|
I don't have a reference with me but the first A's and B's had engine and chassis serial numbers that match. I THINK this B would be early enough to match, so that would tell you the tractor (chassis) serial number. Beyond that, you can come close to an age by using the casting numbers on engine block, trans. case, and other major cast parts. That is the date that particular part was made. They will be in a MM DD YY form, with the year represented by a letter. 1947-Q
1946-P
1945-O
1944-N
1943-M
1942-L
1941-K
1940-J
1939-I So for example January 8, 1939 would be 1 8 I. Check several in case something was replaced over time, be aware that sometimes you can have factory original parts that vary widely in age, and sometimes everything is cast just a few days apart. If the tractor is too new for serial number of chassis and engine to match, your best bet is to estimate with the casting codes. Generally the engine serial number will be much higher (newer) than the actual chassis number. There were sometimes some suffix and prefix codes on the enine number to indicate fuel burned, but that's hit and miss, some have them and some don't and it won't tell you much about its age anyway. If you can get a hold of Guy Fay's IH Tractor Data Book it breaks all this down in a very user-friendly format. HTH, I would like to try the FFA Tractor Rest. contest with our chapter, how has it been so far for you?
Al
|
