"Chopped" Deere A Has A Cotton Picker Axle
After a career spent repairing Harley Davidson motorcycles and "chopping" them for fun, Jim Colsch decided to chop his Deere A. It now sports a wide front end from a cotton picker, tie rods and a steering arm from old cars, and a head and other gear from an LP-powered Deere 60.
"I needed a wide front end, and I had one my dad had picked up somewhere. At the time, I had no idea it was from a cotton picker," says Colsch. "I added the LP head because LP pistons are in. taller than gas engine pistons, and that gives it more compression for more power."
A long time puller with plenty of trophies, Colsch's goal was to produce a tractor that would catch the eye and have plenty of traction and power.
His chopped A is about 6 in. shorter in length. Cutting the frame and welding it back together was the easy part, even if it did mean cutting and welding in a step pattern for strength. Of course shortening the frame also meant trimming the steering shaft, the fan shaft, hood, and other parts that were now too long.
Putting the LP head from the Model 60 on the Model A block was easy, as the bore and stroke are the same and they share a common bolt pattern. The rest of it got interesting. The top of the head was larger than the A, so two 11-in. long, 1/2ûin. wide strips had to be ground away from the frame before the head could be slipped into place. Increased power didn't start and stop with the pistons. The dual carburetor on the 60 head and the LP intake manifold increase cold air intake for increased condensed charge in the cylinders. Adding the LP exhaust manifold also enhanced exhaust flow. Of course there wasn't room for either manifold the way they were, so each had to be modified to fit the new space.
"The air manifold on the 60 normally points up, but with the fan shaft shortened, I had to turn it down and fit a filter onto it," says Colsch. "I also shortened the inner and outer shaft of the governor."
He had retained the A radiator with its water pipes that were slightly smaller than the outlet from the 60 head. Not only did the original pipe have to be shortened, but also conversion necks had to be fabricated with the pipe welded back into place.
Other bits of plumbing and brackets had to be reconfigured as well. Colsch made new brackets for the fuel tank. He also installed the 60 governor housing in case he wanted live hydraulics at some point.
If he was going to turn the A into a puller, Colsch knew he needed a sturdy wide front end. He first strengthened the cotton picker axle by inserting a 1 by 3-in. piece of steel the length of the axle, welding it to the axle top and bottom.
"When the front end pops up in the air and then slams back on the ground, I didn't want a bent axle," says Colsch.
He used a cement saw with a metal blade to saw off the original trike pedestal and built new angle iron brackets to attach the cotton picker axle.
Colsch retained only the top 6 in. of original down shaft. He grafted a 1-in. extension to it, that runs down through a pillow block bearing where it joins a piece of shaft from a Corvair steering sector. It then tied into Chevelle tie rods. The taper was the same as the Corvair, so they fit well together.
The cotton picker axle had about the same hub and bolt pattern as the original A, so the front wheels look near stock. It is the rear wheels where Colsch again got creative.
The rear axle had the stock Deere flange used with pressed steel wheels. He searched for a pair of centers that would fit the 9-bolt pattern. He finally found a set from an Oliver that would take the 26-in. New Holland combine rims he wanted for pulling. Weight brackets front and rear finished off the tractor.
"It was one of the most fun projects I've ever done," says Colsch. "I'll use it in parades and pull in exhibition class, as most pulls won't have a class for a chopped A with 26-in. tires. And if someone has really deep pockets, I might sell it and chop another one."
Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Jim Colsch, 22092 County 19, Spring Grove, Minn. 55974 (ph 507 498-3738).
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"Chopped" Deere A Has A Cotton Picker Axle TRACTORS Modifications 33-5-16 After a career spent repairing Harley Davidson motorcycles and "chopping" them for fun, Jim Colsch decided to chop his Deere A. It now sports a wide front end from a cotton picker, tie rods and a steering arm from old cars, and a head and other gear from an LP-powered Deere 60.
"I needed a wide front end, and I had one my dad had picked up somewhere. At the time, I had no idea it was from a cotton picker," says Colsch. "I added the LP head because LP pistons are in. taller than gas engine pistons, and that gives it more compression for more power."
A long time puller with plenty of trophies, Colsch's goal was to produce a tractor that would catch the eye and have plenty of traction and power.
His chopped A is about 6 in. shorter in length. Cutting the frame and welding it back together was the easy part, even if it did mean cutting and welding in a step pattern for strength. Of course shortening the frame also meant trimming the steering shaft, the fan shaft, hood, and other parts that were now too long.
Putting the LP head from the Model 60 on the Model A block was easy, as the bore and stroke are the same and they share a common bolt pattern. The rest of it got interesting. The top of the head was larger than the A, so two 11-in. long, 1/2ûin. wide strips had to be ground away from the frame before the head could be slipped into place. Increased power didn't start and stop with the pistons. The dual carburetor on the 60 head and the LP intake manifold increase cold air intake for increased condensed charge in the cylinders. Adding the LP exhaust manifold also enhanced exhaust flow. Of course there wasn't room for either manifold the way they were, so each had to be modified to fit the new space.
"The air manifold on the 60 normally points up, but with the fan shaft shortened, I had to turn it down and fit a filter onto it," says Colsch. "I also shortened the inner and outer shaft of the governor."
He had retained the A radiator with its water pipes that were slightly smaller than the outlet from the 60 head. Not only did the original pipe have to be shortened, but also conversion necks had to be fabricated with the pipe welded back into place.
Other bits of plumbing and brackets had to be reconfigured as well. Colsch made new brackets for the fuel tank. He also installed the 60 governor housing in case he wanted live hydraulics at some point.
If he was going to turn the A into a puller, Colsch knew he needed a sturdy wide front end. He first strengthened the cotton picker axle by inserting a 1 by 3-in. piece of steel the length of the axle, welding it to the axle top and bottom.
"When the front end pops up in the air and then slams back on the ground, I didn't want a bent axle," says Colsch.
He used a cement saw with a metal blade to saw off the original trike pedestal and built new angle iron brackets to attach the cotton picker axle.
Colsch retained only the top 6 in. of original down shaft. He grafted a 1-in. extension to it, that runs down through a pillow block bearing where it joins a piece of shaft from a Corvair steering sector. It then tied into Chevelle tie rods. The taper was the same as the Corvair, so they fit well together.
The cotton picker axle had about the same hub and bolt pattern as the original A, so the front wheels look near stock. It is the rear wheels where Colsch again got creative.
The rear axle had the stock Deere flange used with pressed steel wheels. He searched for a pair of centers that would fit the 9-bolt pattern. He finally found a set from an Oliver that would take the 26-in. New Holland combine rims he wanted for pulling. Weight brackets front and rear finished off the tractor.
"It was one of the most fun projects I've ever done," says Colsch. "I'll use it in parades and pull in exhibition class, as most pulls won't have a class for a chopped A with 26-in. tires. And if someone has really deep pockets, I might sell it and chop another one."
Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Jim Colsch, 22092 County 19,
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