JD B Question

[Alliscman]

I'm buying a mid 40's B and the guy said to hand crank it you had to take the steering wheel off, but my great uncle had a 46 B that had a separate crank. It looked like a steering wheel but wasn't and and the 'clutch' already on it as one unit. Both tractors are identical, both have electric start. When did JD change how they were hand cranked? How hard is it to take the steering wheel off to hand crank it? Thanks for your replies.

 

[CLW]

Our mid 40's B was the same tractor you have. At times we had to hand start it. There was a "shaft"( don't know proper name) about 5 inches long that fit into the sterring wheel that fit the flywheel to start the tractor. Loosen the nut that holds the steering wheel and pull it off. May be stuck if it hasn't been off in a long time. Place shaft in steering wheel, then into flywheel. When tractor starts it will push the shaft out of the flywheel. We just finger tightened the nut when we put the wheel back on. I have heard of the one your Uncle had, but never saw one.

 

[Greenday]

If it has this type of set-up it will also have electric start

 

[alabamafrog]

My A’s have this setup, I have never in my lifetime considered trying to hand start them, I just keep the electric start working and if in an emergency and an electrical system failure we always just pulled it off with what ever was available. IF I were to consider hand starting and I had the stub shaft, then I probably would just get and extra steering wheel to permanently go on the stub shaft.

Here is the page in my Late A operators manual that tells about this;

 

[Doug Sr.]

I have a 46 B and you can start it easy with the steering wheel. I have an extra old wheel I keep for that. It does start good with the electric.I also had an H that had the same setup.

 

[Walt in Jaxn Tn.]

I bought a stub shaft for my 1946 long hood "A" off the e-bay and just attached it to a spare steering wheel. The stub shaft wasn't very expensive. I keep it with the tractor whever it goes.
--Walt--

 

[BushogPapa]

Ever try to use that steering wheel to hand-crank a Late Styled "B" in a mounted 2-row corn-picker..??

(it aint easy.!!!).

Ron..

 

[ISU JD]

I restored a late 40"s B with my grandfather 15 years ago and my B has the exact set up you guy are talking about. A B with a mounted picker and a dead battery is hard to work on. This set up is the solution they came up with the resourefull farmer could take off the steering wheel pull the extention shaft out of the tool box and get the tractor started and get back to picking corn. To many of these handy tools have been lost or forgoten but the guys that farmed with them everyday can tell you alot. We forget that many farms only had one tractor used for everything. Not multiple tractors, and a combine like many of us do today.

 

[BushogPapa]

Us and our neighbors always seemed to gravitate together during Hay and Grain season..first on one farm and on to the rest, as the crops matured..

There were times when 2 tractors with mowers would show up to mow hay and the owner didn't have his ready to go..!!

Man, that 116W JD Baler would punchout a lot of hay in a day..!!

Ron..