Brianator's "Mud Duck"- Tractor Recovery Rig/Mudder

Nevadablue wrote:

So, with both sides of the frame cracked, IMO… make a saddle for those cracked areas and weld it all around. Looks like the flex is causing the area with the hole to ‘stretch’. Counteract that somehow.

It's already dealt with by drilling the holes to prevent it from growing and welding it up, I'm thinking I'll probably weld spacer tubes into the frame tubes to prevent the frame from compressing when tightening the motor mount bolts down. Speaking of which...


The motor mount is installed! I went ahead with "Option D"! Lol. I had to grind the bolt heads down to tuck them under the sump, I may end up tack welding them in place.



As you can see there's not much space and there's no cavities for the bolt head to tuck into, it's completely flush underneath.



I'm not sure if many of you have noticed (?) but all the replacement Briggs and Stratton carburetors these days are metric threaded, the ones I get anyways! So I picked up a M6 threaded rod and wingnut for the air cleaner (yesterday) and put a fancy chrome nut on the underside to hold the rod secure.


What's interesting is that the cover won't go on because it contacts the intake elbow so I compared the new and old carbs... they're identical! Guess someone put the wrong filter on and I'll have to find a taller one,  I left extra length on the threaded rod and will trim it after I find the right filter.




Then it was time to deal with the idler pulley. The only one that Princess Auto had that could work has a 5/8" ID but I want to stick with a 3/8" bolt... the steel bushings were all 17mm OD and I had a few at home already that have a 3/8" ID so I grabbed these 5/8" OD - 3/8" ID bronze bushings but decided I wasn't too keen on using them unless absolutely necessary...



So I chucked the steel bushings in my poor man's lathe and turned them down! I started off with the angle grinder then used a file to finish them off, it only took me about 20 minutes to get r done!





Then I bribed my friend/neighbor with a cold beer to come help me plop the motor in the tractor!  Lol. I definitely tweaked my back yesterday and don't want to aggravate it any further or I could end up being layed up for a couple days.



Hopefully tomorrow it will be moving under it's own power!  I still need to relocate the fuel tank, reconfigure the exhaust,  install the idler pulley, align the pulleys, hope I grabbed belts that will work, hook up a choke, throttle and kill switch. The starting/charging system can wait!  Lol

Where do you get your fancy chrome nuts? 

Do be careful with the poor man’s lathe. Using a grinder is pretty safe, IMO, but for those who may not know, most drill press chucks are held on with a taper and side pressure can make them fly off, sometimes not pretty.

Nevadablue wrote:

Where do you get your fancy chrome nuts? 

Do be careful with the poor man’s lathe. Using a grinder is pretty safe, IMO, but for those who may not know, most drill press chucks are held on with a taper and side pressure can make them fly off, sometimes not pretty.

Honda/Acura V6 spark plug wire/valve covers at the scrapyard! There's 2 nuts and a handful of nice chrome bolts on each one!

Good safety tip! Mine is tapered and fell out once while using a hole saw.

Well it's not quite as nice out as yesterday, hovering around 12F which isn't horrible but it's damp out! I'm still slugging away though, my goal is to have this running and driving today so I can play in the snow! Lol.

The idler pulley put up quite a fight but that's partly my own fault for wanting to use not only the idler bracket but also the PTO bracket, the holes are perfectly lined up and the PTO lever has a spring that adds a little extra tension to the belts! I would've had an issue regardless because the idler pulley is a touch smaller and a different design (with the lips on the edges) so that was most of the fight, took me about an hour and half to get it sorted out!


The first issue is that the pulley was contacting the bolt for the idler lockout and spring before it was even over enough to be aligned.



I thought maybe a carriage bolt would work... nope! So I thought I'd be smart and grind it down some... still didn't clear! I ended up having to grind the edge down a bit at the top to tuck inside the pulley!




To use as a spacer I happened to find a skinny Nyloc nut that's the perfect width and lucky me I had a skinny 9/16" wrench to squeeze in there!



I dug up a couple items that were (together) the perfect width to space the other side.


Alignment is looking good...




...and the 32" belt LOOKS to be the ticket... I was concerned that the flat side may contact a part of the frame and until I run the machine I won't know for sure, 33" Belts MAY be required. It was tough to get any angles on it but the arrows point to the airspace between the belt and the frame, there isn't much at all!

Nice work, I love seeing design stuff like this. Making something out of almost nothing is the BEST! 

(You are supposed to clean stuff before you work on it) 

No way man I'm not cleaning anything (yet) except for wire connections! Lol.


It's been a successful day for me! I was starting to get a little frustrated near the end but thoughts of taking it for a rip kept me warm! Lol.

I shortened the original throttle cable and graphite lubed the heck out of it! The throttle keeps creeping down on its own so I need to snug up the dooflicky on the side of the block and maybe add a wavy washer if I can find one in my stash, if not a dab of blue LocTite should do the trick!



I ran the choke cable around the front (for now), there was nowhere to fasten the sheathing on the other side without making a bracket and I needed to get a move on so I didn't run out of daylight. I used zip ties to hold it up and out of the way of the booster fan and belt...



...hastily installed a kill switch...



...reconfigured the exhaust...



...zip tied the wiring behind the gas tank bracket, got it running, gave the carb a quick tune and removed the hood because it can't come close to closing yet. Then I took it for a quick blast up the road and back!




It blasted through the snow left by the snowplow like it wasn't even there! What a difference compared to the test motor, this thing is a tank!


The wind that was blowing through the shroud was coming strait at my face and with force! I'll keep that in mind when I alter the hood, on a hot summer day that could really come in handy! Lol. Please keep in mind alot of the little things have been slapped on in a functional but temporary fashion for now,  there's a LONG way to go with this beast!

I think I'll put the blade on it tomorrow and have some fun pushing snow around! Lol

That's it for now, let me know what you think!

Tis a beast!

Well no real updates working on the beast, it hasn't been very nice out the last couple days and if I'm going to end up being miserable working on it then I'm not having fun so what's the point right?! I have been doing some thinking, planning and research though...


On the throttle/governor there's a spring unhooked i wasn't sure was even supposed to be there and a long rod I removed (shown laying across the oil fill), I did some research and found a diagram that shows not only the spring setup but that the rod is actually a throttle limiter so now I'll be able to get them setup properly!




I'll need to relocate the gas tank and find a home for a battery but the battery tray is the only spot I have to work with so it's going to be a little tricky... here's some mock ups:

The best (fitting) spot for the battery is here. Problem is that's not only the bestest spot for the fuel tank (carb is on that side) but all the wiring for the engine is on the other side.



Now, there's not enough room for the battery here unless I cut the engines output shaft and I'd really prefer not to do that plus once the pulley is slid ahead to where it needs to be for both belts the battery is probably going to be in the way of that too.



I found a Honda Civic battery tray in my stash and wouldn't you know it... it fits really well! It sits just above the belts/pulleys (about 1/8") and seems to be just low enough for the battery to still fit under the top of the dash. It would also act as a belt keeper plus it has the holes for the battery hold down already, the down side is it's going to make changing belts a real pain but maybe I can modify it to make that easier.



If I go with the battery tray I'll need to relocate the choke cable which is a blessing in itself because that would put the manual controls on the carb side and I could run most wiring on the starter/generator side! This is what I'm thinking...



As far as fuel tank relocation goes it might be awhile before I get to it, I'll need a fuel pump and to figure out where on the engine I'll be able to get a signal for it, there's apparently certain valve covers that are designed for it but might be hard to come by especially for a engine this old, maybe I'll get lucky and find a plugged port somewhere on the block though!?


I got new belts and a spark plug for it. I've had really good luck with these Gates belts on my G10, 3 years and still going strong! Lol




Well that's it for now, this week coming up is supposed to be decent working weather so I should get some stuff accomplished!

looks like your moving right along ! i can't wait to get mine to a point where i can take it for a rip.

I am indeed but it's more of a crunch to get past the proof of concept stage and get certain things straitened away, I want to get back to work on The Warhorse too so I can actually drive it! Lol. The Mud Duck is disabled atm for some much needed attention before i can drive it around and test it further, that will be covered in an update in the next day or 2.

I got some tinkering done today!

I worked on the throttle creeping down, the link has a flanged washer so what I did was slowly file it down until there was a slight bit of resistance when the bolt is tightened down...


...then hooked up the springs and reinstalled the throttle speed limiter (rod) as shown in the diagram in the previous post...



...installed the new pair of belts and aligned the pulley...




...and decided to to re-mock up the battery tray to figure it and the fuel tank out. A standard sized lawn tractor battery will be too tall to work but there's a great variety of different sized ones at my local auto parts store so I'll go check some out and see which one I like best.




The fuel tank that goes with the engine won't fit beside the battery, it's close but there's not enough room between the dash and engine so it's not going work! I do have a slighter smaller tank on a 8HP B&S I could swap for but I'd rather not lose capacity so I  mocked up the tank for The Warhorse... it's so close I can taste it but it's just not going to work either! There is a tank that someone mounted behind the seat/under the fender that I'm sure would fit but I want to leave it as a reserve tank so I think what I'll do is hit up the salvage yard and see what I can come up with!




I was going to start reconfiging the dashboard controls and thought it was made out of fiberglass which would've made it easy to fill in the holes and re-drill but it's actually cast aluminum which is cool! I'm going to make a full sized filler panel out of this aluminum diamond plate I had bought to make a skid plate for my Honda Z50. I removed the dashboard (only 5 nuts) so I can design a template out of cardboard inside where it's warm and comfy! Lol



That's all for now, I'm waiting on parts to arrive for the next big update, they'll hopefully be here tonight or early tomorrow!

This probably won’t work for you, but I’m going to use a 1 gallon plastic gas can as a tank on the rat rod.

For sure it could work but I'd rather find one out of a lawn/garden tractor. It would be really cool to custom build one that would take up every bit of available space as that would mean it would hold a good amount of fuel but I'm just not sure I'm up for the challenge money/time wise, perhaps later this year if I'm feeling ambitious! Lol

Still plugging away slowly but surely!

I made the template, the lines represent the support ribs on the backside. I also made another out of clear plastic so I could play around with the placement of the controls, switches and rivets to keep it as clean as possible.




Then transfered it over once I was as happy with it as I'm ever going to be! Lol




I know it seems silly to jump so far ahead to something that would normally be a finishing touch especially since I've mentioned still being in the proof of concept stage and temporarily setting things up but there's a good reason for it! I want to get all the controls and switches situated in their final location(s) now so I can keep working on the battery/fuel tank situation.  That's my story and I'm sticking to it!

Later!

Very cool, watching that dash for sure. I plan to use aluminum diamond plate for the rat rod. Glad you are going first.

All of my gas tanks in my junkyard were cracked or strangely shaped or too tall. The little gas can came to me free from a neighbor who moved and gave me a treasure trove of stuff. It fit the odd shaped space perfectly.

I wonder if it would be better to put a reserve under the hood and use the one in the rear as the primary? Seems nice and large and I find opening the hood and trying to refill gas around a hot engine to be a pain but that’s just my 2c.

Nice work on the new dash, gonna look very professional I suspect

Nevadablue wrote:

Very cool, watching that dash for sure. I plan to use aluminum diamond plate for the rat rod. Glad you are going first.

All of my gas tanks in my junkyard were cracked or strangely shaped or too tall. The little gas can came to me free from a neighbor who moved and gave me a treasure trove of stuff. It fit the odd shaped space perfectly.

Well then follow me! I show you the way! Lol. The jerry can is the perfect style for your rat rod build, it fits the theme well!

Rustbucket Garage wrote:

I wonder if it would be better to put a reserve under the hood and use the one in the rear as the primary? Seems nice and large and I find opening the hood and trying to refill gas around a hot engine to be a pain but that’s just my 2c.

Nice work on the new dash, gonna look very professional I suspect

That rear tank I suspect is for the original 12hp Wisconsin (relocated of course) and isn't a terrible size but the 16hp B&S I'm sure is going to be a thristy motor so I want as much fuel on board as I can get! Fuelling underhood doesn't bother me I have no choice with my G10 and I have one of those massive Flo&Go fuel tanks (on wheels) with the gas station style pump handle, I got sick of spilling/wasting gas using jerry cans.

Thanks man I appreciate it and it is coming along really well I'm really happy with it so far! I have the ignition switch  and start button to finish up on then I'm posting the update so stay tuned for more! Lol

I had a good and productive day today! The dashboard is fully functional and ready for installation (tomorrow), then to start hooking things up!


Once I cut out the initial shape it was time for a quick test fit.




All shaping work from this point on was done with hand files removing a little tiny bit at a time then fitting and repeating the process over and over and over again, I started it off a little too big on purpose so I could slowly shape it until it JUST fit in so there's no ugly gaps around the outside.


I left the factory edge along the bottom and slowly worked my way down and a little in from the sides, shaping the corners as I went...



... and riveted it place once I was happy with the fit! If you look close you can see the spots I countersunk the rivets because of the pattern being in the way.



Then I cut the hole for the ammeter and mocked it up on the tractor for a quick looksee... I'm lovin' it!



The sun was going down and it was getting cold so I brought it inside to install the throttle, choke, ignition and start (button) and that's where I've left off for now. The whole process starting with the template and ending here took probably 4 working hours, but it was worth it!


The push button from the Line Ward was too big and ugly to fit in very well so I installed the little black momentary contact button (top left) that I had in stock and will need to use it to trigger a solenoid for start function.  Also on the to do list is to grind down some of the diamonds under the flapper (bottom left) so it sits flush and secure!  I haven't decided yet if I'll use the light built into the switch or a separate pilot light to indicate that ignition is on,  no biggie I have lots of time to figure that kind of stuff out I got the important stuff done! As you can see there's lots of available space for more switches but until I'm sitting in front of it on the tractor I can't decide where to put them...

 Here's the list:

- Headlights
- Horn
- Running Lights
- Front Aux Light
- Rear Aux Light
- Rock Lights (maybe)(probably).



Well there it is! I'm very happy with how it turned out, let me know what you think!

You can find a link to the red flapper switch by clicking here.

Very nice!  Love it.

MightyRaze wrote:

Very nice!  Love it.

Thank you sir!

Did you buy that diamond plate or is that salvage?

TechnoChicken wrote:

Did you buy that diamond plate or is that salvage?

I got it at Home Depot a few months ago, I think it was about $20.

A few days ago I decided it was time to have a look at the front wheel bearings before I get too crazy driving it around and plowing snow (for fun).  One wheel had a little play but the other I could see inside the wheel hub! Maybe this is why...? Lol.





It's been like that since I got and by the looks of the spindles it appears this beast has blown more than just a set or 2 over its lifetime!


Front right spindle, not so bad...




... but the front left, oh boy!




It took some time with files and sandpaper but I finally got it cleaned up well enough that new bearings could slide over without grabbing or binding.


Speaking of bearings I scored new (cheapies) on Amazon for only $15! I don't expect much out of them except to do their job for now and then become spares once I get quality ones this summer.



The bearings in the front left wheel (the one with the thrashed spindle) went in fine but the right side hub sustained some damage from the blown out wheel bearing, check out the lip that's ground down that's brutal! Luckily the bearing on that side went in after cleaning up the inside of the bore a little, when I'm ready to clean up and paint the wheels I'll do some repair on it first in the form of welding to build it up then grinding/sanding it down. For now it should be good,  I won't be too hard on the tractor yet anyhow.



Even though the spindles are pretty heavy duty and have held up to who knows what kind(s) of abuse over the years I think I'll probably reinforce them to be safe, with gussets most likely.



It's interesting to see this kind of positive camber on a tractor isn't it? Maybe it was designed to be like that so when there's alot of weight on the front the axle flattens out some (like a long hauling trailer) and corrects the camber?  Maybe they flatten out some when turning (will check tomorrow)?



Thoughts/comments on that anyone?!

You can find a link to the wheel bearings by clicking here.

My thoughts are “Good looking tractor!”

Body filler in the steering wheel, a good sanding and then paracord wrap. Should look killer. There are multi color (like silver and black) cords available that would go good with that dash.

Lol thanks but I meant thoughts on that amount of positive camber on the front wheels and why!?

I was thinking more along the lines of fiberglass resin and torn up shredded mat snot/slime like junk I mix up for certain things like this but I do like the paracord idea and will keep it in mind!

If I’m correct it’s to prevent under steer. Tires dig in rather than slide. You see it on the older 2nd farm tractors sometimes.