Tractor heritage, news and features

No room to swing a Massey

Getting to grips with Andrew Mason’s 1970 Massey Ferguson 165 was very much a case of third time lucky and well worth the perseverance to get the story behind this tractor’s restoration.

The first time I spotted it was at a vintage rally held in the Northumberland town of Rothbury last year when Andrew already had the tractor loaded up to go home by the time I tracked him down.

The second ‘almost encounter’ with the Massey Ferguson came a few weeks later when I had arranged to meet with Andrew after he had finished work one evening.

He suggested we meet just off the A1 north of Newcastle in the car park of the McDonalds. Great idea and a fine sunny summer’s evening a couple of days later found me waiting in the car park. While I waited, Andrew was also waiting at the car park outside a McDonalds while I was totally unaware that there was more than one McDonalds in the area!

After that little fiasco, I would not have been at all surprised if he abandoned the idea of a get together. However, he seemed to be quite relaxed about dealing with an idiot photographer and at the third attempt we finally managed to get Andrew, the 165 and me in the same place at the same time.

The Massey is Andrew’s first attempt at restoring a classic tractor and what a truly superb piece of work he has completed. He said: “As a mechanic by training and occupation I am no stranger to working on tractors and machinery and I had always wanted to buy and restore my own tractor.

“Choosing which model was almost a foregone conclusion as both my grandfather and father had driven Massey Fergusons in the past and the 165 was the first brand new tractor that my father had ever driven. So the choice had to be a 165 and the search for a suitable machine began.”

Long in the tooth

In 2007 word came of a 165 which had been laid up on a farm at Ponteland and which had still been in regular use the previous year. This seemed to have possibilities and Andrew made arrangements to inspect the tractor. To be kind, at first glance the tractor could be described as not too impressive. It had certainly been well used over the years and was now looking rather tired. The 165 had been owned by the farmer from new and had been used almost daily on general farm work but even he had to concede that the old tractor was by now a bit long in the tooth.

The tractor looked to be in pretty original condition and most of what should be there looked to be in place; and in addition to the basic tractor there was a loader attached to the front and a safety frame had also been fitted. The first attempt to start her up failed dismally and the 165 refused to start on the key. Eventually the tractor was coaxed into life but was misfiring rather badly.

Another problem was the complete lack of hydraulics and just for good measure the brakes didn’t seem to work either. Any restoration project looked to be a fairly lengthy project but Andrew felt that the old tractor did deserve a chance and the purchase was completed in October 2007.

The tractor was recovered and brought back to a farm near Whiteley Bay a mile or two from Andrew’s home. With no space to work at his house and the sheds of the farm all occupied and being used there was a distinct possibility that the Massey would have to be restored in the middle of a field.

What a workshop!

What was needed was a workshop and Andrew decided that a shipping container would be just the job. Just the job, that is, if you wanted a long thin workshop with no windows, no lighting, no heating and hardly room to ‘swing a Massey’.

However, the container would at least provide somewhere for the tractor to be kept under cover and there would be just about enough room to work on her once she had been moved to her new home. The container was duly positioned in a corner of the farmyard and made ready to receive the tractor.

That presented the first problem; with the loader on the front it was too long to go in and the safety frame also meant that it was too high. Andrew had already decided that he did not really want the loader, so that was taken off and the frame went as well. The other issue was the reluctance of the Massey to start and heaving it in and out of the container was impractical. Andrew obtained a new starter motor and once that was fitted the Massey started on the key and could be driven into the container.

Andrew and his father had wasted no time in getting down to work and by Christmas the tractor had been split and stripped down. The problem with the hydraulics was traced to the thick sludge which had accumulated inside the back end; and the hydraulic pump was rebuilt and new seals and piston rings were fitted. Space inside the container became something of a premium as more of the tractor was dismantled and with parts everywhere the actual working space was becoming increasingly cramped.

Having sorted the hydraulics Andrew turned his attention to the problem with the brakes and removed the rear trumpet housings and fitted new brake linings. By the end of 2008 the work on the back end was more or less complete and it was time for some re-arrangements.

Turn around

The tractor came out of the container and was turned around to allow Andrew to start work on the front end and the engine. The front axle was removed to make access to the engine a lot easier and once the cylinder head was off the reason for the misfire became apparent and was down to the build-up of carbon in the valves. Pistons and liners were found to be in good condition and did not have to be replaced. Having de-coked the cylinder head and re-ground the valves the engine started to go back together. The fuel pump and the injectors were sent off to a specialist company for refurbishment.

The clutch was completely stripped down and a new clutch plate was fitted and once the engine was back in one piece it was reunited with the back end of the Massey. The radiator needed some extensive repair work and was sent to a specialist company while Andrew spent some considerable time sorting out the diesel tank which he discovered was full of water.

By the spring of 2008 the radiator had returned and had been refitted and the repaired fuel tank now held diesel rather than water. A turn of the key and the tractor fired up without difficulty and ran without any major problems. So far so good, it had taken a lot of work but the mechanics looked to be in pretty good shape.

Rubbed down

Working in the confines of the container meant that there was no chance of shotblasting the chassis so this had to be rubbed down manually and taken back to bare metal, then primed and topcoats of Massey Ferguson Grey were applied. All the wheels were sent to a friend who had agreed to shotblast and respray them and once that work was completed the set of new tyres which Andrew had sourced were fitted. With the freshly painted wheels back on and the dash, diesel tank and radiator refitted, the tractor was beginning to look more like a tractor.

The tinwork presented more problems. Andrew had hoped to be able to restore the damaged mudguards but closer inspection revealed that under the surface paintwork a lot of rot was present. Cutting it away would leave very little sound metal.

Fortunately the local Massey Ferguson dealer was able to supply two new ones from stock and they only had to be painted and fitted into place.

The bonnet was to prove a little more troublesome. The original was in much better condition than the mudguards had been and once cleaned and the minor damage repaired it looked pretty good. However there were some places that still showed signs of repair and minor dents and so it was decided to search out a new one.

After all the work that had gone into the tractor so far it would be a pity if the final look was let down by something as obvious as a sub-standard bonnet.

Andrew and his father managed to find two ‘new’ bonnets but they still didn’t look right so the original was sent to the professionals at Thornton Brothers Coachworks where it was repaired and painted. According to Andrew: “It came back looking as good as new and better than we could have possibly hoped.”

By the end of 2008 the restoration had reached the home straight. New clocks had been fitted to the dash and the tractor wiring had been renewed. The search for replacement parts had come up with a new steering wheel and centre cap, a new front grille, a front weight and some headlights, a new drawbar and a set of the correct badges and decals.

Completed

The restoration work was finally completed in May 2009 when the elusive drawbar was found and fitted and since then this superbly restored 165 has appeared at a number of rallies and events in the North of England. Not content with just showing off this fine tractor Andrew also gets the chance to put it through its paces when he ploughs a couple of small fields for his neighbours. Soon after completing work on the tractor he acquired a four-furrow Bamford Kvernlands plough which he completely restored and reduced to a three-furrow plough. This is paired with the 165 and makes a very effective combination.

At the moment Andrew and John have no plans to start on another tractor restoration in the near future especially as Andrew has just acquired a Land Rover County which needs his attention.

Words & Pictures Alan Barnes