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If you don't have a lot of time or patience to look through junkyards/tractor graveyards or go to tractor/gas engine shows, your best bet is to check out The Fordson House in Escanaba, Michigan. They bill themselves as "offering the world's largest stock of new and New Old Stock parts available for Fordson tractors" and generally have just about every part you are likely to need (but some of the rarer parts -- fuel tanks, manifolds, etc. -- are subject to availability & you'll need to talk to them first to make sure they have it). Link follows at the end of this posting. Radiator sides are often damaged (this has been the case with 80% of the original, unrestored Model Fs that I've seen), and air washer assemblies are frequently cracked/broken from water getting in and freezing, not to mention the innards (tin float units) often are rusted away, so these parts are scarce -- be prepared for some "sticker shock." If you can locate a spare (i.e. third) damaged radiator side, you may be able to use it to patch the ones you have: carefully cut a piece roughly the same size as the broken-off part and grind the edges so that it fits as closely as possible. Look in your Yellow Pages for a welding shop that does Eutectic welding (works extremely well on cast-iron parts). Once welded, do a little finish grinding/sanding, a little sandblasting (to help disguise the repair), then prime & paint, and you're off to your next challenge! Eutectic welding may also be able to fix a cracked/broken air washer bowl or top, too, now that I think of it, but you'll need to study parts diagrams and cut out/bend/solder your own tin floats. This is the kind of thing that makes tractor restoration a challenge, but remember: if it was easy, somebody would have done it already! Good luck to you with your project. -- Another Fordson Operator in Maine
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