Work done, items repaired and replaced so far.

*Engine:

• New pistons, rings , pins,bearings, oil pump. Original style oil pump wasn't available, had to modify inlet/outlet tubing to fit the new one.
• Block had new sleeves pressed in and was decked.
• Crankshaft was reground.
• Cylinder head replaced with a new one, complete with new valves,springs & keepers. Old head was cracked. I did resurface and re-use the old water jacket cover/baffle mount on the back of the head. One that came with new head didn't have the right mount for the baffle plate bewteen the block and battery compartment.
• Con rods were re-usable. Instaled new (MF) rod bolts, new 'ford' bolts not available.
• New seals and gaskets all around.
• Camshaft ,lifters,rockers, timing gears etc were servicable . All re-installed.
• New belts and hoses all around

*Fuel/Air system.

• Everything cleaned / flushed.
• New fuel tap/primer. Old one had primer mechanism missing and shutoff tap broken. Had an old (appeared to be BSA or Triumph?) motorcycle petcock in the line for a shutoff. Beats me why the thing wasn't leaking with the primer gone, somebody must have soldered up the holes...
• I even dismantled and cleaned the injectors and inj pump..not something I'd normally reccomend , but all were BADLY fouled and gunked up. I was very careful to keep up with all the pieces and get them back in their right places.
• The cambox on the pump had no oil, just an inch or so of sludge. Suprisingly the bearings in servicable condition. Replaced the seals.
• New diaphram for the governor, old one was rotten. Cleaned the breather element for the diaphram.
• Soaked the air cleaner in stoddard solvent (mineral spirits) and flushed it out.
• New lift pump, old one was cracked and leaking.
• Couple of new compression fittings on the fuel lines, old ones rounded off and leaking. Couple of new fuel lines, old ones had been 'patched'.

*Cooling system:

• Flushed the radiator (no leaks !).
• Initially put it all together with the old water pump , a new thermostat and gaskets. 2nd or 3rd time I fired it up, the pump started leaking. Installed a new pump . 5th or 6th time I started it up, the new 'internet' thermostat stuck closed. When I pulled it, I noticed it was a 180°(f).Installed the old 160°(f) thermostat & a gasket I cut...working fine.

* Brakes and tires.

• New brake drums and friction pads. One of the drums came off in pieces. The other wasn't much better.
• One new rear tire...Old one had a bulging sidewall that blew while sitting in the yard.
• Welded up and re-turned the brake lever 'cross shaft' (goes through the trans housing) ..it was badly worn. New bushings /seals for it. Made a new bush for the right-hand brake lever pivot (on the shaft) out of copper water pipe. Now tight.
• New inner seals on rear axles. Rear wheel bearings were ok. Cleaned and re-packed them. Front wheel bearings and seals replaced.

*Instruments/electrics:

• Old harness was rotten.I tossed it in trash. Re-wired with automotive wire.
• New light/key switch. Old one was shot.
• New glow plug switch from auto parts store. Doesn't look like original, but it works. Original type no longer available.Old glow plug works after cleaning contacts.
• Idiot' lights replaced with leds from auto parts store. Old ones not salvagable
• New temp guage and sending unit. Old one had been working, but the 'lead' fell apart when removing it
• New 'internet' oil sending unit was bad out of the box. Now have the old one back on. Works fine.
• Horn button checks ok with meter. Horn missing...may get one sometime.
• Old proofmeter was smashed beyond repair. Will probably opt for a MF135 tach, still trying to decide. 'Reproduction' dexta tachs have recently been appearing on the 'net. Going for around $120 and up. From the pics, they may not be good repro's . MF tach can be had for $35.
• Front lights appear to be originals ...rusty but cleaned up ok..a few small pinholes..think I'll keep 'em. Amazingly, the bulbs still work. (they are single filament..may not be original..the switch has contacts for high/low beams).
• Rear fender worklight shell beyond repair, will have to come up with a replacement. (bulb still works !).
• Generator checks ok with meter. Voltage regulator (control box) beyond repair. Haven't yet decided whether to purchase a regulator, or just change to an alternator. I've think we've got one laying around.
• Starter motor was dismantled, cleaned, and is working good. 'Old' solenoid, not original type, is working ok. Has been replaced sometime in past.
• I added a 'master' cutoff switch and a semi auto-reset circuit breaker to protect the electrics. (If it trips, momentarily kill the power with the 'master' switch and it will reset. It will trip again if short/overload is still present.)

*Clutch:

• New pilot and release bearings, old ones dry and worn.
This was another place I got incorrect or defective parts from an internet supplier. First set of bearings I ordered, got sent wrong release bearing.
• Clutch itself was in pretty good shape, put it back in and works fine.
• Welded up and turned the clutch pedal cross shaft , was badly worn around the bushings. New bushings for it also. Now tight.
• New bearing and seal for the trans input shaft while the clutch was out.
• Noticed some fine cracks in the bottom of the clutch housing casting...not showing through to the outside. Decided to leave them for now and keep an eye on it. We can fix later if necessary. Either preheat and weld , or 'stitch' them closed.

* Steering:

• Steering box had been 'loose' for a long time. It was dismantled and cleaned up. It had seen no oil for a long time. New seals, top bearings and race. It's now tight.
• Front spindles were badly worn. I built up with tig welder and re-turned in the lathe. (it helps to have family with good shop equipment!) New bushings and bearings all around.
• Hubs & wheels were serviceable.All were re-used.
• Front pivot and bush replaced. Old ones very badly worn.
• Tie rods were badly bent. I straightened them out (mostly) and re-installed. Seals were rotted off the tie rod ends, but surprisingly very little wear in them. I think I'll just install some new boots/seals on those after it's painted.
• Steering wheel appears original, has approx 1/2 the epoxy wore off. Think we'll keep it for now. The replacement ones I've seen are plastic.

*Sheet metal/ paint.

• Everything stripped with lye 'gravy', followed by either r/o sander or wire brushes.
• Clutch,transmission, and rear housings treated with phosphoric acid 'prep', as were the the rear rims.
• Some very rusty spots I cleaned with muriatic acid. Many of the smaller parts (that would fit in a 5 gal bucket) were cleaned by electrolysis.
• Getting rid of the old paint and rust was probably the single most time consuming part of this project. Tractor was one of those that had been re-painted blue/white when it was sold new. Two layers of 'factory' paint to get off, besides all the gunk and grime.
• Footplates were badly bent. Worked on them with hammer and a 'gas-wrench', now serviceable...may spring for new ones someday.
• Fenders were bent up around leading edges & footboard mounts. Worked on them with the gas wrench and tig welded a 'backer' plate for the footplates to bolt to. They still have minor dents and dings that need attention before painting, and a couple of cracks around the brackets that need the tig welder.
• Front cowl had one large crease across the top,dents and dings across the bottom , and was 'pushed in' across the front. Worked some of this out, still needs some attention prior to painting.
• Battery compartment. Bottom tray about 25% rusted away. Got an acid bath, and had a stainless re-enforcing plate welded to the bottom of it.Hold-down hardware all missing. Need to fab something up.
• Steering box covers missing. I have seen some repro's for sale on the net. May purchase one day.
• I have been priming all pieces with rattle can red-oxide as I get them cleaned up. Planning to put some good primer and sealer on before painting. I don't have a good place here to paint. Will have to take it to a friends.

* Lift:

• New o-rings all around.
• Aux service valve was badly stuck...now cleaned up and works. The rubber boot and detent are long gone. I fixed the valve in place with a bolt where the detent should be, and made a 'boot' from a washer to keep dirt out. Not what Ford intended, but we never use the auxiliary hydraulics anyway. If needed, bolt can be turned out with a wrench and valve moved.
• Dismantled and cleaned the lift cover and cylinder. Lots of rust ,water and gunk.
• Removed and cleaned the check valve in the cover.
• New pins in the "arm assy" 957e680 and "lever assy" 957e504. Larger one that follows the cam on the lift arm shaft was worn completely off. The smaller one that guides the position control spring/cam appeared to have sheared off at some point.
• Control valve and shuttle valve (in the lift cylinder casting) had both stuck, probably while I was working on the other items and everything sat so long. now free. Had to round up a used plug for the shuttle (unloader) valve chamber. Old one was badly stuck and the tapped hole to pull it was stripped. I boogered it up pretty bad getting it out and trying to repair it.
• One interesting thing I noted was that the lift cylinder appears to be from a later model. It has 2 bolt cover/retainer over the control valve and late style valving.I don't remember Dad ever having this replaced. Must have been a previous owner ?
• Cleaned the inlet and exhaust filters. Inlet filter was gunked up badly.
• Pressure relief in pump cover cleaned. Nothing else done to pump (so far).
• Qualitrol linkage was froze up, especially the yoke and shaft. After a session with the gas wrench it is now free and working.
• I made a slip gage to adjust the linkage out of a bit of scrap and some careful grinding and filing. Got the dimensions off the 'net.
• Need to replace those lift arm shaft bushings in the cover some day. Couldn't get one of the arms off ,even after much soaking, heating, and hammering. One day, I'll have to cut it off, replace the bushings, and weld the arm back up (though not to the shaft!).
• I did let the local dealer talk me into re-filling with CNH multi-grade hydraulic oil. I am a little wary that it may be too 'light' for worn components and I may have to go to a single grade oil.
• Lift now seems to be working normally. I haven't yet tried to pick up anything heavier than a mower though, or had a chance to plow with it, so we'll see. If it seems weak I'll try to round up a suitable gage and fittings and do some testing.

*General

A couple of recent pics. Click on either to see a bigger picture

     Since getting it (mostly) back together, the Dexta has been cranked 15 or 20 times, run for a couple of hours, done a bit of light work, and been on several 'joy' rides :). Cranks easy, runs good..a normal bit of cold smoke that clears up in a few seconds..a couple of minor leaks to attend to. Next major steps will probably be to finish attending to the sheet metal and get it painted. Then round up a tach, a work light for the rear fender, and maybe a replacement for the missing front badge on the cowl (the long vertical one between the radiator screens). I do have the oval wheat-sheaf badge (though most of the orange paint is gone) , and the 'Live Power / Live Hydraulics' badge for the front grille. I'll probably fit up an oil pressure guage also. A new muffler/silencer for the exhaust wouldn't hurt either.

     One of these days, I'll have to see about doing a proper calibration/testing on the injectors & pump. (maybe make some test equip..let's see, some gages, an old electric motor, some pulleys,an old porta-power to pump up the injectors,some brackets...hmmmm). Or maybe just take it all to an injection shop and pay them to do it.Safer, quicker, possibly more expensive, not near as much fun.

July 6, 2007 . Time to update the story. Haven't posted anything here in several weeks.

Bought a tach and cable from yesterdays's tractors web site. It does not look like the original, but seems to work fine. Cost was a lot more reasonable than the repro's, about $50. Had to modify the cable to get it to work. The drive end did not protrude far enough to engage. Removed the crimped fitting , cut about 3/4 in off the cable housing, and re-installed the fitting. Also had to epoxy up the hole in the end of the pump shaft that the cable fits up in. It was worn too badly to engage the cable end.

Removed the air cleaner and boiled it out in a large pot, using laundry detergent and boiling water. Removed a good bit of gunk that the mineral spirits/ parts washer had not gotten out. Had to reprime (paint) it again of course.

I did a crude calibration on the pump. Removed the covers from the pre-combustion chambers to make the engine easy to turn over. Detached fuel lines from the injectors and turned them around facing away from the engine. Next I fitted up some short lengths of rubber tubing to direct the fuel flow into some clear plastic cups, all 3 the same size. Used the starter motor, in 30 second 'bursts' allowing it to cool in between, to turn the engine and pump over. First round, I just emptied the cups without measuring to get the lines full. Next round, I noted which cups had the least amount, dumped them out,and kept fiddling with flow adjustments until I got them all pumping the same amount. Took several rounds of turn the pump, measure, adjust, dump the cups, start over. After putting it back together, it runs noticeably smoother. Not a substitute for a proper calibration, but will do until that can be done.

After doing all this, I was able to set the 'stops' for both idle and top speed (no load). Both are now close to factory spec. Engine will turn up about 300 rpm higher than before. Still about 200 rpm off factory spec on the high end. A proper calibration on the pumps and injectors would probably resolve this.

Have put several more hours on the meter, mostly running the bush hog and pulling / clearing wisteria vines. We have about an acre here that is severely overgrown in wisteria. Working on cleaning it up, about 1/3 done. That same area is also littered with foundation piers from four old houses,lots of junk and trash that was dumped in the weeds over the years by the previous residents, and a number of fallen trees.

July 8 2007. Blew an o-ring or gasket under the auxillary take-off plate in the hydraulics late yesterday. Was using a 'boom pole' to snake some fallen trees out of the woods. Oh well, will take it off today or tomorrow and see what we need to fix it up.

Sept 7 2007. Mounted an alternator today and wired it up. Working fine. Bought a $30 rebuilt one with internal regulator , rated at 63 amps. Should be plenty big enough to keep the battery charged up. Also mounted and hooked up a new oil pressure gage that I have had laying around a long time. Was pleased to see good oil pressure...50 - 60 lbs hot, 60 - 70 lbs cold. Means we got a good job on the rebuild and the plumbing I had to modify on the pump.

Been too hot here to do much this summer. August was hottest month on record, 3 weeks of 100+ ° days. We are also in 'severe' drought conditions. Lake levels are down 5- 6 feet and most smaller streams & creeks dried up. I have done very little outside last 2 months, other than spending an hour or two a day trying to keep flower beds and a small garden watered. Everyone is on water restrictions ( no outside use) but I have a private well, so I can do some watering. Can't do too much, well is shallow and is 'low flow'.

Oh, the hydraulic leak (July 8) was my fault. Felt really stupid when I pulled that cover. I had left out an o-ring and the gasket finally blew out. Oh well,put in the o-ring, made a new gasket, and put it back together. Took about 2 gals of oil to top it back up. Has run another 6-8 hrs with no leaks so far.

Dec 07,2007....Well the dexta still needs painting...I've just had other things to do instead. It has finally started to feel like winter, lows in the 30's, highs in the 50's with occasional warmer days. Still NO RAIN ..very dry.

Got it out the other day to pick up (back end) of a boat so I could pull the trailer out from underneath it and work on the trailer. Noticed that it just barely picked it up. Was only lifting about 3- 400 lbs, Dexta should have picked this up with no strain. Did the work on trailer, replaced some rusty crossmembers, stripped and painted the whole thing. Before putting the boat back on the trailer, decided to take a look at the hydraulics on the Dexta. Took the pressure relief valve out, cleaned and inspected it. Some wear evident, decided maybe it was just stuck. Put it back together, fired up the tractor and gave it a try..picked the boat up with no problem. If it keeps giving problems, it will have to be replaced or reworked someday.

Jan 15,2008. Built myself a tester last week, pulled all the injectors and tested them. All needed the opening pressure adjusted a bit. One leaking just a bit,cleaned it and it's working better,just small leakage (nozzle leak test). One other leaking badly, needs to be replaced. I'll likely just order new nozzles for all three and rebuild them myself.

Feb 26. 2008. Ordered those new nozzles a few weeks ago from YTMAG's parts store.About $100, including shipping, for three. Installed them last weekend.The dexta now has 100-150 more rpm on top end - right on spec, runs smoother and smokes less. Glad I went ahead and did this job.
Also took the cap for the fuel tank apart and reworked it...It now fits better and hopefully leaks less. Wanted to stop the 'misting' out onto the tank before painting.

May 31, 2008. Finally got it painted last week....Actually over last 3 weeks. Used a friends 'shed' as a paint booth. Not enough room to hang up all the bits and pieces at one time. So I had two afternoons of painting 'parts', another for the wheels, and another for the body of the tractor. Then a couple more putting it back together. Still have to touch up the nuts and bolts that got scratched putting it back together.
I am an amateur car (or tractor) painter, but it turned out pretty well considering my lack of experience and not having professional paint booth or equipment. Only one paint run , very little trash, no orange peel..... Jokingly refer to it as my 20/20 paint job ...from 20 feet away, at 20 mph....