New to the site. Have been reading David Brown 885 archives for over two hours. Lots of tips on trouble shooting/repairing the PTO, 3-point and trouble shooting the diesel engine.
I am considering driving over an hour to look at a late 70's to early 80's diesel DB885 with a front end loader. According to the owner there are no mechanical issues. Everything is supposed to work. New front tires, decent rears, lift works, loader works, tight front end, sheet metal and paint in good condition.
One exception is it needs a snort of ether to start whether the weather is hot or cold. Evidently there are no pre-heaters on the 885? Runs fine once running, no smoke or performance issues after that. Read something about a cold start valve, I believe on the underside of the pump? Given the potential for pump issues from the use of low sulfur fuels in older machines should I be concerned? When I go to look the tractor over and test drive it, are there potential faults particulars to a 35-40 year old 885 I should concern myself with to avoid costly repairs?
I am considering driving over an hour to look at a late 70's to early 80's diesel DB885 with a front end loader. According to the owner there are no mechanical issues. Everything is supposed to work. New front tires, decent rears, lift works, loader works, tight front end, sheet metal and paint in good condition.
One exception is it needs a snort of ether to start whether the weather is hot or cold. Evidently there are no pre-heaters on the 885? Runs fine once running, no smoke or performance issues after that. Read something about a cold start valve, I believe on the underside of the pump? Given the potential for pump issues from the use of low sulfur fuels in older machines should I be concerned? When I go to look the tractor over and test drive it, are there potential faults particulars to a 35-40 year old 885 I should concern myself with to avoid costly repairs?