Still thinking about the MH GPs I have not so far noted that they are very difficult to mount and dismount!  The design engineers never thought to add one or two strategically placed steps!!

John

John.
    If you remember there was quite a flurry of correspondence a year ago concerning the difficulty of getting on and off the GP and the owner's solutions to the problem. You have to remember that most tractor drivers are moderately young and fit and that only some of us collectors are getting on in years and getting more doddery and less flexible. Tempus Fugit!!

I don't think it was uppermost in M-H's mind when they were designing tractors as to how the driver was going to get into the seat. I have a 44 and a 333 and I have had to add a step to both of them and they are not the most difficult tractors to get on. I drove a Pony in the summer and I wondered if I was ever going to be able to get into the seat. The chap next to me was driving a Pony Vineyard and although he was a lot fitter than me I thought they were going to have to lever him out of the seat when he wanted to get off. You would know all about Pony Vineyard John? Alan

I needed to get my 6 cylinder side valve MH 201 running and moved so that I could pull my No. 2 out for servicing etc.  

This tractor has always been a good starter even if having a very cold engine and very slow to warm up.

The other day it started up straight away after over a year of standing, ran well for about a minute and then started spluttering and back firing like a canon.  It finally died and would start no more.  There was no spark coming through to the plugs yet there was a spark at the points (contact breakers) - usually a definitive sign that all is well.

I thought it would be either the coil or the condenser so bought new ones and fitted them.  No improvement.  Then cleaned all the plugs leads at both ends and the high tension lead between the coil and the distributor.  Still no spark to the plugs.

Much head scratching.  Took some advice from an old mechanic - we had told him that the high tension lead was carbon fibre to which he replied don't trust it and fit a new copper wire type.  This we did with still no result.  He also suggested check that the rotor arm is turning and it was.  We then in desperation decided to re-check the distributor cap and contents - we had already cleaned it and the rotor arm.  Still no result.  But we noticed that it was different to more modern ones in that the contact point where the carbon bush bears down on it is a sort of steel rather than a brass like material.  We idly started re-cleaning this with more vigour than previously and re assembled the whole set up.

The tractor laughed at us and fired up staright away!  Moral of the story - always something new to learn and into the bargain I had never come across a carbon fibre high tension lead before

John

It's that time of the year - checking the anti freeze or draining the water off.

I got round to my Pacer and found the anti freeze to be a bit on the weak side.  So I decided to drain some water off in order to be able to add some new anti freeze.  I looked for the radiator drain tap.  It is in an horrendously difficult place to access!!  Not even suitable for a contortionist - I had to get a long screw driver to push the tap round.

I think the designers threw these odd problems in just to frustrate us...................

John

It's soon come around to that time of year again John,
I started on mine Sunday afternoon and last night, expect tonight will see them all drained off.
Then the next job is to go round all the bottom filters on the "U" frames, loosen off the drain plug and see if any water eases out before the oil, it just amazes me how this happens during the year, some a lot of water and others just a spoon full, guess there is a lot of condensation inside those U frames during the year.
I was always told by dad to do this before each winter otherwise if the frosts are severe it ends up with more work on the "to do list" with cracked bottom filters to repair.

Do you do this on all yours Joe?

Malcolm.

I have just been re-fitting the magneto to my 1937 green Challenger.  If you follow the operator manual intructions to the letter there is usually no problem.  There are several steps to the procedure one of which is to find the timing mark on the front pulley and set this eight inches from the inside of the U frame.  But getting a straight line measurement is impossible because the lower steel water hose (radiator to block) is in the way, so one has to guestimate!  Not the most satisfactory of procedures but often one comes out OK.  Today I didn't - I must have under estimated the eight inches and ended up with the magneto too advanced.  When I tried to crank it to start the engine it kicked back - luckily I am wary of this and it doesn't bother me.  BUT DESIGN ENGINEERS again having no perception of who comes after them on tractor maintenance..............

John

It's a long time since this thread had an addition!  Is no-one out there fixing their tractors???!!!

Anyway I have been fitting drain taps to the oil strainers beneath the sumps on my U frame M-H tractors.  This is so that I can easily drain off any accumulated water each winter and avoid the possibility of frost blowing the ends of the strainers out.  You see so many U frame tractors which have had the end of the strainer brazed back in.

Working round the tractors I noticed that the earlier Wallis 20-30 and 12-20 tractors have a more sensible design - the drain stud - which I am replacing with a tap - is on the side.  However on the later Pacemakers and 25s it is on the end.  In this position the drain stud is much more fiddly to get at and it is more difficult to get the drain tap in.  A very retrogade design feature...............

John

It's some time since I found another design fault on the MH tractors.  However recently I have been attending to my long unattended to Wallis 15-27.  It's my only tractor that I have never had running and I am coming to the end of "jobs to be done" before an attempted start up.  I was filling the crankcase up with fresh oil.  I had put a gallon in and thought I would check the level in the U frame sump.  To my astonishment there is no dip stick to check the oil level!!

So I consulted the instruction book and what do I find - you have to remove one of the side plates on the U frame, look inside and check that the oil is one quarter of an inch below one of the four oil sumps - there is one beneath each con rod.  Amazing!  And yet the older No 2 tractors have dip sticks so a dip stick was not a new idea at this time!!  It would not have cost much to provide one like on the successor Wallis 20-30 tractor.

John

John,

On one hand it is a design fault but on the other hand I believe this was designed this way to get the farmer to take a look in there every day and check to see if the rod bolts are loose or if the oil pump has been sucking air from a loose or cracked pipe.

For the earlier Wallis like the one you are working on If they have the plunger oil pump I made up a bent rod that reaches up behind between the camshaft and pump plunger to pump it by hand to make sure all the tray filler pipes are squirting like they should. it is very easy to do this once you try it a couple times and is a great way to see if you are sucking any air or leaking from a cracked pipe or loose fitting.

If for some reason you put too much oil in the pan you will know it as the tractor will smoke like a steam train...

Joe