Author: Farm Jeep admin

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Happy 4th, a thanks and an apology to Newgren

Its the 4th of July and Farm Jeep is heading to the county fair!  We’ve been invited to be a part of the antique machinery exhibit, and as the only farm jeep entry, we are sure to be a winner.  We will show off our ribbon later.

Thanks to those of you who have given us nice compliments and good suggestions for moving Farm Jeep forward. Over the next few months we will be incorporating those changes.

Meanwhile – one more try

We have, as recorded here in gruesome detailed, been chasing leaks and problems with the Newgren lift. The only possible remaining leaks had to be on top of the reservoir.  That meant lowering the lift one more time.   For future reference, we took notes and lots of photos of the disassembly process. We plan to post them at a later date.  For now, we will simply summarize the process.

Removing the lift or just lowering as in this case involves a few simple steps.  You need to remove the PTO shaft and the rear gear box.  Next you need to support the lift frame and remove the bolts at the front and all the bolts at the rear.  Then lower the unit, with all the hoses still attached.

The strange looking object pictured here is the jack we use to raise/lower the lift.  We took a Harbor Freight low lift transmission jack and added a “jig” made of scrap metal.  While not pretty, it makes the raising/lower of the lift a one person job.

With the lift lowered, we could reroute some of the hoses and remake connections with thread sealer made for hydraulic systems.  The lift was then put back in place by raising the jack and replacing the bolts. But before we replaced the the PTO, we decided to test the lift.

And the good news is.

The lift worked perfectly!  It lifted the 450lb plow with ease.  No foaming or pressure build up in the reservoir.  There is only one remaining problem – the lift starts to slowly drop once it is raised.  It doesn’t matter if the pump is running or not.

The bad news is that we believe we have damaged a seal in the cylinder.  During some of our efforts to correct problems, we introduced excessive pressure on the seals.  That means we will need to have the cylinder rebuilt in the “off season”.  For now, we will simply place a piece of steel between the cylinder cap and the lift block to lock the lift in the up position when we need to transport the plow for any distance.

What we have learned.

Over the years, we have tried to learn as much as we can about hydraulic systems.  Because the Newgren lift’s hydraulic system is different than modern systems, we questioned the engineering. What we have learned is that it is in fact a simple and even eloquent solution to a problem for single action cylinders.

Single action cylinders require a port or breather hole to allow air to escape or enter as the piston is moved in and out.  That port is normally open to the environment.  With the cylinder on the farm jeep just inches from the ground, it is in an extremely dirty/dusty area.  So how do you keep the port clean and open?  You design a “closed system” by using and reusing the air in the top of the reservoir. So the mystery “bleeder hose” that runs from the bottom of the cylinder to the top of the reservoir is a simple means of getting clean air in/out of the cylinder.   No dirt or dust can enter the cylinder.

So we humbly apologize to those engineers at Newgren who designed this lift system.  It was only our lack of a basic understanding of hydraulics that caused many of our problems.  We finally get it and look forward to years of trouble free operation.

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A little help here – and more on Newgren hydraulics

We need some help
It has been 4 months since our last update.  We have been busy working on the Newgren lift and attending both farm machinery and jeep shows.  But before we get to those topics, we have a favor to ask.  We need some suggestions for redesigning farmjeep.com to make it more useful. 
We started the site back in 2002 to record our jeep adventures and to share what we have learned along the way.  Recording our successes and our many failures has been great fun and we revisit pages when we find ourselves repeating a task.  It has also been a place where we have chronicled our family’s Jeep history.  We plan on continuing to make these types of updates.
Because this isn’t a business, despite the .com label, we haven’t spent a great deal of time tracking hits or visits.  But we do know that most people come looking for information about items that make a jeep a farm jeep.  We also know that there are lots of people looking at the links and resource page.  So we are thinking we need to update and make those more relevant.
If you have ideas or suggestions of how we might improve the site, drop us a note.  In the mean time, we will begin making changes to the site over the next few months.
Thanks,
Barry & Evan
Now back to our regularly scheduled program…


Spring time in Indiana has been wet.  Unable to get any outdoor work underway, we spent a lot of time in the garage getting Ole Blue ready for the spring show.  Before we relate our efforts, we need to go back to last fall.  And maybe a low point for Farm Jeep Fun.
Barry had taken Blue to a favorite show in late August.  He had unloaded the jeep with the plow and parked it in the display area.  After a walk to the registration area, he decided move the jeep to another spot.  The plow would not lift.  Well this is another fine mess…
Among the handiest tools on the farm is the high lift jack.  Barry returned the next day with his jack, some pieces of angle iron and a portable saws-all.  He was able to jack the rear of the plow up and place a couple of pieces of angle iron between the ram and the lift block.  In true 21st century style, the angle iron was held in place with cable ties.  While it worked well, it was a pain, since it took 4 uses of the jack to get the jeep safely home; jack up to allow loading, down for travel, up for unloading and finally down for parking.
Time to walk away.
Evan reminded Barry that this is supposed to be fun and when it isn’t we walk away.  And Barry did walk away for a couple of months.  Luckily. Evan was still having fun and after the cooling off period, had Barry back in the garage.  Barry started the jeep and – the lift worked perfectly.  Words were heard that are not suitable for a family friendly site.
After further questioning and analysis, we determined that we were sucking air and “foaming” the oil.  The months of sitting had allowed the air to leave the fluid and operations returned to normal.  Finding the solution is still an ongoing project.  Rather than bore the reader with all the steps taken, we will simply outline efforts to date.
1. Added an external pressure relief valve between the pump and Newgren valve.  This is an insurance policy against blowing more pump seals.  We placed a “T” in the bleeder line.  The jury is still out on use of the “T” in the bleeder line.
2. Replaced the plug in the filler pipe with a breather cap.  The original instructions call for a closed system, something most hydraulic experts have never seen.
3. Used a thread locker specially formulated for hydraulic systems and remade all connections.
4. Dropped the lift and put a new gasket and additional sealant between the control valve and the reservoir body. (We welded up a fixture to fit on a transmission jack that allows easy installing of the lift)
Items 1 and 2 are a move toward modernizing the system.  None of the hydraulic experts we have talked to can understand the Newgren system.  Therefore we have had little success in getting help solving our issues.
Items 3 and 4 were direct attacks on are air sucking problem.  All appeared to be working well, until we unloaded at the latest show.  Once again, we are “making hydraulic fluid”, with fluid mixed with air filling up and overflowing the reservoir.  We have had enough experience to know how to drain enough fluid to allow the lift to work while loading and unloading.
An opportunity to talk with the pros.
We had two objectives while visiting the Midwest Willys Jeep Rally (http://www.mw-willysjeep.com/). The first was to get some help setting up our Newgren plow and to put the plow in ground.  As stated above, we ran into issues unloading the jeep and decided to forego the plowing exercise.  The whole idea of putting our farm jeep to the test was made possible because of one of the unique features of the Rally.  John Ittel provides demonstrations and the chance to use your own machine on the turf farm.  John also freely shares his expertise and experiences.
Thanks to Nick_ over on the CJ2a forum, you can see some of the 2016 demonstrations –
The second objective of the show visit was to talk to other Newgren, Monroe and Startton lift owners and anyone with hydraulic system experience.  The Rally features jeeps of all years, sizes and shapes and also draws visitors from various backgrounds.  We were lucky enough to meet owners, engineers and mechanics, all willing shared their knowledge.  We learned much and hope to share it with you in future posts.
Not an objective, but a great outcome was meeting may people who regularly visit farmjeep.com.  This was the motivation we needed to make the site a better place and the reason for the opening paragraph.
  
Thanks to all of you who stopped by to see us.  We look forward to hearing more from you.
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Let us count the ways – Jeeps working on the farm and all around town

“What didn’t a jeep do?”
That was the question poised on the EarlyCJ5.com forum in a post about jeeps equipped with a front-end loader.  This was followed by another post about working jeeps.  All of that got us thinking  about all of the ways the “CJs” were used, especially during the decade following WWII.
A film is worth a bunch of words
As luck would have it, Stan (AKA smfulle) on the CJ2a PageForum posted a great video that shows some of the many uses of the Jeep and the Willys 4WD trucks.  Although labeled as a “1940s” promotional film, it is easy to spot the CJ5 introduced in 1954 and a license plate from 1954.  So we would change that to “Mid-50s” promotional film.  What is fun about this film is that includes CJ2a and CJ3a jeeps in addition to the CJ5.  This film is really about jeeps at work.  Of particular interest to Farm Jeep is the showcasing of the Monore Lift.  Simply referred to as “the famous hydraulic lift”, the Monroe lift is what really made the jeeps so useful on the farm and work site.
But that’s not all
While there are a lot of uses for the jeep in the film, the “Jeep Operational Data” booklet, published even more.  Here is the list –
Maybe not so much anymore
Most of the list includes jobs that are still done today.  A few may be limited in the 21st century.  Two, “TOW OR OPERATE ICE CUTTER” and “HAULING ICE CAKES FROM WATER”, stand out as jobs that are not common today.  Then there is “CHECKING RR TELEGRAPH LINES”.  This is a small list and I’m sure there have been dozens of other uses not listed here.
That makes the hunt for old pictures and films fun.  We are really glad that Periscope Films posted the film and that Stan posted it on the CJ2a Page.
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Meanwhile, back at the farm

The antique machinery shows are over for another year.  Blue is in his stall, awaiting more work on the hydraulic lift.  While most of the time we write about Blue and farm jeep history, there are more things happening on the old family farm that Farm Jeep calls home.’
The real farm jeep
We got started in all of this with the idea of having an old jeep to use for chores around the farm.  Although no longer a working farm, Mother Nature is always at work trying to reclaim open fields and forest trails.  For the past 6 months, Barry has been engaged in a battle with an invasive tree (autumn olive) and the old rusty, trusty CJ2a has been a critical weapon.  Every day, weather permitting, Barry heads to the barn where Yeller lives and fires up the jeep.  It is already loaded with a variety of gas and manual tools (saws, pruning shears).   Then off to pick up a little trailer for hauling the trees and brush to the burn pile.  In the photo above, taken in the early morning, the little red trailer is full and overflowing.
The ’47, with its faded paint and rusty body just keeps running.  One morning, Barry noticed that one of the trailer tires was low.  It was then that he realized that he hadn’t put air in the 2a’s tires in the past decade.  With Thanksgiving just ahead, the focus on chores will shift to trips into the wood to hauling firewood.  No matter the season or job involved. Ole Yeller is the true farm jeep.
A different (retired) farm jeep
For the past 30 years, Barry has had a CJ5 or CJ7 as his daily driver/fun jeep.  The 1979 CJ7 Golden Eagle has been in semi-retirement for several years, awaiting a restoration.  This winter was to be the start of that restoration but plans have changed.  Instead, we decided to acquire a CJ7 that doesn’t need extensive restoration and to spend our energies and dollars on the ’47 and ’49 jeeps.
So it was another JRT (jeep retrieval trip), this time to Columbus, OH.  The seller owns a couple of auto repair shops and had acquired a 1977 CJ7 from a client who no longer wanted it.  He was looking for a “fun” jeep to drive around.  Over the past couple of years, he repaired and replaced about every component.  The body is in great shape.  It has a flat black paint job and has been dubbed “Matte” (a working name) .
While we don’t know Matte’s full history, it should feel at home here.  Before his makeover, Matte had lived and worked on a farm.  The Golden Eagle is a special jeep and we are hoping to find a new home where it will get the full attention and restoration it needs.  The new CJ7 will take up duty as the “winter emergency” vehicle and a working member of the Farm Jeep family.

Update – While preparing the Golden Eagle to sale, Barry realized that he just couldn’t do it. So Matte found a new home and the Golden Eagle will become a new project.

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Plows and More Plows – At Least in Printed Ads

Here at Farm Jeep, we have focused on flat fender jeeps.  But an ad appeared on e-bay that clearly shows agricultural activities were still an important part of the new CJ5 model in 1955.

The jeep pictured in this ad may be a prototype (note the split windshield)(1), but here we are with Jeep promoting its agricultural implements.  Of special interest to us are the graphics used for the two plows.  They are identical to those used by Newgren in the late 1940s.  It would appear that the original Newgren design was alive and well.

Still a mystery to me

Whenever we have a plow question, we contact our friend Clint Dixon.  As always Clint had some interesting facts and history to help us learn more, if not solve our latest mystery.

Clint sent his own ad, staring the new CJ5.  Here is what Clint had to tell us –

Not sure if this is newer or older than the ad you found, but I’ll bet they are the same plows.
 
I have done exhaustive searches and I can find very little information on the Green Manufacturing Company of Bowling Green Ohio, other than they were listed in the Red Tractor books as early as 1950 as manufactures of Jeep cab seals. They also apparently manufactured splined adaptors and various link repair parts for hitches on tractors.
 
Okay, here is my theory – though I have been unable so far to prove it. I have a hunch that Robert Henry Green started his own ag supply company “Green Manufacturing” after leaving Newgren. If I remember correctly, this was shortly after Bantam took over Newgren under the Monroe Auto Equipment Company umbrella of management. I would be willing to bet that Robert continued to supply Willys with plows under a new name – Greenline.
 
Several years ago, I did find a website for what was left of Green Manufacturing. I was never able to get any response from anyone there though their site hinted at a history of producing agricultural equipment. I have also seen at least one Greenline plow for sale on the internet, though it was probably from the 70’s or 80’s and was way way too big for a Jeep. The company was apparently sold and what remains now manufactures man-lifts.
 
Just when you thought the plot could not get any thicker….
 
So,,,,,
 
So could some of the Newgren style plows found without tags or labels have been made by Greenline?  Did Jeep label their plows?  Did farmers care if their new plow had a name?  Is a plow that looks like a Newgren and doesn’t have a tag still a Newgren?
 
And how long did Jeep continue to offer the Monroe lift?  More questions to answer.

Here are Clint’s thoughts

 

I don’t think Newgren plows necessarily have to have the label to be considered a Newgren. I know of several Ford guys who collect Dearborn plows regardless of whether the Dearborn tag is missing or not, also Ferguson guys who collect Ferguson plows with or without the tag. Of course a plow with the original tag is preferred but not absolutely necessary if one can prove the manufacture of the plow.
 
Now, if Greenline or someone else took over marketing of a plow from Newgren or Bantam or whoever, continued to sell the same identical plow but without the Newgren tag, I don’t really know if it would be considered a Newgren plow once that company had gone out of business. I think it would then be considered to be a Greenline. But, without a Greenline tag or decal, I guess it is hard to say. I do know that Newgren plows were advertised wearing Monroe decals when they were shown in the Monroe literature for the Dodge Power Wagon. The Newgren tags appeared to have been removed. Don’t know if this was just for advertising to boost the Monroe name, or if it was because of the riff between Monroe and Newgren/Bantam at the time.
 
Clint
 

Update – July 2021

Barry found himself hunting for information in Bowling Green, Ohio while doing research on a Jeep promotional movie. On a hunch he decided to again tackle the question of who owned Green Manufacturing.

Several online attempts to contact the current owners failed, but a phone call did yield a glimmer of hope. The person who answered the phone had been a long time employee, but didn’t have any knowledge of farm implements being produced. She did say that the company had been bought and sold at least a couple of times since it was Green Manufacturing.

Barry then contacted the Wood County Museum, sending them a copy of the “Greenline” plow ad showing the Bowling Green address. The next day he received a note saying that they had found information about who had purchased the original Green Manufacturing and provided contact information.

Here is what we have learned from Jeff Snook, former owner of Green Manufacturing and now owner/operator of Snook’s Dream Cars (www.snooksdreamcars.com):

Hi Barry,

My history with Green Mfg. did not include any Jeep connection, but here is what I remember hearing.

Bob Green, founder of Green Mfg. somehow was connected with Jeep in the 50s I believe.  I recall hearing stories of him making implements.  Don’t recall which, but it looks like plows based on your literature.  I do recall he made post hole diggers for Jeeps as we continued that business into the late 1990s.  But the ones we made were sold through farm implement dealers and not Jeep related.  They were all 3-point hitch mounted.

 We continued using the Greenline name on our posthole diggers and other implements (wagon gear & scraper blades) until I sold the business.  Green Mfg also made hydraulic cylinders (turned out to be the largest part of our business) and I’m sure they evolved as part of the Jeep 3-point hitch connection.

Here is the Green Mfg. ownership history

1968 Robert Green sells to Wilde Manufacturing (Michigan company)

1969 William Snook hired by Wilde to run company

1974 William Snook buys company from Wilde & Jeff Snook comes on board

1989 Jeff Snook buys company from Bill Snook

1998 Jeff Snook sells company

Bob Green stayed on for 5 years as sales manager once he sold the company.  He was an old car guy (like my Dad) and was involved in making overdrives for Franklin automobiles.  As far as I know, he continued in the overdrive business until he passed away.

As shown, I sold the business in 1998 and all the records are gone, along with most of the folks that were around during that time.  If I can find any old employees that might remember, I’ll send them your way.

At last!

Now we have some of our questions answered. We will continue to search for more information, but are happy to know that Robert Green continued to sell the fine Newgren line of implements.

  1. Ventilating windshields were an option on the early CJ5, not an indication of a prototype.
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Historic Trip – Monroe Lift Museum Exhibit and Antique Mall Willys Corporate Report

On a recent road trip Barry made a couple of Farm Jeep related finds.  The first was a planned visit to the Monroe County Historical Society Museum in Monroe, Michigan.  Inside this excellent museum is an exhibit dedicated to the Monroe Auto Equipment Company (MAECO).  This is the company that made the Monroe hydraulic lift for farm jeeps and still makes Monroe shocks.

The exhibit’s curator is retired MAECO engineer Jerry Wittkop.  Jerry has assembled documents, photos, advertisement materials and samples of  some of the many products made by this 100 year old company. Products ranging from the world famous shocks to golf balls.  And of course, there is the Monroe hydraulic lift.  In addition to a lift housing, the display includes a picture of the farm where jeeps equipped with the lift were tested and demonstrated. There is also a Monroe tractor seat on display.

Jerry’s long career and personal involvement with the family that owned the company (until its sell to Tenneco Inc. in 1977) has resulted in a display that is informative beyond the normal corporate history.  We had always wondered how Monroe ended up making hydraulic lifts for the jeep.  As Jerry explained (and demonstrates through the exhibit), Monroe made products that could make use of their expertise in hydraulic systems.  Some of that expertise came from the company’s work with World War II tanks and aircraft hydraulic systems.

If you are in the Detroit area stop by and visit the museum and the MAECO exhibit.

Barry and his wife Paula like to take interstate trip breaks by stopping at antique malls.  Barry likes to search for jeep related items.  Most of the time that means old magazine ads.  The same trip to the Monroe museum found them stopping at a mall in a small town off the interstate.  Barry quickly found a booth with a nice selection of automotive ads.  In among the ads was a Willys Overland financial report for the period ending March 31, 1946.

We have posted selected pages of the report here. The most interesting parts of the report are in the narrative, including the fact that no jeeps were produced during the final 3 months of 1945 because of strikes at suppliers.  There is also the disclosure of the purchase of the Wilson Foundry & Machinery Co., the supplier of Willys engine blocks.

The report also discusses the company’s design philosophy and introduces the lineup of the CJ2a, wagon, pickup and the “delivery sedan.”  An interesting look into the early days of the CJ.

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Restoring the Newgren Plow – and Candle Magic


Our Newgren plow came without the landside wheel hub and the coulters and joiners.  Most likely, the POs had found they didn’t want them when using the plow behind a tractor.  From research provided by our friend  Clint, we knew that we could find the coulters and joiners on an old Dearborn or Ferguson plows, as Newgren used the same supplier for these parts.  The wheel hub/spindle attachment was another matter.  While we will continue to search, the odds of finding an original are small and we decided to fabricate a simple replacement.

The hub’s the thing

The plow uses the jeep’s spare tire mounted on the landside (opposite the furrow) of the plow as a depth control.  The adjustable bracket allows the operator to set and maintain the depth of the furrows.  The landside wheel attachment is a simple affair: a hub matching those used on the jeep’s axles, a short spindle (axle) that holds the hub and a steel block with a “U” bolt for locking the assembly to the plow beam.  The original assembly, as shown in the above picture of Clint’s restored plow, is a nicely engineered and machined part.  While not authentic, we chose to build something with off-the-shelf parts.  Since our focus is on the jeep and not the plow, we think this is a reasonable compromise.
Hubs and spindles used for building trailers are readily available online and at many farm supply stores.  Finding a hub that matched the jeep’s 5 lugs on a 5 ½” pattern was a bit harder.  Once again, we turned to our friends at TractorByNet.com for some help and we soon had a source for both the hub and spindle (Northern Tool).  Clint was able to supply us with the critical dimension we needed to give to are welding/machine shop (6.25” from the face of the hub to the plow beam).  The shop fabricated the “U” bolts and cut and welded the spindle to the steel block.  Simple, but it works. 
The parting of an old friend
When we took over the family farm 30 years ago, among the tractors and implements that came with the place was a Dearborn 2-14 plow.  It hasn’t been used for several years and has been rusting quietly in the weeds behind the barn.  Although he knew that the Dearborn would be the perfect donor for the coulters and joiners, Barry was reluctant to dismember the old plow that had been around the farm for 60 years.  After spending months looking for the parts at used implement yards and farm sales, he determined that it was OK to borrow the parts of now.
That decision was the easy part.  With all that rust and our experiences with taking old jeeps apart, we pondered the need of a sit of welding/cutting/heating torches.   Barry posted another note on the TractorByNet fourm, asking for the tools needed for the disassembly, with the goal of as little damage as possible to the old plow.  There were several good suggestions.  And then there was the post by a member from Southern Alberta, Canada.
The magic candle
Ernie wrote –
“I use heat and a wax candle. The heat from a propane torch is fine but a Mapp torch is better. Oxy/acetylene or a tiger torch works well too. Just get the whole nut warm enough to melt the wax and use it as a penetrating oil. Wax seems to flow in better than anything as long as your using enough heat to keep the wax melted. 

Once you have the wax in there just take two hammers and hold one under the side of the nut and then hit the opposite side. You don’t need to hit hard you just want to set up a vibration between the nut and the bolt to help the wax penetrate. For the same reason it will help to hit the bolt on the head while it’s warm. Do this several times and you won’t even need a cheater pipe on your breaker bar. 

I don’t like to get nuts red hot with w torch when I’m trying to remove them as it seems that once they cool they shrink and are tighter than they were before. Good luck

I should add that an impact wrench set low enough so as not to twist off the bolt also sets up enough vibration to loosen the bolts once they have wax on them.”

This was perfect, since we had a small propane torch and a ready supply of candles.  Barry couldn’t wait to try this technique.  He followed the simple instructions and with the help of a cheater bar had the first large nut moving.  Using more wax and heat from the small torch, he quickly had the first coulter­/joiner assemble off without damaging any of the bolts.
This has to be one of our favorite shop tricks.  It did eliminate an excuse for buying a set of torches, but we will always have a few candle stubs in the tool box.  Next steps are to clean and paint the rusty parts and add them to the plow. 

Update – The completed project is shown in the photo at the top!

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Shows Seals & Springs

After a long winter we needed to get the 3a ready for the first spring antique machinery show here in central Indiana.  Evan and Barry spent a day make the final adjustments to insure everything was working as it should.  Part of the testing involved getting the jeep with the plow attached on the car hauler trailer.

But first, Barry needed to re-install the PTO rear gearbox.  He had taken some time during the winter to replace a leaking seal.  The seal on the output had been leaking for the past year.  Thanks to folks on the CJ3A Page (Installing and Rebuilding a Rear PTO Setup) and on the CJ2a forum, we found the correct seal and made the necessary repairs.

Back in February, we reported on the installation of a brand new pump for the Newgren lift. While we were confident that the new pump/plow would work as expected, we hadn’t tried loading it on the car hauler we use for transporting the jeep to shows.  The Newgren plow was designed to work with the Monroe lift.  It has a “tall” mast rather that the “short” mast found on the early Newgren plows.  So the clearance on bottom of the plow is less than would be found with a Monroe/Newgren combination.
As the jeep is driven up the loading ramps of the trailer, the front of the jeep goes up and the rear goes down.  The combined jeep with plow is around 16’ long. The good news is that we were able to load the jeep with the plow without major issues, the plow barely dragging as we drove the jeep onto the trailer.
Sealing the deal

Or perhaps, the seal is the deal is a better description.  At the end of show, as Barry was loading the jeep, he noticed that the plow wasn’t lifting as easily as it had.  When he unloaded the jeep at home he saw a tale-tale sign on the deck of the trailer – a spray pattern made by a pump with a blown seal.
Bummer!  The new pump had a blown seal, the same issue we had with the old pump.  We are sure the old pump was worn and needed to be replaced, but something isn’t right.  Off to seek help from our friends at TractorByNet.com and the CJ2a forums.  We even got the local Case/IH tractor dealership involved.
The conclusion was that the pump was blowing seals because of excessive pressure.  Most modern hydraulic systems have built-in pressure relief systems, but Newgren doesn’t.  The pump normally only builds pressure when it is pushing against the cylinder, for example while lifting the plow.  Otherwise the pump is just circulating fluid in and out of the reservoir, referred to as being in the neutral position.  But something was causing pump to continually build pressure, rather than returning to neutral after lifting the pump.
 This was evident when running the lift up and down with the reservoir filler cap removed.  Under normal circumstances, nothing should happen with the filler cap removed, since, in the lift or neutral positions, the control valve doesn’t allow pressure to build in the reservoir.  In our cause, fluid was being pushed out the filler tube – the reservoir was being pressurized. The problem had to be in the control valve.
The springs the thing

The Newgren control valve is very simple compared to modern control valves.  Push one direction and fluid is directed to the cylinder.  Let go of the control lever and the fluid just dumps into the reservoir (the neutral position). Push in the opposite direction and the fluid is released from the cylinder (allowing the implement to lower). Again, letting go of the control lever returns the system to neutral.  Apparently something wasn’t allowing the system to return to neutral.
That something was a small return spring located on top of the control valve.  The lower return spring can be seen in this picture, taken from underneath the jeep bed.  Using a small mirror, Barry was able to see that the upper spring had slipped out of its groove and was not providing enough spring action to return the lever to true  neutral position.
Luckily the fix didn’t involve removing the lift from the jeep.  By removing two bolts, the bracket holding the springs in place comes off, allowing the springs to be re-positioned.  Taking the bracket off took a minute.  Working in the cramped space, getting the springs in the proper position and replacing the bracket took 45 minutes.  Still a lot quicker and easier than removing the lift.
 A quick test with the leaking pump revealed that control was working correctly.  No fluid was being pushed out of the reservoir with the control in any position.  Problem easily solved.  The mystery of how the spring got out of position remains.

Now I get it

On a final note, this was the first show with the plow mounted on the jeep.  It was a great success.  With the plow on the back of the jeep, visitors immediately got the farm jeep concept.  With just the lift, it took a lot more explanation.  While it is more work to take plow, we think it is well worth the effort.

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Newgren+TV=Solution

One of the joys of this adventure has been the “jeep days” when Evan and Barry get to spend a day working on the jeeps.  The latest “jeep day” was no exception and we accomplished a list of tasks needed to get Ole Blue ready for another season of shows.
The Old and the New
The latest addition to the Farm Jeep garage is a 40” TV/PC monitor.  It is perfect blowing up parts diagrams and watching the occasional TV show.  One of those TV shows provided Evan with the solution to our non-working Newgren between-the-seats control.
A special feature of the Newgren lift is the ability to control the lift at the rear of the jeep and from the driver’s seat.  When attaching implements, it is very handy to be able to make fine adjustments to the lift height without having to leave the rear area.  We were extremely lucky that our lift came with the driver control rod and lever.  Unfortunately, after moving the lift from the CJ2a to the CJ3a, the driver control hasn’t worked correctly.  We could either make the lift rise or lower it by altering the length of the control rod, but not both.
Wheeler Dealers
The British TV series WheelDealers is a favorite of ours and was the source for Evan’s inspiration in fixing the Newgren.  In one episode, Edd China, the mechanic, demonstrated how to determine the changes need to convert a shift lever from a “long-throw” to a “short-throw”.   Since there were no conversion kits available, Edd designed his own.   Using Edd’s example, Evan diagnosed the problem, built a prototype and designed the fix. 
The problem
The control had been installed according to the instructions.  As stated, it worked perfectly on the 2a.  But as listed on Farm Jeep, there are dimensional differences between the 2a and 3a.  While not major, we believe they were enough to alter the geometry.  We also are working with a reproduction body.  That may have added to the issue.
The fix
Using soda straws to simulate the setup, Evan estimated that the lever needed to be lengthened by 2 inches or so.  Using a small piece of wood, he built a prototype and used it to find the exact extension required.  We were then able to build a simple bolt-on extension that maintains the original lever, but makes it functional.  Perfect
While we were at it
The day’s accomplishment didn’t stop there.  We took the wobble out of a front wheel, aided by the service manual (displayed on the big screen) and service the steering knuckles with John Deere Corn Head Grease.
Evan scored his second victory of the day by modifying a spring to correct an accelerator linkage issue.   Although an OEM spring was installed, it was too strong, preventing operation of the throttle cable.  Again, this is probably a problem with the geometry of our engine/body.  Rather than chasing the problem, we choose to go with a workable solution.
Another good day.

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American Bantam Plow – More of the story

Our last post introduced our search for more information on Ted’s American Bantam plow.  Over the past few weeks, we, along with a few Bantam, Newgren and Monroe experts have been searching for answers to our questions about where and when the plows were produced.


The first part of the Bantam Plow mystery has been solved by Cathy Cunningham of the American Bantam Car Club (www.austinbantamclub.com/).  She sent us a newspaper clipping from 9/20/48 announcing that the Butler plant would produce farm equipment.  In addition, she also provided the following:

 From the Bantam bankruptcy papers….”The management of Newgren as well as Bantam was entirely under the control of Monroe.  Of the various farm implements sold by Newgren, about 50% was manufactured by or purchased from Monroe, a small portion by Bantam and the remainder by unaffiliated companies.”
4/19/1950.  The trustees found the activities of the Newgren Company, Bantam’s wholly owned subsidiary, which had been engaged unsuccessfully in the sale of agriculture equipment manufactured by Monroe, Bantam and others, practically ceased.
Based on the above, we now know that Bantam was producing farm equipment, which most likely included plows, beginning in 1948.  It would appear that Newgren sales efforts had ceased by early 1950.  We would guess that Bantam replaced the Newgren tag sometime after mid-1950.  But we have just scratched the surface of how this plow came to be.

This has been a fun and rewarding undertaking.  We want to thank Ted for sending us the photos of the plows.  He uncovered an important (at least to some of us) piece of jeep history. We also wish to thank Clint Dixon, Lonnie Deweese, and Cathy for their help in getting the story this far.

Many stories remain to be told about Monroe, Newgren and Bantam.  It is our hope that this plow-find will kindle more research and published results. 

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