A Thanks with pics...

Haying went great, thanks in part to you guys. The H charges good, the wheels are at 81" & y'all should have seen the sand in the carburetor when I got to it. Have no idea how that got in there. Can't find a point of entry, either. The rest of the carb is disgustingly clean, though. Wierd! Threw a rebuild kit in it anyhow, while I had it all to pieces.

The H will need a set of rings 'n' sleeves within the next couple of years, at least if they hold out that long. She had a hard time keeping the conditioner going in medium-heavy hay & snorts vapor out of the breather like a small steam engine (note: cloud under tractor in 1st pic & behind me in the 3rd pic). It's the hardest job it has to contend with & I only cut about 3 or 4 acres.... So here's hopin'!

Thanks again,
Mike

P.S. I did use the carb off of my old & running H for the hay job & overhauled the new (to me) one yesterday. I figured if the other one was already on & dialed in, leave it alone.

it looks great! you have a nice tractor and a really nice mower and conditioner set up!

Thank you! I can't take credit for the resto on the tractor, though, that was the previous owner. The mower was originally owned by the township & has a coat of yellow under the red. The hay conditioner wears it's original paint with just a few touch-ups.

There's still a few bugs in the setup, but it's a great rig overall.

Mike

Has she been sandblasted? Sand gets in EVERYWHERE with blasting. Otherwise maybe the air cleaner cup was dry for a time.
Nice unit there. Are you in low gear? Might shift down a gear.

shes a beauty great job!
What is the little sickle bar/mower conditioner type machine your towing? Id like to purchase something like this.

thank you

Looks good.

My Super H "snorted vapor out of the breather like a small steam engine" when I 1st got it. I discovered that the tube coming from the back of the head going to the top of the oil bath air cleaner was gone and the head plugged. You might check that and see if that tube is in place and clear.

That tube provides positive crank case ventilation.

She looks good. Thanks for posting the pics. Good to see the old girl get her legs stretched. I did a small four acre field a couple of weeks ago and used the H for most of it.

Alright...now that we are both done hayin' you better order us up some rain pronto! We need it!

What model # is that conditioner?? I have the same mower you do, but have been lookin for a conditioner to pull behind!

Sweet set-up!

Ben

that appears to be an IH mow and mulch special, bet that makes good hay

It's a good possibility it was sandblasted, but the sand looks like it came from a beach. I should go through the entire intake setup & look for more sand. A palm tree in the air cleaner, with the sand, would be nice. Always did want a palm tree.

With ye olde faithful H, I was able to mow & crimp in third. Second was ok for the new H, first gear is just too slow. The grass falls in front of the cutterbar & clumps. The conditioner snatches up wads of hay from up to a foot in front of it & spits it out in a lump behind the rollers. Fourth gear turns the conditioner into a dump rake, or so I've heard.

Mike

Great pics and thanks for sharing. Since you found sand in the carb, I would say you have also discovered why your low on power. That sand has got sucked into the engine and has most likely wiped out the rings and walls of the sleeves, causing them not to be able to seal compression very well.

The real indication that it needs engine work is a bad compression test and/or excessive oil use.

Thanks, it's a McCormick model 120 Balanced Head mower. It's setup to bolt to the drawbar & actually takes a bit of patience to add & remove from the tractor. It should have been named a Balancing Mower. If everything isn't set right, it will be laying in an awkward heap the next time you need it. IH did make the mower versatile enough that you could get it set up for the Fast Hitch or a three point & various setups for other makes of tractor. There is a model 100 that has no tail wheel to balance upon & could be setup for Fast Hitch, 3 point or pull type. Quite a few other brands of mowers were made with conditioner hitches, both pittman & pittmanless.

Don't let my little review, here, scare you. Clumsiness aside, it's a great mower! I have yet to find a ditch that I can't cut(safely). It'll cut fast, too. I put it on my 400 & trimmed the ditch on the long side of our rented out field. In fourth I got the job done in less than half an hour. IH made quite a few different mowers with the hay conditioner hitch, so you can find what suits you best. That includes a few of the mid-mount sickle bars, too.

The conditioner is a McCormick model 2A & is the most common to find. There are four other models, the no's 1, 2, 33 & 34. The #1 came out in '58 with chain driven rubber rollers & a ratchet lift. The hydraulic lift & the sheet metal for windrowing was optional. A belt kit came out to replace the noisy chain drive. The #2 came out in '59, has belt driven rollers & sealed bearings on the lower roller. Both of these had the jack on the back of the machine to stand them on end & take up less space. A jack was put on the hitch if the sheet metal was on the back. The 2A was built from '60 to '63 & saw greaseable bearings return to the lower rollers & the rear sheet metal & hyd. lift were standard. The 33 came out in '63 & was essentially a heavy duty version of the 2A. The 34 came out in '65 & featured a restyled lower rubber roller with a steel roller as an option. Both of these machines were out of the catalogs by '73. The combined mower-conditioners were selling like hot cakes by then.

The Balanced Head mowers are still quite popular & a good majority of parts are still availabe through CaseIH, Agco & Rowse. Prices vary widely, from $350 to $800 & for Heaven's Sake if it has yellow paint on it somewhere.... & it ain't cheap, cheap, cheap!... just leave it be. Dealerships are usually fairly high priced on the Balanced mowers, but not always.

Hay conditioners can be found anywhere from free to about $400 to $500 & in any color you like. Everybody & their uncle made some kind of hay crusher from the early '50s to the mid '70s.

Mike

I know the tube is on there, just don't know if it's loose or what. I'll definatly check it out.

Thanks,
Mike

Thanks! I bet our H's wish four acres was all they had to contend with in their life. :v)

Now, this rain of which you speak... I've heard that word before. IIRC, rain is made of dihydrogen monoxide & makes fields green for some odd reason? It should come from a cloud like what is pictured above, but that's when they're above you or so they say. I here-tell that dihydrogen monoxide can be some nasty ---- anyhow. The pink lightning's supposedly safe, though. ;v)

Mike

The conditioner is a 2A & does an awsome job (the 2A is also the easiest to find, btw). I wish I had it when I first started making hay. The old #2 I have was pooped out when I got it & the crop of oat hay that was up to my pits (I'm 6'2") did it in. It needs a complete rebuilding, unless I find another one. I hope to eventually have all five differen't IH conditioners in my collection.

Mike

P.S. I would venture to guess, by your handle, that you live in NoCal? If so, are there any IH three wire balers in your neck of the woods? I'd really like to find one, one of these days.

AAAAH STUFF!!! Now that I think of it, I cleaned a lot of grit out of the joints on the wide front. And, after having first read Brownie 450 & Dean Olsons posts, the flit of an idea I had of sand in the engine sank in. You've kinda cemented that thought in place. NOT that I hold you responsible for any of it. Lest you be the restorer of this machine, of course. ;v)

AAAACH, always something!

Mike

I'll have to check compression, but I think I already know the answer. The tractor burned through, p'd out or blew out about a pint of oil between both cutting & raking. I think I'm giong to have a pint tonight.

Mike

Thanks for the info.
Not much in the way of small hay equipment around here.I've only seen ONE other piggy back conditioner like yours.
Don't recall seeing any IH 3 tie balers. Seems like tha majority are Freeman, NH and now mostly the center feed Heston/Massey's. But I'll keep My eyes peeled. Never know what someone has in their old fence row!!

Ben

It makes beautiful hay! I can't wait to make oat hay with it in the next couple of years.

Mike

Great pics, thank you so much for sharing. When you get ready to rebuild it you can put some pop-up pistons and maybe have enough room to put Super H sleeves & pistons in there, THAT should give you enough oomph for just about any haying job, I had a 46 H I just put pop-ups in it , NAPA was able to cross them over, my sleeves were good, gave it a bit of pep without running hot, or using too much gas. Just a thought. Thanks again.

Hi Mike-

The onnnnnnnnly negative I can say is that long long pipe nipple and 90 used to crutch the too short hydro hose may not do well with vibration.

I used a New Idea semi mount mower and a separate JD crimper, but never put the two together back then.

Lots of guys use a 10 inch x 5 inch piece of flat steel with eight 1/2 inch holes bored in it on 1 inch iron pipe spacers to move their fenders up and out. Have you seen them?

Hey Mike, thanks for the pictures and the history of the IH conditioners.
I just bought a #34 conditioner, the decals are still very readable and the drive belt is in good shape. It has one steel and one fiber? roll, both in good shape. I had to give 210 dollars for it, can't wait to try it.

Say Billy, I offered up two tractors that will be parked outside for the night. Now, I see lightning off to the west. How 'bout that? :vD

Mike

Glad you enjoyed. The H would be just about perfect on the conditioner with Super H pistons. I know of three NOS Firecrater matched piston sets for a Super H, but I'm hard pressed to find a fourth. NAPA pistons don't sound like a bad second choice that may require a closer look. What part number do you have for the NAPA pistons?

Mike

Howdy Eric, I agree about the pipe nipple & it is on the list of things to change out, sometime this summer.

Mike

Yep, the H came with a set installed. I move the fenders in as a safety measure. It gives me something to hold on to while looking back & is an aide to help me on & off the tractor. Also to keep me from ending up a$$ over tea kettle when I'm in a hurry & there's no fender there. ;v)

Mike

Thanks, glad you enjoyed the pics. Sounds like you found a great deal & the belt in good shape is a plus. Darned things are over a C-note these days. The fiber roll should be made of Ticor or tire carcass. Take good care of it, they don't make replacement parts for the rollers anymore. No worries though, those rollers will last a very long time if kept out of the elements. If you need a manual, CaseIH or ebaY should have them.

Mike

Good timing Mike! I never thought to make an offering of tractors for a little rain. We were getting in some dire straits down this way.