Ford LGT 165

Hello All
New to the forum and would like to know where to go for parts for
a Ford LGT 165 that I'm rebuilding for a friend. Odds and ends, but, especially a steering box as this one has a sheared shaft
Also looking to converse about the pros and cons of tractor as he would like to sell. Has tiller, mower, snow blade and plow.
Curious as to availability of replacement parts, decals, paint match and etc. Am looking at purchasing it for my property.
He wants $1000.00 as is.
Thanks so much.
Thomas Baker

from your description I would say 500 would be high

I have an LGT-100 which is a smaller version of the LGT-165. Have owned it for years. Tough old machines! Some parts are still available thru New Holland dealers if you have one near. Also their is a collectors group on Yahoo/groups. I don"t remember how to find it right now but if you "google" Ford/Jacobsen users groups I think you could find it. The guys on that site have tons of sources for parts. Hope this helps

If you go to the site linked below, and enter LGT-165, 3 links will come up to parts catalogs for different ages.

You can find the right catalog and then look up the part numbers to check availability from a nearby dealer or "GOOGLE" the part numbers to find the parts on the 'net.
Parts

I have a steering gear assembly. Located in Ohio

$1000?? Im guessing he told it was rare and collectable also?? ...LOL

Is it an openside('72-'76) or closed sided('77-'83)? either way they arent worth $1000 unless they are absolutely mint condition or recently restored top to bottom.

I decided a couple years ago I wanted an opensided model... wasnt many advertised so it took about 6 months till I found the first one... '74 LGT 165 with 50" deck for $300, still have it, still runs, but a little rough cosmetically so I decided to look for another one for parts... so I placed a "wanted" ad on kijiji.... got 3 LGTs and an older Ford right now, and have sold a few aswell, never paid more than $300 tho, they were a very popular tractor so theres alot of them around if you put a little effort into finding them. But if you wait for them to come up for sale alot of people ask absurd $$$ and often call them Rare and Collectable.... ya right... rarely worth the asking price... and collectable because if you have one you need two more for parts... LOL

BUT... they are nice GTs to own and operate, the attachments system is one of the slickest and easiest of the time, the foot control hydro models are nice to drive but the hydro also robs power from the motor and sucks alot of fuel, for most chores I prefer the LGT100 with the 4 spd transaxle, even tho its only 10hp it actually can pull a heavier load than either the LGT145 or LGT165 that I have here, and it can handle the 50" mower deck better as well.

I dont know about parts availability... I have my own parts department now and its cost me very little since Im buying cheap tractors and occasionally even sell one, but now I deal with more than just the Fords... it kind of turned into a hobby where Ive gotten to compare a few differant brands.. but I stick to the Fords for my own use... I like them quite alot.

If this is an openside you have to make sure the grill is not badly cracked near the bottom, and the battery cover is not missing or broken, replacement grill is avail from a guy on another forum for $225, batt cover is $85. I had a dozen steel batt covers done at my shop and still have a couple left...cheap.

I'll find a couple pics... my LGT100 and the LGT145, the 100 doesnt look so good yet but that the one Im working on/with the most these days, 145 is about as far as Im going with it, both have full rear pto and are mechanically in very good condition, tiller and decks for both, I'd say they are about the $600-$700 range but I wont part with the 100. Ive added a muffler to the LGT100 since this pic... its now the quietest GT Ive ever had.

I have a closed side LGT 165. I like it. Mine has a 50" deck
and puts a great cut on the grass. I paid $250 for mine and
have about $300 more into it to make it reliable. $1000 for
one with a broken steering box is dreaming, even with all
the attachments. Parts can be had new from New Holland,
but they are spendy, plan on making your own. Only
Achilles heal I know of is the steering, especially the left
front wheel spindle, it will break off at the top do to the
way it is pinned. The deck carriage also tends to get worn at the pivot points. I don't think mine is hard on fuel for what
I do with it, it will mow my yard three times on one tank. It
holds 5 gallons. Hydrostatic is strong enough, I have pulled
cars up inclines with and the only limitation was traction.
Closed side hydros also have a locking diff, great in the
snow.

If it is a factory tiller, the tractor must have a
rear PTO which might be worth about $150.
The tiller, if in good condition should bring about
$400.
If it is equipped with the factory 3-PH, that might
bring a couple of hundred by itself.
Having said all that, I would not pay more than 5 or
6 hundred for it myself.

I have a 145 LGT (open) and a 165 LGT (closed) sitting in one of the barns returning to mother earth. Too me the 14 was a much stouter unit and was used for almost 30 years before it started to burn oil. My oldest daughter did some substitute teaching at a high school the next town over and taught math, science and ag-classes. The FFA needed a project and she told me they would overhaul it if I bought the parts. Ended up sort of like going into the hospital for low blood pressure problems and coming home a cross eyed, tongue tied, paraplegic with bowel problems. She felt bad and basically gave me her LGT 165 since she made money back when she was in grade school mowing with the 145 and helped wear it out.

I didnt mean that the hydros were hard on fuel... only that they use more than the lower hp gearbox models without any gain in power at the pto.

A closed sided LGT165 should have a 3us gal tank unless its been swapped.

$400 for a tiller? ...must be off one of the 'Rare and Collectable' models. For that kind of $$ I could include the pto and sleeve hitch. Just sold a complete pto for $75 about a month ago.

@Prawn Farmer... do you know what year the openside 145 is? What kind of choke control knob is on it.. turn or pull?

Everyone
Thank you for all the detailed information!!
First, I have to state clearly that the man selling is one of my closest friends. We're both in the woods as to market value, and he was simply stating what he thought it was worth relative to what he had in the tractor.
Gary, I'll shoot you an email later today to talk about the steering you have.
Haven't had time to read all comments, just where someone thought that the guy selling was yanking my chain. and then Gary's.
Thank you all for the comments!
Will get back to the forum soon.
Sincerely, Thomas
04-07-2014 4:22 PST

Bob, checked New Hollands site. Couldn't pull any information for a 165 Gas powered. Shot them an email.
My mistake, should have asked the obvious; is there a serial number besides the Kohler motor located on the body somewhere?
Very similiar to Lance's 145 in body design. The 165 is a large tube frame with the PTO drive located on the left side.
Gary, I'm interested in the steering assembly, whether I buy or My friend Mike wants it replaced. Let me know what you need for it and perhaps what shipping to 97741 Madras, Or.
My email address is: [email protected]
Need to post some photos and see what you folks think.
thank's again and have a great Independence day!
Thomas
Tried uploading-chose files-nada

You can call me on my cell if you want.
937-417-7173. If I don't answer just leave a
message.

Both the pics are of the '72-'76 model, bodywork and frame are the same regardless of engine size. There isnt any other #s on them that identify the year. The engine tag is the only way to check... tractors are usually within 3-4 months of the engine date.

Some minor changes did take place between models and/or year

my '72 145 has a turn style choke knob that uses linkage rods... all the other ones Ive seen have a pull type knob and a cable.

Some have glass headlight lenses... others have plastic.

At some point the spark plug hole in the head was moved forward about an inch to place it directly over the exhaust valve supposedly to help it run cooler. That may have been the same time they started with the larger 3 gal fuel tank.

Biggest problem they have is the bottom of the grill breaking off because it actually holds up the whole front of the hood and headlight assembly, and once its broken the heat shield over the muffler often cracks also. Its a good idea to add some metal support struts even if the grill is unbroken.

Unbroken battery covers and working fuel gauges are hard to find.

If it has a screw on hydro filter those are a bonus... the oem inline filters are expensive.

Fully rebuilt and restored with attachments and all in mint condition it could be worth about $1200... but it generally costs about twice that to get them into that condition.


Pics would be nice

My 5 gallon tank is factory. It looks just like the 3 gallon
out of my 125 parts tractor, just a lot deeper.

It is a rectangular shaped pull knob. It was used when I got it back around 1977 so not sure what year it is.

Sprint 6... can you take a pic of the fuel tank pls? According to tractordata.com the largest tank was 3 gal except for the LGT 14H which had a 4 gal.

http://www.tractordata.com/lawn-tractors/000/6/1/618-ford-lgt-165.html

thx PF... I was just curious... would like to see pics of another twist style to compare the knob.

Lance
I tried to upload files, was able to choose but in preview the photos wouldn't show. Any ideas?
Also, you mentioned that you had battery boxes you made in your shop. Do you have any for sale and how much?
At this point I'm going to pass on buying the tractor, but am going to source the parts needed. I'll let my friend know and see if he wants to proceed with me rebuilding.
I'm very curious as to opinions on the external PTO running along the left side of the tractor. Needs bushing/bearing carriers and belt to drive off the Kohler motor.
Have a CD coming that includes servicing, and parts for the 165.
Gary
I'm without a phone for the moment so if you could shoot me an email with a few photos that would be great.
Thanks everyone,
Thomas

I supervise a large metal fab shop so as a training projects for our rookies I often have the opportunity to have them make things for me... so I had them fabricate a dozen 20g steel battery covers... think theres still 4 left... and Ive been selling them thru another forum, you can find the thread here...
http://www.external_link.com/showthread.php?t=342386

If the tractor has a complete rear pto setup just take it apart and soak all the bearings in diesel... they often seize up from lack of use and being left outside... usually are fine after soaking tho. Some of the ones here have needed the brackets rewelded into place but for the most part the system is fairly trouble free as long as the shaft is straight so it doesnt vibrate.

Im out of spare pto parts right now but the tillers are very common around here so I often have tractors come in with complete systems... Im sure it wont be long until I have another one if you do need parts in the future.

Havent tried uploading files here other than pics which I always resize 30% smaller before posting them on forums. Cant help much with that.