Can anyone who is familiar with these machines, circa 1975, please give
me a bit of advice. The machine in question has been standing for a
long time, however most things work but the brakes were stuck. I have
freed the various levers with a spray liquid and they vaguely work now
but before I start dismantling everything, where is the problem likely
to be. Does it have drum brakes on the wheels and is there any form of
power assistance as it seems to need a bit of help? Also when I use
the rear lifts they both seem to move quite a bit, (like an inch or
two) before the rear of the machine lifts. Where is the play likely to
be, as an initial look round does not reveal how they are attached? I
am a bit afraid that they might fall off.

I have started to try and level the site of a new shed, which will be
delivered in a couple of weeks. The JCB works OK but I don't really
have a clue as to how to do it. Can anyone recommend a good book or
would a JCB course be the only way to learn. Is it possible - or likely
to be more successful to use it like a bulldozer or scrape up the dirt
using the backhoe?

Oh yes, does the steering wheel just pull off on some sort of spline,
as I need to get the dashboard off to fix various problems like the
(mechanical?) rev counter and the STOP cable? I undid the nut, but it
is stuck and the wheel is not really strone enough to use a strong
puller.

Any advice would be most welcome. A workshop manual costs an arm and a
leg, I am told. Does anyone have an old one I could photocopy or buy?
Thanks, George.