Two Pennsylvania Panzers Restored and Finished

Back in April I was offered a chance to have a Panzer GT given to me if I were to restore one for a friend of my fathers. Trust me when I say nothing in life is free, I am a living testament to that. In the process of getting the friends and mine home, Dad suggested (strongly at 75 years of age ) while you're doing his do mine. So now 2 became 3. Then Dad says "and by the way son, the friend needs his before the first Monday of August for a county fair and tractor show".




And so the work began. Dad's tractor and his friends tractor were sand blasted after being completely dis-assembled. In the process of tearing them down I found different colors of paint on the friends tractor. Remembering our one conversation when I took this project on I understood what I was seeing. "Bill, you can get the paint that is a pretty close match in spray cans" ! Yeah right, using a spray can as a restoration would get me about as far as the edge of the shop before my father would have me shot.


Several hours of hammer and dolly work repairing the fenders, hoods, and the pans covering the sprockets the old women were nearing a point of being ready for sealer. As soon as they came back from the sand blaster they were primed with a self etching primer to keep the humid air from creating rust. Let me say the old iron was thirsty as the 2 tractors swallowed 3 qts of self etching primer before they surface had been completely covered.



I used a Naisons 2 part urethane sealer with catalyst, follwed by a custom mixed Tantalizing Turquoise 2K Ful-Thane urethane paint. I am an old Centari Painter and this stuff lays down better than Centari ever dreamed of laying and covered the areas very well.

Needless to say the paint booth was filled with parts hanging from everything possible to get the 3 coats of paint on all of the surfaces. 48 hrs later parts started going back together and on July 27th dad came to Kansas City and picked up 2 Panzers. His and the friends.

The friend got his on the 29th and he called me upon getting the tractor and I was relieved that he was happy. For an older gentleman well into his late 80's he was very satisfied. Something to the effect better than it ever looked before. The only thing I did not get do was rebuild the bearing towers in the top of his mower deck. It is complete, and with a belt it could be used. I wouldn't want to use the mower myself and I am certain he wont ever use it for mowing. He wants to use it at the small tractor shows and just have it for parades.


Now as time permits I will start on mine. Having done 2 now, I have an idea how to re-assemble this one faster than I did putting these 2 together the first time.