[MountainDweller]

http://hudsonvalley.craigslist.org/for/2734052703.html

I know absolutely nothing about Gravely tractors, but this seems like a fantastic deal to me. I am toying with replacing the MTD with something heftier. How hard would it be to find a deck for this?

- Nathan

 

[yamato72]

http://hudsonvalley.craigslist.org/for/2734052703.html

I know absolutely nothing about Gravely tractors, but this seems like a fantastic deal to me. I am toying with replacing the MTD with something heftier. How hard would it be to find a deck for this?

- Nathan

It's got hydraulics - get it if it's not already gone. Decks are easy to find.

 

[Richard-tx]

I agree. The PTO clutch will be like new so that is a big plus. The direction clutches could be toast and replacements can be pricey depending on how they are worn. Linings are cheap. If the bearing galled the clutch body or the splines worn, then a new clutch is needed. Cost is about $200 each.

 

[Fla Don]

A 60" mower deck for that tractor will weigh almost as much as the MTD. And a 50" deck is easy to find. You drive over the decks with the tractor to hook them up. That should clue you in to how well they are built.

 

[wjohn]

I agree. The PTO clutch will be like new so that is a big plus. The direction clutches could be toast and replacements can be pricey depending on how they are worn. Linings are cheap. If the bearing galled the clutch body or the splines worn, then a new clutch is needed. Cost is about $200 each.

Be careful. There's a guy that has an 816T for sale near me and it has a plow on it. He says the PTO clutch is gone - that's the reason it has the plow. He's up front about it and I would shoot him an offer for the tractor but I don't need to spend any more money until I start my internship next summer.

It could be that someone roasted the PTO clutch and turned this tractor into a plowing machine. Or, as Richard said, it may very well be like new. But for that price on a 16g I'd still buy it even with a bad PTO clutch. If you go to get the tractor, you can check if the PTO spins but you won't know for certain until it's under a load. Good luck!

 

[anixon]

thats a real good price. its got the hyd lift.
i sold one in the summer good paint and 50" deck. great condition. $1200.00

 

[Cat385B]

Grab it quick.

 

[MountainDweller]

Good evening,

I am pleased to say that the 16g is now parked in the driveway on my trailer. I was not prepared for what a monster this machine is - the Craigslist pictures do not do it justice! I was expecting something of similar size to my B-1, just heavier construction. The tractor barely squeezed onto my trailer.

The now PO acquired it from a Gravely dealer a year ago who owned this as his personal tractor - he evidently took it in on trade from the original owner. It used to also have a rotary brush which has already been sold - which is fine by me as it is of little use on the mountain.

The immediate problem is that the float/needle valve appear to be well hung-up and a cylinder almost immediately fills with gas when it is turned off, and it runs quite rich naturally. There is no fuel cut-off yet, which is job one.

On my B-1, when the needle valve needs to be cleaned, I usually take off the fuel line and blow compressed air in. Is this an approved/safe way to deal with the Gravely?

Pictures will follow with the daylight!

Best,

Nathan

 

[rscurtis]

Open the hood and look at the bottom of the fuel tank. There should be a shut-off valve there.

 

[MountainDweller]

Open the hood and look at the bottom of the fuel tank. There should be a shut-off valve there.

Thanks! Is it the little white-colored knob on the back/right corner of the tank (looking at the back of the tank)?

- Nathan

 

[Gravely16G]

The plow and axle latches is worth $300.

 

[MountainDweller]

Thanks everyone for encouraging me to go get this machine.

:thanku:


Thank my wife also, as I had decided I didn't really need the tractor, but she nudged me to go for it! Imagine that! :thThumbsU

- Nathan

 

[MountainDweller]

By the way, my impression is that the front PTO is gone - perhaps the buyer of the rotary brush encouraged the PO to include it. The only thing I see is a splined shaft poking out of the gear box under the driver's seat - no shaft going forward or u-joints or anything like that.

This isn't a deal-breaker for me, as I think mowing my yard with this would be overkill. I think the B-1 would be better for that job, and this one can do the heavy work on the road and dirt from now on!

- Nathan

 

[helixhippie]

Thank my wife also, as I had decided I didn't really need the tractor, but she nudged me to go for it! Imagine that! - Nathan

I, for one, can imagine it. My wife loves Gravely's too. Congratulations, you're gonna love that tractor!

 

[wjohn]

I'm glad you grabbed it :fing32: for what you paid, you could easily justify purchasing a center-mount deck in good condition. I'm not as familiar with the G series, but I do have an 8000 series and believe the PTO connections are pretty much identical. A short shaft runs from that splined PTO shaft you noticed to a gearbox mounted on the mower deck. The lifting hardware is easy to come by as is that short shaft.

For manuals, check out http://oldgravelys.net/docs/riders/ Mr. Chip Old has a great website with manual scans of manuals.

The ag tires are awesome too. I put a pair on my 8102 and pulled a disk harrow with 220 lbs of wheel weights on it without any difficulty. You've got a great machine there.

 

[Fla Don]

By the way, my impression is that the front PTO is gone - perhaps the buyer of the rotary brush encouraged the PO to include it. The only thing I see is a splined shaft poking out of the gear box under the driver's seat - no shaft going forward or u-joints or anything like that.

This isn't a deal-breaker for me, as I think mowing my yard with this would be overkill. I think the B-1 would be better for that job, and this one can do the heavy work on the road and dirt from now on!

- Nathan

A mower for it goes in the middle for most people. Some of us run them on the front but then we are strange. A 50" or 60" deck hooks into the latches on the frame just behind the front axle. Then a rod hooks in like the lift rod for your blade. Then the mower driveshaft hooks up to the PTO shaft on the transaxle. Mowing with one will spoil you if you don't have a ZTR as you'll wonder why you ever had a lessor tractor.

 

[Richard-tx]

Good evening,


The immediate problem is that the float/needle valve appear to be well hung-up and a cylinder almost immediately fills with gas when it is turned off, and it runs quite rich naturally. There is no fuel cut-off yet, which is job one.

Flooding a crankcase is bad...very bad.

While pretty rare, I have cracked a cylinder on an engine that had debris in the needle/seat and had flooded. The cylinder was instantly and throughly turned into scrap metal. It took about 10 milliseconds to do that too.

When I have flooding occur on a Magnum, I take the carb off and clean the needle, seat, and bowl. It is almost guaranteed there is crud in the bowl. The addition of a fuel filter between the pump and bowl will likely prevent any further issues.

Selection of a proper filter is paramount. I use Napa 3011 or Wix 33011 filters. They are a 12 micron filter. Other filters will let actual chunks of debris through as they are 80 micron or larger. Here is an example of what happens when a 80 micron filter is used. The carb shown below is a Nikkei.

The red powder is dirt from the Red River Valley, where this engine lived.

The brass piece is the main jet. No wonder it ran like crap.


Once the carb is cleaned and filters installed then I don't have to worry about shutting off the fuel. It can sit there for weeks with the fuel turned on without issue.

 

[MountainDweller]

Thanks for the warning. I need to get the tractor off the trailer tomorrow morning, so I will probably take the plugs out and blast the gas out, and open the fuel valve enough to get it running and onto terra firma - then shut the fuel off again. I have never seen nor owned anything like this tractor, nor a Kohler engine, so I need some time to get familiar with it!

- Nathan

 

[yamato72]

I am pleased to say that the 16g is now parked in the driveway on my trailer.

Sweet! :fing32::fing32::fing32:

 

[Richard-tx]

Thanks for the warning. I need to get the tractor off the trailer tomorrow morning, so I will probably take the plugs out and blast the gas out,

It would be a good idea to squirt some oil into the cylinders and turn it over by hand a few times after blowing the gas out. Also dump the oil that is in the crankcase and put in two quarts of fresh oil. Once all that is done, then start it. Don't want to risk a crackcase explosion either.

When I got my 16G the crankcase was completely full of gasoline. The dipstick said the oil level was normal. That is because the oil and gas had not mixed.

Gravely 4 wheel tractors were not cheap new. They cost about 50% of the average price of a new car. The 16G isn't another cheap tractor. It is made to last at least 60 years or more assuming reasonable care.