Vintage Howard Gem Rotavator hasn't run for 15 years.. Will it Start??
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- Опубліковано 28 вер 2024
- A friend gave me this old Howard gem rototiller, It had been left in a shed for 15 years because it was impossible to start. Turns out it had multiple issues.
“Basically it’s a two wheel tractor with blades, so it’s going to be a fun machine if I can get it going” … Spoken like a true mad scientist 😂!
Nice mаn
Runs pretty good for having sat so long
@@markhensley9378 Marty did a fantastic job getting it sorted out as per usual, and it sure does run great now!
@@serhiitaranchuk7348aaàààa
I like the way you work through the troubleshooting. By your approach it seems there cannot be anything you cannot fix. It's inspiring to me. Thanks a lot!
It's also very nice to see how much fun and emjoimen your boy is having helping you. 😊
You wouldn't believe my excitement when I saw the photo of you pushing another machine onto the trailer, and as usual you didn't disappoint, well done Marty, and a 30 minute watch was the icing on the cake. 🙏🙏🙏
Agreed, I wish I had this luck of finding old equipment 😆
@@endutubecensorship you just have to look. Go for drives and if you find something you like ask if it's for sale. You might be surprised and get it for free because the person just wants it gone. That's what happened to me.
@@1965Gindy I completely agree, I've got a couple old pieces of equipment that way. It just seems Marty has one heck of a lucky side.
I mean, free excavator!?! Common!! 😆
I spent the odd day or two hanging on behind one of those , I ached in places I didn’t know I had ! Enjoyed that mate 👍
i am no mechanic. love the mrthods you use to fix things. keep posting
The only unfortunate thing re: your channel is that I just found it, so I'll be late to all the repair parties like this one-which was great btw. And here, I'm not sure what I
enjoyed more-the repairs, or seeing and hearing your son laugh as the smile of genuine joy increased on your face each time he did so. God bless.
Howard were agricultural engineers from Harleston Norfolk UK, Designed and built the Roto spreader for farm yard manure from 1960, Also built the first big baler for hay & straw in the 1970, John Deere from America asked Howard to build them the muck spreader and paint them in the traditional JD green& yellow, Every Howard machine was finished in the traditional bright orange, And they were known for manufacturing extremely quality agricultural machinery.
Howard rotary hoes were australian designed and made mate sorry
What a joy hearing the youngster's excitement! Good job, Marty!
Bought an old masport commercial mower, never had as much guts as I thought it should, finally one of the valve seats popped out so i took the head off and staked the seat back in with a punch. Realised whilst i was turning it over the exhaust never closed, and the intake stayed open most of the time. Ended up taking 0.7mm of the intake and 1.2mm of the exhaust stems with a flap disk upside down on the lawn. Blessing in disguise it breaking on me, goes hard now 👍🏻
People from New Zealand are so chill regardless of anything. The world could be ending and all they'd say is "we had a good run"
Yeah no point in getting too excited about anything, it's too tiring 😀
That big heavy Rototiller is just the right size for your yard. I enjoy watching someone go through the motions of restoring a machine that accumulates decades of sedentary deterioration.
Excellent!!! Such a satisfying repair vid! Good to have you back Marty! The giggles when it almost started was superb!!
Nice to see it running, I spent many hours walking behind my Dad's old rotavator, it was a Howard "Little Gem" - baby of the Gem you have.
Your calm demeanor sure builds a great deal of confidence in me as to your abilities. I still have nightmares of when my Dad would blow a fuse over something he couldn't fix or yell at me for holding the flashlight incorrectly. 😉
You resurrecting another machine from disuse is always enjoyable. Thank you. When my grandfather was teaching me about crank starting an engine, he instructed me to always crank using my left hand, because in the event of a backfire, the handle of the crack will come back around and hit your open left hand rather than the back of your right hand. Perhaps with smaller motors it is not as critical but on a Diamond T truck, it was important. Thanks again for a wonderful rescue of something old.
Good advice, these machines have an anti kickback ratchet on the starter so its not so bad
I watch and have subscribed to your vlogs because I like watching old machines given a second life. Your knowledge on finding exact parts needed amazes me. What makes me annoyed is that most of the equipment you have acquired is because the previous owner just left it where it was because it stopped working. They did not try or were willing to spend the time and money to get it going again. But the other side of the coin you Marty would not have the joy in acquiring such machinery and get it going for a minimal cost. Plus you use them on your lifestyle block. Congrats.
Marty's no nonsense approach is refreshing in the you tube world no lectures about the good old days no fancy tools or bench trophies
Nothing to add here that others haven't already said. You are amazing and your field mechanicing is the best I've see on UA-cam.
Hats off to you Marty, a true engineering wizard. I never thought that you’d get that mechanical toe clipper to run.
Marty everytime you bring one back to life, I cheer almost as loud as your proud son👍. As always thanks for the knowledge👌🗽🇺🇸
Your kid laughing made my day, maybe even my week. I also liked seeing you bring another vintage machine back to life.
I thought my grandparent's old Troy Bilt was a beast...that thing is HUGE!
My father had one about this size when I was a kid. It had attachments, including a sickle mower. But it was too fast for it to run properly, probably needed a belt to a different pully. It was definitely a beast!
This machine brings back memories. There was a Howard Gem in use where I used to work many years ago. An absolute beast of a machine which could fairly break up the soil . It made cultivation a lot easier. A great video.
and your ankles
Beast of a machine Marty, you will have more muscles after making a garden with that thing.
Remember seeing one similar with swivel wheels on the rear and snow plow attachment in the front many years ago + a small standing platform on a hitch attachment also with wheels so you could stand and drive it like a garden tractor.
This was back in the 70's over in Sweden.
Well done Marty. I have rescued a few old things like this myself in the past. Things that nobody wanted and that everybody said were scrap. No point in scrapping something if it can be made to work again with a few parts and a couple of days work. It runs fine now and should be able to work for another few years. Nice one!
Ahhh I've missed these type of videos from you!!! Love it
Just stumbled onto this video enjoyed every second of it it's good to see a machine saved from the scrapper!
You are a damn good mechanic! I really enjoy watching you bring these old machines back to life all the way over here in Arkansas.
love your videos..... great to watch old and unwanted machines get back to working condition.
Actually you do not need the manual in your phone. Valve clearances and other information are already provided at the bottom of the Kohler engine tag as "in 010 ex 010". Good work as always. After sitting so long, it is still in a quite good shape. And loved the improvised crank handle.
LOL that killer sheep having a munch 😁
Another great project Marty and your kid was having fun with the "silly old machine"
😁👍
A bit of advice my dear old dad told me about hand cranking engines, from his experience with tractors and cars, was never to wrap your thumb round the starting handle but keep it on the same side as your fingers because if the engine kicks back your thumb will be in the way, resulting in a broken thumb. Either that or convert to an electric start LOL. Thanks for another great video. Keep them coming.
A lot of those engines had an "anti-kick-back" ratchet arrangement so It couldn't bite you...
Good advice, but as Graeme has mentioned this one has anti kickback ratchet
Really impressive repair job once again. I have to say these old machine fixing videos are my favourites among your many videos. It's just so remarkable how you always seem to have an idea of what might be wrong and how to deal with it.
Great job! I'm always impressed by the condition of machine you can get running!
My parents had what I thought was a large rototiller, but that thing looks like it's at least 2x as long. This was in the mid to late 1970's & early 80's. I'm in the USA. Don't recall what make or model, but it was a Briggs & Stratton Engine, as are most such engines in US.
If you had all the blades you would have much better results. Unless it is an active garden, or you cover the grass/weeds with cardboard or plastic for several days/a couple of weeks, it takes 2 or 3 passes just to break it up. I usually do about 4 passes to ensure I've broken up grass. It tills much easier to cover with cardboard for several days, or over winter.
To find all the problems and get the old beast running and working again is simply fantastic.
Wow! This took me back - I remember my late dad being given one of these in the 70's, in a similar state and spending a lot of time tinkering to get it running again. Ours had the hand crank but was missing the pull start - or maybe it never had it. It was a bare bones model without tyres.
We had a Howard dragon on the council parks department which lived up to its name .It had a habit of trying to break your arm starting it and would push you backwards through hedges if you were not alert enough on the clutch.I understand the Howard company were based in australia and england .Their tractor mounted rotovators and barrel type muckspreaders were very popular here in the day. I love your vids Marty your so chilled out in your way of working which is great after a bad day.
Beautifully, elegantly executed in a logical manner.. It was a lot of work but you did it all great!
The joys of those Kohler engines, parts are still easily available and they also make aftermarket performance parts for them if you want more power
I have one of those , probably 50 years old and has a JAP single engine .A fire breathing dragon !!
A former neighbour of mine used one of these in his landscaping business. It seemed a very capable machine, though must be a handful in tight spaces such as yours. Your troubleshooting and fixing skills are impressive.
When your son said *funny old thing* that made me laugh! If there is a zombie apocalypse can I please come and live with you.
Nice find Marty
With our old roto tiller, it had an option for the tiller to spin forward or reverse. It always worked better with tiller spinning in reverse. The machine doesn’t always want to run away from you then. It digs in and the tiller works the ground more. Great vids! Thanks
He pressure washes! YAY. Great stuff as always!
Very cool trick on the thread repair. I have never thought to put grease on the interior. I would have thought that it would mix with the loctite as you spin the insert in. That is an excellent trip to put in the mental toolbox, thanks!
Yes you have to be careful to wipe off any excess grease and not let it get to the insert thread
Awesome, the laughter was the best part. But things were built to last a lot longer when that machine was built. And you can work on it without needing a Phd.
Love the little one in the video. First time I had seen a Howard was on the old television series Good Life from the U.K.. It was labeled as Good Neighbors here in the States. Glad you had good luck in making the old girl go!
marty the best thing about that vid was listening to that baby laugh, well done mate cheers
This came up on my recommended watch list, don't know why, but a very good video. Nice to see someone bringing old, but perfectly usable equipment back to life. My dad had an old Sears & Roebuck rototiller for our garden, it drove at different speeds too, when digging my dad would have it drive real sloow and dig deep. That is a lot of machine for your garden, and it sure works. Good job!
16:24 Now come on Marty don't try blaming it on the pump LOL
🤫😂
An airlock being purged
@@MartyT I've been known to purge an airlock myself, every now & then!
A long stressful day at work. Come home to a relaxing Marty T video. Love your stuff man.
Was really surprised to see spark off that engine. Usually after they have sat for years the points get oxidized and won't fire. Usually s few wipes with a point file fixes it, but it's always a pain to get to.
I did actually set and clean the points but my hand was in the way of the cam so I didn't use that footage, it made a big difference to the spark
Thank you. Brought back memories. In the 1950's we had a small farm and used a couple of these. The models we used were slightly different. No pull start; a crank handle where yours had a pull start. Also they had 2 fuel tanks. One you filled with petrol and the other paraffin. We would start it on petrol then after a few minutes switch to paraffin. Great little machines.
Thought you might spin the starter with the pull start removed with a drill or something, but a fabricated crank handle instead, very nice.
Actually there are rope slots on the front of the flywheel. Pull the recoil unit off. Get a piece of 3/8" braided "clothes line" about 2' long, tie a stopper knot in one end, stick it in the slot, wrap the rope around the flànge and give her a yank. The notches are visible on the top and bottom of the spline coupler flànge at 5:25.
That was a nice video, Very good machine and hearing your family happy and laughing was very enjoyable, Thankyou for sharing this with us
Your skills and your ultra-calm demeanor make you one of my ultimate favorite UA-cam posters. The way you present your repairs is a style which really pleases me. Thank you, sir!
Yup he a cool 😎 character!!
Well he is a South Islander..... Burt Monroe, John Britten both legends and both from the South, also both very seemingly calm fellas. He is in good company 😁
Way late commenting but Marty makes some great videos. One heck of a mechanic 👍 I’m amazed how any problems he comes across, he has a fix/solution. Lots of knowledge. Love the young lad laughing, when Marty was trying to get the motor to fire. He got me laughing lol😄 cracks me up
Your videos are very enjoyable to watch.
A little bit of time and cleaning, trouble shooting some rough spots and a twenty buck carb - -your all set. Good job once again. Thanks for the ride.
I'm thinking that transmission should have a lever for a gear reduction, or 2 speeds, a higher transport speed to get to the garden, then a low so it will barely move but have lots of grunt
Yep agree. You can't hoe with that wheel speed. My Pasquali has that lever plus a dif lock.
Gears are under handle bars. He played with them at very start of video
I have an earlier model ( steel wheels ) in the carport awaiting restoration. You have given me hope.
Your little helper was having watching you crank it over. Thats some good help
Marty you get the ole implements running again. It is nice to see life in it again. Good job brother.
Much as I like to fix things rather than replace them, there are few mechanical things that please me as much as replacing a worn-out old carb.
Thank you. Your daughter’s laughter and comments were priceless.
Love seeing this old stuff getting put back in service. Really appreciate you taking us along. This hopefully encourages more people to fix things rather than throwing everything away to buy the newer junk.
Do you think re-shaping the teeth under that recoil starter with a file or something could bring the pull-start back to life?
Now all you need is a "British Anzani Iron Horse" - There is a 'real' two wheel tractor, with a range of attachments, for the serious gardener, or as in my dad's case, a nurseryman and market gardener.
Anyways, very nice to see a chunk of British engineering in Australia, still in a serviceable condition, but bear in mind, the design of "The Gem" scarcely changed from the first production model in the 1950s right up to the last in the 1980s. There were subtle changes, and a very few different engines. Check out the "Howard 700" - Basically a Gem, but with a Sachs [I think it was] diesel engine. Those were the ones to sort out the wheat from the chaff, and I never knew more than one man who could start the one we had.
Tusen takk for god underholdning 👍🤗👍
I always enjoy your videos mate, I love the fact that you include your boy in your endeavors!!
That thing is a haus. Maybe not the best for small gardens, but could certainly be used on a small farm. Enjoying the channel. Tks for sharing.
You are amazing with these old machines. Fun to watch.
Marty, you find the coolest old vintage machines. Great fix. Well worth restoring in my opinion.
29:23 The plow shoe is facing backwards. Turn it around to face forwards, it acts as a ripper, also acts to pull the back end down and keep the tines in the ground.
Thanks for that, I didn't notice
@@TF856 Fine, you can call it that. It will still work better if it's turned around.
I love the kids laughter in the background. Joyful fun video. Thank you
One word, giggle. Thanks that was worth the time.
Great job getting that beast up and running.
I especially liked the hand crank ingenuity you came up with.
That's one of the features of your vids that makes them so interesting.
nothing will make you smile like a goof more when hearing a child laugh .
That kid is pure joy. So important to spend time with Dad.
Hey mart, what was the dirt bike to the left of the machine you rescued?? Cheers andy LIVERPOOL UK 👍
I was looking at that dirt bike too!!
🤓
Looked like a old hill climber
@@patrickblock2477
No it looked like a normal motocross bike..swingarm is normal length...aluminum so 80's at least ( 82 + ).... Shock location and position shows late 80's most likely.... Think Yamaha or Suzuki??
@@garymallard4699 looked Suzuki to me. Lots of parts missing from the carcass.
@@bobturnbull18
I'm sure there is enough to Franken-bike it....find another bike ( or 2 ) and build one??
Runs almost like new. Fantastic. Great job.
Marty - great to get this video on the first day of a lockdown. Can you please just keep the content coming? One vid every couple of days would do it... You really are a fabulous fellow!
I would love to make a vid every day but there's not enough hours in the day
Another great (instructional for me) video Marty T! I was impressed that the valve adjustment made the difference, another troubleshooting tip for me. You honed in on the alternative starting option too, fancy having a crank point as well as the pullcord. Good machine, hope it gives you many years of faithful service!
Did I just hear one of the young-ins say " I popped it " when Marty was cranking over that garden tractor/tiller :)
I POPPED IT..... Photoinduction!!!!!
Yes he thought he was making it fire with the clutch handle
@@MartyT awesome:) "teach them young about the mechanics and they will repair for a lifetime".... confucius say.
These Machine came out with a range of attachments such as tine harrows , molding boards for potatoes , chain harrows and even a small cambridge roller ...
Also a reel mower attachment inplace of the Rotary cultivator , a sickle bar mower Attachment ... also a Hedge trimmer ..with Shearers type flexible for it ... also a three row Weeding coulter bar attached in place of the rotary hoe module ...
I had a Bantam version which was smaller but had similar attachments no reverse was always an issue in tight spots or on slopes lol ...
The hoe unit was more effective than the Gravely rotary attachment ... but it was a good overall cultivator ... My Dad always wanted to up grade to the Gem but didnt get around to it lol ..
I have since got a Gravely got a Gravely with 9kw k301s motor with brush deck and a reel mower head would like a rotary hoe head and snow blower as well probably have make one of those lol ...
When Marty sees an A320 Jet: "Ah... well, it's basically a tractor with wings! I can get it going!"
That Howard was common in the UK for small holdings, just after the second world war. Love your videos' and your young sons laugh, keep turning them out, great entertainment. And of course seeing where you live.
That machine is an absolute beast!
Brilliant….. good old Kohler Motor. I’m the idiot that would totally dismantle that Tiller and restore it back to its former glory…. Good job Mate.
I was thinking use a cordless drill to start it, but building a full time crank handle is way better.
Nice repair work, very satisfying I’m sure.
Amazing, love how you can revive such wonderful machines. Great work mate.
Want to see that garden grow now.
You are a wonderful teacher, l like all your videos,from spain
Jesus - I remember using one of those at an agricultural high school in the 1960s.
That was probably David Bradly, it had many attachments.
Very cool!
@@michaelleblanc3363 Trawling through my memory I think it was called a Howard Rotovator - looked like this beast but maybe it was different. I can recall instructions to avoid losing one's feet.
My friend had one of these units in Victoria it was his grandpa’s. I tell you what it was bloody dangerous machine but it did the job.Great vid 👍🇦🇺
Amazing, I am not mechanical at all but I love how you fix up things and make them work!
Marty are you self taught, or did you go to school or serve an apprenticeship? Do you think it is a good idea to flush the crankcase of an engine before putting new oil in.
great vid! Even though those things are self propelled, they sure give a hard workout...
Started right up after valve adjustment and new carb. Great job broth. Thing sounds bad ass 🤘🏻
These old Howard Rotary Hoes are absolute beasts and it looks like you've fixed up a ripper. I had a mate who's dad used to Hoe his Market garden with a Howard 12 vtwin it used to sound like a Harley Davidson and man was it a handful to drive. Great video.
good to see Dad and Son having fun trying to start the beast