diamond pattern that has holes large enough to stick your fingers through.

Howdy,

I was overseas for the past 10 days and had very little internet other than phone and communication. Peter, I'm glad my thread helped out. Have a hard time going on my little 7 inch tablet. I'm in Chicago at the airport and got another 2 hrs to get home.
Cheers'
JC

 

[pclausen]

I was wondering what happened to you JC.

When I went to start the 1700 this morning, I was very pleasantly surprised to see that the rake had not dropped even an inch. When I started the tractor, the rake barely rose. So the new seal was the all that I needed! I love it when a hydraulic fix is only $20!

 

[grainger12002]

awesome job PC, its great when you are able to fix things,not spend alot and learn along the way. awesome

 

[JC-jetro]

I was wondering what happened to you JC.

When I went to start the 1700 this morning, I was very pleasantly surprised to see that the rake had not dropped even an inch. When I started the tractor, the rake barely rose. So the new seal was the all that I needed! I love it when a hydraulic fix is only $20!

I was in "Gay Paree" to visit relatives. I realy like the robust and good design of hyd system for 1000 series Ford. On most you need to take the diffy top cover below the seat entirely off to have access to the hyd cylinder and piston. it is not that difficult but it takes a lot more work. I entirely overhauled the hyd system under $100 that included complete fluid change, seal replacement and pump overhaul, that ain't bad at all, I say

Your rig is looking better all the time. I'll do what you have done to your 1700 after we move to our acreage.

JC,

 

[pclausen]

Thanks! With all the "issues" resolved, I went ahead and ordered up a new seat and muffler from Ebay. I have also started to spray PB blaster on the steering wheel nut. It looks like it will be quite a challenge to get off. Once I do, I'll get me a fresh steering wheel as well. My current one is in pretty bad shape.

So the only maintenance issue I have been neglecting at this point is to change the oil in the fuel injector pump. There is even a big label on the side of the gas tank cautioning the need to change it every 200 hours. As discussed earlier, mine does not have the check or drain holes, just the fill one. I'm thinking of loosening the side cover to drain it, and then just add a pre-measured amount (8 oz I think?)

 

[murphy1244]

Get a vacuum oil sucker.

 

[pclausen]

Assuming the pick up tube will go all the way to the bottom, that sure makes a lot of sense! I actually got one, but I would need to adopt a smaller pick up tube to it. Will give that a shot as soon as I get a chance.

 

[JC-jetro]

Assuming the pick up tube will go all the way to the bottom, that sure makes a lot of sense! I actually got one, but I would need to adopt a smaller pick up tube to it. Will give that a shot as soon as I get a chance.

You can loosen the back plate to let the oil out . use an air nozzle and shoot a little air in from the fill/vent cap to remove all the bad oil. You need no more than 2 oz of oil.

JC,

 

[pclausen]

Thanks. Will try that when I get a chance.

 

[pclausen]

Replacement seat came in today. It is a lot nicer than I expected!

I figured I might as well paint the seat brackets while I was at it.

 

[JC-jetro]

Nice Peter,

The rate you're going your 1700 will become show room ready to the point you would not want to get any mud on it. Looking good.:thumbsup:

 

[jinman]

Replacement seat came in today. It is a lot nicer than I expected!

Pete, from what I've seen, lots of folks would love to have your old seat. It's only cracked and a bit rusty on the pan. I'd bet it would sell on eBay or as a freebie on craigslist. I've seen lots of them with half the padding missing and the pan is solid rust.

 

[pclausen]

Good idea Jim. I'll see if I can find it a new home.

Got the brackets and new seat installed

I spent a good 2 hours in it mowing my lower field, and it does have quite a bit more spring/cushion to it than the old.

Also got the new muffler in. I had to modify it slight to make it clear the hood.

Given the diameter of it, going back to vertical was the only option as it would hit the alternator in the horizontal position. It does seem a bit more quit compared to the skinny muffler on it before.

 

[murphy1244]

That green up front has got to go!

 

[pclausen]

Lol, I knew someone would comment on that.

I had rim guard put in the tires on my JD tractor last week at the dealer, and he gave me a really good deal on 4 of those weights. Don't worry, they will be painted blue, and I got the 2 original ones (already painted blue), that will go on the outside of the JD weights, thus hiding that deer logo. The reason they are not on there right now is that I need to grind down the "hook" part some before they will slide onto the bumper.

 

[rayikeo2]

I have had my muffler in a horizontal position for 30 years and am still on the original parts. However I ran mine to the rear and put it between the fender and tire and extended to an inch or two past the fender. The downside is I can not enter or exit on that side but the benefit is all the fumes are out the back and never a problem to breath in or out. Never a worry about rain water entering the muffler or having it get caught on over head brush or limbs. I wouldn't ever change it back to vertical.

 

[pclausen]

I agree. I would like to go back to horizontal again. I took another look, and it turns out that not only is the diameter of the new muffler larger, the elbow is shorter. So I loose a full 2" of clearance, making it just about impossible to go horizontal. I'm going to contact the seller to see if maybe the one he sent me was a fluke. Definitely not OEM fit.

Sure, I can have someone cut it and add an extension, but then I might as well have just kept the old one and had someone do the same (cut and re-weld at the proper angle without adding an extension).