- Thread starter pivotman
- Start date
caterpillar guy
Well-known Member
Go to big tractor parts .com, they will be your best source of information and they can supply parts for you if needed.
rustred
Well-known Member
if your talking versatile 103 swather... they do not have a transmission. all it is is 2 drive belts and if you want to go in reverse you had
to step on the pedals to lock the cone clutch up to back up. they had the vg4 wisconsin engine. lots of power for that unit. this was the
first swather i learned on.
to step on the pedals to lock the cone clutch up to back up. they had the vg4 wisconsin engine. lots of power for that unit. this was the
first swather i learned on.
wore out
Well-known Member
The ''transmission'' consisted of two variable ratio V-belt drives (left and right) mounted side-by-side.
The speed control lever (10) affected both sides equally, and the movement of the steering wheel affected them inversely, speeding one side up and slowing the other. ''28'' is the link to the steering rack.
VERY similar to how a modern zero-turn mower is steered.
Reverse was accomplished by disengaging the forward drive (the moveable sheaves spread enough to release the belts), then depressing the left and right reverse pedals, engaging the cone clutches on a shaft driven in reverse direction by the backside of the main drive belts.
Steering in reverse was accomplished by activating only one of the cone reverse clutches, (which had a NASTY habit of sticking)driving the machine backwards or in a backwards circle when they did. The effect was like being on a nasty carnival ride!
I always kept my hand on the ''forward'' speed control lever, ready to engage ''forward drive'' which would either cause the stuck cone clutch to let go, or ''kill'' the engine if you very maneuvering around at low engine speed.
A pair of ''B-width'' V-belts (22) from each cone clutch carried reverse power forward to a pair of sheaves mounted next to the large, front sheaves.
You can view those and more parts breakdowns in the ''transmission'' section at the link that follows. HTH!
https://www.messicks.com/commoncatalog?vendor=nh&modelId=133856
wore out
Well-known Member
The arm, #10, is the speed control lever, and has a notched sector attached to it to lock it at the desired speed setting.
The gear, #9, meshes with another bevel gear below it, which changes the axis of motion 90 and is attached to a pinion shaft that moves two ''racks'' the pull on the yokes that change the pitch diameter of the drive sheaves.
Key #6 is the rack assembly containing a pinion driven by the bevel gear above it, which contains a the RH rack, key # 15 and it's LH counterpart.
wore out
Well-known Member
Yes, I windrowed around 600 acres a year with one for quite a number of years in the 70's and 80's.
I still have a Versatile ''400'', the successor to to the ''103'', but haven't used it for many years.
The ''400'' used two hydrostatic drives to replace the belt and clutch system of the ''103''.
"Wore out", thank you for replying. I am wondering if the speed control, having a notched arrangement, gave a jerking motion to the machine when either speeding up or slowing down? I had read previous reviews on this machine stating it had a jerkiness to it
when speeding up. I can see an engine getting jerky until the speed of the engine caught up with the load. However, now seeing the speed control being notched, that may be the issue. What was your experience in this regard.
when speeding up. I can see an engine getting jerky until the speed of the engine caught up with the load. However, now seeing the speed control being notched, that may be the issue. What was your experience in this regard.
wore out
Well-known Member
I didn't consider the notched speed control being an issue, no different than a modern lawn tractor or walk-behind snowblower with notches that the speed control lever drops into, transmission is infinitely variable, but lever quadrant only has a certain number of notches.
What WAS an issue was wear/lost motion in the mechanism between the steering wheel and the actual moment of the sheaves, and that got worse over time.
Also, excess slack in the roller drive chains from the ''transmission'' output sprockets to the countershafts or from the countershafts to the wheel sprockets added to the steering being somewhat ''funky''.
wore out
Well-known Member
They were OK for their time, but certainly not ''bullet proof''.
They were VERY lightly-built and axles would occasionally break and the frame would eventually crack in several locations after many hours of use.
Bearings and chains and other drive parts required plenty of maintenance.
The ''throat'' where the windrow exits the platform wasn't large enough to handle ''HEAVY'' crops and would plug from time to time, making a mess that didn't ''cure out'' and would potentially plug the combine that followed if the operator wasn't paying close attention.
My biggest beef was that the platform didn't lift high enough to clear windrows when turning around or otherwise crossing windrows and would push or drag material underneath.
All in all, NOT a bad machine for their day, but light and low and SMALL by today's standards.
May I ask what has piqued your interest in thee old machines?
Curiosity. I started on the Hesston 500. We could put 3 ton alfalfa
down with it, but you had to be really on top of it or you'd get a plug that took 2 or more hours to undo. The conditioner needed to be much wider. We went from that machine to similar Case designed swathers, to New Hollands; all sicklebar.
We then bought a Hesston 9240 with a rotary head. Yes, it was a much faster machine. But cheaply made and expensive to repair
and maintain. My machine had a number of cracks in it, multiple places in the header and in the tail section. Costs over $100,000
for these machines today.
down with it, but you had to be really on top of it or you'd get a plug that took 2 or more hours to undo. The conditioner needed to be much wider. We went from that machine to similar Case designed swathers, to New Hollands; all sicklebar.
We then bought a Hesston 9240 with a rotary head. Yes, it was a much faster machine. But cheaply made and expensive to repair
and maintain. My machine had a number of cracks in it, multiple places in the header and in the tail section. Costs over $100,000
for these machines today.
rustred
Well-known Member
i would not say bullet proof either. they were kinda light but did the job, for the crops back then. but with todays crops it would be a
struggle unless u used no fertiizer. headers were either 12 ft or 15 ft. we had 15 ft. i would not say they were jerky but once you got slack
in chains and belts and you were trying to back up they could be fun, cause once you went for a spin in one direction then you quickly moved
the steering wheel the other way and thats what gets you going. and no they were not jerky in the speed control. unless maybe u got grease on
the variable belts. plus you could do a pretty good merry go round with them. the hydostatic 400 is by far a better machine. i still have
and used them for the last 40 years. pretty hard to beat them.
struggle unless u used no fertiizer. headers were either 12 ft or 15 ft. we had 15 ft. i would not say they were jerky but once you got slack
in chains and belts and you were trying to back up they could be fun, cause once you went for a spin in one direction then you quickly moved
the steering wheel the other way and thats what gets you going. and no they were not jerky in the speed control. unless maybe u got grease on
the variable belts. plus you could do a pretty good merry go round with them. the hydostatic 400 is by far a better machine. i still have
and used them for the last 40 years. pretty hard to beat them.
Thanks "rustred". The scenario you have painted sounds risky at best. Did you have breakdown problems with the Versatile 400?
Did the hydrostatic units hold up? I'm not thinking about harvesting grain crops. More interested in cutting alfalfa with an auger type header. Would you classify the Versatile 400 as bullet proof?
Did the hydrostatic units hold up? I'm not thinking about harvesting grain crops. More interested in cutting alfalfa with an auger type header. Would you classify the Versatile 400 as bullet proof?
rustred
Well-known Member
What synario? Its the truth. The 400 is far superior or I
would not have keep using it all these years. And they
even had a crimper you could mount on them for hay. I
have never saw one with an auger header. In the 1970s
during summer holidays I worked for the versatile dealer
setting up 400 Swathers. They came on the train and all
in pieces. Engine in a crate. Main frame separate. Wheels
and all separate. Reels in a package. Bare header. Had to
assemble it all. I could assemble one in a day except the
reels. That took part of next day. Headers were 15 and 18
ft. Very few 12 ft which was for hay. I was 17 back then.
And there was some with. Cab also. That also took
longer. We sold a pile of them 400s. Lots in the country
yet just sitting around. They were a pretty trouble free
unit if looked after. The little ford 200 cid was easy on
fuel also. Even my neighbor has his he bought in the 70,s
and its still going. Shedded of course.
would not have keep using it all these years. And they
even had a crimper you could mount on them for hay. I
have never saw one with an auger header. In the 1970s
during summer holidays I worked for the versatile dealer
setting up 400 Swathers. They came on the train and all
in pieces. Engine in a crate. Main frame separate. Wheels
and all separate. Reels in a package. Bare header. Had to
assemble it all. I could assemble one in a day except the
reels. That took part of next day. Headers were 15 and 18
ft. Very few 12 ft which was for hay. I was 17 back then.
And there was some with. Cab also. That also took
longer. We sold a pile of them 400s. Lots in the country
yet just sitting around. They were a pretty trouble free
unit if looked after. The little ford 200 cid was easy on
fuel also. Even my neighbor has his he bought in the 70,s
and its still going. Shedded of course.
Similar threads
We sell tractor parts! We have the parts you need to repair your tractor - the right parts. Our low prices and years of research make us your best choice when you need parts. Shop Online Today.
Copyright © 1997-2024 Yesterday's Tractor Co.
All Rights Reserved. Reproduction of any part of this website, including design and content, without written permission is strictly prohibited. Trade Marks and Trade Names contained and used in this Website are those of others, and are used in this Website in a descriptive sense to refer to the products of others. Use of this Web site constitutes acceptance of our User Agreement and Privacy Policy TRADEMARK DISCLAIMER: Tradenames and Trademarks referred to within Yesterday's Tractor Co. products and within the Yesterday's Tractor Co. websites are the property of their respective trademark holders. None of these trademark holders are affiliated with Yesterday's Tractor Co., our products, or our website nor are we sponsored by them. John Deere and its logos are the registered trademarks of the John Deere Corporation. Agco, Agco Allis, White, Massey Ferguson and their logos are the registered trademarks of AGCO Corporation. Case, Case-IH, Farmall, International Harvester, New Holland and their logos are registered trademarks of CNH Global N.V.
Yesterday's Tractors - Antique Tractor Headquarters
Website Accessibility Policy