Fahr Tractor Starting Dismantling

A little aside from the real starting of our Blog, I would just like to share a bit about a tractor that is at present being dismantled.

It is a Fahr D15. It was built in Germany in 1953 weighs about 3/4 of a ton has a water cooled two cylinder engine made by Gueldner again from Germany and has spent it's life in a chicken farm at Loperec a little village not far from us here.

When I say spent it's life, that is true but it has only worked about 18 of those years, it had a problem in the engine and was left where it was in a shed, this was in the late 60's early 70's.

Last autumn we were at Sizun for their annual local produce fête with our Société Française 201 single cylinder semi diesel tractor just for show. A gentleman started talking with me and said he had a little tractor like that in a shed on his old farm, and if I would like to come over one day I could have a look, he doesn't want it any more. He gave me his address and I said I would pop in one day when I was in the area.

Of Course I forgot all about it till the piece of paper came to light. I Phoned and went to see him. The tractor was indeed in a shed and clearly had not been used for a long time, battery still on it, diesel still in the tank, water still in the rad, but the engine was stuck.

So we came to a price vaguely agreeable to both of us and in a couple of days I want up with the Landrover and trailer and got it out. I had to clear a large amount of junk away before I could get to the tractor and blow up one front tyre ready to attach the Landrover to tow it out. Finally I got it out and onto the trailer and got it home where it stood under a tarpaulin for a couple of months. Decided to find out why it wouldn't turn. Took the cylinder head off, drained the glutenous oil and found that there is not a sump pan, but a large inspection hole in the side of the engine, where one can get access to all the bits that gor round.

One piston was lightly stuck in it's cylinder linber which was quickly freed, but the worst news was in the lower half of the engine. On the rear big end the bolts had come undone and the bearing shells had started rotating in the cup. Fortunately it was not used too long like this till it was abandoned where I found it.

I left the tractor where it was well covered up for the winter and just this last weekend decided to drag it down to the tractor shed to dismanle the engine to have the crank ground and the shells replaced.

Got to the flywheel to find that it id fixed with an insertable cone to the crankshaft. This cone is held in place with a very fine threaded large nut. The cone itself is split and is also threaded. I can't get the flywheel off. It seems that one needs an internal threaded nut to thread onto the cone and a puller to pull that off.

I bought a chunk of 10cm thick walled tube yesterday and when I have a few hours spare I will see what I can do to make the "NUT" by turning an internal thread onto it in the lathe. I should be able to pull the cone out of the flywheel with that as the threads are quite fine.

Mr Fahr from germany.

The company Fahr combined with Gueldner and in the end was taken into Deutz the large German Tractor and Agricultural builder

The joys of restoring old tractors!

Pat