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The Dissection of Alice!

3K views 27 replies 10 participants last post by  skunkhome 
#1 · (Edited by Moderator)
Today I started dissecting Alice to fix some issues found plowing in Kentucky! And a few other items as add-ons. One of those being the new two spool valve. Got some things torn down to make the mount for the valve. Had to go further to correct the small 1/4" bolts holding most of the rear framework together. And another unspoken add-on. I'll get into that later.

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Another item I want to address is the cylinder to 3-point mount. Olcowhand had to weld it back on in Kentucky. I had only tacked it. But I think I need to lengthen it a little to aid in movement. So I'll tackle that while I have it all apart. I did tack weld nuts to the inside of the framework to ease in assembly. Some places are real hard to get into to start a nut. Letting it all sit til morning.
 

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#3 ·
Like Steve Austin, you can build her "better, stronger, faster" !
Working on it, Daniel! I'm real happy with her performance so far. Just some little issues that need tweaking and you have to take it apart to do that. If you look at the time on the pics, it didn't take long. And my hand is still an issue!
 
#4 ·
Take your time and go easy on the hand - the journey is as much or more fun than the destination whether it takes 20 minutes or 200.
 
#5 ·
My biggest issue with the hand is grasping something. Drilling the holes out was hard to do. Tried to be a LEFTY as much as I could. But I was tired of sitting on my butt knowing I had things to get done. I want to dive into my Gravely and sort out some issues there. I'm starting here as I know how it's put together.
 
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#7 ·
That is how my hand is when arthritis visits. Hurts to grip anything. Hope you hand starts feeling better asap Kenny!
Gonna be a while yet, Daniel! It was real good until yesterday. Then the swelling returned. Trying to make a fist and my little finger is about a 1/2" away from my palm! Will not close further!
 
#10 ·
Are you sure you're not getting some gout? The more you describe the pain and swelling, the more it sounds like that or Lupus.
Alan, I know I stretched the tendons some. And I had a carpal tunnel issue before that. It's my little finger that is still swollen, down through that side of the palm and into my wrist. Right into my arm about 3". The other fingers work fine, just irritates the tendon for my little finger when I make a fist or grasp something. After all I did yesterday, it is really better today. I keep a wrap on it as much as possible. I have 3 different ones and swap between them.
 
#11 ·
Back to the repairs. The 'box' was only attached with four 1/4" bolts before. These worked loose while plowing and made it hard to find neutral with the hydro linkage. It will now be attached with six 5/16" Grade 8 bolts. That should help that situation.

The parking brake lever was just a bit too far inboard, so I moved that bracket out about 3/8".

I have the new mounting bracket made for the 2-spool valve, just needs painted.

I'll cut Daniels's welds this morning for the cylinder mount on the 3-point. It will move 1/2" away from the shaft. Should give a bit more leverage. I have plenty of vertical lift, so a little less won't hurt.

I noticed the vent tube is kinked at the axle fitting. Got an idea to fix that in the works.

Gonna be a hot one today! so I'll get out there pretty soon.
 
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#12 ·
Nothing like tearing them down for improvements or adjustments. I've always found that they go back together a whole lot faster the second time around. Most mornings I can't close my left hand but I found that if I wear a tight fitting mechanics glove it really helps with the pain and grip. Hey, is that a roll bar fitted on there? Looking good Kenny.
 
#13 ·
Nothing like tearing them down for improvements or adjustments. I've always found that they go back together a whole lot faster the second time around. Most mornings I can't close my left hand but I found that if I wear a tight fitting mechanics glove it really helps with the pain and grip. Hey, is that a roll bar fitted on there? Looking good Kenny.
Not a roll bar. That's part of the 'unspoken add-on'. I had to get the holes drilled for it's mount and weld the nuts inside while it is apart. More on that later. Not sure if it is gonna work or not.
 
#14 ·
Got some paint on things! Waiting for it to dry.

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Here's my fix for the kinked vent hose. Found a piece of steel gas line with a bend in it. Cut the bend out, deburred, lubed with a small amount of silicone grease. Shoved it in to where the kink was and no more kink.

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Daniel, I got the cylinder mount welded in proper this time. Cranked the Hobart up to 4 and about 40 on the wire speed. Should hold well.

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Debating on painting the valve. It has MF Red over spray all over it!

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#15 ·
Since member MolonLabe spotted the extra framework on Alice, I am going to come clean. The 'unspoken add-on' will be a canopy. I am hoping this will work. I will start a thread about it in the open GT forum so others can see what I did.
 
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#18 ·
OH, I could use a canopy here!
Yep it would be nice to have while riding around at the tractor show,
Check out the thread here.

I could not put that Red valve on Alice. So with a little effort, it is now Orange!

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I will wait until tomorrow morning to start putting her all back together. Gotta let the paint cure some! I miss having her to ride around on!
 

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#20 ·
Got out early before the heat arrives (think it's already here). Got the 3-point bolted back to the box.

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Put the valve back together.

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And the box is installed.

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The 3 gold headed bolts are what holds the box to the frame. 3 per side. The one furthest left is the one I added. Thought going through the 3-point mount might hold things better.

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Now I'm ready to swap the hoses to the new valve and mount it. Then everything else goes back on. Alice may be running before lunch!
 

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#21 ·
I decided to put the fender and seat up there to see how close the valve was going to be. Good thing! The valve is too high and too far out. Need to move it 1/2" each way. That will put the lines real close to the fender, but I already figured out how I can move them outboard 1/2" real easily. Nothing major, just a slight delay.

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#22 ·
Got the valve hooked up and working! Bushings for the fenders are painted and waiting for those to dry. I can finish putting her together tomorrow! I'm ready for that!

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#23 ·
Looks good - just in time for a weekend tour of the neighbourhood with the canopy on. A suggestion for the canopy would be to make the cover in 3 or 4 pieces and leave them so the overlap could breathe at the join. May use a bit more material but might prevent it from acting like a sail - just a thought.
 
#24 ·
Looks good - just in time for a weekend tour of the neighbourhood with the canopy on. A suggestion for the canopy would be to make the cover in 3 or 4 pieces and leave them so the overlap could breathe at the join. May use a bit more material but might prevent it from acting like a sail - just a thought.
That would be beyond my capabilities. One piece will be a challenge for me to get attached.

Shouldn't take too long to get everything back in place this morning. My hand is doing great, not hurting much and swelling is slowly going down. Hardest thing to put back on will be the tires @ 160 lbs each. But I have a plan for those.
 
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#26 ·
Your doing a very nice job fitting the valve along with making the controls and hitch :worshippy1:
I work with metal much better than fabric!
 
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