The Fordson Tractor Pages Forum

I got a pretty pleasant surprise today when after blasting years of grit and grime off my tractor (and some of the crappy yellow paint that someone used that seems to be attracting yellow jackets), I was able to nudge the flywheel way past previous points with no mechanical stop. Earlier as I was doing at least twice a day I had rocked the tractor in high gear and noticed what I thought was far more movement of the fan than I'd previously seen. As I'd put the injectors back in for the washing, I didn't try to move it that much.

So now my questions is, is there anything more I should do about what seems to have been a stuck ring or can I just continue working to fire it up?

The next two things I was going to deal with were the injectors that look like they need cleaning and the starter which I think has a short. Removed from the tractor, putting 12 volts to the post that had the heavy wire from the solenoid gets me some sparking and no revolutions. My plan is to have it rebuilt. Thoughts?

Anyways, thanks to everybody who has offered suggestions.

Put it back together, give it a tow and see what happens

Turns out that there's nothing apparently wrong with the starter. I just wasn't giving it a chance to spin when I'd touch the lead to the pole. So once the rain stops, I'll put the starter back in and see what happens.

I'd take out the injectors and give it a tow just to make sure that oil gets round the system and that the rings etc have got some freedom of movement. I'd monitor the oil pressure by checking the light goes out promptly when you start towing. Then back in with the Injectors, bit of heat in the manifold and see if she fires up.
Good luck!!
Jerry

Unfortunately, I still have an engine issue. Turns out that I have some rotation, about 10" (25cm) at the flywheel, which is better than the 1/8" I first measured. But in either direction, it still comes to a stop. Can anybody guess what is allowing that much rotation? Also the injectors are out when I measured.

If you have moved it that far, all the pistons are moving, it is possible you have rust in the bore which could stop you turning but I think I would look for a stuck valve first. Remove the rockers and squirt your Kroil around the valves then tap them with a small hammer to see if they go up and down.

I took the rockers out and the valves seem fine. So I moved on to the next step and pulled the head. The front cylinder has a considerable amount of rust around the top, certainly enough to prevent the piston from moving past it. There may be some in the back cylinder but it's almost at the top of it's bore so I can't tell.

It may be that there is more to discover, but I know I'll have to deal with that rust. So what's the best thing to do at this point? I'm thinking of trying to get rid of the rust to see if I can get a complete revolution

I did some research about rust in the cylinders and decided to go ahead and clean them up a bit with a rotary hone. The surface rust came off very quickly. Then I put some Kroil in each bore and let it sit. I was finally able to get the engine to turn over manually. There is some minor pitting in the front cylinder at the very top but I don't think it's where the top compression ring would reach.

So sometime over the weekend I hope to put it back together and see if it will run.