Author Archives: robsworkshop

Kubota B2400 Tractor Project

Sept 2014:

This is a Kubota B2400… And this is where I found it .. Way up a rural road.. Way up.. Truth is this is the second time I’ve seen it .. The first time was the winter of 2012.. and it had a lot of snow on it and it was down at a shop in the Kettle Valley. And I was not very impressed. However the owner dropped the price .. a lot.. And I hemmed and hawed.. for a year and a half.. What the heck.. I can’t really lose.. The motor runs.. and it’s a Kubota ! would be a great winter project just like the Kubota F2400 was. This too has been sitting for years .. because something went wrong in the gears… locking up the rear wheels.. The owner did not want to pay thousands to fix it ..so here I am.

And there it goes… great way to try the new trailer out.. This photo was taken quickly at the Midway Scale.. Yes this is a small tractor. And fixed up it will fetch $6000. to $7000. so hell yes I’ll fix it..

I had to use the BX to lift it because the rear wheels would not turn.

The Loader alone is worth quite a bit.. But the loader & tractor together has more value.

It’s more than just the gears. Cosmetically this tractor is a hurting unit.. Needs new tires too. So it’s not a cheap fix. But ! This is a Kubota.. and I know how hard they work and how durable they are. This was a very nice one .. with lots of good features. :

Hydrostatic Drive with Hi / low range
4 wheel drive
Bi- Speed Power steering ?
Separate wheel Brakes for fast turns
Two Speed PTO.
Mid PTO.. so a Mower deck can work to.
Legendary 24 hp 3 cylinder Kubota Diesel

What more could you want..? Maybe someone to figure out where the pieces go.. Naa I’m good at that. But there is a lot of levers and no labels. But I’ve got the Operators manual… and the Shop manual on my computer.

How does this Kubota Differ from My BX :

Aside from the size.. And the B2400 is a bit bigger, both the wheels and the motor. There is some more conventional tractor stuff.. a clutch, split brakes, also a cruise control.. Missing stuff.. well even though there is a mid PTO all the mower deck hook ups are missing. The BX has turn signals.. the B2400 just has hazard flashers.

I’m not thinking this tractor ever had a mower deck.. Given that all four farm tires were filled with calcium for weight .. this was just a front end loader tractor..

Into The Shop :

First I took the chains off the rear wheels.. Then with the BX I could lift the rear..UGGG.. well I guess there must be calcium in the tires.. because it’s heavy. The little guy could only bare some of the weight.. but enough to move it.. And that lifted my rear wheels off the ground.. Good thing for 4×4 ! Once I had it in the middle of the driveway.. I used the BX to lift the loader off.. and set it aside. Now we can asses the situation.

The Work Starts:

I’m actually starting this project kinda early.. so there will be a lot of time when nothing is done.. and I’m playing with other stuff.. No worries..no hurries. Better stock up on brake cleaner & penetrating oil… there is a lot of rusty bolts. I putzed a bit on it after getting in the shop.. The rear wheels need to come of .. But the nuts won’t budge. I removed the remaining fender.. motor covers.. the very dead battery.. Peeked into the top of the differential case.. hmm The mechanic had taken some stuff a part to see if the problem was obvious.. so all the covers are off the transmission and diff.. and some leavers are hanging there too.. oh fun..

LOCKED WHEELS…. FIXED !

Dave got home from the coast and was really wanting to check out the tractor.. last time he saw it was when it was buried in snow. So curiosity got the best of us.. And here’s an example of how good Dave and I are at diagnosing a problem when we put our heads together. First I have to say that the mechanic that looked at the tractor and said “big job to fix” did not raise the rear wheels off the ground.. AND may or may not have noticed that the floor boards where the return springs for the foot brakes are attached… were so beat up that those springs were gone.. (I have them in a bucket of parts).. Not that he is not a good mechanic.. no I would not say that.. I think he just wasn’t interested in the job …. SO with the wheels in the air we are able to turn shafts and try different levers… to see what was stopping the wheels.. One of those things was the brakes.. Dave was able to wiggle the wheels just a bit.. and so I thought I’d try the brakes to see if they worked.. Well there was not much movement in the pedal… but they seamed floppy. so I pulled back on them and …. the wheels turned ! The freak’n brakes were on! Just the weight of the big brake pedals was enough to hold the wheels from moving ! Wow are those good brakes. So the cause of all the problems is the poor condition of the floor boards.. They are seriously bent up and the metal is broken in lots of places.. They are interfering with the operation of the brakes as well as the forward & reverse controls.

See how beat up they are.. the bottom one in the photo is the one that caused the most grief. It even has a hole worn in it..

In the above photo you can see how the weight of those big pedals and their arms can pull on the brakes.

SO now I need to put those covers back on the transmission.. Move the tractor back outside and give it a good bath.. Then replace the filters and new fluids.. and see how it runs.

Ok I got the three covers back on the Transmission.. Had to sort out which bolts go where.. and Clean everything good. I use Permatex silicone gasket goo.. for sealing thing up. It now makes sense what lever is what.. and where it goes.. Looks like I’m missing the control knob for the rear lift. Considering all the bits & pieces were in a soggy falling apart box.. I’m doing good.

Rob Puttith together… Rob Takeith apart:

No not the stuff I just put together.. I want to clean up the tractor.. One hidden area was behind the dash panel. So I took that apart.. And look at the crap there.. Plus after I pulled the steering wheel off I noticed a missing bearing or bushing ? So that needs a fix.. Also the wiring is back there and that needs attention. Oh ya..

The Kubota light switch is a weak spot. I had to fix the one on my BX. They are not very water proof.. and tend to stop working.. Good thing I made sure to check this one out.. Look at the wires they are melted ! In fact there was a bit of a fire in the dash.. because a few things are melted.. Mostly wires .. no real damage. Now that switch would not have worked well.. or at all. and could have caused the meltdown or fire.. I’m thinking that replacing this with two sturdy toggle switches would be wise.

Got most of the parts:

And I’ve also given the tractor a much needed bath.. Now that things are clean ..it will be easier to work on.

And the motor too.. Next step is too change the oil , the filters and run the motor… test the drive & hydraulics .

It’s the thanksgiving long weekend.. and I can’t get the new filters till Tuesday.. So I did two things.. Cleaned and repaired the fuel filter.. The shut off was not working so I took it apart and found the handle just bent enough that it would not make contact with the valve in side.. FIXED. and the new fuel filter was installed. That’s one step closer to starting the motor. Clean Fuel ! Also I did the cleaning and checking of the dash..

You can see the damage done to the back of the dash panel.. none of that is seen on the front.. Lucky me !

See it’s now clean and no damage.. Almost 6000 hrs on the tractor.. It’s 17 years old.. but hasn’t moved for at least 3 years.. so 14 years and that would be about 430 hrs a year.. That’s a lot..

I polished the lens and painted the bezel.. so it’s ready to go.

While I was waiting for the oil filters .. I thought I’d hook up the battery and see that the starting circuit was working.. Well that’s where I found out the Fuel shut off solenoid has failed.. went through all the tests and it’s hooped. The rest is good .. the motor turned over , the glow pug light is on.. So with a new solenoid we should have the diesel running in no time.. ( I’ll be working alone now that Dave has gone hunting so he will miss that starting up of the motor) .

Oh and no you can’t run the motor without it .. cause when you turn the key on ..it powers the solenoid to open the fuel injector. turn the key off, no power ..solenoid shuts off fuel.. that’s how this diesel stops. Some diesels have that the other way .. power needed to shut down the motor.. those motors will run with no battery too. So add a solenoid to the list of parts needed. Ordered and on the way..

Meanwhile……

Went and got the new filters today.. but still can’t test the motor.. So I turned my attention to the seat support.. which also holds one of the levers .. the Bi-Speed steering control.

Yes SIX.. here you can see the rear seat mount (blue) and how it holds the Bi-speed select lever (red knob). Now all the levers are in place and proudly functioning they way they should. They look kinda weird .. but when the fenders are on and the guides, it will make sense. See the very first photo to see what I mean.

These seat slide parts were badly rusted and a weld was broken. So with a liberal amount of liquid wrench.. and the impact I got everything into a pile of pieces. Not sure about salvaging the seat.. one of the bolts broke off.. The seat has a slider for back & forward adjustment..and it was locked up tight too.. The seat mounts help hold up the fenders.. witch help to hold up the floorboards.. everything is connected.. so it’s important to fix these parts and making them stronger is my goal.

The new box of parts came and they sent the wrong solenoid ! so I need to go to Kelowna and exchange it. Good thing I’m not really in a hurry.

Ok I got the right parts now.. and put things back together.. air filters, solenoid.. Filled the motor oil. And I thought it would be good if I turned the motor over a few times to get the oil moving… and Bam! the motor started.. WTF.. there is no diesel in the tank.. or fuel lines.. But there must have been some in the injectors ! It ran for less than 30 seconds and I turned the key off.. Well I guess the motor is OK.

I put some fresh Diesel in the tank and ..this time ran the exhaust out the door…

And here’s a short clip… proof that the motor runs.. and good too !

But the wheels still won’t turn……

Nov 11 2014:

By running the motor I could test the drive train.. and found out the the PTO’s both work fine. The clutch is working good.. The three point lift arms go up and down.. We already know how well the brakes work 🙂 . But the hydrostatic moaned and did nothing.. So after alot of studying so as to understand how that unit works .. we tried to get the hydro motor to turn using the rear wheels.. and that took a lot of pushing on a big bar & socket on the axle.. But we did get it turning.. Maybe Buddy kept tromping on the hydro drive after the brakes locked on.. and heated things up … and we are hoping no damage was done. Oh and to do the test we needed to drain the tranny and remove the top cover to see make sure the shafts were turning.. And of coarse that meant dropping a part down into the tranny.. No today I’ll fish that out clean the filter screen , reseal the covers and refill the fluid.

Also of interest … I made a trip to Salmon Arm just to get a three point hitch setup for this tractor.. so now I have these much needed parts..

Well not so good news… The HST is pooched.. so it’s rebuild or replace ? Makes a lot of not good noises.. This could be a pricey part.. so some thinking has to happen here…

Ok thought about it.. I put the Kubota up for sale as is.. and see if I can at least get the money back that I’ve spent.. and I sold it within two days.. to a local fella.. Actually same guy I bought the tandem trailer from.. And I used his old trailer …now improved to take the Kubota over to his shop.. GONE SOLD… on to better things.

1992 Trave-L-Mate Fifth Wheel Trailer

Sept 16 2014:

I know.. can’t tow two RV’s ..and where do I store a second one anyway.. However when it’s FREE.. .and my Nephew was going to need a place to sleep while reno’s are happening … then you say YES !

A friend and long time customer of Mo’s .. husband got ill and has been in the hospital for a few years now .. she sold the house and is moving to a condo… also getting too old for towing a trailer around. all those things and then the roof got a leak…She just wanted it gone. The whole trailer is in great shape except the roof.. In fact it’s a very deluxe trailer.. all the goodies you need for “Glamping”

I also got the hitch.. and I’ll mount that in my truck.. Free stuff does not come without work.. and so the roof needs to be peeled back and repairs done.. That will be next spring. For now we will tarp it for the winter and deal with it next year.

A new Chevy 2500..

We decided that a more reliable truck would work better. I bought this one before I quit the car lot.. This truck came equipped to pull trailers. Even has the fifth wheel hitch installed.. Also has the heavy duty Allison Transmission and a 8.1 L 399 hp V8. It’s a big truck .. the quad goes in the back with room to spare.

Well it’s June 2015 and I’ve got the Fifth wheel in the Franknport to get the roof fixed. It’s taken a few weeks just to remove all the vents , A/C and the trim from the roof. I’ve now rolled up the aluminum roof..

The roll of tin. not going back on.

Well you find out quickly how bad things are once the aluminum is off. It’s still wet under the metal.. even after months of no rain getting on the roof. Quite a bit of the plywood is de- laminating .

I’ve got about half the roof off.. the rotten half. Once I’m done with the demolition I will clean up …then it’s construction time !

July 5 2015:

The Roof is completely cleaned off. The mess is gone… and we are ready to build a new roof.

I have all my supplies : new rubber roof/ glue, New fridge vent & cover, new plumbing vent. Maxair covers for the roof vents. I also have enough 2×6 treated lumber for the rafters.. And because I don’t want the roof to sag ever again.. I’m custom cutting all the rafters to be arched on top.. Thicker in the middle where it’s needed. I’m building in 4 ft x 8ft panels so they can be lifted into place easy.

I have now got four of the five sections in place.. Only the rear one is screwed down.. Once they are all up I’ll attach them with ceramic coated screws.. they won’t rust or react with the treated wood.

A thing of beauty.. There is finish strips for the seams, lights and vents.. The big whole is for the A/C unit . I laid the tin roof out and copied the location of all the vents and A/C.. fudged just a bit on some to get the right spacing on the rafters. But it’s all back the same .. Minus the skylight.. and the TV antenna.

The whole roof is on now.. Interior I mean. and most of the finishing inside is done as well. Like this new light I added to the living room.. It’s close to the kitchen so it benefits from some extra light. The wires went across the roof anyway so why not add a light. The new ceiling is a brighter white as well, making it far less dark.

Onward…

I now have all the insulation done and today I got the 1/4 ” ply on the roof.

Getting there.

And here’s the 1/4″ Ulay ply installed.. lots of screws.. 5 sheets did the whole roof. You can really see the slight curve in the roof.. Now to glue the rubber on.

July 19 2015:

Well … Git R Done.. and with only a week to spare.. So close to a finish.. The wrinkles are ok.. you should never stretch the roof.. and I was working with a fast drying glue.. As you can see all the vent’s, covers and the A/C is back where they belong.. All the trim is back too.. Just some fiberglass repair and a bead of RV sealant left and we are ready for whatever mother nature can throw at the roof.

Well the Fiver can come out to play now.. Install the fridge and give the plumbing the once over.

Update … Well after a few years the roof leaked again at the rear this time.. And no matter what we tried we could not stop the leaking. The damage was done so it’s not being used and destined for scrap. SAD.

2014 Polaris Sportsman 400 NEW

Aug 26 2014:

Time for a new Quad. Everything came together .. I sold the 300 Polaris… These were on sale till the end of Aug. Very low financing rate.. If I take good care of it … should last me a long time.

New And Blue !

Here’s what it looks like without the extras. I’m adding a few goodies.

Here’s what it looks like in my shop after a quick trip to get it. I am thrilled .. brand new . Because I’m enjoying quading so much.. and the older one was… old.. and would always need help. This is going to be a pleasure to ride.. can’t wait till Sunday. I need to attach the accessories I got .. the photo above shows the new bag I have..

Last night I got all the goodies mounted up.. A railing around the rear rack, My new three compartment bag and the mirrors.

I also mounted the LED brake light .. but I need to figure out the wiring to hook it up. And I had to cut slots in the rack to run the hold down straps for the bag through. A draw back for a big flat rack.. but with the padding in my bag and that flat surface.. things I put in the bag will stay protected. Plenty of room for my little gas can too.

When you add all this front storage .. I have way more than I need. This is a cool feature of the Sportsman, dry, hidden and lockable. I don’t like anything on the front rack to block my view so this is nice to have.

The mirrors are fold away and very rugged.. I’m hoping that they work well and I don’t grow to hate them.. On lots of rides there is always someone behind you.. and I like to check to see that they are still there.. Compared to the 300 the body of the 400 is way wider.. the fenders cover the wheels and then some.. The foot wells are huge. I could wear shorts & sandals… but I wont. The quad is quite a bit higher too.. but that’s because we are now riding on 12 ” wheels not 8″ and the clearance under the 400 is close to 12″ wow. I also think that at 688 lbs we are now more than 200 lbs heavier. That should translate to a better ride.

I could not resist at least one pimp… I found these in one of many boxes of goodies from the motor home. LED marker lights that you can change the color.. Red, green, yellow.. but Blue is cool. I was nosing around under the access panel to the fuses and found two auxiliary power wires.. They would be for things like hand warmers. So I used one.. Also noticed the wires are in place for a winch. And yes I’ve got a winch.. 4000 lb one is now on the front..

I’ve been on no less than 8 rides now.. 20 hrs on the meter.. and I love this quad.. so smooth.. quiet.. so far reliable.

Jan. 2019: After enjoying this quad for years I traded it for a 2014 RZR 570.. same color of blue.. Post is HERE

2010 Ram 1500 Laramie

Aug 2014:

This was a good deal… and we felt it was time for a truck up grade.. The decision was made to advertize the Avalanche and see what happened.. it sold within a week.. so home came this LOADED.. Dodge. Just in time to go camping.. So I had to get some racks installed for the kayaks..

These quickly put together racks turned out to be great.. And this truck has 100 more hp than the Avalanche.. so the trailer is no problem.. Has trailer mirrors and factory built in controller. In fact it has every option possible for the year.. Nav, heated /cooled seats, back-up cam, remote start…. on and on.. Check out my new plate.. yup “robeye”. The Interior is very nice .

This photo was taken by me for the lot.. hence the price tag.. I’m a console type of guy.. so this suits me just fine.. And I’m very fussy about gauge placement, and Dodge got it right in 2010. I also don’t like cheapness in the trim. They got that right too. The knobs feel good to the touch. And everything is trimmed nicely. Even the top of the dash is stitched leather… nice.

1995 Polaris 300 4×4

May 29 2014:

Don’t even try to keep up with me !

You will hurt yourself..

Everyone was getting a quad.. I had a Sportsman 500 this winter… as a fixer upper project… but I found it to be complicated and just a tad too big to fit my Avalanche. They are great quads.. but I sure liked the profit that the sale brought me.. and it was time to move on to the Bazoo . Now with that done.. it’s again time to move on.. But I want to have some fun this summer.. Then this little guy kinda fell into my lap while advertising a trade with the Bazoo.. The price was low enough that I could just buy it and not trade. It’s in awesome shape.. not a fixer.. not a project.. Oh but I can always find something to fiddle with.. Also it fits in the back of the Avalanche ( if I wanted too). That’s how it came home. I would rather use the trailer, less scary when you’re backing up off of..

There was some questions as to what model this Polaris is.. a call to MainJet and with the vin # was able to clear things up.. it’s simply a 300 4×4. And it was purchased new in Deer Park, Wa. just south of here.. so it’s a US model.. I believe it was bought there and brought here.. so it’s a GF’er .. Cool.. The 288 cc motor is a 2 cycle with oil injection.. Plenty of power and still good on fuel. No liquid cooling on this one.. just a fan when needed.

I’m going to service it.. once I get a peak at the repair manual.. Then I’m going to ride it.. Oh it came with a snow blade.. That I don’t want, so I sold it.. Made the 300 4×4 even cheaper

The Green & tan kinda grows on ya.. Look at the seat.. other than being dirty.. it’s in good condition for 20 years old.

June 10 2014:

Now that we are back from our trip to Alberta I want to get caught up.. This Sunday I would like to use the Polaris so I’m giving it a go over. And that required the removal of some of the plastic.. First: … it runs good IF you remember to shut the fuel off. Seams the float in the Carb is not doing a good job and the fuel will flood the motor.. So I’ll need a carb kit to rebuild the carb.. Second: .. The front drive chain did not “just” come off.. It broke. Not a biggy.. it’s just standard motorcycle chain. Really… that’s only two things out of a possible many.. Oops I forgot the pull start rope could use another wrap around the pulley.. but it still works. Everything else is working good. Dave and I are marveling at how good shape the little Polaris is.. So I’m ordering a Carb kit, chain & air cleaner.. that’s it. For Now..

More like 5 wraps for the pull starter.. Over time the spring gets weak and won’t return the cord.. all fixed now. As I was putting the body parts back ..the head light bulb went pop.. and that was that .. These are a special bulb that you have to buy from Polaris.. I’ll have none of that.. so I’m adapting a regular Brake/ Taillight holder into the old bulb.. this way I can use a LED bulb I have.. If this ends up not working I can easily revert back. As for the Override switch issue …(the Guy that I got it from thought it normal to push the override button every time you use reverse) NO.. shouldn’t have to… I decided to disconnect the speed limiter circuit for now.. It stalls the motor .. So something is not working there.. I’ll have to be careful because this is a safety thing.. preventing you from going too fast in reverse. I also added a 12 volt power outlet.. newer quads have them.. and I’ll need that for my GPS. Let’s see how the ride goes this Sunday..

First Ride.. Fathers Day too.

Don’t have to go far.. just a 5 min drive and you are on some great trails. Dave , me.. and my neighbor Brian.. And we choose to just go up behind Valley Heights. Just over 3 hrs of riding. Brian’s new Honda.. Dave’s trusty Yellow Polaris Sportsman 500 ..(the one I rode when I first went quading last summer.. see POST) and my little Polaris 300… The weather was threatening to rain.. .but it held off for the most part.. Great ride.. And the 300 purrrred like a 2 cycle kitten. Didn’t need 4×4 .. nope.. got along fine without. The only thing that may or may not be an issue is my front struts. They bag hard when you “top out” ( wheel off the ground) I’ll find out if I need something for that..

Anyway this was a familiar trail for me from my mountain biking days . The others had not been there before. So I lead the way.. If I’d had a map we could have made a loop trip instead of doubling back.. But we took a few side roads and checked out the pond that’s hiding up there. Hey it was fun.. and I wished the weather was better.. and we went longer..

Fixin a few things:

As mentioned at the start of this post there are a few little things to fix.. I got the parts this last weekend.. A new chain for the front drive, a carb kit to fix the flooding issue .. and a new air filter. One more thing that I found to be needing is a new fuel shutoff . The 20 year old one has a tiny leak… Can’t have that.. So that’s on order.

If you turn the fuel valve to off.. it leaks.. If you leave it on.. the carb filled up with fuel.. or did till I fixed that. Also of interest I found a vent hose in the overflow place and the overflow hose on a vent ? That would not help at all with that flooding !

Here you see the carb all clean and rebuilt.. and the vent & overflow hoses in the right places. The two lines tee together and have a one-way valve. Their purpose is not explained any where.. I’m thinking of adding that extra shutoff and a new filter. The new shutoff will be under the seat.. I bought new 3/16 ” fuel line today.. as well. So all will be good… Just the way I like it..

I decided not to install the extra shut-off. Keep it simple. I re-assembled everything and put some gas in the tank to check for leaks.. none. Then I fired up the motor to make sure nothing went out of adjustment.. runs good. So I must have the float adjusted properly…

With the mechanical end of things in good order.. I decided to do a little “pimping”. I’m building the winch mount .. and I’ve repainted the racks.

The green paint was wearing off … and I like the look of the satin black.. it matches the frame. I also installed the new bag I bought for the rear rack..

But it works.. I’ll maybe get a couple of small tubs to put inside .. hold some tools & stuff..

The Winch:

This quad never had a winch.. So I had to start from scratch. There was lots of room up front.. so I built a holder. It’s just a small 1500 lb one.. but the quad is light.. and the winch was a price I could live with.. A nice little roller fairing in front.. and there you go. I always carry a tow strap as well and I’ll have a “snatch block” which doubles the pulling power.. if needed. I’m not one to go places I’ll get into trouble.. But one never knows ! Boy Scout rule applies here.. The other rule is don’t get lost… !

So my GPS is also there when I need it.. powered by the 12volt plug and I will mostly use the trip / speed feature. Would be nice to have a new one that had topo maps.

As the Summer goes on:

I’ve gotten out on a few great rides. Been to the top of a few local mountains.

Old lookout towers are on a few peaks, so there is a trail to the top. Like Mount Morrissey in the above photo. This is the highest peak between here and Christina Lake. We’ve explored a lot around the Phoenix area too. Lots of good trails up there.. And the last trip (with the ATV club) was to Renata on the Arrow Lakes. A long 120 km ride which really challenged the little 300. My tank of fuel won’t last that long..

Now that fitting a regular sized quad in my truck is not an issue .. a newer 400 or 500 would be nice. Hmmm.

Aug 23 2014: SOLD

I’m taking the plunge… will be buying a new quad next week. I sold the 300 within the day of listing it. Off the Nelson on Tuesday to pick up a 2014 Sportsman 400 HO.

Liberty Backhoe for my Kubota

Three weeks ago I bit the bullet and ordered (on line) a very small backhoe attachment for my Kubota. It came to the Depot just the other side of the border and I went and brought it home.. That free shipping within the US was a deal breaker.. so that was the best way to get it.

This is the SMALLEST backhoe that you can buy.. And that’s good because my tractor is small too. I ordered orange.. though not quite a match , But I can live with it. It took me about 4 hours to unpack, assemble & get it attached to the tractor. The instructions are poor.. so it was a “figure it out yourself” kind of project. Good thing I’m a “figure it out myself” kind of guy.. My overall impression is good.. The quality seems to be at par with any Kubota attachment I have.

In this photo you can see the reason I have yet to really try the backhoe out.. the roll bar on my tractor is IN THE Way.. can’t sit on the seat.. I’m not a fan of the roll bar anyway, hits trees.. Kubota has R.O.P.S on all the tractors for safety. It was suggested to me to just cut off the top only so that there is still some roll over protection. Not a bad idea… Hmm maybe arm rest and grab handles .. cup holders ! I do have metal & welder..

As I look at the three point hitch mount I see room for improvement there too. A sub frame like the BX 24 D has for the Kubota backhoe is something I could make. One cool thing with this backhoe is that it has it’s own hydraulic system , tank, pump and valves.. it’s driven with the rear PTO from the tractor.. and works even at low motor rpm’s. They supplied me with a new PTO shaft . But it needs to be trimmed to length. So I just used the one from my Rototiller . it was the right length.

So I took the rops off.. so I could at least give the backhoe a try. The perch (seat) is good you can really see what you are doing… but the doing is going to take some practice. I found the controls to be … “unnatural” .

I kept wanting to push forward on the left stick to lower the main boom. And pull back to raise it.. I guess that makes sense to me because the front loader works that way.. and I’m getting very good at that. As you can see by the control diagram that they have it the other way. Which is different than the manual. Scratch..scratch.. I will swap the hoses around .. Because I’ll wrap my brain around working with the two sticks better. But I was digging away awkwardly and yes it’s small but it digs ! and I tried some sod too and no problem… big rocks are a problem … Big roots too.. so there are limits.

I removed the backhoe from the tractor tonight and pulled the cover off the valves.. Yup will be easy to swap the hoses.. not bothering till we get home from our Alberta trip in a week.

With the hose swapped the operation is more natural now.. And by the end of summer i’ve had a few chances to use the hoe. first I found out how deep it will dig when trying to remove a concrete slab in the yard. 4 ft ! that’s it.. It is a very small hoe after all.. so I can’t expect much. But dig trenches… Yes ! and quick too.. I can move forward from the backhoe seat too. I’m getting good..

Update 2019…

I’ve used the back hoe lots over the years with very few problems..

16 ft Tandem Trailer

Spring 2014:

Boy oh boy .. I’m I distracted from the stuff I should be doing.. Too much to do .. If I was retired I could maybe get it all done .. Here I go with yet another project. When this trailer was offered to me for a price that was hard to pass up I didn’t have to think about it long.. Especially considering that my good old utility trailer that has served me long is rusting badly.. And now when I pack some weight.. well twice now the spring shackles have broken from the frame.. Also I can’t carry my Kubota in the little 4 x 8 trailer.

No it’s not a car hauler.. It’s built from an old travel trailer. So the frame is not strong enough for a car.. but it will work great for tractors. It has brakes… something Dave’s trailer does not have.. It’s nice and low ..and balanced.. tows great.. The deck is treated 2×6 and measures just over 5 ft between the fenders. And 16 ft long. Those wire hubcaps are only on one side.. so I’m removing them. It needed a new safety chain.. and then you could use it. Lights and brakes work good. However there is no ramp for loading.. And the tires are old.. but they are just common size car tires.

How to make it MINE..

I’ve had the trailer sitting in the driveway for a week now.. thinking of a ramp for the back.. And today I pulled those hubcaps off and gave the trailer a bath.. Then Dave showed up and said, ” hey we should pull the hubs and grease the bearings”. So I lowered the front of the trailer to the ground and put some blocking under the rear.. then lifted the front up with the tractor till the wheels are off the ground.. If the tractor can do that then it must not weight more than 800 lbs. Cool. While servicing the hubs.. and the trailer up in the air I wanted to have a good look under.. Yup I’m thinking that the wiring under the trailer is messy… Not surprised with that.. and to find some wasp nests.. too.. not surprised again. Also a lot of the nuts were missing from the bolts that hold the deck on.. Hmm. I don’t care much for the pipe structure on the front.. and there is no sides for mounting stuff.. So I’m going to spend a few days and make this trailer GREAT.

Starting by removing the floor & the pipe railings. Then I can add to the frame, paint the frame, and re-do the wiring. Here’s the want list…

Stake pockets for removable sides
Tie downs inside
Ramps for the back / or a wind gate
A front structure that will hold a winch

Here you see the work is started.. I have acquired four newish tires for a good price.. That will take the flat worries away.. I was given some heavy mesh that will make good ramps. Dave & I have been debating the width of the trailer.. There doesn’t seem to be a good reason to have the trailer wider behind and in front of the fenders.. So we may just keep the 61 ” width all the way.. and we may trim 12 ” off the back..

I’ll sleep on the width thing.. In the mean time I sand blasted the rims and gave them a satin black paint job..

And they are unique.. notice the Four bolt pattern.. and the large opening.. These could be hard to find.. good thing I made them nice again.

Here you see the new tires on the rims…on the trailer.. Also you will see that we’ve stripped the wood deck off, fenders off.. and now it’s time to decide what to do..

The frame is very minimal as you can see. and some of the cross members are very light.. I could bend them easily. So after looking at all this weakness.. we need to beef things up a bit. The first thing is to add a third frame right down the middle. A 2×2 ” square tube would do nicely. That would take a bit of the flex out of the frame. Then we will replace the lighter cross pieces with more 2×2″ tube. All welded to make a more rigid ladder frame.

Also we decided to shorten the trailer by a foot on the tail. This will do two things : First it will mean less stress on the back of the trailer when loading something heavy. Second it will move the two axles back further and make the trailer handle better. Sadly we will loose a foot in length.. but hey it’s long enough for me..

Here you can see the shortened frame, and the new 2 x 2 center frame plus cross pieces.

The 2 x 2 square tube runs the whole length and has stiffened the trailer a lot. We added new outer frame pieces and there will be a 4″ deep plate on the outside. When the 2×6 decking goes on this should be a strong but lite trailer. And yes I decided to take the deck out to the outside of the fenders. I have also forgone the stake pockets for a 12″ high wall on the sides.. sloping up to a 24″ high front wall. No wind gate either.. just two 16″ x 48″ mesh ramps that will slide from side to side and fold up.

This has turned into quite a lot of work.. but the result is great.. You can see in the photo above the vision I had has taken shape. A spare tire and winch mount on the front. The 12″ high frame on the sides acts like a truss and stiffens up the frame.

Here’s a photo of the winch mount.. I have a new 2000 lb winch for the trailer.. At the bottom is of coarse the battery tray. I also bought a new hitch & jack. This will be a new trailer when done.. and it’s registered as a 2014 U-Build . Prior to this photo we used the tractor to lift one side of the trailer and had it up on it’s side. That allowed us to rewire the brakes. Proper soldered connections & loom , all routed through the 2×2 center beam. I also took the opportunity to give the underside a quick coat of grey paint.

June 29 2014:

Another case of “put aside”.. The weather has been ify for painting.. and other stuff got in the way of finishing the trailer. But today with improved weather I got er done..

All the welding & grinding is done.. cleaned it up good and gave the trailer it’s grey paint job. Once the paint is dry I’ll wire in the lights. Then it’s decking time.

Here’s the lights all on.. took a few hours . all the conections are behind the license plate.. The wires all run through the 2×2 square frame. Clean !

At the front they all meet here.. easy to get at and make changes..

DECKIN !

2×6 treated lumber & 2″ heavy metal screws.. And lots of cutting.

Got the fenders back on too.. and they fit perfectly. All that’s left to do is the ramps and wire up the winch.

I did not realize that at some time during our construction .. the shackles on the front axle got flipped around.. and this caused the tires to rub together.. it took me a bit of head scratching to figure out what it was that was wrong. But I got it..

With the completion of these heavy duty ramps.. the trailer is getting closer to being 100% . The ramps adjust for width and can be removed. The Kubota fits with room to spare. It looks like I may have a mowing job.. so this trailer will be used. now we need to see how many quads we can carry !

Bazoo 6×6 Page 4

April 2014

Once again .. new month ..new page.. Welcome to Page 4.

After putting new seals and bearings in it seamed pointless to use the bad axle. So I had a new one made. Nothing was happening to the Bazoo while waiting for a new axle. And that took weeks. But it’s here now so it’s back to work , and get the Bazoo finished.

It’s a work of art.. That’s what we said.. Nicely made. and pricey too.. but good work is not free.. So I cleaned it and painted the outside end like the others.. And the assembly starts..

After I tidy up some wires and put some in a loom the motor can go in.. We are getting close to launch here.. Here’s what’s left to do for testing.. If the test run is good and there is no other issues… then I want too: But back to the “Git R Done” stage.

Getting there.. The motor fits perfectly.. as it should.

So much time before hand was spent on lining these things up.. it was a pleasure to have them just fit ! If the weather is bad tomorrow I should get everything ready for a test drive.. Sure nuf.. the weather gods were in favor of working on the Bazoo.. Everything is in place.. Boy are my tires in sad shape.. two of them will not hold air.. So they go in the middle where it won’t matter. It’s kind of a 4×4 now.. 🙂 Here it is back on it’s wheels after a bit more than three months. We wore the battery down tuning up the motor today.. and discovered that the kill / solenoid system I devised turns the spark off when you turn the key to “start”. not good. so that has to be figured out.. Also the belt we have is too small so the motor still turns it at an idle.. Makes it hard to change gears. I’m sure more stuff will show up after the test drive. Tomorrow.

Hooray it’s May 2014:

Never did get the test run.. The motor started to act up and would not stay running.. Then the weather got nice and yard stuff had to get done.. Anyway going to look into the why, thinking a fouled plug ?

Here’s the Video.. after a lot of fiddling around

Yes We changed the two spark plugs and still the motor would stall.. Figured it was a fuel thing.. so we rigged up the tank that someone had in the Bazoo.. just to see if the motor was starving for fuel.. and it ran great ! And that is why you are seeing the video.. The sun came out for a few hours.. and so did the Bazoo.. And boy does it go.. Still need to make some adjustments but she flies.. I’m going to abandon the front gas tank.. just like before I got it.. So I’m looking for a good replacement that will fit on the back of the seat..

May 24 2014:

Bazoo is just sitting there while other things get done.. So I thought I’d see if there was interest in a trade for a quad. Yes there is lots of interest.. But that also made me want to remedy some of the little things wrong.. Last night Dave & I fixed the kill circuit on the key switch.. so now the motor starts and shuts off with the key. I also totally removed all fuel lines to the front tank and configured them properly in the temporary tank . and the motor ran great.. better that ever ! Now I have the throttle response I was hoping for. That just showed The other little mod I did was with the drive belt.. I knew that the common belts these days are wider than the one that would have been on the Bazoo’s drive.. So I trimmed 1/4 ” off the spare belt I had.. and the drive works so much better. So I when for a little drive around the yard… even more fun when things work good.

The Bazoo is SOLD..

My Bazooo went off to a museum for amphibious ATV’s !

Bazoo 6×6 Page 3

March 2014

New Month… New Page…It’s now March 2014

And I have the goodies I need to make the secondary drives new again.. I also bought new master links for the chains.. and some nostalgic looking beehive marker lights.. that I’m thinking would look good for my running lights. Back to the drive line…

All new axle shafts and the inner bearings too. Looking good.. time to work on the motor mount. I added an extra 1/4 ” of rubber to the motor mounts. and I trimmed the mounting plate, flipped it over and the motor is in the right place. The belt lines up and there’s just that little extra room for the air intake on the carb. Forgot the photo.. Took the motor back off so the chassis is not so heavy.

This photo shows the chains for the drives and a stop plate for the levers.. After trying things out and seeing how they work we realized that this was a necessary part. So I made a new one .. When the clutch levers are in the release position, they rest against the stop plate. ( adjusted properly ). To use the brakes you pull back further compressing the two springs you see.. This way you can’t engage the clutch & the brakes at the same time. ( Brilliant ). The one axle is now out getting fixed.. But I can still carry on. Just a few things to do and Dave & I will fit the chassis back into the Bazoo. I don’t know if I should call it a chassis or the frame.. it’s both !

In the mean time.. I’m cleaning up stuff and getting the bits ready.. I know your thinking why paint the gears..Well RUST.. I don’t want them to rust.. that’s my answer and I’m sticking to it.. I have gold paint so that’s the color..Those black blobs are the seals & bearings that hold the frame to the body.. and keep the water out at the axles.. They bolt through to the frame on the inside. Four bolts each and a rubber gasket.. it’s all that holds the two together sandwiching the fiberglass body and the frame. I’ve got three different kinds… two are the factory aluminum castings, two are machined aluminum and two are machined steel. Can’t explain that one..

Here you see them again after we put the frame back into the Bazoo. I still need to paint the ends of the axles. Just stuck them in there to see the fit. So yes we got the frame in, and bolted five of the seals in place.. one is with the axle getting fixed. There is still a lot to do.. but this means more room in the shop 🙂 .. When I get the repaired axle back all the drive gears and chains need to be installed. In the mean time I could do the wiring now.

Even the choke control is in.. After I wired everything up.. I put power to it to see if things work as they should.. I think I blew ( no pun intended) the fuse for the horn.. but the rest works fine.. The red light is to show power on.. It’s kinda over kill because the hour meter has a flashing light. I may just rethink the running light thing.. and hook the tail lights to the head lamps.. and use the other switch for the bilge pump.. Yes a bilge pump.. don’t forget this thing is part boat too. I did not want drain holes in the bottom so a bilge pump is a better choice. I’ve got one kicking around somewhere.. As for the lights.. I have three different sets.. that include those beehive ones, some LEDs and good old trailer side marker lights.. the marker lights are my favorite because they are easy to install and durable.

Maybe they aren’t the prettiest lights out there but they work for me.. If you break a lens you can get a new one cheep. These now turn on with the head lamps. I’ll be using more of these on the Kubota BX to replace it’s factory tail lights. ( I broke one this winter) and I’m not buying the Kubota one..

Where your WAZOO goes in the BAZOO

Other than the wheels, the seat was the other only thing to be untouched. I set it aside to be worked on later… Later has come now that I’m waiting for drive train parts. The upholstery on the seats is in remarkable condition for it’s age… presuming it’s the original. However the plywood that it’s stapled to is not. So I’m mulling over what to do. Mean time I set to work on the frame.. Someone had welded extra pieces to the top bar for a gun rack.. I used the grinder to remove those.. One of the cross bars had a broken weld.. and one mount was missing.. Zap Zap with the welder.. fixed. And above you see a new satin black paint job.. As for the cushions I’m thinking that at the least new plywood could be a good thing.. But a part of me would like to send them out for new covers too. However I should just wait and see .. they are easy to remove if I change my mind later. Yup that works.. Ya know I never sat in the seat till today.. I took things apart right away.. It’s actually comfy.. certainly does the job.. Next I cut new plywood sides for the interior..

They fit like this.

There you have it.. They are bolted through with carage bolts… that way the heads are flush. These add a bit of strength to the sides.. And I stained and varnish them too.. I’m jumping back & forth a bit , just trying to take care of loose ends.. & things I can do for now.. The muffler was one of those things.. A while back I cleaned and painted the muffler.. I have now taken the old piece of aluminum they had for a heat shield and re-worked it.. so it attached to the muffler mount and not to the body of the Bazoo..

Time for a new page…

Page 4

Bazoo 6×6 Page 2

Jan 20 2014

Welcome to the second page 🙂 But don’t forget the read page 1 first

After the first coat of paint on the tub I thought it would be a good place to start a second page in the restore.. scrolling down to the bottom was getting to be too much.

While I wait for paint to dry.. 🙁 I thought I’d see about the dash board design.

I lined them up the way I would like them to be on the dash.. From the right.. 12 volt outlet, Horn button , Key switch / with a power light above, Hour meter, Running lights, Head lights, And the choke will be next to that.. In the back is the relay that will kill the motor when the key is off.. All of this will be on an aluminum panel mounted at a slight angle in front of the control sticks. The only other thing on the rest of the dash will be the original HOLY- SHIT handle in front of the poor passenger. Not considered and not forgotten is a winch control.. later. Got the switches and stuff. mounted to the aluminum ( old deactivated road sign). Just need to cut out the shape and make the bends. The fuse panel will be up inside. Ya… wood grain .. but it’s a bit more to my liking than naked aluminum. The choke is still missing .. and so are the labels. But we have indicator lights for , power on , running lights and head lamps.

This is a far cry from what there originally was on the Bazoo. There was just a key switch , hour meter 12 volt outlet and choke control. The dash panel will easily remove with just four screws for access to the wiring. It took me a whole day to build this.. but I like this kind of stuff. I left the painting of the second coat on the tub till the evening, so I would not be working around wet paint all day.

Nice and shiny.. the way we like it.. After a days curing the tub will go right side up on some stands. Tub’s over… and I was trying the interior covers on for size..

They are now in great shape. I still need to paint the screens satin black. And to figure a way to anchor them down. The seat holds the front one down.. but the motor cover needs a way that makes it easy to lift up. And hopefully no holes in the tub. Got lots of time to figure it out.

After trying several different ways .. I settled on this. hope it’s not to loud for the operator 🙂 Also in the photo is the new gas tank fitting.. threaded in there tight .. should not leak. I will test before I mount the top on the bottom..

I had to work fast before the resin set up.. just got the two together in time.. I used a slim strip of fiber mat and resin as glue. Tomorrow I’ll lift the body up a bit higher for painting.

Sunday February 16 th 2014

Well another Sunday …and more work on the Bazoo to be done. Last night I got the first coat of paint on the top side of the Bazoo. And because I only have just enough paint to finish.. I only painted the interior parts that will show. The plywood that was bolted to the insides of the sides will be replaced with new plywood. That is why I left those holes along the sides unfilled. I plan on staining & varnishing the wood, not painting it. I feel that the plywood helps give strength to the body. As for the second coat.. I will wait till the evening so I’m not working around wet paint all day .. and I’ll do some other stuff..like cleaning and painting the motor..

Motor Time !

So yes I did take the motor apart clean and paint the parts.. It took all day.. but the result is worth it.. High heat paint on the exhaust header, Satin black on the starter , cowl and air intake. Will it run better ? don’t know. It ran fine so now it will look good running fine.

Transmission Time :

It was the transmission’s turn.. So I removed the secondary drive (in background) & the output gear. I slit the case apart and had a good look inside.. nothing wrong..no metal pieces.. So I cleaned the halves and resealed them.. Should be good to go..

I’m also trying something brave.. I painted the rubber headlamp mounts with the flexcoat bumper paint.. They are / were white from the factory.. very grubby and would not clean up.. If the paint won’t stand up to the flexing then I’ll have to think of another way. I’m not doing the white trim thing like from the factory.. I want black.

They are just 35 watt tractor lights.. but I could not find LED’s that are the same size.. These work ok so they stay for now. And I’ll be keeping at least some nostalgic stuff.

The frame got it’s satin black paint job tonight.. and looks good.. Next I’ll be cleaning and painting the bits that go on the frame..

This is a critical part in the 6×6 drive system. It takes the power from the transmission and splits it to the two sides.. and the brakes for steering as well.

This is in very good condition. Not worn down at all. Lots of pad left on the clutches.. and the discs are good. Seen also in the photo is the control handles, they are chrome and I’ll leave them that way. Here’s the Two Clutches & both brakes are put back nice & clean.. Lots of adjustments on this system..

I don’t know what else to call the two split drives that are after the clutches.. so I’ll call them the secondary drives.. The final drives being the chains that join all the wheel axles together. Any Who.. the brunt of the abuse seamed to be here.. A lot of torque is on those small sprockets. And the key way in the axles show it.. ( upper right hand in photo) I bought new keyed 3/4 axle, and new bearings , key stock.. collars too. I took a break for a few days till I could get to Kelowna to get these supplies.. now its time to have at it again..