1948 8N gear shift knob

[HuskerNate]

I just bought a 1948 8N and I m wanting to restore it to original as best as I can. From what I can tell from online, the large gear shift knob on it is not original to the 1948 models. Or am I wrong about that? The large knob on this tractor is not plastic. Many of the online pictures I ve found of the 1948 production, the gear shift knob looks like that of the 2N s. Were the 8N s produced with both small and large knobs?

 

[KCM]

For a 1948 the small ball is cast into the shift lever like the 9N/2N, does not screw on. That change did not come until 1950 when the screw-on plastic knob was used. Two possibilities: someone replaced your transmission shift cover with one from a later 8N, or the knob was cut off and rod threaded for a screw-on knob. Sounds like someone also used a non-stock knob.