Cadet 85 #1

[AcidTonic Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close AcidTonic]

After having some fun restoring my Cadet 75, I decided to grab another one. This time it was a Cadet 85 and since I have a working 75 cutting my grass, this one is for fun and I can tinker....

I drove 6 hours to get this one. It has a much better frame, but there is damage near the shift lever and a tiny bit where the pedal was allowed to come back far enough to contact the floor. But those are both easy and minor blemishes to fix compared to my 75 which has big pieces busted out and the shape is lost.

This thread will detail my work on the Cadet 85 and since I plan to buy more I'm going to label this #1.

[AcidTonic Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close AcidTonic]

This one also was mainly purchased because it had the twin blade rear facing deck and after getting the International Model 2 Lawn Sweeper(details in my Cadet 75 thread), I really wanted a rear-facing deck so the grass would shoot directly into the Lawn Sweeper.

I was somewhat scared to find it painted black... time to repaint it back....

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The guy I bought it from tipped me off that Tractor Supply sells magic brand paint which is the perfect color for International White.

So first I better strip it....

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After some crude coats of paint, I think it turned out really good.

[AcidTonic Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close AcidTonic]

So next for that is to order the proper deck decals, so now it's moved off to the side. Time to get to work on the mower.....

Painted the airbox...

[AcidTonic Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close AcidTonic]

Pulled the fiberglass off the frame....

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More photos...

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Finally pulled the transmission.... it had a broken sprocket when I bought it. I did not know that the output shaft was ruined.... Bummer guess time to get out the welder....

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Welded some metal on it and used the grinder to get it somewhat round.... good enough. Set it aside...

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Time to strip the frame down and get that painted.......

Paint ran a little bit because I was overeager in a few places but I painted more coats since and forgot to take photos but it turned out better after some sanding and another coat...

[AcidTonic Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close AcidTonic]

Painted the steering column, taped off original decal in the front. Didn't like coat 1, need to sand it and do another then I'll get photos.

Next I need to paint the steering gear, the brackets that go around it, then remove all of the bolts out of the frame that were blocking threads from paint.

I need to repair the linkage for the front steering because it's a bit loose which causes the famous steering slop some of these are known for. My 75 has none of that and I noticed it's because of the linkage being crisp, whereas the 85 has a bit of play and clearly needs new retaining sockets.

I found some online but I haven't ordered them yet. I also ordered main decals and when it arrived one of them was bent so I contacted the manufacturer and they are sending another one.

Decals are extremely nice but my only complaint is that they are missing the rear decal that goes above the tire, which honestly is a really cool looking decal so that's a bummer. My 75 has those original but the 85 does not. However I noticed there's a similar decal in the cadet 60 set but it is not the right one however it's better than an empty space there... All sets from different vendors all lack the rear badging for the 85 too....

Anyways, still waiting on touching up the paint on the frame before assembling everything back together and waiting for the fiberglass repair....

[AcidTonic Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close AcidTonic]

I take that back... Decals are "foil" style reflective and definitely not correct. I don't like them but they were better than nothing.

They are too shiny and reflective, dont really photograph well. I'm in search of something better.

[J-Mech Owner Find all posts View Profile Close J-Mech]

Keep going! We are watching!

[AcidTonic Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close AcidTonic]

I actually have taken on a few other projects and have slightly lost interest in completing this.

Anyone want it? Just needs that sprocket put on the trans and it should be a running machine. 8hp Briggs runs and I have video of it running. The 2nd 85 that I bought came in so much better condition that I really don't have the interest in fixing this one and would rather free up the space.

Prefer to keep the mower deck. Let me know.

[sir_lancealot Administrator Find all posts View Profile Close sir_lancealot]

You’ve done good work! Seems we are all a little busy and can’t always find the time to check in here. I know I’ve got a lot going on with moving and projects involved with that. I’ve added some machines to my inventory so I need to get on here and show them off.