1963 FSM rear wheels scalloped or not

[Yorkshire]

Hi all,

Just a quick question about my March 1963 Fordson Super major.

What type of rear wheels should be on the tractor scalloped or round.
At the moment they are round, would they need changing?

Also what tyre size?

Thank you in advance

Les

[Emiel]

Original was the scalloped wheel centre. But the round one will fit and work good. Only change the track width takes more time. Tire size back then was 11-36, which in modern tires is 12.2x36.

[mathias1]

Original was the scalloped wheel centre. But the round one will fit and work good. Only change the track width takes more time. Tire size back then was 11-36, which in modern tires is 12.2x36.

Emiel,
is it 12.4x36 you are thinking of? I have it on one of my super majors.

16.9x30 also looks good on a super major and was an option that time. Has more air, so better for road runs.

[Emiel]

That was a typo. 12.4x36 of course. In my eyes 13.6x36 looks nice.

16.9x30 surely is nice.

[Yorkshire]

Thank you both for your help. I would like my FSM to look as much as original as possible.
I’m now in the process of re assembling it and I will send some pictures when I’m able to.

Thank you so much for your kindness in helping me.

[mathias1]

That was a typo. 12.4x36 of course. In my eyes 13.6x36 looks nice.

16.9x30 surely is nice.

would 13.6x36 be the biggest possible on the standard rims?

[Billy26F5]

I think so, 12-36 wes often fitted back then (at least here) as Billy and Super Billy and the half Super Major had them (Billy is back on 11-36 now) and they appear to have been fitted new. With an NP the 12-36 will give higher speed and probably without too great a pulling penalty, if however you want the maximum pull then the 11-36 are best. The 14-30 is a bit big for normal work, it's better for really heavy things like a JCB or similar. And then there's the 11-38 (often fitted with 12-38) which was favoured for the Triple-D to maximise the speed, but you will loose more pull with them (not too relevant with a Triple-D's available power for most jobs). The 11-38 is rarer so probably more expensive.
Sandy

[shepp]

All new E1A Majors were fitted with plain disc centres 11 x 36 wheels and tyres as standard. The scalloped centres came in with the Power Major and 11 x 36 wheels with scalloped centres and tyres were fitted as standard to all Power and all Super Majors. As an interesting aside, the Power Major in Stuart Gibbard's Fordson Farming DVD has rear wheels from a Major, a pity as apart from that it is a very clean original tractor. My 52 Major is on 13.6 x 36 Goodyear Traction Sure Grip rears on the original rims, the others are all on 12.4/11 x 36 Goodyear Traction Sure Grip rears, fronts all round are Goodyears. In fact everything is on Goodyear's come to think of it!

[Yorkshire]

Hello again
Thank you for your input, as I have found before that this forum is a goldmine of knowledge.
I hope to acquire some scalloped rear wheels for my FSM in the near future, further to my link to some photos before I started the renovation, I have acquired three spoke front wheels,also

I will post the serial number and more information in the near future.
Thank you wonderful people once again.

[Billy26F5]

I think I'm right in saying that there were a few Power Major's that still had the early wheels, but it might have only been to use up stock parts. I haven't been able to find anything definitive on this though.
Sandy

[Yorkshire]

Hi all
I have now got the serial number and some casting numbers. I think it is a February 1963 FSM, there are a couple of extra details on the tractor 1) hydraulic lift arms are,as said before, equipped for a pickup hitch, there is also the foot pedal mechanism but alas no linkages. Now equipped with a swinging tow bar.
2) the rear wheels are round centres not scalloped. ? Does this matter.
3) the front wheels are four spoke, since replaced with three spokes.
The serial number is 08C-949998 which I think, given the number, brings it to near the end of production. I could be wrong of course

Casting numbers
Engine. B25J
Gear box. B26J
Hydraulics B25J
Rear trumpet housings C5J

I hope this information helps to guide me along the correct path and makes my FSM near as authentic as possible

Thanks again for your support

[Yorkshire]

Further to my post some photos update

https://postimg.cc/gallery/1T6gsCH

[Billy26F5]

Earlyish March 63, nowhere near the end for there's more than an extra year to go till the last one. The casting codes you've posted fit nicely, see what many others you find. The serial number includes the prefix, without which the year is impossible to know, main numbers were repeated in 63 and 64. I would probably have left the wheels alone given that they're heavy, but they aren't original. The lower link mountings are also the pick up hitch type, and the wrong way round as you wouldn't be able to fit the hitch like that.
Sandy

[shepp]

Re your comment, Sandy, about Power Major wheel centres. Quite a number of Major tractors were produced for some weeks after the launch of the Power Major in July 1958, so I would have expected that all production line stocks of solid centres would have been used up by that continuing Major production. There would, of course, have been a significant number of solid centres in the parts warehouse for future service needs. The scalloped centres had been introduced by Sankey some time prior to the introduction of the Power Major, and were already being fitted by International Harvester to B450 and some BWD6 models, and by Nuffield to it's Universal 4 models. I have never seen plain centres depicted on Power Majors in any of Ford's advertising literature or film promotions, and they do not feature in the Power Major parts book. When tractors got onto the farm it was a different matter, all 6 stud centres whether solid, scalloped or the later scalloped fitted to 4000 models, would fit all Major, Power Major, Super Major, and all 4000 models, so on a farm running a range of tractor models and ages there was often a general mixing up of types on the tractors in use. Often they were traded in or sold off with non original centres fitted, in those days dealers tended to be not that concerned.

[Billy26F5]

I might have got confused with the front wheels, for the new casting didn't appear imediately and Stuart Gibbard shows a prototype with all extras and the early front wheels.This might however again be to do with stock parts.
Sandy