1957 Lo-Boy followed me home

[radioguy41]

Complete redo of the dash; new gauge, switches, fuse block, and decal. Getting ready to test fit the hood before I paint it. New front tires are on the way. Once the hood is painted and on the only major part left is the front axle. Since I can't get it apart to widen it I'm going to just go ahead and paint it. Maybe down the line I can do something else with it.

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[Don McCombs]

What methodology have you tried to get the axle unstuck?

[radioguy41]

Soaking for weeks with penetrant, hydraulics, some heat. Neither side would budge. If I decide to take the front axle up to my welder buddy and have him put it in the big press and do a full number on it I want to have a spare tube on hand as a precaution.

[Don McCombs]

Here's a method that has worked for others in the past...

[radioguy41]

That's what I did. Didn't work. If I had used more pressure something would have been damaged and while FCub spindles can be readily found, LoBoy spindles are more difficult to locate. However, if I can find a good used tube then we can cut my tube and save the spindles. Not sure I want to go that route but it's an option. I may wait until the FEL is mounted and see what the balance feels like before making a decision. The rears are set at 52" wide.

[radioguy41]

Repaired the crankcase breather/dipstick with a pop rivet.

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[radioguy41]

Had a pair of new front tires shipped in. I know guys (and gals) often complain about having trouble mounting the new tires due to the beads being pressed together. Now this doesn't work on every tire. Different rubber compounds, ply ratings, bias/radial etc may react differently but it might be worth a try. Spread the beads enough to slip a short piece of 2x4 between then twist the 2x4 so the high side is now spreading the beads. Do this at least 3 times around the tire. Now here's the secret; set the tires out in the sun for a couple of hours. They should now be ready to mount. The combo of the blocks and the sun should soften the tire enough to make it easier to mount. Good luck and don't forget to spray liquid soap on the bead before mounting.

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[Don McCombs]

Let us know how the Deestone tire performs, after it’s been on a while.

[radioguy41]

I have a pair of Deestones on the FCub for about 5 years now and they're holding up fine.

[Jackman]

Had a pair of new front tires shipped in. I know guys (and gals) often complain about having trouble mounting the new tires due to the beads being pressed together. Now this doesn't work on every tire. Different rubber compounds, ply ratings, bias/radial etc may react differently but it might be worth a try. Spread the beads enough to slip a short piece of 2x4 between then twist the 2x4 so the high side is now spreading the beads. Do this at least 3 times around the tire. Now here's the secret; set the tires out in the sun for a couple of hours. They should now be ready to mount. The combo of the blocks and the sun should soften the tire enough to make it easier to mount. Good luck and don't forget to spray liquid soap on the bead before mounting.

Click on image for a larger view.
1957 Farmall Loboy-front tire-3s.jpg

I just mounted a new front front tire I did the hot sun method tire got nice and flexible and mounted somewhat easily if I had a tire tube fishing tool it would have been a breeze, removing the original Firestone was anything but easy I ended up cutting the bead with a sawzall.

[radioguy41]

Sprayed the hood yesterday. It has some mild surface pitting that I opted to let alone. I could have spent days filling and sanding but this is no show baby and besides, it's character and I like to leave a bit of the original character whenever I refurb something. While the hood was off I changed the engine oil and filter. Yikes what a mess. I would be willing to bet the oil filter drain had never been opened since it was new. I had to use a vicegrip to get the nut started and when I finally got it off nothing came out. I tried pushing a 12 inch skinny screwdriver up the drain and it was plugged solid. After much twisting and pushing some goop finally started to drip out. It was like thick black molasses. It took forever to get it all cleaned out but it's all better now.

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[NJ Farmer]

Larry I might recommend you drop the oil pan and clean the bottom of the oil pan….the sludge you cleaned out from the oil drain is the same “mud” that is laying in the bottom of the oil pan. That sludge is slowly eating away your steel oil pan from the inside out. Just a suggestion and your might be surprised how much has accumulated over the 60+ years….

NJ Farmer

[radioguy41]

Next up is the front tires installation, including painting the rims. As you can see in the photos I have some modifications on my trailer starting with a 2x6 across the front. I originally put that on in order to mount a hand winch to help pull the Cub Cadets and lawn tractors on board but I also added a tire hold down to use in changing smaller tires.

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[Don McCombs]

Great idea! And it gets it up to a good working height. Not down on the ground.

[radioguy41]

Used my electric winch and the leveler bar to hoist the hood on. Man does that work nice!
The radiator overflow tube was missing so after searching and researching I opted to do the "5 cent fix" as posted here on the forum several years ago. The only thing I did different was to slip an o-ring onto the screw prior to inserting it through the hole. Works great.

Link to the 5 cent fix if anyone's interested.
https://www.farmallcub.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=75812

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