I was raised on my father's 8N, and we've shared it for 42 years. He and my brother rebuilt it back in the early 60's. Last summer, he , my kids, and I rebuilt it again after years of working it to, and sometimes past its limits.
I finally bought this 861, partly to relieve some of the harder tasks of the 8N, partly to not have to share so much, and partly because we enjoyed rebuilding the 8N so much last summer.
From the way this one runs, I believe it has had its engine rebuilt already. It starts without choking and the previous owner said it didn't need much choking in the winter. It doesn't smoke, the exhaust smells "right", and it holds a good 40 psi oil pressure at low throttle.
The previous owner rebuilt the hydraulic pump, which is good because moving round bales is a little out of the old 8N's league. All the moving parts are very worn, but they are working, including the power steering. The fenders have a lot of rust where the brackets are welded, and on the lips at the bottom. The hood has a few dings and has a little rust, but this is the least rusted 800/801 series I've seen in the area.
The big oddity is the color. This is a 1962 model, so it may have been repainted by a dealer, or it may have been done later in its service, but as you can see by the pic, somebody wanted it to be a 4000.
I plan to use and abuse it just like the old 8N, and repair and refurbish a little bit at a time as needed to keep it in service. Hopefully after I retire I'll be able to completely restore it and put it back into red and gray clothing.
The board won't let me post the photo, so here's a link to it.
http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y283/tbzep/Ford%20861/DSC_0001.jpg
I finally bought this 861, partly to relieve some of the harder tasks of the 8N, partly to not have to share so much, and partly because we enjoyed rebuilding the 8N so much last summer.
From the way this one runs, I believe it has had its engine rebuilt already. It starts without choking and the previous owner said it didn't need much choking in the winter. It doesn't smoke, the exhaust smells "right", and it holds a good 40 psi oil pressure at low throttle.
The previous owner rebuilt the hydraulic pump, which is good because moving round bales is a little out of the old 8N's league. All the moving parts are very worn, but they are working, including the power steering. The fenders have a lot of rust where the brackets are welded, and on the lips at the bottom. The hood has a few dings and has a little rust, but this is the least rusted 800/801 series I've seen in the area.
The big oddity is the color. This is a 1962 model, so it may have been repainted by a dealer, or it may have been done later in its service, but as you can see by the pic, somebody wanted it to be a 4000.
I plan to use and abuse it just like the old 8N, and repair and refurbish a little bit at a time as needed to keep it in service. Hopefully after I retire I'll be able to completely restore it and put it back into red and gray clothing.
The board won't let me post the photo, so here's a link to it.
http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y283/tbzep/Ford%20861/DSC_0001.jpg
