eric's 1955 wd45

i recently acquired this 1955 wd45. not to restoration mode yet, but hope to get there in the future. for now, i just want to get it good running/usable condition. it's a learn as i go thing since this is the first tractor i've ever really turned a wrench on. so far i have drained and replaced all the fluids (clutch/hydraulic is draining now, pto has an issue) been through the fuel system and removed quite a bit of rust from gas tank (this is gas, not diesel) removed carb and cleaned, but probably will put a rebuild kit to it soon, removed air breather and cleaned and put new oil in bath bowl, added seafoam to fuel, stp treatment to engine oil, and cleaned alot of the grease and grime off. got new tube for front tire, and (2) new tires and tubes for rear. also got a new starter rod, lever, and button. it came with 12v system and electronic ignition already installed. 
needs..
most of the gauges, left side brake linkage rod, lever and chain for quick hitch latch release, and whatever i find it needs to get the pto working properly...for now
this will probably be an ongoing post as i delve more and more into this thing. i'm open to any advice, comments, questions? MY biggest questions for now are how to fix the pto and the engine seems to be losing oil (looks like from valve cover and front seal areas) and it smokes some and has a tendency to back fire/pop from time to time and acts like its sending quite a bit of oil out the top of the exhaust pipe. my plan is to get a full engine gasket set and hopefully fix those issues. if anyone thinks i have a bigger problem please feel free to let me know. as far as pto, it engages by itself every once in a while. also has a bad grinding sound that comes and goes on its own, like a gear is slipping or loose. i haven't used the pto w/any implements, it just concerns me that it's going to tear up something else. the tractor doesn't seem to have any issues when the grinding occurs so i'm hoping it's just a minor issue in the pto housing, which i'll be removing later today to see if a bunch of damn pieces fall out lol. i have used it to plow a big garden we have and it seemed to do great! (aside from i could use some wheel weights) but she dug pretty good.
sorry this post is so long, but i wanted to put as much info as i could for anyone that might help me out or for others that have similar questions. i have lots of pics and will have many more as i go, so if you need to see anything in particular, just ask. thanks in advance. lovin' this site and working on this old tractor!!
-eric 

the pto gear, bearings and shaft look ok to me, so my plan is to put them back in w/o the gear in the top of the housing so it doesn't grind anymore, until i can get the parts and replace everything

that's good news drallis because i really didn't want to have to pull all that apart. thank you sir

I'm in Catoosa, just east of tulsa

Your problem with the intermediate gear is not uncommon, another cause is from the pto not being fully engauged. Also bush hogging is hard on these gears. Dr Allis is right as usual on the replacement of it. Job is easier if you have a helper to hold the spacer washers and to help line up the shaft as you slide it in but job can be done by one person. Keep us posted on your progress !!

A replacement gear (good used) shouldn't set you back that much... the toughest part for mine, was the PITA of lying under the tractor and fussing the pieces in place, probably took me an hour of messing around 'till I had it right, and then I think I called my son out to provide a second set of hands and eyes. IIRC I think I used a little dab of grease to hold the spacer in place.

Just fix it and be done!

Check with ANY of the guys that have parts machines here- I got mine from Bill Deppe... and the way those gears are, they're either good, or bad... usually they're good unless something falls down into 'em.

Someone recently posted pic of the "nail trick" when installing hyd pump.Flatten end of 4 nails,press roller lever against body and wedge nail between body and lever.This will keep all levers collapsed out of way when reinstalling pump.Once you get it fed in past frame rail with draw pipe inside housing,pull nails out and bolt up.You can have a gasket glued to hsg and never disturb it doing this way.

The shaft uses that set bolt to lock in place.No key needed.

Edited by SteveM C/IL - 14 Oct 2015 at 8:38am

i believe this is the pic your talking about.                                         i would put the gasket on the tractor instead of the pump

Edited by ac45dave - 15 Oct 2015 at 8:36am

been in shop playin' w/45..think i went from having the tractor bug straight to a full on flu! enjoy tinkering w/this thing so much. got a bunch of parts all cleaned up and first coats of paint on. can't wait to see 'em back on tractor. also, route 66 flywheelers gas engine and tractor show is this weekend in my lil' town of catoosa, usa..prolly alot of deere's there, but should also be some AC's and i think this year, it's supposed to feature olivers, which i think just look cool. i'll try and get some pics and post on sunday or monday.

this looks to me like something was sheared off, but that hole doesn't go all the way through so i'm kinda confused what goes there. this is the shaft for the idler gear in the pto housing..any clues??? also, w/the hydro pump removed, i'm still not really seeing how to get the intermediate gear out? i can see the end of the shaft through the hole in the side of the torque tube, but i guess i was expecting to see a set screw or key that i could remove to drop that gear. i'm sure i'll figure it out, but some knowledgeable advice would be well received. thanks gang.
   


Edited by grateful1micelf - 20 Oct 2015 at 9:10am

so i feel pretty dumb that the set screw was starin' me in the face the entire time! but, there she is. the intermediate gear is out and new gear should be here today or tomorrow. got most all the stuff i pulled off painted and ready to go back on. i'll post more pics when reassembled. 

grateful1micelf wrote:

ok, i have a silly question,what keeps the trans oil and hydraulic oil form mixing?i've looked at parts and service manuals and don't see any "o" ring or anything to seal around the intermediate shaft to keep fluid from migrating from one compartment to the other.

grateful1micelf wrote: this looks to me like something was sheared off, but that hole doesn't go all the way through so i'm kinda confused what goes there. this is the shaft for the idler gear in the pto housing..any clues??? also, w/the hydro pump removed, i'm still not really seeing how to get the intermediate gear out? i can see the end of the shaft through the hole in the side of the torque tube, but i guess i was expecting to see a set screw or key that i could remove to drop that gear. i'm sure i'll figure it out, but some knowledgeable advice would be well received. thanks gang.

i've got all of this figured out and back together except for this pin. i gather that there used to be some sore of square cap screw that went in this shaft that slides into a key type slot in the pto housing to keep this shaft from spinning??? all the parts book shows is "pin" but the picture of it doesn't really show how it goes in. am i gonna have to try to remove that piece in the shaft and put a new pin in? does it even really need it? only other thing i can think of is to drill and bottom tap a new hole and put a new square cap screw in?? any thoughts? thanks