Fordification's Tractors.

So here goes nothing. Going to go over both of my projects and what all I plan to do to them...

'96 Craftsman LT1000:
This thing is a throwback for me. My father bought it new when i was a kid, and I was cutting the grass on it 3 years later... He sold it about 9-10 years ago to a old guy down the street. Well, I moved away and never saw the thing again and didnt really think anything of it, was riding around my old neighborhood a year ago and saw that it was sitting in weeds with a "broken" trans-axle (the key for the keyway thing on the axle had broken off or fell out or something and now the wheels wouldn't turn. Guy gave it to me for $25 and I had it running the same night. Used it to cut for a while until the deck was no good, and I decided to make it a yard toy. lowered it a inch in the rear and pulley swapped it to a 2.5" rear with the stock one up front (for now).

Plans:
Lock the trans-axle.
Lower the front 2"
ATV tires.
More aggressive pulley setup.

Only picture I have, I'll get a more recent one tomorrow.



'72 Ford LGT-120:
Found this in a junkyard looking for parts for a craftsman GT3000 I was fixing up to sell, paid $200. haven't done anything yet besides pull the deck off and rebuilt the carburetor. still trying to make it run right...

Plans:
Custom Frame???
4x4 setup (not sure how it will work since the motor is shaft driven and not a pulley setup? Input would be helpful)
Coil-Over/4-link front and rear.
custom Snorkel and stack.
lots of other little mods to make it a better trail rig.

When I found it:

That Ford is really cool. Is it an inline twin?

CraftsmanQuad19 wrote:

That Ford is really cool. Is it an inline twin?

Thanks, No It should be a Single cylinder 12 horse Kohler k301... but It may have been swapped for a bigger or smaller K series motor. I cant tell. it is definantly a K series motor though. although this tractor has 7 different colors on it so all of the ID tags are long gone on everything but the frame.

Looks like it would make a great utility machine. Is that your plan? Or are you going for more of a romper?

CraftsmanQuad19 wrote:

Looks like it would make a great utility machine. Is that your plan? Or are you going for more of a romper?

More of a trail rig probably. although I'm sort of debating a drift build like the one that was done for the 2016 build off... since I'm a drifter at heart and my drift truck is down for a while... (frame is trashed)

so last night I was trying to figure out why it doesnt have spark. pulled the battery and battery mount out and found this... have a feeling this ghetto wiring job is why it wont start.

Nice Ford! Did it have good battery in it? Cuz a 12V ignition won't work without a good battery charge. Also maybe check the points and condenser as well, they could be the cause of the lack of spark. That wiring doesn't look very good though either hahaha.

AllisKidD21 wrote:

Nice Ford! Did it have good battery in it? Cuz a 12V ignition won't work without a good battery charge. Also maybe check the points and condenser as well, they could be the cause of the lack of spark. That wiring doesn't look very good though either hahaha.

put a new battery in it last week. bought the stuff to completely rewire it tommorow.

Nice. Looks like it could use a rewire haha. I'd still check the points and condenser though, especially if it's been sitting for a while.

AllisKidD21 wrote:

Nice. Looks like it could use a rewire haha. I'd still check the points and condenser though, especially if it's been sitting for a while.

yeah... I'm not going to put much money into this motor... for... reasons... haha, Just wondering if i can get it running first for cheap.

I hear ya haha! Although you can just clean the contacts of the points with a piece of Emory cloth. Probably be a good idea. Either way I look forward to seeing that cold blooded Kohler purrin'!

AllisKidD21 wrote:

I hear ya haha! Although you can just clean the contacts of the points with a piece of Emory cloth. Probably be a good idea. Either way I look forward to seeing that cold blooded Kohler purrin'!

Yeah, not 100% sure yet. depends on how it all works out... but I have access to all the stuff to shorten axles at work... I have front and rear axles from a old '69 Ford pickup with 7.17's in them I could shorten. Just need to find a way to mount a transfer case and modify the hubs to be able to handle smaller tires.. may not go this route, but it's currently my idea.

Wiring done on the LGT. need to order a new coil for it and then it (should) Run.

Tommorow I'm picking up a ignition coil for a '73 Plymouth Duster 318CI Car, its the same coil as my bad one on the ford. Hopefully it will start for the first time tommorow... then hopefully I will have time to figure out why my LT1000 wont run right, Maybe go to the junkyard and grab a new frame too since mine is bent a "tiny" bit from hitting a log in a trail that I did not see in time (was just after a hill so I didnt see it until it was too late.

Sorry for crappy pics... put a new ignition coil on the lgt today... still no spark... ordered new points/condenser after that i have no clue why it wont start. also was looking at my gt3000 craftsman and thinking about using the 23hp for either the lt1000 or maybe this ford.




and heres a crappy pic of the craftsman, waiting on its rebuild, phone on my camera was being wonky today, idk why.
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Well This sucks... I fixed the craftsman, idk why it wasnt running right but I got it running now, and I'm flying around the yard for a good 5 minutes at about 30mph, I forgot there is a little hole about 2 foot around and 1 foot deep in our yard covered by tall grass, dropped my left front tire in it at full speed.... ripped the wheel out of my hands and bent the axle, frame, front spindle, and tie rod. tractor is junk now basically, going to pull the body if it is salvagable, the transaxle, and motor, then send it to the junkyard probably. hopefully I will find a donor soon.... left wheel is barely hanging on the frame and the axle is just held on on the right side.

That sucks. Good thing you weren't injured though.

AllisKidD21 wrote:

That sucks. Good thing you weren't injured though.

I guess.... going to weld up a jig tommorow and try to straighten the frame.. my daily driver started knocking real bad when I was on my way to that lawnmower junkyard. guess its time to rebuild the big block I guess... as long as I can get the frame straight, or atleast close to straight, I will just need to make a new axle.

At least it's a reason to make a real beefy front axle.

You know we would jes loves t see pitchers of this destruction!
Sounds like it was a good time!

TheBeal wrote:

You know we would jes loves t see pitchers of this destruction

I second that!!

TheBeal wrote:

You know we would jes loves t see pitchers of this destruction!
Sounds like it was a good time!

I'll try to get some tommorow. took some when it happened but it doesnt look as bad as it is.

woah... haven't been on here in a while. finally got around to welding the axle on the craftsman solid and bending the frame back into a usable shape.... going to find some spare metal around the farm to brace the frame so it is stronger.

picking up a new rolling chassis off of a newer mower sometime in the next week from my buddy... going to start updating a lot once I get started on the build

the craftman needs a re-do. doesnt steer to the right much anymore, steering gears are shot. and want to redo the suspension and engine setup... found that when I crashed it, although i straightened the frame and fixed the axle, the body itself is bent and looks trashy. decided to swap the lgt body onto this frame for now until I get a spare lt1000 frame to modify. plans are pretty light, a little bit lower and faster, along with direct steer. nothing major. going to call it the LGT-1000