Jack of All Trades Restorations

Jack of All Trades Restorations Currently closed to the public while we catch up on projects in house. We will continue to work our own projects and assist family and friends with theirs.

Restoration is our passion, but now we have reached retirement and will no longer work it for an income. We will always listen to those having unique projects on a case by case basis.

Here's a little tool you don't see every day. It has a 6/32, 10-24 and 1/4-20 tap on it. Great for chasing threads on ...
05/20/2025

Here's a little tool you don't see every day. It has a 6/32, 10-24 and 1/4-20 tap on it. Great for chasing threads on softer metals. I used it a lot when I was restoring vintage lawn furniture. It was in a old tool box I bought at a yard sale.

When you buy a used piece of equipment, you don't always know it's service history. The safe thing to do is a full serv...
05/16/2025

When you buy a used piece of equipment, you don't always know it's service history. The safe thing to do is a full service and start your own records. This will also help you get more familiar with the equipment.

Although this seal looked "okay" from the other side, the tension spring is shot. The spring keeps the rubber snug agai...
03/03/2025

Although this seal looked "okay" from the other side, the tension spring is shot. The spring keeps the rubber snug against the shaft to keep grease in and dirt out. Luckily, in larger, older equipment, seals and bearings are standard sizes and shouldn't be hard to find .

Here's the deal! Maintenance is inevitable, especially on older equipment. The question is, do you want to do it back ...
03/03/2025

Here's the deal! Maintenance is inevitable, especially on older equipment. The question is, do you want to do it back at your shop where you have access to all your tools, and a ride to the parts store if needed? Or do you want to attempt it in the field when rain is on the way and a lot of the parts are damaged.

In this case a good cleaning, fresh grease, and all original parts.

Preventative maintenance is cheap and easy compared to waiting for something to fail.

Lost steering on the tractor the other day. I had to constantly spin the wheel to the right just to go straight, and sp...
12/07/2024

Lost steering on the tractor the other day. I had to constantly spin the wheel to the right just to go straight, and spin it fast to the right to actually turn right. My hunch was that the piston seal in the power steering cylinder had gone bad, and I was right.

A quick rebuild of the cylinder and we're back in business. While I had it out I added grease fittings to the ball joints and new rubber grease boots .

In case you were wondering why the drop on the hydraulics matters so much. Had to get into this position to fuel up the...
07/16/2024

In case you were wondering why the drop on the hydraulics matters so much. Had to get into this position to fuel up the tractor. The FEL stayed in place instead of coming down on the trailer. Also, when you hop off the tractor to open a gate you won't loose your load. Many other situations where you want your load to stay put.

Before we started the cylinder rebuilds on the front end loader, the forks would drop about 30" in 30 minutes. After th...
07/15/2024

Before we started the cylinder rebuilds on the front end loader, the forks would drop about 30" in 30 minutes. After the rebuild the drop is 4" in 30 minutes. Should be a lot easier to control a load now.

As you can see, the new seal set high in the grove. Although the cylinder opening is beveled to help guide the seal in,...
07/15/2024

As you can see, the new seal set high in the grove. Although the cylinder opening is beveled to help guide the seal in, its still too tight and may damage the seal.

If I had a small ring compressor I'd use it, but since I don't I'll use a hose clamp to compress the seal a little.

I greased it up and with a few taps with a rubber mallet it went right in.

The new position seals are neat! The black seal goes in first and then the yellow seal on top of it in the same grove.T...
07/15/2024

The new position seals are neat! The black seal goes in first and then the yellow seal on top of it in the same grove.

The black seal keeps pressure on the yellow seal, holding it firm against the cylinder wall.

Don't work well under pressure? Well, neither do worn out hydraulic cylinders. If you can sit on your tractor and watc...
07/15/2024

Don't work well under pressure? Well, neither do worn out hydraulic cylinders. If you can sit on your tractor and watch the bucket sink right before your eyes, or measure the drop in minutes rather than hours, it's time for some service work.

But you don't see any leaks? That's because the leakage is internal. This is the piston and it extends or retracts depending on which side you apply the pressure to. When the seal ages it becomes stiff and brittle and no longer fits snuggly against the cylinder wall. This allows the fluid to bypass the cylinder until the pressure is the same on both sides.

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5349 Academy Road
Cookeville, TN
38506

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