Monday, November 30, 2015

What a Gray Nasty Day





It's pretty much done nothing but rain or drizzle since Thanksgiving day here. Wasn't so bad on turkey day when it was kinda warm but it turned cold Friday and has been cold ever since. Cold and windy is bad enough but cold, windy, wet and muddy. Well that's just depressing.....

And messy.

Standing water everywhere. Mud everywhere. Not even the animals are happy about it. The only ones around here stupid enough to not come in out of the rain are the chickens. For some reason they seem unphased by this turn in the weather.

The verdict is pretty much in on the 861 diesel. Complete and total overhaul including a new Camshaft. The metal shavings clogged up the oil pump and ate the teeth off the flywheel. No cylinder or block damage however thankfully.




The metal shavings were all over the oil pan and had eaten into the camshaft so bad I doubt over sized ring bearings are going to work. My bet is we are looking at 3 grand no matter which way we go.




With the price of new parts for these tractors if I don't get a line on used ones it's going to run over 2 grand just for the overhaul kit, shaft and oil pump and I am going to go ahead and replace the clutch while we are in there.

I must admit converting it to a gas engine is looking kinda good right now as I can pick up a totally rebuilt one ready to bolt on for around $1200.00.

I am going to swing by and pick up the front hood and maybe the wheel panels and start looking at repainting them while I have this going on. This whole operation could turn into a several thousands of dollars if I am not careful and show some restraint though.

In other bad news I am missing a Rhode Island  Red hen this evening. She didn't come back to the barn with all the rest and I am afraid I may have had my first predator attack since the stupid dog doesn't count. She might show up by morning but I know those chickens are beginning to get quite brave with their foraging now. If it didn't happen today I bet it's only a matter of time before something out there picks one off.

Keep Prepping Everyone!!!!!!


22 comments:

  1. The weather appears to reflect your luck PP, only one word comes to mind........bugger!

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    1. John - Ya it hasn't been the best of weeks for me. All bad news at once I guess rather than having it spread out.

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  2. 34* and icy here. Bummer about the engine. Those 861 diesels aren't cheap. One on eBay right now.

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    1. MV - I saw several blocks but only gas complete engines. Can ya post a link?

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    2. It was the whole tractor, & way too dear. I don't see it now. Maybe it was an old listing & I read the date wrong.

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  3. It is cold with rain and mud here now.
    I have replaced the ring on a flywheel before, not hard to do.
    Did they guy say what caused the whole thing to screw up?

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    1. Sf - Basically it was the rear seal going out that drained the oil and of course my own stupidity for not looking at the oil pressure gauge or shutting the thing off when I noticed the block smoking. I am not as pissed yet as I should be at myself though because as I said I was planning on doing this complete overhaul anyway I just wasn't planning on needing a new camshaft when I did it :(

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    2. I think my ferguson needs rebuilding but mainly just the pistons and rings. It appears to have a lot of hard use. It can't be much worse than tearing the model A down so maybe I will have a go at it next year. I saw some place selling crankshafts for your model but didn't see camshafts, it looks like the gas and diesel engines are totally different from what I can figure out. If I see one being parted out I will let you know.

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    3. Sf - Well the diesel ones on the inside are different. Most of the outside parts are the same but the crankshaft is the real booger I am going to pay a hefty price for.

      I am betting that ferguson is about like my 8N and would be easy to work on. The 861 diesel was just too much for me to do on my own though.

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  4. I hope your chicken does show up. Stupid or not, it's a shame to lose them. All my critters were out in the rain today, as long as it was light. Everybody's looking for that optimal feeding spot.

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    1. Leigh - The sheep hate the rain here, especially the Bluefaced as they have that part in their wool and get the water down on their skin. The horses don't like it either so everyone huddles in their barn or building and looks miserable when it rains. Except the chickens now lol.

      She may turn up. This isn't the first time I have missed one in the evening only to have her down there waiting when I let the crew out in the morning. They are getting really brave though and wandering much further afield than I would like.

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  5. grey wet and muddy here, I thought the chickens were starting to get webbed feet so we hauled there run onto fresh grass at the week end, the ducks love all the mud and rain :-)

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    1. DM - The chickens here seem unaffected by the rain and ignore the mud as well. Henypenny jumped up on my shoulder again this morning and left me a nice mud stain to prove it :)

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  6. No greyness or wetness here at the moment, just the Pyrenees mountains sending us some chilly air at night, which the sun is warming up again during the day. But we shall get our share of grey, wet, and muddy, that is for sure. Shame about your hen. It is worrying when a chicken is 'lost', but we still let ours free range because that keeps them happy even if they run the risk of getting taken by predators.

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    1. Vera - She came back. Was waiting for me this morning as a matter of fact. Eventually one of them is gonna get got I am sure of it. They are getting far too comfortable and secure in their wanderings.

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  7. PP,

    Sorry to hear about your chicken, she may still show up. I'm also sorry to hear about the cost of fixing/converting your tractor. Temperatures are cooler, and the sun tried to break through the clouds yesterday. It's damp, wet, and miserable here too!!

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    1. Sandy - Well I was planning on re-doing that tractor anyway so it's all good. I had just hoped on waiting another year or so.

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  8. Ah I retract what I just said about a good buy. Still you like project, and like me you've got so much free time! What about putting it in another sale to get rid of if and keep your time for projects already started?

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    1. Kev - No the tractor that is in the shop is a different tractor. I now have three with only one tore down. Happens to be my favorite one that broke though and the most expensive to fix :(

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  9. Rain and muck here too. The mountain is so muddy now that I am having to take the long route if I head into town. It is supposed to clear up tomorrow though.

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    1. Lisa - We got one day of sunshine then back to clouds, wind, cold and occasional mist. Oh well we can always use the moisture and the ground needs to sleep sometime too.

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