Thursday, April 27, 2017

Farmhouse Construction Update #7

I said in the video that it was 0º.  Make that temp 32º (F).  My "mistake" means that my project of learning to think in degrees Celsius is working!  

I won't be able to work on the fireplace until June, when my friend Andy plans on coming up from Chicago to help me.


Monday, April 17, 2017

Repairs to the rotary hoe

The axles and shafts they spin in were fused together after decades of sitting outside and being exposed to the elements. I needed to get them apart and spinning freely.



By putting a piece of 3/4" x 1/8" strap in the slit I cut in the outer tube, the outside tube's diameter increased just enough to allow the rusty inner pipe to move freely.





I put some grease on the tire shafts and put them back in the sleeves. Now it's time to take the hoe up to the John Deere dealer and have them lift it off the trailer. Then I'll pull it, on the newly functioning tires, back to the farm.

Saturday, April 1, 2017

New Piece of Tillage Equipment - Rotary Hoe

Dad (Gramps?) found this piece at an auction and thought I'd be interested.  I brought it home yesterday.









Not sure where I read the thing weighs 3000 lbs. That seems a little on the high side.

In the video I mentioned a problem with the 7140 (the big red tractor). I found out what was wrong with the hinge - a connecting pin had sheared off! No idea how that happened, though the hinge on the other side of the hood had been repaired before with a bolt.  That's how I'll fix it. I drilled out the old 1/2" diameter shaft then, despite having piles of assorted fasteners here, I'm headed to the hardware store for the right bolt.