Read Rob Schepis' two-part story of this B-210 during (and after) it's full restoration...

Kent,

Attached is a photo of my B210 which is currently under restoration and is 99% complete.  I've been using this site for the last two months or so but just decided to join the club earlier today.

I obtained the tractor from a local mower shop who had it in the back of a barn.  He only had it for 2 years and used it for plowing his lot.  It was basically complete and original but tired and not getting the TLC it deserved.  I knew it was his slow season so I made him a low offer and worked out a deal for $250.

He had no idea what year or model it was and never took the time nor cared to find out.  That tractor wouldn't go into gear without grinding.  The belt was too short and when the clutch was pushed down the gearbox was still spinning.  The guy insisted it was the right belt but It obviously wasn't.  The belt he was using was slightly larger than an average fan belt.  Now why would you need such deep pulleys if this little belt is only riding at the bottom of the pulleys?   And what is the lever with 7 positions to the right of the gear selector that moves the pulleys?

Now how do you find the belt when there's no model or year on the tractor or anyone on Long Island, NY who can help?  Well that's when I went on the web and searched different keywords and came across simpletractors.com.  What an awesome discovery.

Within minutes of being on the site I was in the B-series of AC tractors and looked at all the pictures of the different models and realized I had the B210 (or B212) just like Les and I ordered the correct belt from University Lawn Equipment.

Someone had painted the tractor red and then yellow again so I thought it might have been a Simplicity but it is not, it's an AC.  I also wasn't sure if it was the B210 or 212 but under the spec's you list the bore X stroke so I pulled the head and measured the bore to find out it is the 10hp model.

After installing the new belt and making several adjustments to the vari-shift setup I was so impressed with the tractor and the amount of information and parts available on this site that I decided to do a complete ground-up restoration.

I obtained the available owner's, parts & service manuals from Simplicity, the decals from Wells Implements, a used seat from Kraft tractors from your salvage yard list, and I await the replacement seat cushions from Wells Implements.  It's 99% done and will send photos for the gallery when complete.  Can you put my attached "before" photo on the gallery?

Thanks much,
Rob Schepis

Now here it is, after a full restoration.  Click each picture for a larger view.

Kent,

After several evenings and weekends in the garage, here she is, runnin' and lookin' as good as new.  I rebuilt the engine and carb and rewired her installing a volt gauge in place of the original amp gauge and also threw in a new solenoid and voltage regulator.

The tractor was stripped down to the frame and mostly taken down to bare metal.   The grill assembly was taken apart and each piece was painted individually so as to achieve the original look which I obtained by viewing tractors on this site.

The seat pan was rotted through from collecting water during years of sitting outside.  The pan was cut out and new material was welded in and with minimal plastic work the repair is undetectable.

A complete seat was obtained from Kraft Tractor.  The cushions were usable but in poor condition but the framework was in excellent shape, the chrome tubing buffed right up.  The four replacement cushions were obtained from Wells Implement along with the complete decal set.  Having the original seat and new cushions really added the finishing touch and kept the original look.  The decals from Wells were excellent to work with and look awesome.

The only decal I still need to install is the foil one with the model number.  The serial number is blank so you can punch your own number into it.  My daughter is due to be born the end of May so I plan to use her birthday (or s.s.#) as the serial number, a little dedication to my first born.

Everyone who has seen the tractor now asks if I'm still gonna use it.  Well all I can say is that I've never been one for artwork and on that note, "it's time to put Lil' Allis back to work."

And once again, this restoration project could not have been completed without the information and suppliers obtained on simpletractors.com.

Thank You,
Rob Schepis

And now with the final finishing touches -- new lights and "custom" mounting brackets... Click each picture for a larger view.

Kent,

Attached are the final photos for the gallery of my completed B210 (completed for now anyway, there's always something else you can do to these old machines and that's 90% of the fun).  I have now completed the fabrication and installation of the light brackets.

I have also converted the ignition over to a 12volt coil and condenser which fires off the original points.  This works wonderfully, she practically fires up before she cranks.  She can idle so slow you can count the rpm's.

I had previously installed a magnetron which was recommended by the bozo at the local mower shop.  I learned that the magnetron does not work in these old cast iron engines, the spark was very weak and the timing was off.  I surely didn't want to tear apart my finished project to send the flywheel out to Briggs for a re-polarizing.  Not to mention that I had a dump truck load of topsoil on its way and therefore the downtime was a problem.

That's when I went over to the local auto parts for the 12 volt automotive coil (with internal resistor) and a condenser.  I mounted the coil to the firewall, the condenser on the block, ran a few wires and a high tension lead and in less than an hour the problem was history.

She runs so well now and for a $4 investiment, and no wrenching, I recommend the conversion highly.  If anyone's interest and unsure of exactly how its done send me an e-mail, it's simple.

Thanks Again,
Rob Schepis

Rob, those are some nice mounting brackets.  Perhaps you should start fabricating them and selling them.  I could use a set, since without the offset forward (that yours have), I have to run a "heat shield" to keep my rubber aftermarket headlights off my "stack exhaust"....  Kent

NOTE: This site is designed to be viewed in at least 1024 x 768 resolution in Internet Explorer v6 or later, Mozilla Firefox v4 or later, and Google Chrome.  It may not display correctly in other resolutions or on other devices.  Links on this site are monetized.  We assume NO liability or responsibility for the accuracy of ANY data on this site.    
© ™ 1998 - 2011 by Simple trACtors LLC, North Brookfield, MA. All rights reserved.