[MN99GT]

Started tearing into the "new to me" '89 4020 last night. We noticed a little issue on the bottom of the hydraulic cylinder for lifting the deck (see picture).

Has anyone else had this issue? We were thinking of taking it off, straightening everything as good as we could, then putting some 3/8" bar stock on the top side to minimize the chances of this happening again?

We also need some parts for the snowblower, is there a good source for used parts? The pulley we need (on the shaft) is over $50 on-line! Just curious if anyone has found a good source....

One more thing, is there anyplace local that I might find blades for the mower deck? Or am I stuck with going OEM? I'd really like to use it this weekend, but I'm not paying rush shipping just to get the blades in time!

Thanks!
Mike

 

[Stewart]

I've never seen one like that but I'd be checking the Relieve-Valve pressure with a gauge. :thumbsup:

I'd also be waiting for the OEM blades to arrive as many members have been less than happy with allot of the replacement blades. :trink:

 

[Bob MacGregor]

Hi Mike,
Periodically some folks have this problem, but I think that there are some that have this condition on their Ingersolls but don't know it. I had this happen on my 1985 448 Ingersoll and I didn't notice it until I removed the engine to install a new repower engine. This bracket had been previously welded onto the tractor frame. I removed it, straightened it and reinstalled it using four bolts as is done on later model Ingersolls such as yours.
In your pics it looks like the bottom of the frame is bent down some. I would remove this bracket and inspect both it and the tractor frame. You may be able to hammer the frame back to flat. Check to see if the bracket is bent and if so straighten it if you can. If there is clearance inslde the frame for adding a piece of flat bar stock as a reinforcement I would consider doing so. This will give the frame more support and more backing for the bracket mounting bolts. If I recall somewhere in a parts book there was mention of a heavy duty bracket but yours looks like the HD one. You may want to inspect a wider area of the tractor frame for cracks. These are rugged frames but some operators force these tractors to perform above and beyond their limits. I have seen pics of Ingersolls that have fallen off trailers while being transported on the highway. One tractor had some serious and odd type damage to the frame as result and broken axles also. Needless to say the tractor wasn't secured to the trailer properly.
Let us know what you find when you remove the bracket.
Bob MacGregor in CT :mrgreen: :mowlawn:

 

[Hydriv]

Please check our FAQ's for the document titled "Ingersoll Dealers" to find contact information for genuine parts.

Go with the OEM blades.

 

[boomers_influence]

MN
i believe that this could be caused by a snowcaster
or a front blade hitting an IMMOVEABLE object.
i highly doubt the the lift circuit would do that kind of damage.
some of my 400 series are welded, and some have only ONE bolt on each side.
NONE are damaged at all
boomer

 

[Rockdog]

My '72 444 has one bolt per side and bracket is bent a little bit.

 

[Bob MacGregor]

Hi Boomer and group,
My 448 had never had a snow blower on it but the welds were broken and the single bolts were loose. I could never determine the cause. With no engine in the tractor I stood it up on end like the pics in one of the early Ingersoll brochures and drilled a 2nd pair of bolt holes after I straightened the bracket and ground off the welds. This tractor had a seriously bent front axle on the R/H side so much so that the tire was dragging on the mower deck. An older gent bought the tractor new from a MI dealer and wasn't able to master the left hand travel control and hit a tree in his yard and the tractor rolled over backwards onto him, put him in the hospital for a long time. The tractor package went back to the selling dealer and my MI son-in-law bought it and I bought it from him several years later. The B48 had some grief possibly from the original accident and had been torn down and put back together supposedly. Son-in-law wasn't happy with the high oil consumption and offered it to me. I ran it for a while and it busted the oil filter side connecting rod and tore up the crankcase. When I tore it down I found the lips on the seal under the flywheel were partly rolled out. This is where the oil was coming from and this oil mixed with the incoming crud in the cooling air and plugged the cooling fins and slowly cooked the engine until one piston stuck to the cylinder wall. There is a P218 in it now.
Bob MacGregor in CT :mrgreen: :mowlawn:

 

[MN99GT]

Here is another pic of the frame with the bracket off, ouch! We straightened the frame back up, then my friend made the 3/8" steel plate for under the bracket, and the 3/8" bar stock above the frame. Should hold for a while. Now I just have to take it all apart and clean and paint it all!

 

[Bob MacGregor]

Looks great, nice job!!!
Bob MacGregor in CT :mrgreen: :mowlawn:

 

[dbeiter]

My old 444 had a bent lift cylinder bracket like that, the one day while in a hurry from my back barn to the house (it was pouring rain) I hit a bump a little too hard and the motor mounts flexed just enough to snap off the oil drain pipe................ I shut it down in time, but needless to say... the bracket was straightened soon after that!!