1946 Farmall Super A Basic questions

I have a super A, sat for 3 years, but I parked it and it purred like a kitten when shut off.

I need to find out what all the controls are on it.
What the switches do and how the magneto works inside.
I just bought a mini farm, so I am flat broke.
I know I am going to have to buy the manual to rebuild the carb and the hyd pump, both of which leak like mad...

Do any of you have a simple guide as to where the fluid levels are supposed to be checked, what all the levers are for, what the switches do...and how the points and mag should be dealt with?

This darlin is complete and besides a GM 12 volt alternator, not screwed up at all.

I sure would appreciate any help someone could give me, even a picture with some text and pointers as to what is what.

Is there anyone here in VA?
I am in Bedford county.
Thanks in advance!

JD

I was told this fuse is not stock.
It looks stock, but I do not know the history of this machine for the first forty years of its life.
who knows???

Keith & Shawn

• Super A manuals

Keith & Shawn

(Hot links to the Cub Manual Server won't "take" on this site.)

Link

For those of you who emailed and were actually helpful...thank you very much!!

:>)

If it's been settin' for 3 years, though, it's probably gonna take a lot more than knowing which lever does what to get it fired. Sometimes you can luck out and the engine won't be set up, the gas tank and carb will be dry, rust-free and varnish-free, and the plugs, wires, and mag will be usable. A friend of mine bought an old M out of a barn that had been sitting for at least 10 years. All he did was put a battery and some gas in it; it fired right up and he drove it home that day.

More likely, you'll be looking at a rusty gas tank, a gummed-up carb, and/or no spark. If your on a time table to get it moved, you may just want to bite the bullet, break out the tow chain, and move it somewhere that you can work on it as you have time...

Basic switches, assuming stock:
Ignition is the push-pull switch. Pull for ON.
Lights are the twist knob. Full left is OFF.
Gear shift is the stick coming out the top of the platform to the left of the seat. Gear pattern is cast into the platform just ahead of the lever.
Clutch is the left pedal. Push to shift
Left brake is the middle pedal. Push pedal by itself to skid the tractor to the left. Right brake is the right pedal. Push pedal by itself to skid the tractor to the right.
Push both brake pedals at the same time to stop the tractor.
Throttle is the lever with the ratchet on the steering post. Back is lower RPM, forward is higher RPM.
Hydraulic lift arms are the two other levers on the steering post. Back rolls the arms toward the rear of the tractor. Forward rolls the arms toward the front of the tractor. Various attachments translate the rotation of the arms into linear motion to lift and lower various implements.
Power take off, the splined shaft sticking out the back of the tractor, is controlled by a lever that should be on the left side of the seat.

Hope this is helpful.

I was not asking anyone to type a book for me. I would have thought the manuals had been scanned and turned into .pdf by now.

I was shocked to search all over the web and not find this info somewhere.

Lord knows if you ask anything about a 4X4 truck, there are guides and pics all over the place.
Same thing with:
Corvettes.
Boats.
Airplanes.
Lawnmowers.
Old radios.
Windmills.
Solar water heaters.
Carpentry.
Appliance repair.
HVAC.
Car Stereo.
Painting.
Carving.
Rock climbing...etc...etc.

To find this much interest in tractors and so little in the way of home brew guides and digital pics on the web is truly shocking to me.

Not sure where those are on an A, but you should be able to trace a rod running from the side of the carburetor back to the operator's platform. That's the choke. There should be a linkage running from that switch on top of the starter back to another rod on the operator's platform too. That's the starter.

scotty

As for controls- the throttle lever, like I said, is immediately left of the steering post. It'll have a sawtooth bracket that holds it in place. If it has the touch control levers, they have guides beside them with adjustable stops.

Other controls will be- on the left side of the battery there'll be a rod with a loop on the end that runs down to the carb. That's the choke. An identical rod on the right side will go to the starter motor- that, funny enough, is the starting rod. There should be a push-pull switch on the panel that the ampmeter is on, thats the on-off switch. A larger round rotating switch on that panel ran the lights. I'm sure you know what the gearshift is and where it's at. Last thing I can think of is to the immediate left rear of the left seat bracket there should be a small lever sticking up- that's your pto lever.

Most of the things(trans/rearend, final drives, steering box, etc. should have a fairly obvious plug on the sides of them that is for fluid levels. There's a larger plug on top of the trans near the shifter to fill it. Like previously mentioned, you NEED to get a manual if you're gonna run this tractor much. They can be ordered online through the links on the left of this page.

I'll let someone else tackle your mag questions! Good luck!

Another thing, you can look up your serial number(should be on a plate attached to one of the seat brackets) at a link to the left of this page and it'll tell ya for sure what year tractor ya have.

You'll have to cut and paste the address above into your browser, if the link doesn't show up!

This is EXACTLY what I was looking for!!!

It came back on line, cause when I tried it today, it worked like a charm!!
I appreciate it very much!

Here it is...
I have no spark.

I don't know what to think...I was told it is a mag..??