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"Sprucing Up" an old 140

926 Views 13 Replies 7 Participants Last post by  inspired_metal
I know some of you like step by step pictures of a repaint so....to save bandwidth here I posted some pics on my own web site.

http://www.shadycreekshootists.com/JD140.htm

This is where I'm at now with this project, will post more as work continues.

Any questions....feel free to ask.
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THat looks very cool. I'd love to do stuff like that and work with someone that knew what they was doing. I usualy have to learn the hard and costly way.
Dan.. nice work. Do you know offhand what it cost you to do the green? I'm wondering how much bc/cc is compared to buying JD paint.


Army
Army,
We have our own mixing system (Dupont) which means we can mix only the amount needed which saves some but....that said.... I would estimate I have roughly $200.00 in materials on this project. Much of that is due to the fact that we used three types of primer. We used a product called Vari-prime over the bare metal followed by two part grey primer and finally a dark gray sealer.
Adds up quick!
Add to that the cost of all new decals, misc parts and well...I don't want to think about it!
Fact is, if you charged a customer $1000.00 for a job like this...it wouldn't make the shop very much, if any.
Add this to the price of the tractor and you would be lucky to break even if you sold it.

Only way I can do these is because my #1 man is salary. When we hit a slow spot at the shop I start taking tractors apart and take him parts to paint. I do most of the tear down/re-assembly, myself.

Waiting on the mower deck, wheels and wheel weights to come back from the sandblaster. I'll use Centari with hardener for all the yellow stuff. (more money)

The finished product will be worth it though, at least to me.

I love these little 140's.
If they only had power steering they would be the perfect little tractor (in my opinion, of course)
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Dan.. you won't get any argument on 140's around here. They're even more popular than 110 RF's.

That's interesting info about how you paint. I have to go pick up a pair of freshly painted front fenders for a 1950 Mercury pickup tomorrow. Mercs have the parking lights in a different location than the Fords and it's almost impossible to find steel fenders. These are fiberglass with tool resin in the mix. If you knuckle rapped them you'd swear they were steel. Anyway, the guy doing the work on the truck uses a high build primer that is impressing the heck out of me. He's already done the rear fenders and the front bumper. Everything is shiny black and looks incredibly straight. He credits the primer for a lot of it. Have you used that stuff on any of your JD tractors?


Army
Army, yes that is what we use on everything.
If you ever looked at an original 140 hood they are crude to the extreme. The "hairs" in the fiberglass are prominent. One good coat of two part primer and a good block sanding makes for a perfectly smooth surface.
Good materials are expensive though.
Got busy at the shop today (paying jobs) so no more progress on the 140 yet.
Hello,I thought I would chime in with the costs of painting a tractor,and this is what it cost me to buy all I needed.I just finished my Patio H-3,and with a gallon of Centari white,and a quart each of yellow and orange,and hardener,and then the metal etch primer and sandpaper and reducer,the bill was $600.00.Yes,it is expensive to use automobile paints,but there is a big difference.It all depends on what you are looking for.I once had a body shop,so I know what I wanted,Joe.
i have a 185 with a 46" deck. lately the mower drive belt has been falling off. its an intermittent problem maybe once every hour or so . i have had the tractor since the mid 80's everything seems to be in order. but the tension on the belt seems loose. today i adjusted the 2 front stabilizers extend the length by about 1/2" each it helped but still seems loose to me. i changed the belt the year before last. still seems ok not too worn. any help or suggestions would be appreciated thanks steve
Usually the first question to ask is it a JD belt. You shouldn't have to change the front stabilizers except to level deck. You didn't say which deck you have but most have some kind of spring loaded idler pulley on the deck. That could be sicking, spring weak or the sheave worn out. Maybe the model of the deck and some pictures of the deck would help us to solve your problem. Roger
ok Rodger, its a JD, it does have a spring loaded idler pulley, i will take some photos tomorrow. but i think the idler pulley mostly brings tension to the deck belt. i am having trouble with the drive belt for the deck. although the idler for the deck and the high low or double pulley that transfers power from the drive belt to the deck do share a single pivot shaft. photos to follow. there are no longer any id makings on the deck but this model came with either a 46 or 48 inch deck i have the 46 , item 28 and 17 share the same pivot point.
thanks steve

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Steve,
Are the bearings (42) in good shape? Is the pivot moving freely? I've seen #29 and 16 wear and cause the shafts to bind so they do not return to neutral when not under tension.
Dominic, the pivot is moving but not easily . i replaced all the blade bearing a couple of years ago but did not do the pivot. i will take the deck off thursday and get a better look. the drive belt for the blades has good tension. but the drive belt front the electric clutch to the deck does not.
thanks steve
i took the deck off today. and found that one of the stabilizer arm brackets had broken its weld and was so bad that it actually had broken through the deck. i don't weld so i took it to the local dealer and they are going to do the repair this time. also the arm in the diagram no. 28 was not moving very easily at all so he said it most likely was the bushing no. 29 which he will replace as well. this should do the trick.
thanks for the input guys i appreciate it.
steve
Steve,
Glad we could help. The weld being weak probably led to the bushing going out. Hope they get you going.
Dom
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