I grew up around tractors big and small. Got an old Bolens Ride-a-Matic for my 4th birthday but really just got bitten by the bug again lately. I started looking for a beefy GT to do jobs around the property. We had a Cub 106 years ago that was a real workhorse so when I came across this 149 on Craigslist with more power, hydro and hydraulic lift I had to have it. ???? Here it is the day I picked it up. The steering was super sloppy so I started off by rebuilding the steering gear with new bearings and follower, also a few new tie rod ends. I replaced the battery, the seat, cleaned the dirt out of the gas tank, added a fuel filter, changed the spark plug, adjusted the governor, replaced a bunch of wiring, a headlight and the hood hinge and so on. Then I started looking at doing some modifications...
"New" Cub 149 restification
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Thanks guys. It's rougher up close than it looks in pics but I'm picking away at it. One thing I noticed right off is that the blade only lifted about 3" off the ground. The float lockout had a lot of play in it so I replaced it with a bolt/locknut. The roll pin for the actuator arm was missing and an undersized bolt was in the hole. I replaced it with a bigger bolt that screws in tight. I still wanted more lift though. I plan to turn the blade into a Superior Scoop style bucket for moving mulch etc so a little extra height should be handy. I snitched an idea from Extreme Motorworks and fabbed an extended arm with 3 more options to change the motion ratio and lift height. I also replaced the bent (mangled) and rusted link with a new on made from 1"x1/2" steel bar stock. I'll have to work to bend this one! ???? Dunno why one pic came out sideways. Lol
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Here it is welded and together. The new lift height at this setting is 13 1/2". ???? You can also see the new seat, new used AG tires and wheel weights in these pics. I picked up some 6ply Vredestein 5 rib tires for the front, I just have to get around to mounting them. It's a good excuse to paint the wheels too.
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Here's another little mod. I cheated and bought this one. It was too cheap to bother making one. Just a 2" receiver hitch but it adds some utility. I still have to add a hitch ball and I'm going to modify an atv hitch cargo basket for transporting big potted plants, buckets of whatever, concrete blocks for weight etc. For now it's just pulling a garden cart full of weeds.
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Had the Cub out over the weekend. Used the blade to clear some rocks and old pavers and pushed some brush piles back to make room for more. It worked real well for that stuff, although I think the governor could use a little more adjustment. I noticed that although it sits higher than my lawn tractor (2012 Sears YT3000),the Cub is much more stable in side hills. Not sure why, the heavier transaxle down low maybe? Then I hooked it up to the lawn sweeper to pick up some clippings. It worked fine for a while, then it started acting up. It was sputtering like it was running out of fuel (which was full) and I could only keep it running with the choke out. There was dirt in the gas tank when I got it and no fuel filter. Seems like some may have gotten into the needle and seat. I ordered a rebuild kit, hopefully a good cleaning and freshening up will get the carb working 100%.
It's been a while but I've been making steady progress. I did some bodywork on the fender pan and put a fresh coat of Federal Yellow on it.
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I redid the step treads with truck bedliner for a good grip and bolted them on with stainless hardware. I also got the new 6 ply 5 rib Vredstein front tires mounted. They should be plenty sturdy for when I get the loader conversion done on the blade. I had locked out the float mechanism because it was so worn and sloppy, but I still wanted a float option so I adapted the lift bracket from a cyclops Cub that has a float slot in it. It required me to change the length of the lift link I built so I went all out and redid it with a grease able spherical bearing. This pic shows all 3 mods.
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The idea of using a 2" receiver hitch was to make the tractor extra versatile. It can use ATV implements from Impact or Kolpin (a linear actuator lift is in the works), it can also use a myriad of other ATV and truck accesories. I wondered about putting all of that potential load and leverage on the diff cover bolts though, especially threaded into cast iron so I built a support structure that ties into the factory upper sleeve hitch mounts. It should be plenty sturdy now. 
I picked up a receiver mounted ATV cargo rack but it had two problems. It was 12" wider than the 149 and it was much too long. Sooo, I chopped about 10" off the length of the center tube. Then I cut the rack down 6" per side and welded it back together on top of the center tube. Now it's not so ungainly and looks like it was made for the tractor.
I picked up a receiver mounted ATV cargo rack but it had two problems. It was 12" wider than the 149 and it was much too long. Sooo, I chopped about 10" off the length of the center tube. Then I cut the rack down 6" per side and welded it back together on top of the center tube. Now it's not so ungainly and looks like it was made for the tractor.
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I was doing a little last minute Christmas decorating today. I needed a raised base for a little spiral tree, hmm, a few concrete blocks would do the trick. Since I have a pile of them in the woods, on the other side of the property, it seemed like a perfect time to try out my custom cargo rack! So I fired up the 149, loaded it up and away I went. The tractor doesn't even know it's there. Quicker and a lot more nimble that a trailer. When the (new) spiral tree was missing parts I used the rack as a work table to fix it (with about 50 zip ties!). After the tree was up, that's when things went south. The 149 started fine, then stalled and wouldn't start again for love or money. It was caused by a serious defect I've founds in Cubs and other tractors....
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