superih

Headed wrap around the joint and secure with a hose clamp on each side, works great and will not leak

Go total seal

There are two of those valves, one in the front filter housing, one in the speed section housing, hopefully the pics help, I had no issues with hydraulic function before fixing the loose valve

Okay hold on. First, Bolt 18 you completely remove, this closes the filter oil supply valve and drains the filter housing so you don't have a mess when you pull the filter cover. Second, the valve in the picture is an anti drain back valve between the rear filter and the front one. It's located in the front filter housing i believe, hydraulics will function fine without it. My 5488 had the same valve loose when I split it, they are held by a cheesy washer with a spring, I put a tack weld on mine to hold it in permanently, I'll see if I can find some pics.

Plastic fan upgrade was only for late model with the rotary screen on the side, good thing to do the bearing mount at the same time, do not need to change the shroud.

That is awesome news, thanks Mike

It's the micro switch

In my opinion there are three ways to build an M. Stroked 1 inch x 4.25- 4.375 bore, 350 CID good honest 90 horse, cheap build, runs forever Stroked 1.75-2" x 4.375 =421 or 436 CID is a very stable build capable of 150 horse or more, more expensive block work, Big bore engines, 4.750-5.125" x 7.75-8" stroke, 530- 660 CID, 250 horse plus, very expensive build,

Is the strap over the drawbar a factory option?

Hurray! Good job, looks great!

I use my phone, it's all messed up

Low volitility parts solvent, same price as mineral spirits any more and doesn't stink

Pretty normal, you can try bleeding them, where the line enters the brakes is a bleeder valve

1-1/2" stroke, 3-13/16 bore, gas or LP head will get you close to 100 hp.