Allis D-17, Your opinion please..

I have my grandfather's D-17, that he bought at an auction when I was small. It was his last tractor, the last tractor my dad farmed with, the first tractor both me and my son soloed on. As you can imagine - it is very special to me. The tractor is a series 1 early '57 model by the S/N, but when my grandfather purchased it in the late 60's at a farm auction, it had been re-painted in Series II colors, with cream grille and wheels. This is the way it has always been. My question is this - If you were going to re-store it, would you paint it the correct color, paint it as it has always been all your life, or just leave her work clothes on her? I don't plan on selling it any time soon, but I respect your opinions and was curious. I couldn't repaint the right fender anyway as the sweat from Grandpa's, Dad's and my arms back in the day wore the paint off where they rested on the fender while plowing and working ground, so it would look odd with a shiny fender anyway. Thanks for your opinions and sorry so long.
Brad

Your question set me to thinking, so I looked up the meaning of the word "restore". One definition says, "To bring back to a former, original, or normal condition." So I guess if you actually "restore" the tractor, you would need to paint it in the original color scheme. That being said, if you have no plans to sell it, and like it the way it is, leave it be. Very few people would notice the difference anyway.

HI Just an Okie
So you want my opinion, I vote to leave as is just keep up with any repairs that are needed and enjoy the memories.
Ralph

It's your tractor, your memories. I'd say paint it how you remember it. Few people will notice the differance.

In answer to your question, I have a 1957 J.D. 620 that my dad bought brand new. When I inherited it, it had several small dings in the sheet metal, the throttle lever had been broken and welded. I cleaned sanded and repainted the tractor but left the dings alone as each one of them reminds me of my dad and two brothers. I look at it as a piece of our family history. does it detract from actual monetary value? Yes... Does it add to sentimental value? DEFINITELY!!! So, it's your tractor, and do what makes you happy.

If it was mine, I would keep it in her work clothes, if she was too rough to do that, I would paint it like your grandpa bought it and start wearing the paint off the fender again.

My opinion is that if you ask someone else to answer a question that only you can really answer, you're going to be disappointed in the end. I wouldn't get hung up on the proper colors, you can change that later. What I mean is, I've seen people about to blow their brains out because they couldn't decide on No.1 Cream or No.2 Cream for the wheels of their McD model 7 mowing machine,and it had to be perfect. Who cares, No.1 or No.2? They saved the thing from the scrapyard, that's what matters! You're concerned about where the paint is rubbed off the fender? Think about it. You may have already answered your own question. My Uncle Jim was an expert fabricator. He made a rocking lever to engage the PTO on our 'M' which swung 90deg. up and down on the right side of the seat, mounted on the trans cover. I was just crawdad bait when he did it, and I never saw the factory setup until many years later; I couldn't believe I.H. would make such a stupid little pull ring! No matter what level I restore this tractor to, I would never delete Uncle Jim's PTO lever. I can understand you wanting to keep that bare spot. Fritz

My dad and I have went around and around about painting and not painting and so on..

I too, have a D-17, mine is a series 4, currently in it's original clothes, for the most part.. My Great Great uncle bought it new (or really close to) and used it into the mid-late 70's, when my Grandpa bought it and used it.. I bought it in 2003..

Someday I will repaint it, as it is starting to look awfully shabby.. The argument has always been if/when I paint it, I plan to paint some of the 3-point parts green, as they show green colors, and when I was young it had a black and yellow Kelley loader on it.. The loader has been gone for YEARS, but I have since put a IH loader on it, and thinking it will get painted yellow and black.. I plan to do this just because it's how i remember it best, and I see no reason to do anything but preserve the memory of my childhood, and of it being on Grandpa's farm, as someday I'm sure he will be gone and all that will remain is just that, memories..

If you're not planning on selling, do what would make you happiest. Part of me hates to think of repainting my D-17, but grandpa often comments on how good it looked when it was new, just hoping I can get it done up before he's gone.. I know it'd mean a lot to him, but it's hard to bring myself to paint something I use on a very regular basis..

Brad

I have a D-17 and love it!. But I've found that if I restore or make a tractor like new, then I don't use for fear of scratching that new paint. If you're going to enjoy using it -leave it in the clothes it has earned, especially with that worn fender.
The tractors that I enjoy to use don't get painted, but I'd still like to see them like new.

In my opinion a paint job is not a restoration. How ever a paint job will raise the pride level of the owner/viewer. I would paint it as it was when it entered your family.I bought a new D17 in the summer of 1969 and spent many hours on it picking corn with a 602 mounted Ford Picker .I used it to plant with ,to do field work with. Putting up hay and corn silage.I and my help probably spent more hours on the D17 than all the other tractors on our farm combined.When I was getting ready for our liquidation sale I had the tractor cleaned up and painted and on the day of the sale several individuals commentesd that it would have been better if I had left it in it"s working clothes. They felt that a new paint job detracted from the value of the tractor.My comment is,none of these critical observers bought any thing at my sale. If you must paint it do it as you remember it was when a new tractor on your farm.

A fresh paint job hurts the value of a tractor,original paint makes it worth more.

Bingo!! to that! We did up our Super H real nice (mechanically and cosmetically) and now don"t dare use it for much except parades, pulls and occasional plow days. I"ve come around to the idea of getting them mechanically top notch and then using them wherever and for whatever.

Just a Okie

1st of all coming from a J/D guy, a D17 is a
Very Fine tractor. My opinion is it"s yours
keep it or repaint it the way you remember it.
If you decide to repaint the machine, what
ever you do, do it RIGHT. Don"t do a 1/2 a
job on any part of it. If it"s mechanically
sound thats great.. But don"t paint the
machine if the one brake doesn"t work good
fix everything, & rewire everything using
the correct colors of wires & keep it A/C
as humanly possible. Like what has been said
already, if ya paint it correctly, & do the
job right, you won"t to use it as hard...

RLA

I repainted my old Farmall with TSC rattle can restorer paint. It took me a whole hour or two after a good power washing. It doesn't look all that bad and I actully get complements on how it looks pretty good for being 60 years old. Not having alot into it I don't mind using it or getting it dirty if I have to. Like the others say, you put alot into the paint job you won't dare use it. I get alot of enjoyment just using my tractor for small easy jobs around the farm.

I like the cream and silver on AC wheels, no mater the year. D series only had-2? 3? years without the cream? you are keeping it, so paint it the way you want- or remember it best, original paint is for ready to sell. As far as the parts you don't want to paint, use some 'clear coat' spray, just to keep those 'historical spots' from getting rusty or chipping to bare metal. These are awesome tractors, good luck with it!

I'm working on a 1942 Farmall H that my grandfather bought new. The paint on it is really bad, and it's been painted at least twice since it was new. Mechanically it's very good and I don't think I'll need to do much to it. I remember it as it was when it was fairly new, so that's the way I will try to paint it. There are a few things that Grandpa did that I will leave as they are. If it still had the original paint, I'd clear coat over it and leave it, but since it has been painted several times, and not done well, I'll try to get it as original as I can. Just my opinion, it's your tractor to enjoy so do whatever feels good. The big thing is to enjoy it and the memories.

I'm with you Fritz.
A firend of mine has a 2N Ford that the P.O. had skipped right over the gray and red to the modern gray and blue in an effort to "modernize" it.
My friend restored it back to it's original dark grey a year or two ago.
Some will say it ain't as pretty but now it looks just like it did when new.
I have another friend who has a barn full of Allis-Chalmers tractors. When I first got to look at them, there was a WD-45 that he bought from an elderly neighbor fazrmer which had always been shedded and had all its original paint and no dents. It may have been faded, but it stood out from all the rest, restored or not.
You cannot beat an unmolested original in my opinion. They are "original" only once!

I would leave it as is for now. You can't "undo" a paint job.

Just keep her waxed / sealed to keep the rust away. DOUG