[AT] 8N Ford

[Mike Sloane]

Maybe it is an "Indiana" thing. Around here (NJ) I don't see all that 
many Sherman's. The main reason for putting them on N's around here was 
to get better control in first, second, and reverse, which were too fast 
   for some folks. So the ones I have seen on 9N/2N's have been step 
down, while the few I have seen on 8N's were the Up-normal-Down type. 
Again, remember that both the Hupp and the Sherman were on the input 
shaft, so dropping or increasing the ground speed did the same thing to 
the transmission driven PTO. The Howard 2speed rear, on the other hand, 
dropped the ground speed while maintaining the PTO speed. You need that 
for things like rotary tillers, etc.

As far as the grilles on the N's, they are not made out of especially 
heavy material and stick way out in front - it doesn't take much of a 
bump to bend them up. I was lucky with my 2N - it spent all of its 
working life with a snow plow frame in front, so the grille was still 
perfect. 
<http://public.fotki.com/mikesloane/1946_ford_2n/2n_at_home1.html> I 
wish I could have said the same for the rest of the tractor...

Mike

Indiana Robinson wrote:
> Since I am still trying to stay off of my #$%& knee I am going to go
> look at an 8N Ford Tuesday. Not been ran in a "couple of years". Has
> very good rear rubber, Sherman hi-lo, pictures look pretty good, looks
> like good old TSC super fading paint. Would not start, not stuck.
> -
> As I look at 9/2/8N's I have been struck by just how many of them have
> the Sherman's in them. Most are just the step-up's especially in the
> 9N's. I've seen mostly Hupps in the Fergies around here.
> It is also amazing just how many of the N's have a mangled grill.
> Maybe their brakes were not kept up good enough. :-)
> I have seen a whole herd of F-20's with "road gears" Behlen I think.
> Are there many other tractors where aftermarket overdrives were used?
> I have often seen M&W gear sets for Farmall M series but they were to
> improve 3rd and 4th gear but didn't change 5th.
> 
>