MasonMcK's Massey Snow/Offroad Rig AKA "The Mule"

So I have a fairly complete 1967 Massey Ferguson MF-10 that had a blown up engine. So last year I took the engine out and slowly started rebuilding it. The engine is now all rebuilt and I have since found this cool site so I decided I'd join after I saw that there is a build off.



My project seems to fit the criteria of the build off (would fit more under a description of a utility tractor though due to most of the mods, but will still be used for fun most of the time) but I am not sure. I THINK this project would qualify as less than 50% complete; but that is up to the judges to decide.

I want to make this tractor as a "for fun" tractor for 3/4 of the year, but still able to hook up to a plow and do some work when needed, since it's hard to find good workers at my house.

Well enough about that, here is my plan for my Massey snow and off-road rig AKA: "The Mule"
1) receive new carburetor
2) finish installing rebuilt engine
3) attach carb
4) test drive to see if engine and transmission work
5) order new tires, wider rims, wheel hubs for front and spindle sleeves.
6) mock up rear lift using wood
7) get the needed size steel for the lift
install steel for lift, extend shifter
9) add separate brake pedal and make/buy a gas pedal
10) make hydraulic implement lift system
11) make exhaust system
12) make front winch mount and bull bar
13) make 3 point hitch for the back and rear PTO for a sand spreader
14) buy snow plow and snow blower and spreader
15) buy tire chains
16) order a set of "fun pulleys" for summer time trail riding and off-road use, keeping the old pulleys for snow duty.
17) upgrade the brakes
18) redo the entire wire harness
19) mock up cab frame with wood
20) Order steel for cab frame
21) weld cab frame
22) mock up doors, windshield, windows, walls with wood
23) order sheet metal to make cab sides and plexiglass for windows
24) assemble cab onto tractor
25) add lights, etc
26) add cab heater
27) paint it.
28) assemble & install new seat
29) test run
30) fix any problems & get new battery
31) add any small performance upgrades
32) done.

I am really excited about this, and hope to keep the thread updated at least once weekly. If you have any suggestions, questions, whatever, please ask, I will try to answer any and all questions and will consider all suggestions, it will really help this build move along.

***As a side note, in the rules of the forum it states that all cutting decks must be removed, in this project I will be mounting a snow blower on it for winter duty; however, I will be using the stock pulleys and engine speed when I am running the snow blower, so I do not see a problem in this, but if it is for whatever reason deemed unsafe, or not wanted on the forum, just let me know and I will not include the snow blower in my build.***

Thanks for your understanding, and the best of luck to all the builders.
~Mason~

COOL, so your gona kinda convert it to a full cabbed tractor. liek it! cant wait to see it done! good luck!

Hey... Welcome to the Build-Off!

Regarding the cutting deck thing- its not exactly strictly enforced, and we can certainly ignore it in the case of a workhorse or utility machine. Youre not exactly gonna be turning 50MPH arounda dirt oval with the blades going...

Mule? Did I start something? LOL

And no... I don't mind.

Lol. Didnt know someone already named theirs The Mule.
That thing looks really good though. I'm gonna have to go find your build thread now.

Are you sure it's ok if I still use the name?

And that's what I figured about the blades but I just wanted to make sure.

Thanks,
~Mason~

My original Walbro carburetor that came on the Massey has some serious leaking issues with it so I bought a brand new Tecumseh replacement carb for $80 plus shipping. Should be here within the next week so I can test out the engine and take The Mule for a spin. As a side note, I purchased the Massey last year for $306, and I threw about $120 into the engine for the rebuild. I installed new piston, rings, rod, gaskets, I lapped the valves, honed the cylinder and I ported and polished the intake and exhaust.

mudman604 wrote:

COOL, so your gona kinda convert it to a full cabbed tractor. liek it! cant wait to see it done! good luck!

Thanks. And yes I will be making a full cab for it for when it is on snow duty, but will have it removable during summer if desired. I may add fans, make the doors removable and just keep the cab on year round but we'll cross that bridge when we come to it.

This is the diagram from the parts manual for The Mule and it appears that there are only 4 bolts that hold the rear axle onto the frame, two on each axle tube. Somehow that doesn't seem right. You think there would be a mount towards the front of the casing of the transmission. But either way it looks like it will be an easy lift job.



here is my new seat for it. I think that it will look good on it but if not I will get a different one and use one this elsewhere.

Also to add to my plan for The Mule if I have any extra funds, is to add a small soda can size turbo it give the little 10 hp Tecumseh a little more snap.
Does anyone have any other suggestions to increase the performance of this small block? Because if the HH100 wont give as much power as I will need for mowing, snow blowing, etc, then I will have to shoe horn a V-Twin into there.

Hopefully it will snow enough tonight that school will be canceled for tomorrow and I can do more than talk about The Mule.

If you look just below the shifter, it looks to me a hole in the tranny. That looks like a logical place for another mount.... And it seems to line up with a hole in the frame.

Looks cool man I like the seat where did you get it?

I've got NO problem with you using the name. Enjoy. Not to detract from your thread, but here's my build thread: https://www.atltf.com/t2153-lawnboy-utltv-aka-mule and my YT channel, where MULE is featured in a few videos: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCPhuRGLnRxezJXkbe94qaLw

mudman604 wrote:

If you look just below the shifter, it looks to me a hole in the tranny. That looks like a logical place for another mount.... And it seems to line up with a hole in the frame.

I never noticed that hole there in the frame. I just thought that those mounting holes on the transmission just weren't used.

GenevaCustoms wrote:

Looks cool man I like the seat where did you get it?

Thanks. I got the seat from Surplus Center but have also seen them at TSC.

Doc Sprocket wrote:

I've got NO problem with you using the name. Enjoy. Not to distract from your thread, but here's my build thread: https://www.atltf.com/t2153-lawnboy-utltv-aka-mule and my YT channel, where MULE is featured in a few videos: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCPhuRGLnRxezJXkbe94qaLw

Thanks, I didn't have much time to look for it yesterday. Well I know what I will be reading today!


Well sadly I'm headed to school right now 2 hrs late so I won't get much work done today on The Mule.

If it is a peerless1200 or 2300 it should also have 4 mounting holes on the top behind the shifter that's the way the 1200 on my massey was

Moose wrote:

If it is a peerless1200 or 2300 it should also have 4 mounting holes on the top behind the shifter that's the way the 1200 on my massey was

It's a peerless 2300 4 speed. In the diagram I see 8 mounting points but there may be more. But maybe not. If I can I will make the entire lift bolt on so if for whatever reason I have to take it off the mounts aren't welded on. I'm probably going with a 2" lift in the back. And maybe 2" in the front.

As for upgrading factory brakes, what do you guys do to replace the brake band and drum on these peerless 2300's? I am thinking about either adding car disc brakes and calipers, one on each side of the axle and have split braking. Or I may choose to go with single brake pedal controlling upgraded brakes on the brake output on the transmission. But if possible I would prefer to have hydraulic brakes.

Well it was too windy to go out to the barn today to work on The Mule (our barn is near a bunch of trees) but I was able to do some research and make some decisions on some details of the build. After my carb arrives hopefully tomorrow, I will take The Mule for a test drive to make sure that the engine and the transmission check out okay. Then I will be splurging on brand new:

~2x 26x12.00-12 Carlisle Tru Power 4 or 6 ply ags for the rear
~2x 18x8.50-8 Vredestein V61 4 or 6 ply ribbed tired for the front
~2x 8"x7" rims with a 5 on 4.5" bolt pattern for the front tires
~2x 1 inch spindle, 5 on 4.5" wheel hubs for the front axle
~2x 1 inch OD 3/4" ID sleeves to be welded over the 3/4" spindles

Then a used set of 12x8.5" rims for the rear tires.

For the paint, I will more than likely be sticking with the standard colors but if I choose to go with something else it would be replacing red with a ford blue.

So my brand new Tecumseh carburetor for the Tecumseh HH100's arrived today. Out of the box it seems to look like it will mount up just fine. It has the same throttle and choke lever shapes and the same size flanges for mounting.

One noticeable difference is the lack of a float bowl fuel drain like the original Walbro LME 37 had. Another difference which may pose a threat in the long term is the butterfly's only have on screw holding them onto their respective shafts. If it were to come loose, the screw and possibly the butterfly could be sucked into the engine and cause some serious damage.

A less noticeable difference is the carb has a plastic float which should work better than the brass float in the original carb.

Well then I went outside and tried to mount it. This is where I ran into some trouble with it. This is SUPPOSED to be a bolt on carb for the Tecumseh HH100 engine, but it is shorter than the original carb and the float bowl hits the breather cover. I will have to make a spacer to get it to clear properly. But just for now I continued using a stack of gaskets so I could briefly test the engine and tranny. There are two nuts that go on either side of the carb and hold it to the engine. Well the carb's body is designed in a way that you CANT get the one nut on the stud and rotate it because of poor design. Now I need to come up with a spacer AND a solution to fix this.

One step forward, two steps back as usual. Tomorrow I will try grinding down a nut to see if it will clear. If not I may have to try something with an extended intake tube and having a bolt on that side. Pics of the carb will come tomorrow.

So yesterday I ground down a nut to fit the carburetor. I tightened it down, put in an ok battery and it fired right up. It's smoking a little bit on acceleration of the engine but the rings need to seat all the way. Now that the oil has been dispersed throughout the system, I will drain any excess oil.

Then I need to adjust the carburetor and fix the governor linkage since after about 15 minutes of running it stopped working. I'm hoping that the governor gear didn't let go but I think that I would have heard a snap or a bang.

The transmission runs in all four gears and reverse but the clutch needs adjusting since it won't stop when you press the clutch and grinds the gears when you shift. But that will be adjusted hopefully today.

To add to the plans, is adding another small gas tank, a electronic fuel shutoff, and some fuel line T's. In light of reading the wonderful idea posted in another build off entry (1997 Murray's simplicity build) I have researched a lot about converting gas to diesel and I have decided that I am going to try making this run on diesel.

My idea for this to work will be using two fuel tanks. A small gas tank off our old cement mixer, which you will run the engine off of until it is hot, then you will switch off the gas tank and turn on the diesel tank. Letting it run a bit with the spark plug until the running has evened out and then turn off the ignition to the cylinder and the engine *should* start to diesel (heat igniting the fuel) a cylinder head temp gauge will be used to help the operator monitor when to switch from gasoline to diesel. Then to shut off the engine, there will be an electronic fuel shutoff hooked into the key switch.

So credit to 1997 Murray for planting the seed in my head.

I will try to post a video of it running today.

MasonMcK wrote:

So yesterday I ground down a nut to fit the carburetor. I tightened it down, put in an ok battery and it fired right up. It's smoking a little bit on acceleration of the engine but the rings need to seat all the way. Now that the oil has been dispersed throughout the system, I will drain any excess oil.

Then I need to adjust the carburetor and fix the governor linkage since after about 15 minutes of running it stopped working. I'm hoping that the governor gear didn't let go but I think that I would have heard a snap or a bang.

The transmission runs in all four gears and reverse but the clutch needs adjusting since it won't stop when you press the clutch and grinds the gears when you shift. But that will be adjusted hopefully today.

To add to the plans, is adding another small gas tank, a electronic fuel shutoff, and some fuel line T's. In light of reading the wonderful idea posted in another build off entry, I have researched a lot about converting gas to diesel and I have decided that I am going to try making this run on diesel.

My idea for this to work will be using two fuel tanks. A small gas tank off our old cement mixer, which you will run the engine off of until it is hot, then you will switch off the gas tank and turn on the diesel tank. Letting it run a bit with the spark plug until the running has evened out and then turn off the ignition to the cylinder and the engine *should* start to diesel (heat igniting the fuel) a cylinder head temp gauge will be used to help the operator monitor when to switch from gasoline to diesel. Then to shut off the engine, there will be an electronic fuel shutoff hooked into the key switch.

So credit to the other build for planting the seed in my head.

I will try to post a video of it running today.

Good to see that you are going to be running a diesel aswell! 1997 Murray mentioned this and I thought it was quite a good idea, wrap a copper pipe round the exhaust or run the exhaust near the carb to preheat the diesel before it goes into the combustion chamber.

Good luck with the build!

I'm going to have to stay away from the exhaust near the carb route because the carb has a plastic float bowl and I don't want it melting. I'm probably going to start out using the twin tank idea because it will offer faster fuel flow and bigger fuel capacity.

But if that does not work then I'll switch to the coiled copper tubing.

I'm almost home so I can check drain the excess oil, adjust the clutch, and break it in some more. Today I'll also steal the gas tank off of an old cement mixer that has been sitting in our woods for 20 years. If it's not too rusty I'll try finding a spot to mount it and make some mounts.

Yeah but if you kept it resonably close I don`t think it would harm anything.

Well it's been a few days but I haven't gotten too much done. It's been either too cold, or I've been busy with other things. But today I got outside and played with the adjustments on the carb some more. But it's not perfect yet. It idles great and I have it set so it idles low around maybe 400 rpm. It sounds like a Hemi. Then at high speed it's running a bit too rich and backfires when u let off the throttle so that's gotta be taken care of so I dont make the neighbors too mad. Other than that, it sounds good so far but seems to burn a bit of oil so maybe the rings haven't seated all the way yet.

Then I played around with the varidrive adjustment some.  I think I have it adjusted good but when you press the clutch in it won't stop the transfer of power. So then I figured out I'm missing a piece so I gotta order that too.

Hopefully next weekend will be better and I can get the carb adjusted right and the clutch working properly. Then I'll order the new tires.

Nice build and idea for built!!! But is it me or is this forum post REALLY BIG?

You have pretty big plans, and a sweet tractor to use as a base. Will be following this build for sure. Are new tires part of the plan?

Yes new tires are coming as soon as I have the drive and the carb all sorted out.
Fronts will be 18x8.50-8 vredestein v61
Rears will be 26x12.00-12 Carlisle Tru Power

I'll get the new tires and then mock up the lift for the tires to clear the fenders and then order steel to finalize it.

Thanks for your interest.

why does everybody love ag-tires

Ag tires are decent but for the price why not go kenda executioners you will never get stuck and they look like tractor tires the tread depth is insane on the 26 12 12s

Well I've got a bit done to the Massey.

Firstly, I have another nickname for it which I like better than The Mule. Sorry Doc.

I can't take credit for the name, it was either my friend or his dad, I can't remember who, but we're calling it THE NASTY FERGUSON now.

I can't remeber where I left off but I got my new carb, installed it and got it adjusted. I'm still playing with the adjustments here and there though. Then I got a MidWest Super Cub gas pedal mounted and hooked up. Works real good. Also figured out why my clutch was not working, it was missing a belt guide. So I got one off ebay and now everything works great.

Next thing I need to do before I get tires is get a new battery and a new voltage regulator since it isn't charging. I hope it is just the voltage regulator and not the starter generator.

For tires, I need something that I can load full of fluid, and take across the lawn without ripping it up too much. That's why I'm going with the Tru Powers because people say they don't tear up the lawn much. If I didn't have to watch out for the lawn, I would go for the executioners and save a few dollars.

Well that's it for my recent progress report.