3000 temp gauge says I'm overheating....

gears

Member
Fresh rebuild, gas, 158 3cyl, got 1.4 hours on it and the temp gauge says I'm overheating - needle goes to the center of the red section on the right.

New (sparex) sending unit and gauge cluster.

Non-contact IR thermometer says 131 on the head, 145 at the top of the radiator, 112 at the bottom, didn't check the oil pan. Intake 119-128

Is this a matter of almost right parts or should it run cooler than this?

Did not check voltage at batt or wiring. Gen light flickers dimly while running. Is it a matter of too low of voltage?

Regulator is riveted shut Lucas unit. Manual shows adjusting the cutouts - do I drill the rivets or put a new one on?
 
(quoted from post at 16:58:39 08/17/15) Fresh rebuild, gas, 158 3cyl, got 1.4 hours on it and the temp gauge says I'm overheating - needle goes to the center of the red section on the right.

New (sparex) sending unit and gauge cluster.

Non-contact IR thermometer says 131 on the head, 145 at the top of the radiator, 112 at the bottom, didn't check the oil pan. Intake 119-128

Is this a matter of almost right parts or should it run cooler than this?

Did not check voltage at batt or wiring. Gen light flickers dimly while running. Is it a matter of too low of voltage?

Regulator is riveted shut Lucas unit. Manual shows adjusting the cutouts - do I drill the rivets or put a new one on?

145 at the top of radiator is a bit cool so your not working it hard or you ambient temperature is not 100 degrees like here... I would expect the top of rad to be about 190 to 220 if working hard, and 160 to 180 if just working. 145 tells me your just running the engine and not working it hard at all and your thermostat is probably bad or set very low.

But your gauge is reading bad.. sending unit or cluster do not match, or voltage stabilizer is goofy.. But do you have a really good ground on the cluster? and a good voltage to the feed side of the stabilizer? both will be important.

check battery voltage while running,, is it 12.5 or more?? should be 13 volts or higher if above an idle. should increase slowly up to around 14.5 give or take a bit if the system is charging... but at 12.5 volts, the temp should read correctly. You can always measure the resistance of the sending unit at cold and running to see if its in range... I would have to look up the ohms but you can tell then if its the gauge or the sending unit.
 
Fuel is empty, running it off a lawnmower tank while I break it in and clean the fuel tank. (seems to burn through that 1/4 gallon in about 8 minutes!)

Haven't worked it beyond moving the box scraper and carrying a load of firewood on the 3pt caryall.

Voltage running is 12.8 and it doesn't fluctuate.

Are the Ohm readings for the temp sender listed in the Ford manual?
 
My 3000 temp gauge has similar problems. Sometimes it will read into the red without any other symptoms of overheating. Probably is the voltage stabilizer as suggested. Sometimes making sure the stabilizer has a good ground connection helps.

I have learned to ignore the temp gauge, but sometimes when it's reading hot, I double check with the IR thermometer.
 
You say the voltage is 12.8 and does not fluctuate. Is this at the battery, or at the gauges? If that's at the battery, it's too low. If that's at the gauges, it's too high.
 
(quoted from post at 17:58:39 08/17/15) Fresh rebuild, gas, 158 3cyl, got 1.4 hours on it and the temp gauge says I'm overheating - needle goes to the center of the red section on the right.

New (sparex) sending unit and gauge cluster.

Non-contact IR thermometer says 131 on the head, 145 at the top of the radiator, 112 at the bottom, didn't check the oil pan. Intake 119-128

Is this a matter of almost right parts or should it run cooler than this?

Did not check voltage at batt or wiring. Gen light flickers dimly while running. Is it a matter of too low of voltage?

Regulator is riveted shut Lucas unit. Manual shows adjusting the cutouts - do I drill the rivets or put a new one on?
elying on the run-of-the-mill IR thermometer is worse than relying on feeling with your hand! They have such a wide field of view that you end up with an average of what you want to measure along with everything around & beyond/over/under/left/right.
 

I've sold 17 ford tractors so for this year and have 5 more in the shop. I have 3 ir guns and find that they work very well. Other than being about 3 degrees off for the external readings vrs a thermometer directly in the radiator, they are very close. I keep one in the pull truck so I can check axle temps when I stop to check the binders. Most all tractors come in with no gauges working and all leave with them working. The ir gun tells me if the tractor is a buy or to leave it behind. I also fill every tractor radiator to the brim and check for bubbles before it gets purchased and check the thermostat opening set, if there is a thermostat. The best troubles are the ones left on the lot for someone else. I refuse to buy any tractor that I can not inspect and start cold and run out a bit. Most of these tractors get rotated in and out of the farm and hay operations so the ir gun is very handy to have around. I cant afford a $10,000 mistake.
 
(quoted from post at 10:26:14 08/18/15)
I've sold 17 ford tractors so for this year and have 5 more in the shop. I have 3 ir guns and find that they work very well. Other than being about 3 degrees off for the external readings vrs a thermometer directly in the radiator, they are very close. I keep one in the pull truck so I can check axle temps when I stop to check the binders. Most all tractors come in with no gauges working and all leave with them working. The ir gun tells me if the tractor is a buy or to leave it behind. I also fill every tractor radiator to the brim and check for bubbles before it gets purchased and check the thermostat opening set, if there is a thermostat. The best troubles are the ones left on the lot for someone else. I refuse to buy any tractor that I can not inspect and start cold and run out a bit. Most of these tractors get rotated in and out of the farm and hay operations so the ir gun is very handy to have around. I cant afford a $10,000 mistake.
ou must be buying much better than "run-of0the-mill" IR guns with a known beam spread and applying the beam/range so as to measure intended item or only measure large areas.
 
It's an EXTECH EX-470, not quite run of the mill. I took range of readings, held it close to the head (370 was the exh manifold at idle after 5 minutes of running - so it shouldn't've been up to temp even.)

So on the Lucas regulator do I drill the rivets to adjust?
 
I have a Napa/UltraPro IR gun. I don't know who actually made it... but I also find it quite accurate. If you point at an engine block from 10 feet you're not going to get sh!t for a reading but if you know the engine's true reading points you can get a very accurate temperature. In this case, Ford Basildon engines... I always read them at the block/head interface or slightly below the intake manifold at #1 cylinder. In that area I find them very true to their thermostats. Reading the left side of that engine... is a complete, absolute, utter, total waste of time. Will probably read 20 degrees cooler than the jacket on the right side. Reading them at the thermostat housing I think is not very accurate because the air movement of the fan is cooling that surface area so you're not going to get a true reading.

Rod
 
Back to Bern's original question... does the fuel gauge read 'full' even though the tank is empty? If it does, that is a given that both gauges are reading 'high' and in that case one would look at the voltage stabilizer. However, if the fuel gauge is reading normally, then my first go to would be the temperature sender. I am not fully convinced that the aftermarket has gotten straightened out yet on which sender to pair with which cluster. Those tractors used two different sender/cluster combinations on the temp gauges over time and I think one change took place at 10/68. I'm also not convinced they've ever gotten straight the differences between the older style cluster and the newer Stewert Werner clusters. So long story short.... stick the old sender back in place and see what happens. Alternatively you may need a newer style sender again...

As far as the regulator is concerned, my modus operandi is to take a 10# sledge to it, and the generator... and install an alternator. I guess if you want to bugger with it, you could drill the rivets out. I'd probably also 'full field' the generator and see if it charges before you bother with the regulator. If it won't charge with a jumper in place then you need to rehab or replace the gen. Again, read the first line of this paragraph again.

Rod
 
(quoted from post at 21:09:14 08/18/15) I have a Napa/UltraPro IR gun. I don't know who actually made it... but I also find it quite accurate. If you point at an engine block from 10 feet you're not going to get sh!t for a reading but if you know the engine's true reading points you can get a very accurate temperature. In this case, Ford Basildon engines... I always read them at the block/head interface or slightly below the intake manifold at #1 cylinder. In that area I find them very true to their thermostats. Reading the left side of that engine... is a complete, absolute, utter, total waste of time. Will probably read 20 degrees cooler than the jacket on the right side. Reading them at the thermostat housing I think is not very accurate because the air movement of the fan is cooling that surface area so you're not going to get a true reading.

Rod
here you go! If you have a good instrument, know its characteristics, know how to apply it, you will be OK, but most have none of that. :cry:
 
Rod, I needed a new sender as I sheared the spade off when I pulled the head during the rebuild. New sparex cluster came with the tractor in a box. I'll have to get the petcock back in to check the fuel gauge.

Anyone know the Ohm readings for the temp sender? I can't seem to find them in the ford manual....
 
All we're asking about the fuel sender is... if it's hooked up to the sender wire and what does the gauge read if it is? If Bern's idea is correct and the voltage stabilizer is bad, the fuel gauge will read full even if the tank is empty. You don't need fuel. You just need the wires hooked up.

I can't remember what the values are for the temperature gauge. I know the fuel gauge should be 50-250 ohms. I suspect the original temp sender for that tractor should be somewhere in that range give or take a couple hundred ohms. The newer senders run 2.5-3 MOhms.
Do you know which sparex cluster you have? Can you post a pic of it? Mabey it's not even for that tractor?

Rod
 
good call Rod, tank reads empty - and it's empty.

I'll get some pics and post em up here for you guys to evaluate.

Thanks


mvphoto26432.jpg


mvphoto26433.jpg
 

We sell tractor parts! We have the parts you need to repair your tractor - the right parts. Our low prices and years of research make us your best choice when you need parts. Shop Online Today.

Back
Top