Should I buy this tractor? (not rhetorical)

[easydog]

Howdy all, new to the forum and to Farmall tractors. I'm looking at a 1952 Farmall Super A that seems to run well (though I'm no expert) and will be sold with a bunch of implements including a set of discs, several different plows, cultivators, a couple middle busters, corn scraper, draw bar, bean planter, fertillizer, rear wheel weights, and I think a box blade. The owner is asking $2500 for the lot. From what I can tell there are no obvious leaks that I can see, except some grease around the junction of the steering column and the front axle. It has a lovely patina of rust, but no rust throughs or structural rust problems, no welds noted anywhere. I would love some input on what else I should look for when assessing it's condition before I buy it. Any information you could give me would be greatly appreciated. I am attaching some pictures below. Thanks in advance!

[Eugene]

Test drive.

Start tractor up. Let idle for a couple of minutes to warm up. While warming up test the hydraulic system.

Drive tractor out of shed in 1st gear. Stop and shift into a higher gear. Then find a long level spot or preferable with a slight incline. Shift into 4th gear. Does the tractor pull well in 4th gear and if a slope will the tractor pull itself up the slope with out bogging down.

Operate the tractor for 20 or 30 minutes. When finished with the test drive, check the oil pressure reading on the gauge.

[Super A]

I see you're in eastern NC. I think that's about right, especially since you would get some implements. The grille doesn't look too bad. In addition to above, here are a couple of things I like to look for: If you have the chance run it until it warms up, see how much blow-by comes out of the breather sticking out the center of the hood. That can give you a clue on how worn the engine is. How much steering play? There will be some given its age, do you have to turn the wheel from say 12:00 to 2:00 before the wheels move (not bad) or say 12:00-4:00? (pretty worn) You can also drive it in high gear and see if the front wheels try to shake back and forth. Finally, grab hold of the left rear tire at the top. Try to push in and out, towards and away from the tractor. If you can feel the wheel wobble in the housing, that means it's got a lot of wear on it. Not the end of the world but will give you an idea how hard it's worked. Looks like it has original paint, I love to see them like that even with some rough edges!

Al

[easydog]

Thanks for the replies. I should note that I plan on maintaining a small hobby farm and will need to work 4-5 acres. I will be taking it for an extended drive including working some of the implements tomorrow. The steering is tight, wheels move at no more than 1 o'clock. I have to ask, how much blow by is too much? Also, what should the oil pressure read after running for a while? I will check for wheel wobble tomorrow. Should I check the fuel filter, oil, or radiator fluid? I am pretty inexperienced with these things, but am mechanically inclined.

[Super A]

Thanks for the replies. I should note that I plan on maintaining a small hobby farm and will need to work 4-5 acres. I will be taking it for an extended drive including working some of the implements tomorrow. The steering is tight, wheels move at no more than 1 o'clock. I have to ask, how much blow by is too much? Also, what should the oil pressure read after running for a while? I will check for wheel wobble tomorrow. Should I check the fuel filter, oil, or radiator fluid? I am pretty inexperienced with these things, but am mechanically inclined.

On the blowby, I'm not a real god mechanic but IMO you don't want it fogging out the breather all the time. If the engine is nice and tight you shouldn't see much if any. I have an un-restored Super A that if you pull its guts out it will fog just a wisp once in a while. Oil pressure: Notice the gauge when you first start it up, and as you run it. How much does it fall as it gets warmed up? Again my un-restored Super A will register fairly high on the gauge and after it runs a while it will drop down about halfway. The less it drops the better. You don't want it to go down into the red zone. Also notice the exhaust. Any smoke? For its age it will probably smoke a bit at startup, but hopefully clear up once it's running/working. Look in the radiator when it's running but still cool. Any bubbles or signs of oil?

I notice the battery--has it been changed to 12 volt or is it still 6 volt? That sort of looks like an 8 volt battery. If it has 4 caps on the top where you check the electrolyte it's an 8 volt. Somebody was trying to Band-Aid an electrical problem, probably a starting issue. The battery cable that I can see is not heavy enough for 6 volts--you need some 2/0 cables. If you buy it the first thing I would do is get some decent battery cables made up for it and get a good 6 volt battery in it--assuming it is still 6 volts. If you have an alternator on the left side, it's been converted to 12.
(If it is charging, ignore those that say you should convert it to 12. Properly maintained 6 volt is fine. That is strictly my opinion)

Just for fun, what's the serial number? It has the bolt style tie rod ends on it and a sealed beam headlight--they didn't show up until '53.

Hope this helps,
Al

[easydog]

Got to drive the tractor today. She started up on the first pull of the starter rod, had a bit of dark exhaust for about 5 seconds, then it was clear from then on. The engine seemed to be missing just a bit when it was cold, but as it warmed up it purred like a kitten. I worked it through the whole range of throttle in all gears with no problems and it seemed to pull plenty strong in all. I have to say that fourth gear is a LOT faster speed than third, about threw myself off the seat. The steering is very tight with minimal play. The touch controls for the hydraulics worked perfectly. I again inspected the engine for any leaks and could not find any before or after running for about 30 minutes. I did notice a little blowby from the breather when cold, but it totally went away when warmed up for a minute. The rear wheels had no wobble that I could elicit. The PTO and belt pulley seemed to engage normally. I really enjoyed the ride this evening with the sun going down over some soybean fields.

The owner has a bunch of implements he is selling with the tractor including (pardon my ignorance with the exact names, I'm new to this) a 5' disc harrow, two bottom plows, two full sets of cultivators, corn stalk cutter, a planter with several different plates, a fertilizer with no hopper, two middle busters, two disc plows, draw bar, and what I think is a timber saw that mounts to the rear draw bar and uses the belt pulley. He may have a couple other implements in his shed he will throw in as well.

Negatives are some dents in the grill and on the upper sheet metal but nothing terrible, it needs a new belt for the belt pulley, no hopper for the fertilizer, and of course has quite a bit of surface rust. One thing that I'm not sure is normal or bad is when I was driving in fourth gear with plenty of throttle, there was quite a bit more of a whine that sounded like it was coming from under the seat. Is this a normal sound in fourth gear, or should I look at the axle closer?

Anyway, he's willing to let it go with all the mentioned implements for $2000 which seems more than fair to me as long as it is in as good condition as it seems. Any advice that would help me convince the wife this a good deal would be appreciated.

[Super A]

I am guessing, without hearing it, that the 4th gear whine is more or less normal, particularly for something 60+ years old. With those implements, I would be hooking up my trailer......

Al

[Denny Clayton]

I am guessing, without hearing it, that the 4th gear whine is more or less normal, particularly for something 60+ years old. With those implements, I would be hooking up my trailer......

Al

[Dale Finch]

I'd already be there with my trailer and $$!! Good luck!

BTW...Super A is a good source of knowledge as well as this forum.

[easydog]

Ok. I'm convinced. I'll take some more pics and likely return with more questions once it's at my house. Thanks for all the advice!

[Super A]

By all means send more pictures! Get your serial # and we can figure out what year it is.

Al

[easydog]

Serial #: 348565 so she is a `53. Nice call Al. Too late for Pictures.

[easydog]

Update: So my dad and I got to work on the super A. We changed spark plugs, distributor cap and points, and drained the crankcase, transmission, hydraulics, and rear axles and replaced with 15W-40 in the crankcase and Hy-tran everywhere else. We didn't find any mechanical damage (yet ) but we did find this interesting washer in the left rear axle oil pan just loose and rolling around. Anybody have a clue where it belongs? It is fairly bent and aroung 2 1/4" in diameter.

[easydog]

Also, in typical fashion, the old girl had a harder time starting and running last night with fresh fluids than with the mud we took out of her. Is this common?

Another issue was this morning it wouldn't start, meaning no activity at all when the correct start sequence was attempted. I may have left the start/stop button pulled out in the start position last night. Would that drain the battery? I didn't have the tools to check the battery today but it really seems like it is dead because nothing would happen at all when we tried to start her.

I have to say, we did not enjoy the random 5/16 square bit transmission fill level plug. Had to grind down a Allen wrench to fit it. Hilarity ensued as it was quite late at that point.

Should I start a new thread more appropriately named as I am sure to have a bunch more questions?

[havoc1482]

Yes, if you leave the kill switch out it will drain the battery. I've learned that the hard way before at work lol