xrcr

Member
Tractor purrs like a kitten and then pops bangs will hardly run.Then it's back to running fine. Here's what I have done. Check spark, good white spark. drained fuel vacuumed out tank cleaned
disassembled and inspected everything from tank to carb. New fuel, fuel filter, new plugs and wires. Cap,rotor pts and condensor are old but visually look good. Dealer sold me the wrong cap and rotor. I was convinced it was ignition,then convinced it was fuel, now I'm back to ignition but what??? Any insight is much appreciated.
xrcr
 
First off when it starts to stumble try using the choke. If it has no effect, it's ignition. If the tractor picks up and runs better, it's a fuel issue.

My first instinct is the fuel filter. It is not supposed to have a fuel filter, just the screen in the sediment bowl and a maybe a screen in the inlet of the carb. Most fuel filters are meant for pressurized fuel systems and won't flow enough fuel, or are too small and also won't flow enough fuel.
 
Spark should be blue at the plugs. (Yellow or orange color is weak and I have personally never seen white spark).

I would try a condenser for sure (only about $9 at O'Reillys and lifetime warranty to boot). Always good to have a spare condenser on hand anyhow. Condensers can give you wacky symptoms. The equipment to check a condenser is very expensive and not worth purchasing. For $9 cheaper it is easy to replace it. If it ends up not being your problem (definitely keep the old one as a spare).

If rule out ignition and go back to fuel: Your tank cleaning was thorough, but did you verify fuel flow through the sediment bowl? Take line loose at carb and use compressed air blow gun nozzle to blow backwards though the line (fuel on at sediment bowl) is often enough to restore flow when the tank outlet plugs.
 
And yes, the Add on fuel filters are often a problem on gravity flow systems. The sediment bulb is all it needs and add on filters should be eliminated.
 
Yes the add on filter will collect the fines the sediment screen wont and then plug is not a failure of the filter it just does its job and when full stops the gas flow so ya just put another one in place and off ya go. Sooner or later the tank will be rid of the fines and then there will not be any trouble.
 
If you have a fuel stopage it will not run cause the fuel has stopped. Poping and backfiring will be caused by electrical problems.
 
was thinking about condenser have had issues in vehicles with these in the past. Thanks for all the advice
 
Another question is how do I know what Distributor I have. IH Deal tried to sell me a screw on cap with what I call a whale tail
rotor. This has a clip cap, small rotor. I just want to make sure I get the right points and condenser. It is a vertical
distributor as well. We have had the tractor since 1980 and have not messed with the Dist.
 
AFAIK, there's only one distributor for the 544, the IH one.

The C200 in the 544 has nothing in common with the old A/B/C/H/M engines except the number of cylinders. It is actually based off the 6-cylinder engines, a C301 with cylinders 2 and 5 removed.
 
I'm with Gene...ALL of my tractors have an inline filter, and they get full of sediment. They need to be changed , not eliminated.
 
The argument over fuel filters is ages old and will rage on forever.

Originally there was no fuel filter, just the sediment bowl. If you used clean fuel and kept it clean, just like it said on the top of the gas cap, all was right with the world. What little sediment that did flow through just flowed through harmlessly because the system was designed to allow it to flow through harmlessly.

The problem I have with fuel filters is that people put in random filters that aren't necessarily designed for gravity flow systems and/or aren't designed to flow the amount of fuel required. Then they stand there and scratch their heads and complain because their tractor won't run.

Use the right fuel filter, keep spares on hand, and recognize when it's plugged. I'm perfectly fine with that. Nothing wrong with the belt-and-suspenders approach.
 

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