My Pulling Tractor Project

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I took a voluntary layoff at Thanksgiving like I said I would and as soon as I got home I started this project.  My pulling tractor.  Its not a competition pulling tractor so to speak but my lawn and garden pulling tractor built just for me.   Its going to pull my lawn roller, sprayer, aerators, spreader, wagon, etc, etc, whatever.  Anything that needs pulled around my place its got the job now. I bought this Husqvarna GT2254 tractor new in 2005 and I must say I have used it a lot over the years.  Mostly on hard jobs like pulling a drag, as you can see in the pic.  Yea it had it fair share of review problems and you can find them on the internet pretty easily,  so besides all the mods I made I also had to address all those original problems as well.  This made the project a little harder than it should of been but as you will see it all turned out ok.I'm happy with my new tractor now and it runs like a striped ape.    Its also fun to drive. Briefly,  I lowered the hood and dash about 4 1/2".  Moved the front axle ahead about 5".  Lowered the rear-end about 1 1/2".  Lowered the seat about 5 1/2" and lowered the rear fenders about 4 1/2".  Cut the rear fenders deep man. :.Put a universal joint in the steering column.  Moved the steering box down about 5" then built new tie-rods as a result.  Had custom 15" wide rear wheels made by Adam Jannene in Wisconsin for my new 26.5x14.00x12 Carlise turf tires (aired-up using Ether  ).  New rib tires for the front.  Replaced the engine with a new Professional 30HP Briggs and Stratton, then replaced the 4" drive pulley with a 7" one.  Built a new 5 gallon fuel tank.  Built 2" exhaust pipes with homemade internal mufflers. 116lb concrete belly weight, and a lot more mods I can't even remember now. lolBut I do remember that most everything else I had to either make new or modify to get it to work right.   It was a fun project and I'm very happy with the way it turned out.Here's some build pictures if you will.  The first one is the before 2005 shot of the original new tractor pulling a dirt drag.  The rest of the shots are the build shots then hopefully my finished pulling tractor.Hope you like it.Thanks for looking in.Slowhand Attached Images
Reply:more pics now. Attached Images
Reply:and more pics... lol Attached Images
Reply:more pics of course  Attached Images
Reply:almost done man.  Attached Images
Reply:almost there now.  Attached Images
Reply:Only 2 more shots.  I'm all done now.But I would like to say....  Although my project was mostly for fun and it was my first garden tractor rebuild.  I did it with plain hand tools and spray cans of paint and not much else but my imagination and will power. lolAll I hope is by seeing my project it will give you the desire and trust that you can do your own projects yourself.  It only takes a little thinking and some desire. lolGood luck man and again, thanks for looking in.Slowhand  Attached ImagesLast edited by slowhand; 12-28-2011 at 07:36 PM.
Reply:Holy tires!Pretty cool.  Looks like you had a lot of fun on that.Lincoln AC225 & MigPak 140, Lincoln Magnum SpoolGun, Miller Spectrum 375-X Plasma, Syncrowave 200 TIG, Millermatic 252 MIG, Miller Digital Elite, General 7x12" horiz/vert bandsaw, 3' box/pan brake, 20 ton press, milling machine, 12x28 lathe, etc.
Reply:That just ain't right....Now you need to hook it to a tree and see if you can put all your power to the ground.  My bet is the tires slip long before the engine runs out of oomph.My name's not Jim....
Reply:Slowhand, I wish I had your money man...That looks like a fun project.You have to learn the rules of the game. And then you have to play better than anyone else. Albert Einstein
Reply:My tach said the engine will turn 3580rpm's.  With my 7" drive pulley and those big tires the calculator says 12.7MPH In the owners manual when new it said max 5.4mph.  So i've got a little upgrade going on. lolAs for the traction.  With the concrete belly weight on there and me setting so low now the tractor feels heavier and more stable.  I took it on some side hills seeing if it wanted to spin (like it would of before) but it was stable and didn't spin.  So all I can say is a much more stable platform.  It feels heavy and stable, not to mention WIDE!!!!!  (and loud... )  SlowhandLast edited by slowhand; 12-28-2011 at 07:57 PM.
Reply:That is a fine job.  You are right.  Looks like a lot of fun Gordie -- "I believe you understand what you think I said, but I'm not sure you realize that what you heard is not what I meant."
Reply:Nice.  I like the belly weight.  My mower spins its wheels at the least excuse.  Maybe I'll try that next spring.Contrary to popular opinion, I do NOT have a pet turkey that craps molten steel.  It's a goose.
Reply:Put a roll cage on it and it'll look like a mini Agco pulling tractor! Nice work!HH 187Miller Bluestar1EAHP AlphaTig 200X
Reply:That's a really nice lookin' job, Slowhand. That should drag anything on the place. I'm assuming you have something else to do the mowing. Maybe another one modified to mow @ 12 mph!!                               MikeOl' Stonebreaker  "Experience is the name everyone gives to their mistakes"Hobart G-213 portableMiller 175 migMiller thunderbolt ac/dc stick Victor O/A setupMakita chop saw
Reply:You sir, are an artist! That is just AWESOME man!!!"Where's Stick man????????" - 7A749"SHHHHHH!! I sent him over to snag that MIC-4 while tbone wasn't looking!" - duaneb55"I have bought a few of Tbone's things unlike Stick-Man who helps himself" - TozziWelding"Stick-man"
Reply:OMG!!! Awesome. Subscribed!!We are on our way to being farmers! Our site is always under construction so check back often for updates.  http://www.philosophyfarmstyle.com/
Reply:hmmm....i have this old MTD with a 22 horse v-twin sitting out back........i think i have an idea now of what to do with it
Reply:Pro Street Tractor!!!I love it!...zap!I am not completely insane..Some parts are missing Professional Driver on a closed course....Do not attempt.Just because I'm a  dumbass don't mean that you can be too.So DON'T try any of this **** l do at home.
Reply:Beautiful tractor. Good think you have all flat smooth lawns. My tractor has to be able to clear at least ten inches in the center. I also pull a 1000Lb chipper around through the woods so I need some meat on the tires. I'm running 100 lbs in each rear wheel and tires filled with sodium water. plus a two hundred lb weight stack on the front. but I've only got 12 horse power. But I've also got eight speeds ahead and a shuttle shift from forward to reverse any way I love your tractor it makes me think of a porsha.  Mac
Reply:Gloss black with fairings!!! Attached Images
Reply:oh man i thought you were going to put the old motor that came out of the rebuilt machine with the XMT in it.Vantage 500's LN-25's, VI-400's, cobramatics, Miller migs, synch 350 LX, Powcon inverters, XMT's, 250 Ton Acurrpress 12' brake, 1/4" 10' Atlantic shear,Koikie plasma table W/ esab plasmas. marvel & hyd-mech saws, pirrana & metal muncher punches.
Reply:Dam! That thing looks like it's ready for the drag strip.Nice build.My Photos on Flickr
Reply:nice ride, how did you do the paint
Reply:too cool, tubbed out lawn mower...tackleexperts.comwww.necessityjigs.comhttps://www.facebook.com/groups/mach...dingequipment/Now all you need is a cage.. a good racin' seat and a 5 point harness!!Kick A$$ ride..!!...zap!I am not completely insane..Some parts are missing Professional Driver on a closed course....Do not attempt.Just because I'm a  dumbass don't mean that you can be too.So DON'T try any of this **** l do at home.
Reply:Originally Posted by ed macnice ride, how did you do the paint
Reply:nice job , one badass lookin tractor.                            Bob
Reply:Really cool project with great results.  I wouldn't want to mess with my John Deere, but seeing this makes me want to find a mower with a bad motor or something and do some modifying...We used pretty much the exact method a few years ago to paint a dozer in the shop during a rebuild.  Made a paint booth out of one of the bays by hanging plastic from the overhead door frame.  It worked really well.  We had always done our painting outside before, but that's kinda hard to do when you have the tractor stripped down to components.
Reply:That looks awesome but you shoulda went for the gusto and dropped in a small block Chevy!
Reply:shouldn't that be a NOx bottle were you have the fire extinguisher?
Reply:k&n air filter and rejet the carb will give you a little more power with that header you have on it..tackleexperts.comwww.necessityjigs.comhttps://www.facebook.com/groups/mach...dingequipment/
Reply:Very entertaing thread slowhand... and a nice job!Safety: I just worry a little about those exposed tires - maybe some fender widening/extension is in order?  Would also reduce water and mud-slinging effects on your body. Rick V 1 Airco Heliwelder 3A/DDR3 CTC 70/90 amp Stick/Tig Inverters in Parallel1 Lincoln MIG PAK 151 Oxy-Acet
Reply:Nicely done rebuild, I have recently needed to add weight to my lawn tractor so I filled the tires with used anti freeze from the scrap yard (cheep) made sure it was down to -35*. It worked so well I did my cub tractor I mow side hills with. The antifreeze wont rust the rims also all the weight is on the ground and not on the drive train save on the wear and tear also helps with a very under powered unit.Life is tuff,so be sharp  lincoln sp 100  cutmaster101  miller bobcat  miller 250 mig  $thousands in snapon
Reply:Did a mod today.  I mounted my pull behind mower hitch on my tractor.I'll be able to pull my 54" pull-behind mower (if I want to) with this tractor.The mower is about done.  I'm ready to tear it down and prep for paint.I'll start a new post about it in a couple days.Here's a quick look at it now. Later guysSlowhand
Reply:I had to come over and check this out after looking at your mower.  Again great job!!!
Reply:Nice work.Working on cars and bikes is my hobby, learning to weld the pieces together is my quest.
Reply:Love it that is just cool!
Reply:Thanks guys!!!!!I drove it quite a bit today.  First I hauled a bunch of crap out of the garage with my wagon then I pulled my pull behind mower around for awhile testing it out.I love my tractor.  Its kinda loud and it'll cackle when you crank it up, but if I go easy its not too loud, if you know what I mean.  When I drive it I feel like I like I want to go real fast.   I like that about it.  It is pretty cool to drive.I don't care for that blue kevlar drive belt because it grabs when I'm trying to take off easy.  If it don't break in I'm going to try a black belt instead.It's plenty fast enough in the yard.  I'd probably mow in second gear high range about 1/2 throttle.  That feels about right.  Third gear high range, even idling, is probably too fast to mow in.  But that gear feels about right for spraying compost tea or spreading lime, etc.Oh yea,  here's my Compost tea brewer I built last year.  http://weldingweb.com/vbb/showthread.php...ht=compost+tea  if you will. lolLater manSlowhand Last edited by slowhand; 01-06-2012 at 06:34 PM.
Reply:Just a little update on the tractor. Its been doing good man. I've pulled loads of brush. Hauled firewood. Pulled spray rigs and lime spreaders and it done good.The biggest load I've had is my 24" roller. Full of water the book says over 900 lbs.  Its heavy and pushes you on hills but still yet it handles it pretty good. I'm able to roll where I want. I just watch it a  little.Here's a pic of my aerator setup. It pulled this easy. Even on hills.  It even helped me bury telephone line. HahaI'm on my phone so excuse my mistakes.Slowhand Attached ImagesLast edited by slowhand; 12-27-2012 at 02:15 PM.
Reply:Awesome job with the cool tractor. Genius! A lot of creativity and resourcefulness put to test. Greatest thing is to have fun doing it.--www.sawblade.com
Reply:As the owner of a lawn care company, a hobby welder, and a shade tree mechanic, it is hard for me to find words to express how awesome a project this is!  Way to go man! I want video!Check out my channel https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCkz...bZg8AYNXGqBjZQ"Both oligarch and tyrant mistrust the people, and therefore deprive them of arms." - Aristotle
Reply:Kind words. Thanks man.When your pulling on a hill side and shifting your weight is only to steer. That's kinda new to me. Haha. I'm used to shifting for traction.  Not for steering.Then when you set the throttle right and the governor is making it all happen. That's cool to say the least. LolI love my tractor. I just hope it lasts me out.
Reply:I like those big tires
Reply:Just like your welder project, awesome job and thank you for sharing.  My grandfather had a lawn tractor with weights added to the rear wheels that I got to drive around when I was younger.  Your tractor is way cooler but it brings back good memories.
Reply:Slow',Your tractor's cool as hell!I don't know where you are, but you gotta take that to some tractor pulls this summer!And yea, mount a bottle of nitrous in place of the extinguisher, or at least paint it to look like nitrous, and those ol' boys would sure take notice Lincoln SA 200Esab Caddy 160Thermal Arc 201TSMiller Dialarc HFI don't like making plans for the day because then the word "premeditated" gets thrown around the courtroom....
Reply:What a great project!  Nicely executed!JackFort Loramie, OhioMilermatic Autoset 180
Reply:I was just wondering when u were gonna get a wire feeder for that hybrid welder...lol Great job as always.I forgot how to change this.
Reply:How come you didnt put a cub rear in it with a under drive in it? I run a red spring in mine, 900lbs with the kevlar clutch in one of my 582's. I have a 482 with the lighter blue spring in it with a command 18. I like the cub rears cause they are hard to break. My next tractor is a 2072 with a 124 rear and a 15% over drive, Im going to try to run the midwest double clutch in it. I have a 25 hp eng on the floor that needs rebuilt, it came out of a concreat saw, may just be scrap. I wish I could aford the douglas wheels, man they are sharp!Learning one rod at a time
Reply:You are a true craftsman.  One who has the vision and patience to do a project once and correctly.  I enjoy watching your builds tremendously.  I wish I had the time and patience you do.TA Arcmaster 300CM3XMT 304S22P12 suitcase feederX-Treme 12VSOptima pulserTA161SMaxstar 150STLHypertherm PM45OP setupStihl 020AVP, 039, 066 Magnum