As another Lame Cherry exclusive in matter anti matter.
In the archives you can find my first project in converting a junk roto tiller to a reborn tiller. As I always believe I need 3 of everything, when I came across this in JYG's late last fall in a dump off, I knew I hit gold as it has the side pulley which is what you want as the old Wards has a center spindle and that is too much work to deal with them.
This was a Firestone tiller. I had no idea the tire outlet made tillers, nor did anyone else really as I only found one photo. It was Echo who in another post here will show an AI functioning at their best in being informed the information was not fitting what I had, and Echo dug more, and I came to knowledge explaining what no one else knew, which will be included here and in another post in how to remedy it.
Below is the first part of this project in the tubeless tires in the hubs were shot. So the Holy Ghost told me to go see if the tires from an old Wards which JYG game me would work. They did, so they switched out and now I have now wiggling hubs from a Wards on a Firestone. I would like to put the Firestones back on if I can fix the hubs as the tires are wider and heavier.
Next up is the fitting. This took a bit as there is a heat shield on this by the pulleys for the engines. That was in the way of the electric motor, and as drilling wood, in this case rare California Redwood which JYG had and I got for the horse trailer, it became the mounting platform for the motor.
A motor is electric. An engine burns fuel. So we get this straight.
Below you see the first hole drilled to mount to the tiller.
Voila, after nigger jigging and rigging, the motor pulley was lined up with the tiller pulleys so the belt ran straight. It was tight but I was thankful in I did not have to cut the heat sheild back which would have been more work.
I also used 3 wire sump pump wire to wire in the motor with a plug in. Got the motor off Ebay for around 100 dollars. Is a 2 horsepower and they work very well with these front tine tillers.
This is the tiller as it was completed. I will go into a bit of detail now in the problem. There was allot of old grease and dirt build up on the gear housing. I could not find a place to fill with oil or grease. It was Echo who posted that some of the early tillers were packed at the factor with grease and were good for the life of the machine.
I think some jazzbo took this apart, filled it with a grease which liquified and ran out. So I was wondering what the heck the seals were like as I was not going to replace them in it probably would be a cussing nightmore for me with bleeding hands and I already was blood soaked as putting a JYG pulley on the motor, I sliced my finger without knowing and wondered where all the red blood was coming from.
JYG says you will quit bleeding. Mind did not stop for 2 days. So much for that advice.
So what we concluded was to drill a hole in the tiller gear box and NOT clipping the gears or chain. I had to engineer a rubber bung plug as we do not have expanding well nuts here that would fit or in existence.
I pumped it full of a tube Mystick Red #2 high temperature all purpose grease with a pint of Lucas hub oil sealer and when tested, it did not leak, and did not leak when it sat over night.
Pay attention to this as you will find allot of threads with horseshit ideas on it and I ended up with Mystik from O'Reilly's with the Lucas mix. Others used OO gear oil or Corn Picker grease.
Lastly we come to the Ford red painted tiller as I manufactured the bung plug today and got it shoved in, and painted her up. I priced a tiller at the farm store for 400 dollars. I would believe my old girl is going to last a whole lot longer than a gas engine tiller and whatever is being churned out now in gears.
This one has a belt pulley tightener, but when it is loose, and I engage it spins the belt off yet as it is an old one from JYG's. I just keep it slack, and before I start tilling, I engage it as there is no pull on the motor plugging it in with the tines out of the dirt........and don't start it on the ground or it will run away from you. You don't want the tines chewing into the power cord.
All of this started long ago in the Farm Show magazine in a guy posted about putting an electric motor on a tiller. I thought that was wonderful and was so pleased after agonizing that it did indeed work.
I still have to put a shot of spray foam insulation on where the cord goes into the motor to seal it up, but this girl from probably the early 1970's is good to go for another half century. I like electric, the cords you have to pay attention too, but I never pull my arm off like on a gas engine which will not start which they never do when you want to use them.
One more thing. The first tiller I converted had the handles to the side like a motor cycle. This one as you can see the handles are up. This is better as you get more leverage as the other one I have to fight it more.
The reality is though as most of these old tillers are melted down in China by idiot Americans who trashed them, any of these old tillers are worth getting a hold of and they will work for gardening.
I really hope a few more of these tillers appear, but with most geezers now tits up from that era, the chances of their appearing is slim. I think in the past 3 years, I have only come across 3 of them with the side pulley and I got all 3.
If you find one save it as you will probably never find one again.
Nuff Said
agtG
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