TO20 radius arms

[Ark68SS]

My late father-in-law gave me his '49 TO20 that he owned for over 35 years. I'm going to restore this tractor and I hope ya'll will be able to help out a little.
I'm trying to figure out if the radius arms are bent or not. When looking at the side of the tractor, both of the arms bend up in the middle in an arc. When looking directly down, the arms have an arc from the front to the rear. The bend seems to be more distinct on the right side.
Are these arms bent or is this how they're made? If they are bent, can they be put in a press and bent back? Thanks for the help.
 

[trac]

yeah there bent your gonna need a new axle pin &
bushing you can order that here if you like, as for
the radius arms you should be able to bend them back
your shelf without to much difficulty with a little
heat and a sledge if you feel brave.
 

[RICH NY]

I would attach a light duty chain to the front and run it across to the rear (attach it) with some slack and use a four ton Bottle jack in the middle of the radius arm/chain. You could place a one foot length of angle iron under the jack so as not to dent the radius rod. Now start pumping being carful not to allow any slipping and you should be able to control the bending. I did this on my 8N and it worked well. Remember, this was caused by a well worn front pivot pin and will bend again if you don't replace it. Good luck!
 

[Jason S.]

I'm not sure what the reason is but John(UK) had said not to heat the radius arms. Maybe they are made from tempered steel or something and heating them hot enough to bend them does more damage than good.
 

[miner09]

Buy good used ones or new. You can not get old ones straight.It will wear your tires if not correct and may drive bad.Like Trac said buy pin and bushings also.
 

[samn40]

Who says you cannot straighten bent radius rods? I straightened
this one for to show a user on another forum how to do it as he was
pleading poverty and wanted to use his original part. I use this
piece of timber and my friendly persuader to straighten out many radius bars. Notice where I set my big boot to steady the timber and bar when I hit down on the timber
Sam





 

[Charles in Aus.]

A hydraulic pipe or tube bender works well , the
curved dies allow you to seat the radius rod neatly
and straighten it with no heat ,shock or dents and
with fine control.
 

[miner09]

Sam Was it straight before you put it in your suitcase? Did you buy it in Pittsburg? LOL
 

[Ark68SS]

Thanks for the help. I'll probably buy new ones since I think the balls are all messed up, too.
The cost of this restoration keeps on increasing, but I'm used to that. Tractor parts are a lot cheaper than old muscle car parts so the money goes further.
BillL
 

[Bruce(OR)]

Have fun with your radius arms. After you get them repaired/replaced...install a copper penny, not the new zinc junk, under the ball inside the arm socket fitting. This copper penny will easily bend into shape and take up excess wear.
makes for a tighter front end.
 

[John(UK)]

The reason the Radius Rods have bent is that the Centre Axle Pin and Bush is worn and is allowing the axle Beam to twist, allowing the wheels to move back-wards under the tractor. There should be no twisting load on the Radius Rods at all, it should all be taken by the Centre Pin. The Radius Rods are really only there to give support to the outer ends of the axle when the wheel Track is opened wider. If you don"t replace the Pivot Pin, the wear will allow the Axle Beam to rise more than it should when the tractor is running on rough ground or if the left side wheel lifts for any reason, this will allow the Axle Beam to strike the bottom hose connection on the Radiator and in some instances will knock it off completely. There are more than one bush and pin combination for these tractors, so make sure that you get it right. Early tractors had a thin wall bush, later tractors had a thick wall bush with a collar on one end. This later Bush has a larger outside diameter and will not fit in place of the thin wall bush, it needs a different axle beam to do that. The 35 tractors are like this and the beam will interchange. You should fit 2 of the heavier bush although it was only listing one in the parts list, this gives better support. When the axle bushes and pins are correct, it restores the Castor angle of the King Pins and you will find the steering very much lighter. A good indication that there is wear in the Axle Pin is that the steering will "shimmy" when you try to run at speed on the road.If you want more info about the Pins and Bush combinations, email me giving the length of the Pin.. You should also check the Thrust Bearing at the bottom of the King Pin (see pic attached)as it doesn"t get too much lube if it is worn, the grease comes out of the top instead so you stop pumping the grease, this too will make the steering much lighter. John(UK) fergusontractors@hotmail.com


 

[John(UK)]

I forgot to mention in my earlier reply, that if you do need the Footrests combined with the housings for the end of the Radius Rods, these are available from Agriline Products here in the UK and they will send them out to the USA.....John(UK)
 

[Jeff-oh]

If interested I have a set of good old stock radius arms.

E-mail and I can send pictures.

TE20Ferguson at aol

Jeff
 

[Kirk-NJ]

I've bent them back right on the tractor using a bottle jack a couple pieces of chain and some scrap angle iron. Posting three separate photos since I don't know how to do multi.
As stated you should replace the axle pin.

Kirk

 

[Kirk-NJ]

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