[GT_80]

So I always scope out Facebook Marketplace, several buying and selling groups, Ebay, craigslist, letgo, and a few other outlets (I know it is exhausting) but every once in a while you come across something that you have been looking for forever.

Just so happens, A guy that had posted something I always wanted that I never saw in person and couldn't afford. It disappeared after a couple weeks off the interwebs. Well, come monday this week, it showed up again on Facebook, and I messaged the guy cause he lives one town away from me, and works one town away from where I work, and I wanted to at least see this unicorn to prove it is real.

After much discussion, and back and forth dickering, haggling, and (try to make a deal) deal making, I went Tuesday to at least look at it.

Now to me, the asking price was too high, and he had some other stuff I wanted as well, so I was trying my bundling skills, and wanted to see what I could come up with for a deal and see if some of my Financier-ish friends wanted in on the deal.

After all was said and done I walked away with the attachment, and an SS16 that is in Not too bad, but not-too good shape for $600.

But there is a catch. I didn't buy the attachment. I was merely the facilitator and bundler that made the deal and picked up said implement, and will be transporting it to the new owner.

So what is this unicorn?

Well, the only Gannon Earthcavator I have ever seen in person, and touched, and held. And I have to answer the burning question we have all had, is it worth all the hype?
My answer? YES! its one of the single coolest attachments I have ever seen. It is heavy, it is well made, it's function is super cool, and it will be super useful for the intended tasks. I wish it was mine, but I didn't have the money, so at least I get the joy of moving it around and playing with it till I drop it off at the end of the month.

So you want pics? Yes, we all do... This is in as near NOS condition as possible, barely every touched the ground, and the paint is mostly dinged up from storage and moving it around.


Originally the seller wanted $600 for the Gannon, and $200 for the SS16 which needs a nose cone, lower grille side piece, air cleaner assembly, points cover, rear end bolted in tightly, and a few other things... At least the motor is free...

When all is said and done, I made a deal for $600 for both - since I was willing to pay $150 for the tractor, I did that, and my buddy Jeffrey Kattera in PA (he's an OG, some of you know him)paid the $450 for the gannon, and I think we're both happy.

What I get out of this is the ability to measure up the gannon, and figure out how I can build one I have some ideas on "scraps" I can use to make one fairly well, so we will see where that takes me.

Pics of the SS16 coming.

 

[GT_80]

And here are pics of the SS16 I got as part of this deal -

 

[GT_80]

Man a few years ago I would have had 100 comments by now...

 

[ubber_gearhead99]

Very thrifty bundling skills! Especially for that MINT Earthcavator. Always wanted to make a clone. Might have to now. That SS16 looks pretty good to man. Great score!

 

[GT_80]

I finally go into looking at the SS16 a bit over the weekend.

Motor would not turn over with a battery hooked up. The motor would only turn about 3/4 of the way over, but no metallic noises so I figured the connecting rods weren't hosed.

The carb throttle plate was seized open, so I know it had water in the carb at one point. The carb had water in it, the float was crushed from frozen water, and the carb was very corroded inside.

The wire going from the points to the coil was cut, spliced, and taped with duct tape.

One plug wire was new, one was old.

Wrong plugs were in the motor

wiring for the ignition was all spliced, literally on every wire. I think the ignition switch was swapped, and someone put the wrong one in, but I won't know till I pull it out.


So I figured this was not going to be an easy throw gas in it and a battery and go...

I started off by pulling the carb, and carefully working the throttle back and forth, now that is loose. I looked in the intake runner at the valves, and there was no visible rust, but there was some corrosion I could see, and one intake valve was stuck open, so I put some marvel Mystery oil on the valve stem, and when the valve still wasn't moving, and the motor was still not spinning over, I decided to pull the motor.

Got the motor out, pulled the exhaust off, and started taking off the head on the side of the motor with the corroded intake runner.

It was not pretty inside the head... Had moisture in there for a long time, and had some water sitting in the cylinder. So I put the piston in the bottom of the cylinder, and did some old school ******* engineering to get the cylinder walls clean. I washed the cylinder out with WD40, and used varying grits of sandpaper to clean up the cylinder walls, now the motor turns over fine, and the cylinders are still really tight.

I decarboned the valves and head, and put a new head gaskets on, both cylinders. On the opposite cylinder that had water, it looked like it had ingested a screw at some point, but the valve seems to seal ok, so we will see how it runs when I get to it. For now, I put some Marvel in the cylinders and I'm letting that sit to keep moisture out and I plan to pull the valve covers off, adjust the lifters, clean up and regasket the carb, put a new float in, swap the missing parts from my GT18 motor that I blew up, and then see what I can do with this thing to get it running good again.

 

[Tractor-Holic]

Holy corroded floats !..:tango_face_surprise...

Looks like that engine will need a lot of love to run again...it might surprise you though,some of the best engines I've had were seized up when I got them home and didn't look much better..

I had one old Wisconsin that sat outside for 20+ years,the blower housing was so rotted I had to hunt down another one--every part on it was rusted solid,it was seized and even the fins on the head were rotting away.
.
I took it to the parts store I worked at that had a machine shop,and lowered the whole engine into the hot tank,let it soak for 48 hrs..
When it came out it looked like a whole different engine,and it would spin over easily,I still pulled the head off it and still had to use emery cloth on the cylinder--it had some pits in it..despite that,it still ran decent once I got it to run..

That Earthcavator is a rare beast!..first one I have seen,really..:tango_face_glasses:

 

[GT_80]

Holy corroded floats !..:tango_face_surprise...

Looks like that engine will need a lot of love to run again...it might surprise you though,some of the best engines I've had were seized up when I got them home and didn't look much better..

I had one old Wisconsin that sat outside for 20+ years,the blower housing was so rotted I had to hunt down another one--every part on it was rusted solid,it was seized and even the fins on the head were rotting away.
.
I took it to the parts store I worked at that had a machine shop,and lowered the whole engine into the hot tank,let it soak for 48 hrs..
When it came out it looked like a whole different engine,and it would spin over easily,I still pulled the head off it and still had to use emery cloth on the cylinder--it had some pits in it..despite that,it still ran decent once I got it to run..

That Earthcavator is a rare beast!..first one I have seen,really..:tango_face_glasses:

This motor I have a feeling will run well. I cleaned it up pretty well, and with new head gaskets, and de-carboned the heads, I knw I can tune it up. I have a spare DD11 Onan carb base that I can use in place of this one if it turns out to be junk. I have another tractor that needs a motor that smokes like a chimney, thats kind of why I want to get the 19.9 back from you

I agree, this is the first earthcavator I have seen in person, and man is it cool. I want to buy or make one. I think it would be really useful.

 

[Ericjr16]

Hey James, it is strange how the forums are not well trafficked like when we started on here. I just noticed it as the tapatalk app is hard to look through for me on my phone, I miss a lot! The attachment is sweet! Jeffery got a deal! You didn't do too bad with your knowledge!

 

[GT_80]

Hey James, it is strange how the forums are not well trafficked like when we started on here. I just noticed it as the tapatalk app is hard to look through for me on my phone, I miss a lot! The attachment is sweet! Jeffery got a deal! You didn't do too bad with your knowledge!

I think the best thing is, I helped a guy clean his dads collection out, helped his dad with money, and I have a feeling I made a new friend! I helped him establish value on some stuff he had, and through it I think I may have turned him to Sears just a tiny bit. I haven't been able to get anything done on the BF/MS since last week, but I luckily have a donor motor for parts in my GT18 motor that threw a rod last summer. I may have finally just decided to retire that motor. I'm not sure though... Every once in a while I see used rods and cranks pop up on ebay, but in order to justify buying them, I would have to do a full rebuild on the motor, and I really don't know if I want to spend that much time and money when I know I have other options I.E. buy another tractor with a good motor and get parts with it :tango_face_wink:

 

[burned300]

I'm so flipping Jealous !! & I already own a Gannon.

 

[elsimon]

GT-80, just sent you a PM

 

[GT_80]

GT-80, just sent you a PM

i got your email, thanks!