Injector pump timing way off

[paflyboy55]

I'm rebuilding the engine on my super major due to a spun rod bearing. After setting the timing gears and setting the flywheel at 23 degrees BTDC then placing the injector pump timing mark properly, the bolt holes on the coupling are not in the proper place to bolt the coupling together. Could I have the wrong auxilary shaft for this engine? 1961 FSM Engine #1588308. How do I know if this is a Mark 1 or Mark 2 engine?

[Brian]

The engine flywheel marks line up on 23 degrees in two places, TDC No. 1 and TDC No. 4 so when fitting the pump you have to be certain it is on No. 1. You can check this by the coupling clamp bolt and seeing if it is below the auxiliary drive shaft or by checking that the valves on No. 4 cylinder are "on the rock", exhaust closing, inlet opening. The engine is then coming up to firing on No. 1.

If your engine has a Minimec pump and an FL head it is the later engine from around November 1962.

[shepp]

Hello Jack

Brian has already explained what you have probably done wrong, and how to correctly time your engine. I am throwing in a bit of information on the other part of your query.

With a tractor and engine number of 1588308 your tractor is January 1961 build. It is in fact the Mark 111 engine which was introduced at engine/serial number 1481091 in August 1958, introduced with the Power Major, although a few Majors being the very last of production had the Mark 111 engine as well.

Brian mentions the Minimec pump and so called "FL" head. The Minimec pump was introduced at engine/tractor serial number 08B756398, the records say that officially this was on 1 May 1962 but it is generally accepted that the Minimec pump came in during April 1962 at the time of the full launch of the Super Dexta with it's F3-152 engine and which also had the Minimec pump at the outset. At the same time the standard Dexta with it's F3-144 engine was also changed to the Minimec pump. The vacuum governed Simms pumps were dropped, all F3-144, F3-152, 4 cylinder 592E and 6 cylinder 590E engines were now fitted with Minimec pumps from more or less the same date.

With regard to the so called "FL" head, this put in an appearance around the same time the Minimec pump was first fitted. However this appears to be a coincidence brought about by a lack of capacity at the Dagenham foundry. With the launch of the Super Dexta and the need for more castings for that model, and also the launch of new cars, such as the fantastically successful Cortina, the foundry was overwhelmed. Casting of the heads for the 4 cylinder 592E engine and 6 cylinder 590E engine were transferred to Ford's Leamington Spa foundry which had been in existence from early days, and where items such as the PM and other Ford ploughs were originally produced.
Contrary to some widely (and stubbornly - almost folklore!) held beliefs there is no structural or performance difference between this head and the previous heads. The letters "FL" stand for "Ford Leamington" and are simply the foundry markings of that foundry, they mean nothing more than the fact that the head was cast at the Leamington Spa foundry!! They appear on both the 4 and 6 cylinder heads from around April 1962 onwards.

In 1964 the Dagenham foundry became even more overwhelmed, and casting of the blocks for the 4 cylinder 592E and 6 cylider 590E engines were reputedly farmed out around March 1964 to the Sterling Metals Ltd foundry at Coventry. This was probably to allow for the coming production at Dagenham of the D series truck with it's newly developed 220, 330 and 365 engines with front plate mounted injection pumps, and also the launch of the new 6X range of tractors - when up to full production the new Basildon factory alone required over 400 block and 400 head castings A DAY! This probably accounts for the stories of the Dagenham foundry being unable to cope and tales ( true or untrue?) of blocks being bought in from German foundries for the 6X range, and to which sources of supply some people have attributed the problems of porous blocks. Whether or not any early blocks were sourced from German foundries, it appears that the introduction of the "criss-cross" webbed block saw casting of the blocks transferred to Ford's own foundry in Germany, the Dagenham foundry becoming outdated and being run down gradually. Sterling Metals also produced castings for Harry Ferguson and Massey Ferguson and probably many other automotive and machine manufacturers, and were known for high quality products.