Readers, of my material, probably have come to notice that I don’t get to technical. There’s reasons for that. I will admit I’m not the most mechanically inclined. I know just enough to get myself into trouble.
My talent is to seek, con maybe is a better description, help from more reliable sources. I’m fortunate to have a vast network of friends in the know. I have welders, painters, small engine guys etc that are willing to help or maybe tolerate putting up with me. Some of my friends would rather remain unanimous. I appreciate everyone, none the less.
I came by my skill of building a network from watching my dad. He was either better at it, or didn’t much care who he manipulated. He never got his hands dirty. I even fell victim to working on stuff for him, he was that good.
I do have my skills. I’m a logistics guy. I can move anything safely and efficiently as possible. If we’re talking flatbed work. I’ll have the load so secure that a tornado won’t separate the load from the trailer.
I once hauled livestock on a flatbed trailer! True story. You’re probably thinking Now come on, that’s not going to work. We’ll to be honest, I’m really not supposed to talk about that load. It’s classified, all I’ll say is I tarped.
Now to demonstrate my vast skill with wrenching. My starting selinoid needed to be replaced on my 300. Once the part is in hand, that’s maybe a 20 to 30 minute job. For a normal person, mind you.
The selinoid is mounted right on top of the starter, easy to get to. I started in, part in hand, tool box open..Here we go!
First thing I noticed, There are no nuts to tighten on the studs to hold the wiring in place. No problem, I’m close to town. I load myself back in the truck selinoid in hand and head to the parts supply shop.
The parts man is super friendly. Most locals know NAPA Don. When it was my turn at the counter, I sheepishly showed him what I needed. He gave me a curious eye, but of course helped me out. I admitted this may not have been a problem had I bought the part from him.
So now I’m back to the tractor. Attempt two! Safety would call for the first step to take a cable off the battery and break the circuit. Who has time for that bother? I’ll just be careful. Which I was. I carefully removed the old part, replaced everything.. all was going great. I even had everything tightened, almost.
I was down to the very last connection. I barely put any pressure on the wrench. The selinoid shattered! I’m talking a jigsaw puzzle would be less of a challenge to peice together.
Remember the safety point? Some contacts were made that were harmless other than making me jump. Sparks can be startling. I know, I know! There wouldn’t have been any, had I not skipped that step.
So I’m about an hour in now and a little flummoxed. The parts, from the broken selinoid, got stuffed back into the box it came in. Guess what I found? You’d be right if you guessed the nuts I went to town for.
I looked at my watch and realized I still had time to get to the implement dealer before they closed for the day. I raced back into town.
The first person behind the parts counter I dealt with was a young man. His eyes widened to saucers in question, when I told him the make and model. I get that, a 55 was alot before his time. His computer mouse worked furiously on the counter, before he called in help. I felt a little better when an older counter man got involved. He tried with a little more success, to discover they discontinued carrying the part.
I stepped out of the implement dealship a little dejected, but not totally discouraged. I had another option, besides ordering another one, and waiting for it in the mail. The other choice was going to be embarrassing, but NAPA Don has dealt with me before.
He looked up and a knowing smile came on his face when I entered the store. He didn’t have to say a word, I already felt a little stupid. He of course had the part. It was better for my application anyway. I have no issue with my other part supplier and will continue doing business with them.
Okay, back to the tractor and attempt 3. Three? Yah it’s three…. This time all went right. I snugged down the last nut and all was well again, with the 300. The 20 minute job, only took me a little more than 3 hours.
My Super C has an issue and I’m planning to upgrade to a 12 volt system from 6 volt. I plan on doing that job myself too. I asked Doug Edwards about it. He said a normal person can do that job in a quick afternoon. Did I mention I don’t do anything normal?
Antique Iron Media 