[AT] Thanks for your help!

[Harold Evans]

Wow!  What a great response to my request for information.  Thanks to  
everyone here for your helpful and sometimes quite humorous  
responses.  Please allow me to elaborate on my situation and answer  
some specific questions and comments:

Thanks, Warren, for your helpful warning about 'Farmer' -- I'll watch  
out for him -- he sounds dangerous!  ; > )

Thanks, too, to DBigdog for your kind and helpful comments.  I have  
visited some forums already and have attended some local tractor  
shows.  These are all very helpful, indeed.  I'll keep this up and  
also keep asking questions of the pros.

In answer to Charlie's question: I have a Case VAC14 that I'm  
currently trying to restore.  I also have a Farmall H that I did  
mostly cosmetic work on last Fall.  About eight years ago I purchased  
a Ford 2000 that I consider my working tractor, since I use it to mow  
my lawn, etc.

In reaction to Charlie's reaction to Big Dog's comment about hammers,  
I do have many small hammers for my work on violins, but I also have a  
large sledge hammer and an anvil that a neighbor donated to my shop.   
These come in handy for metal work, but I agree that my customers in  
the violin shop wouldn't be very happy to see me using these tools on  
their precious violins.

As for Larry's suggestions regarding reading material, I thank you for  
the recommendations and wanted to mention that I have already read a  
few of the books you listed.  They were very helpful, but not exactly  
what I needed in order to understand how to completely dismantle and  
fine tune a tractor engine.  I agree that some of my acquired  
listening skills will likely come in handy as I put the final touches  
on the old Case, if I ever get to that point.

Now, as far as barter is concerned, I think Ed C. and I could work out  
a deal.  I'll teach you how to play the violin and you can teach me  
how to fix my tractors.  What to you think, Ed. -- is it a deal?

Carl, you were correct when you predicted a large interest in my  
professional experiences.  I'll likely disappoint many, however, when  
I confess that the only 'fiddle' music I ever memorized was the Orange  
Blossom Special, which was President Ford's favorite tune.  I think I  
played that at every State Dinner he hosted in the White House during  
his administration.

Hey, Ivan, I have been to the Portland show.  It was amazing!  Too big  
to see in one day, that's for sure.  I purchased a wonderful hit and  
miss engine there and enjoy firing it up at least two or three times  
each week, year 'round.  I just love the sound of those old gas engines.

Glad to see that you decided to defend yourself, farmer.  I enjoyed  
reading about your old tractors.  In answer to your question about my  
favorite color:
I hinted at the answer in an earlier paragraph, but I must say that  
the old Case was sitting so long out in the weather that I can't  
really tell what color she was originally.  Some sort of yellow or  
orange, I'd guess.

Thanks, Phil, for the links to your favorite web sites.  I previously  
discovered Yesterdaystractors but will check out the others.  No need  
to look up your links for manuals, since I have already purchased shop  
manuals for all my toys.

Hey, Mike Sloane, your extensive post was extremely helpful.  Lots of  
good books to hunt down and read and some great tips on safety, too.   
You are so right.  It's so much easier to get hurt while tinkering  
with tractors than it is while fixing violins.  The worst I ever  
suffered in the latter profession was a small cut on my thumb.  I'm  
being very careful with the heavy pieces of metal currently in my  
tractor shop.

Just one more comment before I wrap this up.  As per one of your  
helpful recommendations, I have searched for some auto repair classes  
in our locality, but we have nothing like that here.  There is a fine  
welding class, however, at Ivy Tech Community College, which I have  
taken and thoroughly enjoyed.  If only there were such a thing as a  
tractor restoration class, too.  I'd be signing up for that one in a  
heartbeat!

Thanks again for all of your helpful comments here.  What a list!!!