1985 Craftsman II 14hp

Yes yes I know its been a long time but, I'm back with a new project. I don't have a name yet (suggestions are welcomed) but its going to be a beast. (hopefully)

Watching… this looks like fun, it also looks like a BEAST.

It’s getting a 19hp opposed swap I just don’t know if the wiring harnesses will match up cause it currently has a 14hp opposed in it that’s “blown”

Looks like a solid tractor to start with! What's the end goal for it or are you just wingin' it? Lol

The wiring is not that difficult to switch over, there should be just a few wires going to the engine:

-The fuel shutoff solenoid (This one will attach right to the carb)
-The coil shutoff (This will usually be just one wire, if you take the top shroud off you will see it running to the coil)
-The stator (This is what charges the battery, it will be 2 wires and should run under the flywheel)
-The starter (This will be quite thick, usually red and will run to the pos. terminal on the starter) 

If you label these when you pull the old motor you should have no trouble switching it over, looks like a decent base for a pretty fast tractor, I will be following this one

Oh, and just out of curiosity, whats the steering play on that like?

I haven’t got the tractor yet, a coworker has it at his house currently (hopefully it will be brought to the shop here soon) (if you wanna know what shop it’s “Turn’d Up Off-road” look it up I love working there) but back to what I was saying build wise it’s probably getting a pulley swap probably 12”F-3”R 4:1 ratio, welded differential, if I can get the ATV I’m trying to get (it’s just a frame sadly or else the engine would be swapped over also) it’s getting the front suspension pulled off it and mounted to the lawnmower, I don’t know about the rear yet haven’t really looked at it, knobby tires all the way around, might be painted I don’t know what colors yet might just take a rust neutralizer and throw some clear coat on it, and well that’s really all I can think of right now I’ll keep y’all updated on progress. Oh and also I want it wide and low(ish) probably 3” drop hopefully it looks bada**. Lol lol f you have any tips/advise let me know

If you give me your stock pulley sizes I can tell you what kind of speed you can get? 

I use this method:

You take your stock speed (This is probably about 5 MPH) and multiply it by your stock pulley ratio (Rear over front) and you should get your 1:1 speed (this is the speed it will go at a 1:1 pulley ratio) then all you have to do is multiply that by whatever ratio you want to change it to (this time front over rear)

Looks something like this:
[Stock speed]x [Rear]   = [1:1 ratio] | [1:1 ratio] x [Front] = [New speed]
                       [Front]                                          [Rear]

So for let's say my wheel horse 210-5:
My stock speed is 8 KM/H 
Times my rear over front pulley ratio, 4:9:
18, times my new pulley ratio 6:4 
I get a potential speed of 27 KM/H

Okay y’all I am having trouble making a decision tire wise I don’t know if I should go the knobby route or if I should get some dirt track tires I will insert pictures below.



To be honest I’m digging the dirt track tires. And also the dirt track tires are 22x10-8’s for the rear and 14x6-6’s for the front and they are 6ply rated. The knobbys are 22x11-8’s for the rear and 14x6-6’s for the front and they are 4ply rated. So yeah struggling a little on my decision. They are also the same brand the dirt track tires and the knobby tires.

In my opinion it mostly depends on what kind of terrain you'll spend the most time on. The dirt track style will be good on hard pack and pavement but probably not so great in loose/muddy/hilly stuff, the knobbys will be good all around but be more likely to tear up grass. 6 ply will be a firmer all around tire and would be better for more precise handling as they won't tend to "roll" over themselves (flex as much), the 4 ply will be a little more forgiving and provide more cushioning for a machine with no suspension but are still plenty strong so I wouldn't let the strength factor influence my decision.

That's my 2 cents.

@MightyRaze I need your opinion on some suspension ideas if you would be so kind.

Austin_Gore wrote:

Okay y’all I am having trouble making a decision tire wise I don’t know if I should go the knobby route or if I should get some dirt track tires I will insert pictures below.
To be honest I’m digging the dirt track tires. And also the dirt track tires are 22x10-8’s for the rear and 14x6-6’s for the front and they are 6ply rated. The knobbys are 22x11-8’s for the rear and 14x6-6’s for the front and they are 4ply rated. So yeah struggling a little on my decision. They are also the same brand the dirt track tires and the knobby tires.

Welcome back!

Personally I’d go with the knobbies. The dirt track tires would probably handle similar to the turfs you have on the ol gal. And they seem to hold air judging from that picture. Blow em up around 20 psi and they’ll handle like a 4 ply, just not as strong as one.

Just my 2c

To be honest I want to be able to drift it easily on grass and dirt roads and maybe even wet asphalt, so I was going to go with the dirt track tires and also Im struggling to decide if I want to convert it to a 4 lug bolt pattern all the way around or just leave it so y’all help me with that in if y’all can find the 4” x 4” hubs for a 3/4” axle send me the link please and thank you. And some for 5/8” spindles.

Bmikarts has them, but prices seem to have doubled in the last few month.

I used to get them from BMIKart, but along with their prices going up, their shipping has become almost outrageous.  I got my last set from gopowersports.com

4x4 Wheel Hub - GoPowerSports.com

They have the 3/4 all the way through (keyed) and for the 5/8 spindle, you can get the 1 3/8 bearing style and get 5/8 bearings and put in them.

You can make your own hubs pretty cheaply
like the guy did in this thread, won't work for everyone I'm sure but it might be worth some thought!  

www.atltf.com/t3990-atv-hubs