Promised Land Pulling

(1/18/11) Before we get into the meat of the 2011 "déjà vu makeover", let's turn the clock back a bit and look at the beginnings of this tractor's life on the track. My youngest son began pulling in 2003 with a local playday "no score keeping" pull. I had been pulling the crusty 'ol Cub 1200 that summer and was doing okay considering all we did to the tractor that year was put bar tires and weight brackets on it.

Before the start of the 2004 pulling season, we decided the 'ol tractor needed spiffing up. So out came the "poof" cans and along with tracking down a set of side panels and ordering a set of decals, we gave the 1200 it's first "new look".

Classes changed and we needed to lose some weight. So the next upgrade was some lightweight aluminum wheels and wheelie bars to replace the heavy steel items. Jake did well in the 750 lb class that season and Jessi gave it a whirl as well and pulled off a first place even though she was running a tired twelve horse in an eighteen horse class. In 2005 a class change left us struggling. The tired twelve horse was showing it's handicap when the class went from 9-12hp up to 12-15hp.

So in 2006 a fresh fourteen was installed and transmission gears were tweaked and Jake became the one to beat in the class. In 2007 the rules changed again and we were required to reinstall the reverse gear that was previously removed. Otherwise the only change was the replacement of the stock steel front wheels and turf tires to aluminum and tri-ribs. That season started rough having to learn our new transmission ratio's, but after a few hooks Jake was back on his A-game.

In 2008 the stock fourteen was yanked out and an ungoverned ported and cammed K301 was dropped in so Jake was ready to go when an open rpm "Sport Stock Single" class was offered. The stock cast front axle was replaced with a tube axle and reverse was removed AGAIN according to the rules of the new class. The motor ran well and along with the tweaked transmission ratio's put Jake again in the "one-to-beat" column. The tractor got it's name "déjà vu" that year and lived up to it like a prophecy coming true.

Interest in the "Sport Stock Single" class was waning while the "Sport Stock Twin" class was begging for competition. We obliged in 2009 and swapped the open rpm single cylinder motor for a real sweet running twin and another transmission tweak. Jake never looked backed and earned a "Sport Stock Twin" championship jacket that year in the WIGTP's first ever points series.

2010 brought ANOTHER rule change which prompted us to pull the Firestone's off and replace them with a set of Cepek Big Bars. To keep the tractor attitude front-to-back the same we also replaced the front six inch wheels with a set of eight inch. The competition was really heating up in the class and Jake was neck and neck with the nearest competitor all summer. At the end of the season he came up two points short and so finished in the runner-up position.

Well that wraps up the trip down memory lane. It sure would be nice if rules didn't change every year so we wouldn't have to buy gears or tires every time we turn around. But I digress... The 2011 "déjà vu" makeover has begun. It's the first rig the kids pulled with but somehow it's ended up being the last to see the pro paint shop, oh well.

(1/20/11) Onward to the makeover... Now we were kinda partial to the looks of "déjà vu" back when it had a single cylinder in it. Not that it looked bad with the twin cyl engine sticking out for all the world to see, but the side panels enclosing the engine compartment would give it a similar look as the rest of the fleet.

(1/20/11) So, can we make the side panels fit around the twin cylinder heads and valve covers and side exit header? Well, we could chop up the left side panel to fit around the side exit header, but in sticking with the "fleet" look, we decided to go with a header like "Ladies First" and "Mercy!!", which exit out the hood.

(1/20/11) Since the "Ladies First" header will work with both the WIGTP Sport Stock Twin and Stock Altered Twin carburetor setups, we decided to fabricate another one just like it for "déjà vu". Then onward to the tinwork and snip snip here, grind, grind there, and walla, "déjà vu" has an enclosed engine compartment with just one valve cover peeking out to reveal what lurks within.

(1/22/11) Now the tractor was probably seventy five percent disassembled before tackling the tinwork modifications. And that being a side effect of two things: 1. tearing up the ring gear and pinion in "Mercy!!" at the last WIGTP pull in September 2010, and 2. preparing "Ladies First" to pull open rpm in Kansas City in December 2010.

(1/22/11) Those two items prompted a musical chair swap of transmissions and motors leaving "déjà vu" with no transmission and no motor. So a mock-up motor was set into place to fabricate the header and fit the tinwork.

(1/22/11) That portion of the project being done, now it's time to finish the disassembly process so everything can be hauled to the sandblaster and paintshop.

(1/22/11) We're down to removing the graphics and vinyl lettering, a little heat and they peel right off. And finally disassembly of details like removing the hood hinge, grill screen, taillights, and shifter lock.

(1/22/11) Wow, will it ever run again? Check back for more info and pictures, but don't hold yer breath, 'cause good paint prep work and good paint take some time.

(2/1/11) Well, while we were waiting for completion of paint, we started the rebuild the broken "Mercy!!" transmission project. It's been taking up space in the shop since the ring gear and pinion exploded at the 2010 Neola pull. Not only did the ring gear and pinion take a hit, but the heavy duty two-piece carrier is scrap metal as well.

(2/1/11) So then as part of the musical chair component swap mentioned earlier, the "Mercy!!" transmission will become the "déjà vu" transmission. This will be the second transmission in the fleet to get the MWSC billet carrier and hd ring and pinion treatment.

(2/16/11) Finally, some parts have arrived from the paint shop! Let's gather up some wrenches and see what all we have that can be glued back on and in the frame. Stuff like wheelie bars, hitch, dash tower, motor plate, steering column, and front axle. At last it looks like we're making a little progress on the "déjà vu" makeover.

(2/16/11) Kinda forgot everything that got pirated from "déjà vu" in the process of sending the "Ladies First" tractor to KC. Besides putting the "déjà vu" motor and transmission into "Ladies First", she got the fuel system, clutch and driveshaft with support bearing, the longer steering drag link, fire extinguisher, and rear kill switches.

(3/1/11) Now all that has to be replaced on "déjà vu". So while the governor motor has gotten some upgrades to make it open rpm ready for "déjà vu", the little clutch she had won't cut the mustard. So in with a MWSC super hd clutch. And in with a new Holley Blue fuel pump. And while we're at it, let's throw some tires and wheels back on so we can roll it around if need be.

(3/10/11) Things have kinda slowed to a crawl. Waiting on some parts. Waiting on paint. But still managed to make some headway. Wiring and electrical got finished up with the exception of the battery cables and the safety kill switch. Will have to wait to do those when some more bodywork shows up from the paint shop. Finished the fuel system and when we get a break from some grain hauling will try and fire things up and make some noise!

(6/1/11) Have never seen a longer drawn out planting season than this one! Rain, rain, rain, and cold, cold cold! But the corn did get planted and the beans too, thank the Lord! And all this while, poor ol' "déjà vu" has been setting in a dark shop with not a glance being made it's direction. Well now when it rains we have a few moments to resume the makeover.

(6/17/11) The body work was picked up from the paint shop and the fender pan was installed. Then a battery and wire up the safety kill switch and install the foot throttle. The dash panel went on along with the ignition and fuel pump switches, and hey, why not fire it up? Oh yea, sounds good! We may be ready for some dyno time to get things dialed in!

(6/18/11) The 2011 "déjà vu makeover" is rapidly reaching it's conclusion and it's starting to look a lot like a pullin' tractor. See the "déjà vu" tractor and the rest of the "Promised Land Pulling" fleet up close at a WIGTP pull near you!

Just when you think you have all your toy projects wrapped up and you can sit back and enjoy the fun, someone throws a monkey wrench in your party dip! In this case, after attending the 2009 WIGTP awards banquet, the daughter shared her desire for a "Champions" jacket. She apparently felt left out after seeing her brother and father parade their jackets in front of the crowd!
	"Okay", I said, after explaining the commitment required on her part. And even then there would be no guarantee of receiving a jacket. But she wouldn't back down from the challenge, so here we go... project "Third Jacket". We acquired a garden tractor that was already in it's beginning stages of the pulling conversion. We then commenced with the drilling, sawing, and hacking to continue the process.
Wanting to debut the new rig with shiny paint, the last step before sending everything to the paint shop was to determine where the exhaust collector pipe exits the tin work. So after quite a lengthy development process, we now have a two-into-one-equal-length-exhaust-header-pipe that clears the stock intake and carburator as well as the two barrel intake with a 1.2 carb. And the hood still opens, that's a must.
	So now in theory, we have everything ready for paint. When it all comes back we can start the assembly process. Of course there's the transmission rebuild and the weight bracket fabrication, those are major projects in and of themselves.
But it's one step at a time. The painter should complete his task while we're working in the field with spring planting so that when planting wraps up we'll have time to continue toy assembly.
	So will all this live up to it's code name "Third Jacket"? Time will tell. History has shown this girl tends to get her way!
Well the transmission portion of the project was finally completed. It sure looks like we got a lot of stuff left over! :^) And hey, we got all the pieces back from the paint shop nice and shiny!
	Now on to the assembly process. Transmission in frame, check. Wheelie bars installed, check. Steering tower installed, check. Brake linkage installed with working brake, check. Is that it? It is for now.
Onward with the tube front axle fabrication, adjustable hitch installation, and transmission oil fill and leak check. Oops, looks like we got a leak out of one of the rear axle tube lower mounting bolts. After raising the back of the tractor up to get the oil to front of the transmission and applying a little silicone on the bolt threads she's oil tight.
	Progressing right along with the steering column, the clutch and driveshaft, clutch bracket brace, the fenders and seat pan, and the gas pedal and cable.
Now on to the motor installation and driveshaft alignment along with a battery and routing the wiring. And the throttle hook up and adjustment too.
	Closing in on something that is looking more and more like a pullin' tractor, we've got the fuel system in place, steering wheel in place and after putting a little fuel in place, a test fire and check of the clutch operation and all gear positions, and finally, she'll move under her own power!