[jameszmcnelley]

I haven't seen a complete how to on this modification, so I am going to give it a try.
this was done using all used jd parts, other than 2 washers. it retains the factory parking brake also.
I will try my best to guide you thru this. it can get overwhelming with all the left & rights, ups & downs, top & bottoms, front & rear.
I recommend patience and sobriety. ha.
first off I took Jay Ericksons recommendation and picked up a second set of pedals. to try and ''mirror them.'' that does give some help.
At the very least you will need to get an extra OUTSIDE pedal; to get a necessary section from, in order to retain the parking brake. to be shown later.
I ended up getting a 3rd outer pedal. I screwed up my first attempt. I was trying to do the mod performing a cut at a certain location I had seen in other post photos. In my case it just caused all kinds of issues, resulting in disaster.
So I came up with a different approach that made life a lot simpler, and also yielded the factory look. this will be pointed out later.
this job was done with only the front end jacked up. only the seat pan was removed. I even left the rear pto on with its drive shaft. the shaft came in handy as an arm rest, to steady my hand while die grinding out welds.
I recommend a MINI grinder if you have one. easier to get at the weld removal area.
all cuts were made with a 5'' side grinder. A hyd. press comes in handy. But it, is not a must have.
No torch was involved. however it would make pedal arm shaping easier. I wanted to show it could be done without one if you have a good vise, C-clamps, and a HEAVY table.

Nuff-said, lets get started.
Remove seat pan. jack up front of tractor.
it is important that you now adjust your brakes to a max pedal travel of 3/4'' or so. This insures that you will have plenty of clearance between the pedal arms and the steering actuator when you are done.
have parking brake released, now remove pedal arms and the main shaft assy. from frame.

there are two, 1/2'' long welds on each barrel bushing. the welds are front and rear on each barrel. use a 1/4'' bur. be careful and save each barrel. they will be reused. if not, you will have to buy and install a custom bearing set up.
Here are the barrels removed.

LH SIDE REMOVED

RH. SIDE REMOVED

This is the SMALL LH. barrel. it will be fitted with the washer shown in photo one.
This barrel will be put on the RH side.
a grade 8 washer yields the same thickness as the frame rail, and the outer dia. is almost perfect.
open up the center till it fits snug on the little factory shoulder, also visible in photo one.

now place a 1/2'' weld on each side, 180 degree apart, with zerk in center.
these will be the same two welds you ground off earlier.
DO NOT, weld the snot out of this. you will warp the barrel.
once welded, set it aside for now.

This is the LH SIDE. open up this hole EVENLY; till it fits the machined SHOULDER of the LARGE barrel shown in photo one.
This photo shows the hole enlarged to fit.
Now temporarily install the shaft reverse of original, with both barrels in their final resting place.
Shaft will act as a line up tool for the barrels.

RH SIDE small barrel, with shaft alined.
notice washer ALMOST, fits hole perfectly at the frame.
notice piece of welding wire used to lift and center shaft.

Same RH barrel welded and ground flush.

This shows the large LH. barrel welded in place also before the shaft is removed.
it only gets welded on the inside.
Two 3/4'' long welds, 180 degree apart.
DONT over weld. same as factory.
IMPORTANT, notice each zerk hole is facing down like original.
NOTE; sorry about the dirt. My unit is a worker, not a shirker. When I rebuilt this tractor I did not bother to clean and paint this area because I knew I was going to be doing this. Still not gonna clean it here. Foot controls are next.

This is why you need two OUTER pedal arms.
Or you will have to fabricate this piece to mount the parking brake pawl.
So take your worst shaft and use it for the DONOR SHAFT.
Remove the pedal arm by grinding off the weld on both sides, while preserving both pieces as best as possible.
Now grind off weld as shown on lower shaft and press off the large TUBE shown in the photo above.
this will get relocated to the other side of your good, user shaft. After a little modification.

Now mark and cut off 1 3/8'' as shown. remove the end with the bushing. The long section is the one we will be using.
NOTE; pay no mind to the hole in the long section here or here after in this post. It is irrelevant for any purpose.

This is a view of the LH side big barrel, that was welded in earlier on the inside of frame.
NOTE; this is a large file, I took about 100 photos. hard to keep in order. trying to cut down to a useable, clear format. patience please.

Refer to above photo; install the shaft with the TUBE and parking brake pawl as shown. This is to get things lined up.

Then on RH side, install lever temporarily with 1/4'' drift punch.
Install brake rod and spring. It is IMPORTANT that return spring is hooked up.
Not shown in photo but you need to place a grade 8, 3/4'' washer in between lever and frame. need a 1/8'' space there. I did not have one when photo was taken. I am using the c-clamp to manipulate this, to hold the 1/8'' space.

BACK TO THIS PHOTO
With all prior mentioned and done; slide TUBE against inside frame rail. Slide PB pawl toward frame rail also.
make sure it is orientated properly.
RH ARROW shows PB latch just touching.
LH ARROW points to a black line, you will draw, circling shaft. This is where you will weld TUBE to shaft later.
Draw another black line on shaft as shown running up and down, notice this centers with the roll pin hole in the PB PAWL.
This line up is crucial for proper PB function.

Now remove the shaft, tube and pawl from the frame and mount in vise as shown.
A line TUBE with your circular shaft line and weld Tube to shaft.
Next, arrow points to PAWL, flush with TUBE at their sides.
A line the roll pin hole with your black shaft line and tac weld PAWL to TUBE as shown on the left.
This spot weld will hold everything in place and allow you to grasp the pawl securely in the drill press vise.
DONT, try and re-drill a new roll pin hole at original hole showing in pawl. Doubt if you could hit existing pawl hole on other side precisely, resulting in sloppy fit and or missalinement.
We will drill a new hole about an inch to the right of the old one.

ANOTHER VIEW of prior directions

X marks the drill spot. this spot will allow you to clear the legs on the underside of the pawl.
it will come out inside the horse shoe bend of the leg.
Notice the rotation from original hole.
NO PROBLEM, you can still drive pin up from bottom on install.
AND, you can still drive it out for disassembly, if needed.
1/4'' drill bit used here.

Here is what I mean. roll pin installed for test fit.
DONT put hole in center of horse shoe. that will locate pin closer to the frame rail making it harder to install and remove.
remember, frame rail has a lip turning in at the bottom.
so drill here and avoid any interference issues with punch clearance in the future. OH, now remove the spot weld from tube and pawl.

RT. SIDE; Washer that I didn't have that was mentioned earlier has MAGICALLY appeared.
Now install shaft, you can leave PAWL off for now.
install RH lever, brake rod and return spring again; as shown earlier. Minus the c-clamp.

Alright, at this point the party is over. If you have any hair on your head; burn it off NOW!
Because from here on out, at some point, your gonna pull it out.
''notified I need to open up a second page'' used up all the data space here.'' look for part 2, JZM

 

[grandpajay]

James,
Looks good! Luckily (?) I didn't have much hair to start with. Thanks for doing the write up. Watch for interference with the steering arm and stop bracket that operate the power steering assist cylinder. Yep, getting the pedals reversed and lined up for the connecting tab will be fun. My threads were just to show that it can be done. I also have a spare set of pedals (my originals) laying around if someone wants to give it a go. Jay

 

[jameszmcnelley]

OK, lets continue.
Notice line drawn on pedal arm. All arms have a ripple here. Use this for your cut line.
Cut both inner and outer arms now. Mark both corresponding halves. DO NOT get inner and outer arm halves mixed.
Pedal pads are drilled differently.
Now take the inner arm and grind off the weld where it was attached to the shaft TUBE.
You should have a nice C shape where it meets the TUBE side.
Now take this arm, place in press and mash factory bends flat. Now duplicate the shape you just removed in the reverse direction.
How you do this is up to you.
Try not to get deep scratches and vise marks in the metal.

I bent and twisted using this process along with some forming in the press.
Two adjustable wrenches at the same time, 180 opposed gives a lot of twisting power.
The inside arm is easy. The outer is the bitch.
Once you are satisfied with the shape of the inner arm, tac weld the corresponding upper half in place 180 from original position.

Here is a tricky part. I did manage it by myself.
Position pedal in proper place and tac. Do not get it to high. This position allowed a 1/4 '' clearance from floor pan.
Remember side panel clearance and pedal pad is tweeked slightly up and rearward. Look at your spare for a ref.

A REAR VIEW

ANOTHER VIEW checking side panel clearance and over-all placement. Remember, OUTER arm will get its CUES off the INNER arm.
Notice weld attaching arm to TUBE, must be flush or slightly recessed. Place arm IN 3/16'' from TUBE EDGE to get this result.
weld arm to tube on backside also.

NOTE; If at this point you are only missing a small patch of hair; not to worry, It will soon get the rest.

OUTER ARM, cut up as shown and grind old welds smooth.

Cut small tube off flush.
NOTE; arrow points to where others have been cutting and doing the flip. [both inner and outer arms.]
That is what caused me to screw up my first attempt. I could never get things to line up over-all, correctly. Recall, I did not cut inner arm here to.
We will re-use small tube. we are only loosing a 1/2'' of length.

Grind smooth then punch or press out the remaining inner section of small tube.
NOW; Its time to get that hair OUT!!!
Take the outer arm, press flat and reshape in opposite direction. Look at old extra arm for a reference in reverse.
If you can get passed this; you got her licked!!
GOOD LUCK.
Now re-insert small tube in opposite direction until flush and tac in place, on the side that tube protrudes from. only weld on that side. same as factory.
Install outer arm with small tube and adjust as needed to get proper relationship with inner arm before final welding of small tube to outer arm.

Now locate brake lever on brake arm as shown, with holes lined horizontally and tac in place.
Remove outer arm and weld both sides of said pieces.

NOW, mark and cut this line.

fill this hole with weld and grind smooth on both sides.

Now place that part 180 from old location, with a 1/4'' spacer, weld and grind smooth.

place in drill press, as shown and line up the existing hole as guide. then drill through back-side with 9/32 bit.
This piece is finished.

Here is how I positioned and held outer arm and upper half of outer arm in place and alined all involved.
small vise grips rest on steering actuator, holding outer arm up.
large vise grips are clamped on small end of inner shaft. They keep outer arm from spitting out and off. C-lamp holds 3/4'' board.
There is a 1/8'' spacer between board and foot rest on outer pedal. Once you are satisfied with the linement, tac pedal pad top in place of outer arm.
You may have to come up with your on gimmick here. Each job will vary.

SIDE VIEW

Make a new lower brace for outer pedal arm.
I am making one that is longer, wider and thicker. Didn't have no 3/16'' laying around.
Cut, shape and weld in place.
NOTICE; outer arm in photo. No gouges, no deep scratches, and NO HAIR.

SWEEEEEEEET!!
Now remove everything involved, weld where needed. Grind and polish grind as needed.
Paint everything involved and re-install with new cotter pins and a new 1/4'' roll pin for parking pawl.
Where 1/4 '' drift punch has been holding RH lever all this time, re-install 1/4'' SOLID pin.
NOTE; Since this page will probably run out of space. See PART 3, for the final results. JZM

 

[jameszmcnelley]

Here is the end results.

NOTES; with pedals fully depressed, there is 1&5/8'' clearance between arm with lower brace and steering actuator. Good to go.
This job took about 24hr.
This POST, all 3 parts took me 13+HRS. non stop, and still counting.

HELPFULL HINT; notice outer H-3 control arm. cut a 1/2'' off bottom and grind corners to factory shape. That will allow you to easily remove and install seat pan without scratching your paint.
I also cut 1/2'' off hi-lo selector shaft height.
That also makes pan removal and installation a one-man breeze, with rear wheels left on.
hi-lo knob will still locate to factory spot. Just don't press it down all the way.
Any questions will have to be answered later, I am pooped. Good-night from S.E., Tennessee, JZM

 

[sreynolds]

Sorry, I'm not following you on this. This is due to adding an aftermarket loader or some other device?

Did'n't you totally redesign the entire steering system on this same tractor as well?

 

[T-Mo]

James,
I combined your 3 threads into one. It's not necessary to split them up the way you had it, plus since the Hydrostatic Drive section is our most populated section, the other two threads just added to the already over populated section.

 

[jameszmcnelley]

Terry, Thank you, I was hoping you could fix this for me. I am a cave-man when it comes to home computers.

Scott, This mod. allows you to free up the RH side for hydro FOOT controls. Which in turn frees up your right HAND for use when operating a FEL. RH brakes are just plain awkward!! Why JD built it that way is beyond me.
On the steering, yes, I built it my way. Out of necessity I had to. It was so worn out you could not hold this mule inside a 40 acre field.

Jay, Luck passes for skill, when you don't tell anybody. Its like Miss. Clairol; Only her hairdresser knows for sure. later, JZM

 

[k91]

Nice work James

I was going to ask if foot controls were in the future.

 

[sreynolds]

Oh...ok. I see. Yeah the brakes on the right are kinda funky, but you never use them. That is to say, I have used a 400 for years >>>>>>>> and have yet to use the brakes. Maybe plowing in a field for some reason...... to turn at the ends??????

I.E. the hydro IS the vehicle brake when moved from one direction to the other.

I would have junked the hardware myself. You are now going to build the hydro foot controls???

I didn't catch what you mean about pressing the hi/low knob "down". Did you mean "don't install it all the way onto the stub shaft"?

 

[jameszmcnelley]

Keith, Thanks, foot controls are my next major mod. Still formulating how I want to tackle it. Hope to do a similar write-up on it as well.

Scott, Independent brakes are a must for maneuvering in coffined spaces. Yes, on the foot control. Yes, just don't press all the way down on knob. However you can if you like. There is still clearance and it still functions. Also reduces foot snag. If knob is worn loose, just fill with epoxy or fiberglass resin and re-drill. later, JZM

 

[tfgaasch]

Great job, write up and modifications. Going to print this off for my 400 folder for my future mod. Thanks

Tim

 

[grandpajay]

James,
When you get to the foot control, I have some "if I were to do it again" observations.
Jay

 

[craft57]

Everything Has a Reason and a Purpose ! ….. JZM : just a comment to "Why JD Built it That Way is Beyond You ??? "….. Well they probably did it that way, Because every real Tractor has the same set-up on that same side of the machine, having the Clutch pedal on the Left side Where it's supposed to be ! …. LOL …..

So now Me asking a Dumb Question Why couldn't you have put the Foot controlled pedals on the Left side of the tractor ??? ….Just asking, not criticizing here ….. Because I'm an equipment Contractor I try to put myself in your saddle and Figure out Why ??? …. I must be missing something, is it because of the Hydro lines on the FEL are on the Right side ??? …… Any Ways AMAZING workmanship there !!! ….. Cheers … GK

 

[grandpajay]

Nicely done James! Have you given some thought to making the pan into 2 or more pieces?

Here's a link to throw in the pot for thinking about the foot control:

http://www.mytractorforum.com/showthread.php?t=270416&highlight=

Jay

 

[jameszmcnelley]

Gary, your right concerning pedal location. I gotta quit posting while I am still half asleep. I need to wait till the second pot of coffee is empty, and both left and right brain hemispheres are firing in concert.
That may not be possible in my case. ha.
I also noticed later, in my answer to Scott's question, that I misspelled the word confined, as coffined. I hope that didn't give anyone the impression I was going to a cemetery and two wheel braking around folks tombstones. ha. Knowing my past? 45yr. ago......maybe. ha.
No question is a dumb question. All the 400 trans linkage is on the rt. side. So logically it is just easier to fab up a trans foot control on that side; and since you are also regulating your SPEED with the foot control, like the gas pedal on a car it is just more natural.
So if you are driving with your right foot and you need to brake steer, your left foot is free to do just that; with out having to loose momentum and in which case you would also come to a stop because of the pedal return spring which neutralizes the hydro.
You can see where all of this will come in handy when operating a FEL., along with other implements also.
Hope this answers your question.
On a side note; I have a little JD L100 I mow with. It has a single clutch/brake pedal on the left. I cant count the ''close calls'' I have had by both units being opposite on pedal location. That reason alone was worth the change.
Wife loves them bushes. Need I mention those flowers? ha.

 

[craft57]

JMZ : I HEAR YOU LOUD and CLEAR about close calls …..

A really good Buddy of mine An Awesome Equipment operator, teach's courses on in Bush safety yadayada …. you know the spiel …. any ways in our world there is a major debate always happening on Excavators ….. JD (ISO) vs CAT (SAE) patterns of control !!!!!

His 200 size machine was set-up JD (as both of mine are too) ….. it's what we learned over 30 yrs ago …..

He was on a Dept of Fisheries job running one of their 330 CAT excavators ….it was set-up CAT(SAE) … He put roughly 450 hrs on that puppy …. he thought to himself that he was very (NOW) comfortable in that pattern of operation ….. So he decided to change his 200 over to that seeing that most all of our logging/bush operations had gone to the SAE way …..

My question to him was "What is Your Brain Going TO DO In A Panic Situation ???? " …… his response was that now the total accumulated hrs was enough to re-program the Brain …..

So that Fall he had a Forest Fire Site to Re-Hab … it was at a 25-30 % grade on the side of this mountain …. it started to Rain mixed with Snow … he kept on working (as I would have too) … well it wasn't long and it got gooey and his machine started to take off sideways down hill, GUESS WHAT HIS BRAIN DID !!! ….. he caught himself and never had an upset but … after he had the excavator seat surgically removed … he walked the 200 back to his shop truck and switched the controls back to JD(ISO) pattern and commented that "THAT WILL NEVER HAPPEN AGAIN" …..

He introduced that experience into the Worksafe Manuals and Now we see more and more machines equipped with Pattern changer Valves ….. As both of My Excavators have Too !

This is where my questions and thoughts were going when I asked you Why ? …… I seen a Post yesterday of a fellow showing pics of his dynamic Duo of 317's one with a FEL on it …. because of your posting I noticed that, that FEL had the Hyd hand control mounted on the Left side of the FEL ….. first time I ever seen that …..
…..
As Far as your Wife …. well what can I say …. "Happy WIFE …. Happy LIFE ! " …… Later …. GK

 

[jameszmcnelley]

Jay, Thanks, and by the way; I have had my head in YOUR POT for over a month now. ha. Meaning by that; That I have studied your design for over a month now and it is the leading candidate so far.
Concerning the ''do overs'', I have an idea on that rev. linkage hook up and a few other little things.
I will gladly take you up on your offer if I go with your design.
On sectioning up the pan and or the floor pan sides. I ran all kinds of scenarios in my head on this before I body worked and painted.
And knowing me I knew that would lead me to 16'' rear wheels and 12'' fronts and a whole host of other expensive and challenging mods. I forced myself to put that dog to sleep, for my own good.
To go down that road it would be better to just start with a late 70s, early 80s Power-King, V-twin it and hydro trans it.
I miss my old 1981, 2414 dearly.

Back on subject. While I have your attention, let me bounce an idea off you that I had at 2a.m. last night...notice how the 212 and the 400 share the same pan. Now notice the left and right pedals on the 212. I am contemplating using a shaft through the frame, with all linkage still on the right hand side. A shorter left hand pedal for reverse and a right hand pedal for forward. For pedal pads I will use a round style from the L100. The pad has the same rubber grain pattern as the 400 pads, just round on a 5/8" dia. rod. This will locate the pedals inside the floor pan like on the 212. Since brake steering is not critical while in reverse. A set-up like this may work out well.
I can use your spring return design for forward control and reverse the same design for rev. pedal return by using a shaft inside shaft design. Or in other words, a dedicated shaft for one side. Inside a dedicated tube shaft for the other side with barrel bushings like on the brake set-up. The pedal arms would un bolt from off the shafts to allow pan removal. It is kind of difficult to explain but I have it all in my POT. Ha. Look at a 212 pedal set-up and tell me what you think about something along these lines. This would also advert any future, possible interference problems between said pedals and the towers on a custom made FEL....later JZM

 

[jameszmcnelley]

Gary, I Know what you mean there. I can drive the old style Bobcats for example, but put me on one with the 2 joy sticks that control everything... Someone is gonna get hurt and something is gonna get broke!

Those LH loader controls are a non starter for me. Never tried em' and don't aim to! I aim on building my own FEL with a with a RH, single joy stick control. That's what I used on my Ford 1710. That's what I am comfortable with.
Tinkering with these little GTs has been an off and on hobby over the years. Now that I am semi-retired it keeps me occupied. I totaled 15yrs. as an industrial equipment mechanic among other trades I worked in. This hobby lets me use the skills I picked up along the way. Best part is I am the owner and boss, now. I can do as I like. ha. Well, those green beans and black-berries aint gonna' pick their selves. later, JZM

 

[grandpajay]

James,

I went off and did my foot control-then I went a laid on the JD dealer floor and studied the 5xx and 7xx controls. Shoulda done that first. JD has the same issue with the new machines making two pedals operate one control rod (by the way-always right side controls).

Doing it over, I would have made all the pedal linkage outside the frame. Then have a rockshaft (of sorts) poke through the frame and add a single operating link to the transmission control rod. I had several design goals-not add anything that makes the pan removal take more effort (not that big of deal), retain the dampener and the neutral start switch. That meant (at least partially) retaining the hand control. I thought about cutting the hand control off and having all those functions underneath the instrument panel, but came to the point of allowing the hand control to remain and change its track to come in and out of neutral with the least amount of friction. The hand control has actually come in really handy on some critical operations like moving some of our docks in and out. For a short distance I can walk along side the tractor using the hand control. Tough to do with the foot control only. And reasonably safe because everything is spring loaded to return to neutral.

I also should have spaced the pedals apart a little more. I catch my foot (when wanting to go forward) dragging on the reverse pedal and wondering "How come there is so much resistance?". Silly me, it's my own foot hindering the reverse pedal from raising in response to the forward pedal being depressed. (I hate it when my forward pedal is "depressed"

.

On your 212 idea with a right pedal forward and left pedal reverse-that would solve some of the issues of the pedals having to move opposite each other and the associated clearance challenges that I had to deal with. The stock control rod from the transmission moves fully forward about 7/8" and about 3/8" full reverse (from neutral). How that translated in my linkage was that the forward pedal moves about twice as far as the reverse pedal to get to both ends of the travel. I wanted to have roughly the same "feel" to forward and reverse so I tried to keep linkage ratios about the same. Since that original thread, I changed the reverse linkage. I had two problems-it was bad geometry and I didn't realize how far up into the frame the gearbox on the mower deck came at full lift. I did the conversion in winter and no issues with the blower. First time out with the deck caused the unnerving issue of raising the deck jamming the transmission control into forward. Oops!

I had a Case Uniloader with all hand controls for a while and was lost anytime I got on a Bobcat with combo hand/foot controls.

My current head scratcher is getting the loader towers tucked as close to the hood/engine shrouds as practical. That means getting in front of or between the left side brake arms. I want to be inside and ahead of the footrests rather than outside.

It's all interesting 2 a.m. engineering, anyhow. Good luck!

Jay

 

[dayers]

i started out with a case 580c backhoe a case 1816c skid steer (full hand controls except the grapple manure bucket thats a rocker switch on the floor) and a ford 540 loader tractor.now i run the old cases' but also newer bobcat and gehl machines. the ford is still in use and i have also been in control of front loaders that drive and steer with a single joy stick on the left side and the bucket on the right with two sticks.that machine was a beast that was shipped on four semi-trucks to get it to the docks to go to africa. i still like the case 1816c with a sew repower kit for a 23hp vangaurd kit installed. it really tips over easy now.