9N Original Parts?

The engine block number is (star)9N15881(star) which puts it in the early part of 1940. The grill has vertical bars and the dash is cast metal. Are these possible for this block number?

Casual inspection did not turn up any seam between the bell housing and the dash. Were these cast as a single part?

The tractor has been "prettied up" with a recent coat of gray paint The dash may have had repair work done to its lower left corner. A baseball sized area protrudes above the dash face and has been ground down. This area is obscured by gray paint. Is it possible that Henry Ford sold the tractor this way or has a shadetree blacksmith done a repair?

My tractor has a hinged battery compartment and the starter switch on the transmission. Also the transmission dipstick is on the top of the transmission case, not on the side.

Checking Smith's web site implies my tractor is a cross between 1939 and 1940. Did Ford have a blurred line between 1939 and 1940 production runs? That is, did Ford have more 1939 cast dashs than hoods and starter switches and mixed 1939 parts with 1940 parts. Or has my 9N had a newer hood, grill, and starter switch transmission housing installed sometime after production? Maybe the dash repair is to plug up the original location of the starter switch.

Thanks,

Dick Armstrong, What Cheer, Iowa

On the left side of the dash is the original push starter switch. I converted to a 12v keyed switch replacing the key on switch, but left the push switch. Sounds like where your repair job is.

The trannie dip stick is on top of the case.
The grill has vertical bars with a larger center piece. The dash is cast metal.