Thread: My newest find is a 1950 Ford Tractor.

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My newest find is a 1950 Ford Tractor.
It has a Flathead 4 cylinder motor.
Looks like I have to find a water pump for it
because I don't see any flow in the radiator.
I have never worked on a flat head before
so I don't know much about them.
I look for a thermostat housing but could not
find one. The top radiator hose goes to a pipe
that is cast as part of the head.
The guy I got it from say's he has a parts catalog
for it. So I'll see if the have a manual for it as well.
The guy has one like mine but it a 1947.
Here a link with a short video of it.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/kurtvara/15302115806/

Bought this one 20 years ago had a loader on it but it wasn't much good. I use it to cut grass and grade the drive way. Certainly has paid for it self. This is a 8N,

You done good!!! Looks to be an 8N or 9N.

You know there is a cure for working on those old flatheads don't you?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DxlYVCXPFhw

There's one of those running around in New Zealand with a V12 Lincoln in it.

Windsors are for girly-men. Real men will step up to an FE....
http://www.farmcollector.com/~/media...nk-ford-01.jpg

Faxon has manuals......
http://www.faxonautoliterature.com/Search.aspx?c=177072

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Wow I had no idea they did that kind of stuff with these.
cffisher your's seems to be in better shape then mine, but the guy told me it needed work.
Then he told me exactly what it needed, but I begged him to sell it to me anyway.
I think I am just gonna rebuild the flat head so it will be for practical use.
I still have a 500 HP 351 Cleveland in the garage but I think I would kill myself if
I were to put that motor on there. Thanks Mike. John Boy, you know what's funny is the lady
I got the old truck from behind the tractor called that ol' International pick up John Boy.
She even had a wooden name plate in there that she took when I bought it. HE! HE! HE!
Tech, I noticed how much counter weight that guy's tractor had in the front to help keep
him from killing himself with that big FE. HE! HE! HE! Thanks for the tips on the Manuals.
I am definitely going to order some of them to help with my questions and build.
Thanks again Kurt

Neat old tractor. If you need to change the clutch and pressure plate I wouldn't buy from a tractor supply. My late father in law had a 48N, I believe, and the parts at the local tractor supply were ridiculous so we went to local parts store and bought heavy duty parts for a 48 1/2 ton pickup.

There are MANY places to buy parts for these. These tractors believe it or not are in demand. Do a little web searching. I just changed the clutch in mine now that's a fun job. You need lots of room and 2 hoists or chain falls you actually split the tractor into 2 halves. Fun little guy

Thanks NTFDAY.
Ya know cffisher, I was asking the ol' guy I bought it from about that.
I asked him if you had to remove the whole front end because the snout of the crankshaft goes right thru the front of the frame.
He said he rebuilt his 47 and he picked it up and strait out, but I didn't get a chance to look at his and compare it to the 50 I have.
So it may be a little different then the one he sold me.
Kurt

Originally Posted by vara4

Thanks NTFDAY.
Ya know cffisher, I was asking the ol' guy I bought it from about that.
I asked him if you had to remove the whole front end because the snout of the crankshaft goes right thru the front of the frame.
He said he rebuilt his 47 and he picked it up and strait out, but I didn't get a chance to look at his and compare it to the 50 I have.
So it may be a little different then the one he sold me.
Kurt

Kurt,
The 8N debuted in July '47 and ran through '52, then they came out with the Golden Jubilee in '53 which had live hydraulics and an overhead valve engine. Lots of people are confused by the numbering, thinking that the 9N is newer but it was a '39 through '46. In '42 they had a run of 2N's but the serial numbers all started "9N...." so we see tractors in this series either 9N or 8N. The '47 that the guy kept should be virtually identical to your '50.

I can't see your engine BUT if you have a side distributor you have the early (mine) if the distributor is on the side you have the later. Mine doesn't have live hyd. I have to have the clutch out to operate the hyd. system. I had a bucket on mine but it was a cable trip and didn't work right. I saved the cylinders and scraped the rest. I also changed mine over to 12 Volts MUCH better.
$500. man that's a steal around here they go for around 2k.

Originally Posted by cffisher

$500. man that's a steal around here they go for around 2k.

Not sure where you saw $500 Charlie, but my eyes may be bad?

My Dad had a Ferguson T020 which was produced after the Ferguson/Ford split but was essentially the same tractor. Seems like every time I went over to their place I had to adjust the carb, as he just couldn't leave it alone. His sold for $1800 in 2002, and they are still right in that range around here today, from $1800 to $2000 depending on what comes with it. I'd really like to find a Diamond Jubilee model with the live hydraulics, which opens up a whole new world of options on accessories.

[QUOTE=techinspector1;530418]Windsors are for girly-men. Real men will step up to an FE....
http://www.farmcollector.com/~/media...nk-ford-01.jpg

The Ford in the picture belongs to a friend of mine, fella named Art Nordstrom. The tractor and Art have been a fixture at one of our area dirt tracks for the last 30+ years as he was a part of the officiating crew and a huge supporter and promoter of anything having to do with going fast on the dirt!!! Art retired from officiating duties about 3 years ago. His (family run) business is Nordstrom's Salvage, a junkyard, repair shop, and U-Pull-It yard for the last 50+ years! Art also has a very, very nice car collection, mostly '57 Chevy's!!!!

Your right about the 8N and 9N still being popular, average price around is in in the 2K range too. They were and are just a nice sized tractor. The hay crew I worked on as a kid always used one to haul the hay racks back and forth from the fields to the barn.

Back around 1968 my Dad was working at the local Ford and Oliver Tractor dealership. Even back then when they wore out the farmers opted to have them rebuilt....there was usually always at least one torn down being overhauled.

It didn't take long for the them to start getting upsized engines though, the Funk conversions for Flathead 6s and Flathead V8s were around from 1948. I saw one of the flathead V8 ones once and fell in love with it.

Ford 8N Funk Conversions


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The V8 flat head is an easy conversion almost bolts right in. I've seen a few around here. Roger watch (listen) the video he mentioned what he paid. I don't know for sure but the more I look at the tractor the more I know its not an 8 and may not be a 9. Lots of things in the wrong places. I've owned mine a while and work on it all the time. The carbs are easy to get out of adjustment and easy to put back BUT they are getting harder to find and buy. I think they get a wooping 27 HP out the back.