And as a general overview of the 147 currently:

Tires are very old (original maybe?).
Hydro works great.
Motor ran great (you know, right up until it died).
Mower deck in great shape, quiet too.
Wire harness mostly original and functional.
Starter generator and voltage regulator work fine.
Headlights work (is the toggle supposed to be on left of dash, right below hood?)
Deck has a wood front roller (original?)
Brake safety switch seems to be gone.
Electric lift gone, looks like a cobbled manual lift.
Exhaust elbow leaks.
Bit of play in steering.
Has old Craftsman seat installed.

 

And as a general overview of the 147 currently:

Headlights work (is the toggle supposed to be on left of dash, right below hood?)

Correct position, took me days to stumble across it. It was not a toggle originally, but rather a push-pull knob.

Deck has a wood front roller (original?)

Wood roller is correct.

Brake safety switch seems to be gone.

Probably bypassed years ago. I'd put a new one back on.

Electric lift gone, looks like a cobbled manual lift.

I found an original replacement on Cub forums for a fair price. You can also replace it with a modern actuator with a bit of MacGyvering. Look on sites like Northern Tool, Granger or McMaster-Carr.

Bit of play in steering.

That's from doing wheelies.

One of the few weak design features in the older Cubs is the axle mount. Over time, back-front torque on the axle causes its U-channel mount to gradually open up. The simple pin/roll pin setup allows this. The channel can be closed with a bolt/nut, and with modification that setup can be left in place to keep things closed.

As far as the rest of the steering, fix/adjust/replace everything from the tie ends all the way up to and including the steering box. You'd be surprised how much this will tighten up the steering.

I'm in the middle of a 147 restoration, so I'll be happy to help in any way.

:fing32:

 

Motor turns right over like there is little to no compression.

Sounds like you have a broken Connecting Rod. Since this tractor is 40+ yrs old, if you are going to rebuild the engine, go through it right and complete, and you get another 40 yrs.:fing32:

 

Yes, I want to do it right so it will last. But at the same time there are so many things that are still in good condition, I want to just fix what needs fixed. I'm trying hard not to just tear into it and replace everything.

The biggest thing I need help with is knowing the best places to buy parts. My searches so far usually find mostly ebay stuff. Which I'm guessing the quality of those parts aren't the best... $115 shipped for a master rebuild kit seems awful cheap to me. I also need a new exhaust elbow and whatever is supposed to go between the PTO lever and the PTO clutch. Those three things are what is most important to me right now.

 

Here is a guy located in your own State....... Cub Cadet Classics

 

Hey thanks! Looks like he's got everything I could need and then some, and only about an hour away too!

Apparently I need a new drive coupler too. After seeing a pic of a new one, mine has some pretty healthy notches worn into it.

 

Let me start off by saying that tinkering with this old tractor is a lot easier than playing with cars and trucks. It's just so easy to take everything apart.

And something odd is going on here. The engine quit running all of the sudden and seemed to lack compression. A few nights ago, turning it by hand it seemed to have some amount of compression. Then I noticed after pulling the engine that there seemed to be enough compression for it to run (too late now though). How in the heck can the compression gradually come back?

I wasn't able to fully disassemble the engine because I don't know how to remove the PTO clutch. But I did remove the head, oil pan, rod/piston, and the vent cover that exposes the lifter area. I found several issues, but nothing that would have kept it from running (I don't think).

The head gasket was slightly blown near the exhaust valve. Piston skirts are worn and there's a chewed up area above the rings. Some pretty good scratches in the cylinder. A lot of carbon build up on the head and piston. Valves worn but looks like they still seat. I didn't notice anything else that would have made it quit. The cam and balance gears look fine, valves open all they way and then close.

I also have an issue with the block. The exhaust elbow was loose and the threads were shot. The corresponding threads in the block are also shot. Hopefully there's some way of fixing it with a repair kit or something. I don't want to go to the trouble of rebuilding this engine if I'm always going to have an exhaust leak.

 

If its possible, you could bore the hole another 1/4 inch and fit a larger pipe in the hole, then fit the exhaust elbow in a reducing end.

 

Hmm, I suppose that could work. I was looking at it again, I think the block might have fared a little better than the elbow. I think first I will try cleaning it up with a pipe tap and seeing how a replacement elbow fits.

I also measured the ring gaps, I don't know what spec is, but I'm sure it's out. It's .050-.055 on the top rings, while the oil ring has a gap somewhere around 5/32 of an inch.

 

Hey, thanks for all the info :fing32:

I was thinking of replacing the manual lift setup with a regular type manual lift, so there's a little more adjustability. But modifying for a newer electric lift does sound fun.

Everything in the steering system has some amount of play in it, including the wheel bearings. The worst of it is in the link that goes front to rear, so I'll probably just fix that and the wheel bearings. It's not difficult to steer at all, it just takes a lot of input to keep the mower deck right up against the fence line.


And does anyone have a paint code for the correct yellow color, like from Dupont/PPG/Martin Senior/etc? I guess I could benefit from having the white paint code too.

 

Hey, thanks for all the info :fing32:

The worst of it is in the link that goes front to rear, so I'll probably just fix that and the wheel bearings. It's not difficult to steer at all, it just takes a lot of input to keep the mower deck right up against the fence line.

That's a start, but part of what made/makes the Cubs such great tractors is their automotive style steering and gear box. Smoother than the setup you might find on a Craftsman, sometimes it's like having power steering.

All the parts are available to do it right, just start at one end and work your way up to the gearbox, which also likely needs a refurbish and adjustment. After that, you can ride that fence line with one hand on the wheel and a Coke in the other.

:fing32:

 

You could try Valspar colors. I've heard they were very good and durable when you paint well. It sounds like you're using a paint gun, correct?

 

Yeah, the shop I work at has it's own paint mixing station using Martin Senuor (I can never remember how to spell it, lol) products and I can custom mix any color I want. I just could use a code because there's nothing on my tractor that is good enough to match to. Everything is either faded or it's been touched up. I can also flatten out the clearcoat to get the correct amount of gloss. And I won't have to pay for the materials so it will be cheaper than using spray paint.

That's a start, but part of what made/makes the Cubs such great tractors is their automotive style steering and gear box. Smoother than the setup you might find on a Craftsman, sometimes it's like having power steering.

All the parts are available to do it right, just start at one end and work your way up to the gearbox, which also likely needs a refurbish and adjustment. After that, you can ride that fence line with one hand on the wheel and a Coke in the other.

:fing32:

I actually work on cars for a living and I'm used to seeing loose steering components. When I checked everything out I was being nitpicky, there really isn't much play to speak of in the tie rods. The drag link certainly has more wear, along with the wheel bearings. The gearbox I'm not so sure about, since I'm not really sure what makes them tick. I can see some amount of movement, but it looks like the housing itself is moving. I've been checking the local CL regularly for Cubs and parts, there's a few spare parts I plan on getting just to get a better idea of how they work and how to repair them. And spare parts are always good, lol. I've got my eye on a operating 127 too, so I have something to mow with in the meantime.

 

I went and looked at a 127 today, and I agreed to buy it. Got it from a friend of my dad's, he bought it 5 years ago and it sat the last 3 years without being ran. It fired right up and runs good with no smoking, but the tractor itself is a little rough. Looks like some old man owned it previously, there's stuff tacked on all over the tractor.

Anyway, tonight I messed with the PTO clutch on the 147. Managed to get all of the set screws out except for one pair, that will require a fresh allen wrench or possibly drilling it out if all else fails.

 

The gearbox is a simple spiral/cam follower design, and there are plenty of options for rebuild parts, including the bearings and cam. In many cases, the cam can be simply reground with a grinder to freshen it up. Repack with clean grease, adjust and you're done.

One other thing to check is the two bolts that hold the gearbox to the chassis. Mine were very loose and accounted for a bunch of the steering slop.

Good deal on the 127, it's rarely a bad choice to buy an old Cub, unless you really overpay.

On those last 2 set screws, you have the right idea to try a fresh allen wrench. Do everything you can to get those out since you made it this far. They are very hardened steel and not fun at all drill out. I destroyed the PTO pulley on my 147 trying to drill those buggers out.

:duh:

 

So I got the PTO clutch off the motor finally. That remaining top set screw just refused to come out, I had to drill it out and remove the threads in the process. But, the lower set screw did come right out, so that will go back in without issue. I think I can just tap the outer portion of the pulley for a larger set screw, and that should keep the lower set screw in place.

But now I'm stuck at the bearing on the end of the crank. How's it come off? The manual says to remove the two set screws, which I did. But it seems stuck on there pretty good, a 3-jaw puller couldn't get it off there.

I also got the 127 home now. It came with a 48 inch deck, but the 147's deck is in much better shape so I'll use it. I also had the seat pan off to try adjusting the hydro linkage, but it turns out I was doing it wrong, so I'll try again tomorrow. Then I want to tighten up the steering (very loose) and start mowing with this one.

I've got pics of the 147's progress too, I'll get them loaded up sometime.

 

Major thread revival here... A couple years ago, a friend of mine talked me into selling him my 127 and 147 as a package deal. No more progress was made on them and I have recently agreed to purchase them back.

But even more recently (this morning) I located and bought a good replacement K321a for the 147. It's a fresh looking Kohler replacement engine wearing black paint and it even came with a good pto clutch, carb and exhaust elbow.

So several years later, maybe my nice little winter project can get off the ground.

 

Wow, that's quite a turn in events. Congrats on getting the tractors back and looking forward to posts on the progress.
MikeC