Up and running at last
Posted: Sat Jun 21, 2014 11:10 am
I purchased a 1958, Fordson Dexta, eight years ago off a Shark at Rowland Plains, Port Macquarie NSW, Australia.
After arriving home with her, started up the motor and took her for a drive around the paddock. To my surprise she appeared to be running on three cylinders, hydraulics not working. Disappointed, I put her under cover.
A week passed, I changed the oil and filter. A friend’s opinion told me that it could be the injectors, so the injectors were reconditioned. I started the motor with no difference to its performance. Another opinion and we fiddled with the timing. Well the marks were incorrect and I took the old girl for a run again and ended up putting the main bearing through the side of the block! That’s what happens when you have limited mechanical knowledge and no work shop manual.
About three years passed, Dexta still sitting under an overhang, off the shed. A dear friend of the family visited me for my birthday party, sees the dexta and asked me if I wanted to sell her. I said, “No, I want to finish what I started”. John being a guy known for his ability with diesel motors, said he would get her going for me. To cut a long storey short, John developed cancer during this time and sadly passed away.
The Dexta was still in pieces and I said to John’s family that I would pick it up off his Shark, but some friends and neighbours out of good spirit and memory for John assembled it.
I picked her up and got her home after being away for about two years on John’s Shark. Anxious to start her, but she was locked up. We tried tow starting her with no luck. I put her back in the shed, wound her back on the crank using a screw driver. She started, ran for one minute until my stomach felt sick. You could hear the grinding noise of metal. I quickly shut her down. It was now that I realised, if you want something done, do it yourself.
With the help of my Step Father and these Dexta tractor pages, we pulled her apart to find that the middle sleeve had pulled down onto the crank and smashed into a million pieces, with metal all through the motor. I found that the new pistons that we had purchased in the kit, were replaced with old crappy ones, but with new rings (fowl play or misunderstanding somewhere). The sludge in the sump was thick and hard and had not had any attention. All in all I worked out to date that the old girl has cost about $7000 Australian dollars cost + parts and I have had her running now for three hours in eight years and I still have more money to spend. Yes I am still married and the dexta is operational.
Thanks to everyone who has shared their knowledge on the Dexta.
After arriving home with her, started up the motor and took her for a drive around the paddock. To my surprise she appeared to be running on three cylinders, hydraulics not working. Disappointed, I put her under cover.
A week passed, I changed the oil and filter. A friend’s opinion told me that it could be the injectors, so the injectors were reconditioned. I started the motor with no difference to its performance. Another opinion and we fiddled with the timing. Well the marks were incorrect and I took the old girl for a run again and ended up putting the main bearing through the side of the block! That’s what happens when you have limited mechanical knowledge and no work shop manual.
About three years passed, Dexta still sitting under an overhang, off the shed. A dear friend of the family visited me for my birthday party, sees the dexta and asked me if I wanted to sell her. I said, “No, I want to finish what I started”. John being a guy known for his ability with diesel motors, said he would get her going for me. To cut a long storey short, John developed cancer during this time and sadly passed away.
The Dexta was still in pieces and I said to John’s family that I would pick it up off his Shark, but some friends and neighbours out of good spirit and memory for John assembled it.
I picked her up and got her home after being away for about two years on John’s Shark. Anxious to start her, but she was locked up. We tried tow starting her with no luck. I put her back in the shed, wound her back on the crank using a screw driver. She started, ran for one minute until my stomach felt sick. You could hear the grinding noise of metal. I quickly shut her down. It was now that I realised, if you want something done, do it yourself.
With the help of my Step Father and these Dexta tractor pages, we pulled her apart to find that the middle sleeve had pulled down onto the crank and smashed into a million pieces, with metal all through the motor. I found that the new pistons that we had purchased in the kit, were replaced with old crappy ones, but with new rings (fowl play or misunderstanding somewhere). The sludge in the sump was thick and hard and had not had any attention. All in all I worked out to date that the old girl has cost about $7000 Australian dollars cost + parts and I have had her running now for three hours in eight years and I still have more money to spend. Yes I am still married and the dexta is operational.
Thanks to everyone who has shared their knowledge on the Dexta.