My Farmall C

eagle_GT

New User
My wife's family goes to an antique tractor show in Florida every year. Her grandfather is especially interested in old machines and has an old tractor and some machinery he takes. A couple of years ago, my grandfather-in-law and I were talking about old tractors and he said that he knew where one was that we could fix up together. We went and picked it up, but between my work schedule going crazy and him having some health issues, we haven't had a chance to start on it. His health issues have forced him to retire and close his business, so once he finishes closing up shop, I'm hoping we will be able to work together on the tractor. I was hoping to have it running by the tractor show this year, even if I don't know if I would have a way to haul it. So I have tried to get started on my on.

The serial number indicates that it is a 1949 model. The engine is free and the sheet metal is pretty straight.

All of the wiring and the distributor/coil were gone so I have found a new coil and gotten a distributor off of another C that we are using for parts. I've started rewiring it, but still lack the battery and battery cables. I got a rebuild kit for the distributor and new plugs and wires. I also replaced the ammeter. Neither of the front lights is good. I'm not certain about the back. I'm hoping the generator, cutout, starter, starter switch, and light switch are all good.

I drained the oil and there was a lot of water in it. I'm hoping that the block is not cracked. I left the oil plug out and found a plug to the radiator and filled the radiator with water. Fortunately none of it came out of the oil pan.

This week I am going to try and finish wiring it up, put fresh oil in, and try to find a carburetor rebuild kit. Then I will try and lure my grandfather-in-law over to try and figure out what else we need to do to try and start it.



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Does the engine turn , if no battery or hand crank
put transmission in 4th gear and try to rock it the
fan should turn .
 
(quoted from post at 20:10:51 03/22/15) Does the engine turn , if no battery or hand crank
put transmission in 4th gear and try to rock it the
fan should turn .

The fan would turn when I did that. My grandfather-in-law gave me some sort of penetrating oil to spray in the cylinders. Now with it in neutral I can turn the engine by turning the fan.
 
Looks like a nice machine as it sits. Never know what you'd find once rolling.
Don't worry about lights till get it running. The C here hasn't had working lights for longer than I can remember. Also check the oil in the rear end for water as well.
 
I managed to pick up a few things today. Once I get the battery I should have all of the electrical components I need to get it running. I got the new oil filter installed. Maybe tomorrow I can go get oil and a battery. I wasn't able to find a carburator rebuild kit for it, but I went ahead and took it off the tractor.

I was going to loosen the transmission plug to see if any water ran out. I figured that I would wait until the tractor was running before I changed it all out. After fighting with the drawbar to get it out of the way, I slowly loosened the plug until it came all of the way out. Nothing drained out and all I could see in the hole was grey sludge. I stood up for a minute to try and decide what to do. When I turned back around, it had started draining and had probably drained two gallons worth and I had to hurry and get another catch pan in place before the first one overflowed. Since so much had run out already, I finished draining it and it didn't look milky at all.
 
Does anyone have a recommendation on what oil to use for the engine and transmission? For the engine I have seen where some people said they used 10-w30 and other people say that it needs to be 30 wt. non-detergent so that it doesn't break deposits loose and clog up the oil passeges. I plan on when I get it running to just run it for a little bit, then change the oil in the engine again.
 
I've got fresh sae30 oil in the engine now, and 80-w90 in the transmission. Tomorrow I will try and finish running the wires and rebuilding the distributor. Then I think all that will be left is mounting the distributor, putting a battery in, and anything I need to do with the carb, gas tank, and intake.

A few questions:

#1 - Would the carb off a 140 work on my C? There is a carb in the shop that was supposedly rebuilt but never put back on it's tractor. If I could use it, then I could take my time finding a rebuild kit for mine.

#2 - Does the distributor assembly need a gasket between it and the engine? Do I need to grease it when I put it on?

#3 - What do I need to do to the air intake and fuel tank to get it ready to try and run?

#4 - I' m hoping to try and fire it off this weekend, are there any other things I need to check first?
 
I'm running a little behind the schedule I set for myself, but I'm getting close to being able to try and fire her up. The gasket for the sediment bowl is supposed to be at Napa in the morning. I've got one more wire to pull to finish the wiring. Then it is just setting the timing and points, and putting a battery in. I will run a few electrical tests once I have the battery in, then I think I will be ready to try and crank her.
 
Finally got it cranked. I'm still fighting a leak at the sediment bowl. I got another gasket tonight, so I'll try that. It fired off much easier and ran better than I expected. It still needs a few things, but it runs. Most of the rest is cosmetic.
 

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