EricL Posted August 16, 2022 Share Posted August 16, 2022 This is a tractor built by my Grandfather in the late 40s or early 50s and used on his avocado farm. Can you help me determine what transmission this is and perhaps recommend a source to rebuild it? Thank you 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EricL Posted August 16, 2022 Author Share Posted August 16, 2022 Well Google helped out again, I found VanPelt Sales in Batavia Ohio sells parts for Borg Warner transmissions for Fords. Looks like I have an early T9 with bell housing cast in and a date code of 8-29 it appears. Thanks for Viewing. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nzcarnerd Posted August 16, 2022 Share Posted August 16, 2022 17 minutes ago, EricL said: Well Google helped out again, I found VanPelt Sales in Batavia Ohio sells parts for Borg Warner transmissions for Fords. Looks like I have an early T9 with bell housing cast in and a date code of 8-29 it appears. Thanks for Viewing. Maybe from a Ford AA truck?? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sagefinds Posted August 17, 2022 Share Posted August 17, 2022 WG is Warner Gear,I can't recall any association with Ford but maybe there was. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bloo Posted August 17, 2022 Share Posted August 17, 2022 Ford transmissions of the 30s had Warner gears inside. I suspect Ford cast their own cases. When Chevrolet had the strike in 1936, they used Warner transmissions for a little while, and quite a few internal parts from mid 30s Fords will fit those Warner transmissions in Chevrolets. The Warner T-9 is something I associate with International Harvester, but I don't quite remember why. With a cast in bellhousing like the one pictured though It can't be anything but Ford, and probably early V8. I believe this is an extremely stout unsynchronized 4 speed truck transmission. There is another much later and much lighter duty transmission called a T-9. It is really a Ford design, but often is attributed to Borg-Warner. That causes some confusion. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EricL Posted August 17, 2022 Author Share Posted August 17, 2022 Awesome information gentlemen, thank you very much. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sagefinds Posted August 18, 2022 Share Posted August 18, 2022 My compliments to your grandfather anyway,that's quite a machine he put together. Looks like a narrowed Ford rear axle with chain drive,shortened steering column that looks professionally done,yup,quite a machine. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Larry Schramm Posted August 18, 2022 Share Posted August 18, 2022 (edited) On 8/16/2022 at 8:28 PM, Bloo said: Ford transmissions of the 30s had Warner gears inside. I suspect Ford cast their own cases. When Chevrolet had the strike in 1936, they used Warner transmissions for a little while, and quite a few internal parts from mid 30s Fords will fit those Warner transmissions in Chevrolets. The Warner T-9 is something I associate with International Harvester, but I don't quite remember why. With a cast in bellhousing like the one pictured though It can't be anything but Ford, and probably early V8. I believe this is an extremely stout unsynchronized 4 speed truck transmission. There is another much later and much lighter duty transmission called a T-9. It is really a Ford design, but often is attributed to Borg-Warner. That causes some confusion. Were those transmissions built in Cincinnati? I seem to remember that Ford had a transmission plant there. Edited August 18, 2022 by Larry Schramm (see edit history) 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bloo Posted August 18, 2022 Share Posted August 18, 2022 (edited) If you mean the lighter T-9, I think it was used mostly by Ford Europe and UK (and possibly some unrelated makes), but I don't know where it was actually made. Probably not Cincinatti, but I wouldn't rule it out. It did wind up in some US-spec cars of various makes as I recall. It is a passenger car 5-speed, popular for 5 speed conversions in lower horsepower cars. It has a single-rail shift setup like a Borg-Warner T5, but is narrower and will fit in a smaller transmission tunnel. More about Chevrolet's 1935-36 flirtation with Warner Gear here: https://vccachat.org/ubbthreads.php/topics/21035/1936-wm-transmissions.html Edited August 18, 2022 by Bloo (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AHa Posted August 21, 2022 Share Posted August 21, 2022 I believe that is a factory tractor. I can't recall the name at the moment. The name, Gibbs, comes to mind but not sure that's it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sagefinds Posted August 21, 2022 Share Posted August 21, 2022 46 minutes ago, AHa said: I believe that is a factory tractor. I can't recall the name at the moment. The name, Gibbs, comes to mind but not sure that's it. When I first saw the picture I thought it was a Gibson tractor made in Longmont Colorado but it's not quite the same as any pictured in the tractor book. So until it's proven otherwise,it's Grandfather's creation. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paulrhd29nz Posted August 21, 2022 Share Posted August 21, 2022 Gibson is the name. I have several of them. Very common after the war. One of mine has 36 chev pumpkin and trans. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1912Staver Posted August 21, 2022 Share Posted August 21, 2022 I don't think this is a Gibson. A good friend had several over the years. None of them had chain drive that I can recall. There were several other similar makes . Generally not as successful as Gibson. But I think this one is probably home made as the owner suggests. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EricL Posted August 29, 2022 Author Share Posted August 29, 2022 Whats interesting about this tractor is how short it is and how big the tires are. It's got a tillable hitch plate and a removeable single blade plow. It looks like so much came from a donor vehicle including the steering wheel (ford center cap) and the pedal pads. It has separate left and right rear wheel brakes. It looks like the front axle was narrowed for the application. How big a task is rebuilding the transmission would you say? I found the Van Pelt Sales people in Ohio , (i think) and they have all the parts and gaskets. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AHa Posted August 29, 2022 Share Posted August 29, 2022 Whatever this is, its not a home made tractor. I have seen a fair number of the cobbled together short dog tractors made by farmers over the years and this ain't one of them. This is a factory made conversion. Perhaps the OPs grandfather had a large enough machine shop to turn out one of these or perhaps he made several for his farm and the neighbors. It's just my opinion of course. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EricL Posted August 30, 2022 Author Share Posted August 30, 2022 Quote Well my curiosity is peaked now. I'll have to show it on some tractor sites too. Grandad was a fine machinist, had a large shop in La Puente, CA where he built his own home and garage and had 18 acres of avocados in the 50s and 60s. he also built a scale steam train which was one of my earliest memories. Here are a couple tractors I saw at Tulare CA. they both have belt drives to the gear box. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AHa Posted August 30, 2022 Share Posted August 30, 2022 This is what I was referring to. A belt drive is a relatively easy conversion. All three of these tractors used a Wisconsin motor but the OP's tractor is direct drive, which means a splined sleeve was cut to mate the output shaft of the motor to the input shaft of the transmission, then a bell housing was cast and machined to tie the motor and transmission together. Most farmers don't have access to this type of engineering/fabricating. Nor is it time worthy unless the end product can be sold for a profit. The scale steam train was most likely a kit, meaning that somebody cast the parts and sold them as a kit for hobby machinist to finish and assemble. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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