Help needed to start 1925 Fordson

KurtH

New User
Hello. This is my first post, so please be gentle. I have inherited a 1925 Fordson tractor from my Dad. It has not been started in about 10-12 years. Friends and I tried to start it last weekend , pulling it slowly behind my New Holland. No luck. Prior to trying to start it we added new gas, changed motor oil, filled radiator, gapped spark plugs (they looked good). We tried to follow closely to the starting instructions in the manual, but am convinced that I need some "tips and tricks" to make this happen. Our best guess was that we didn't seem to get a spark from the magneto. Any ideas of what to area to focus on or parts to examine?

Dad used to run it in parades and I would like to do the same.

Thank you!

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Note that you have a "real magneto" and not the wooden coil boxes that came with most model "F" Fordsons. You also have the gas / kerosene tank (two openings and two outlets). There is also a gas / kerosene valve at the bottom of the tank which must be in the correct position.
#1) you must determine if the magneto is working. Remove all spark plugs (leave the wire connected and the metal part of the plug touching the head). Have someone crank the engine slowly while you look for a spark at each plug. If there is no spark, you will have to remove the end of the magneto and possibly use emery paper or a point file to clean the points. You should also hear a clicking sound from the magneto (impulse mechanism) as each plug fires.
#2) If you have a good spark, the next item would be to check if the spark at each cylinder is happening at the correct time (maybe the wires have been moved to the wrong cylinder).
#3) have to check if gas is really getting to the carburetor.
Good luck, and let us know if it works.
 
Deere Mark,

Thank you for your quick response. I think we have the fuel covered, but was wondering if you would know what the spark plug gap should be and also what the points gap should be. We were flying a bit blind on those. We did hear the clicking you describe.

Do you know if the "plunger" grounding switch on the left side of the tractor should be pushed in or pulled out?

Thank you.
 
#1) spark plug gap 0.025 inch should be good
#2) don't know about the magneto gap
#3) don't know about the "plunger"
Note that in the Fordson model "F" and in the Ford model "T" car there is something that Ford call a "magneto" that is completely different than the magneto on your tractor. Their "magneto" consists of magnets and coils near the flywheel(would have to split the tractor at the flywheel to see it), and is used to power the wooden coil boxes. Your tractor probably has this old style "magneto", but it is not needed.
 
You should never try to pull-start an old Fordson. You may end up tearing up the gearing. Worm gears don't
have much efficiency when driven backwards.

If you don't have the muscular heft to crank it, you need to find someone else with a flat belt and drive the
engine through the belt pulley. This will give you a chance to fiddle with fuel and spark.
 
Don't use emery or sandpaper on magnetos or distributers. Grit will come off and
stick to bearing surfaces and cause havoc. Files are the thing.
 
Magneto gap on another tractor is .018-.020. Should be a good starting point.
This is when the cam is at the highest point. I note that your spark plug wires
are twisted together. If the insulation is bad, the sparks could jump between
them and not fire the right plugs. I know that later Ford tractors and cars
ran the wires inside metal tubes, so if the insulation is good, it's probably
not a problem.
I recently had a spark problem. Turned out the condenser was
not working because of a bad connection.
 
Thanks for clearing that up, I remember an old timer talking about the worm drive prevents you from starting it that way so was a bit puzzled what this guy was doing
 
Thank you for the advice regarding pulling a Fordson. Only pulled it a short distance so hoping I didn't create an issue because of my ignorance. Planning to head back out to try to start it in a couple weeks, will be focusing on getting spark. Thank you all for your advice and recommendations. Will provide update in the near future.
 
Went and tried to get the Fordson started this weekend with no luck. However, we did discover that the "plunger" switch on the side of the motor when pushed in indicates "On/Run". Also, got spark on 3 of the 4 plugs, so believe we are heading in the right direction. Am thinking of buying new spark plugs, spark plug wires and a carburetor/vaporizer tune up kit (if one exists). Is the Fordson House a good place to purchase these items? Also, the manual I have turns out not to be for a 1925 tractor. Will need to get one of those as well. Did find the serial number on the tractor to indeed verify it is a '25. Thank you for your support.
 

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