1952 fordson engine ( gasoline )

N Ransom · May 20, 2017

i have a fordson major mark 1 gasoline tractor serial # 1229890 and i think the engine is a 199 cu. ins. not sure where engine I D
number would be. I am looking for a place in the U.S. or close by the would carry engine gasket sets, camshafts, crank and cam
gears, etc. talked with yesterdays tractor them seem to only carry parts for diesel engines any information would be helpful
thanks

Majorman · May 21, 2017

A lot of the parts you want are the same as a diesel, that is the beauty of that engine. The main difference was in the cylinder head so things like manifold gaskets may be hard to find.

There were a lot of modifications during the past 60 + years. What is the problem with your camshaft? The later model ones were a single bolt fixing rather than a three bolt one as you have. If you fit the later shaft you will have to change the front mounting plate and the bolt holes in it will be a larger size possibly. I would try and keep it original. My Major is also 1952 and petrol/kerosene, when I put new rings on a few years ago, I checked the camshaft and there was no wear on that or the cam followers.

Crankshaft will be slightly different design as yours is a cast steel one which tended to break if treated roughly. We had them break in the back of a van going to the engineers for re-grinding. The later version is much stronger.

Pistons and liners may be hard to find as they are a smaller bore than the diesel, I am lucky because the petrol/kerosene is the same size. Pistons are different and could be a problem.

cdmn · May 21, 2017

Mine is a 1953. When I got it, it had a terrible rattle. So I took the pan off, and discovered
that the rods and crank seemed to be okay. The problem was the camshaft gear had separated from its
hub? I've never seen this failure. Leaves you shaking your head! I have bought a similar 3 hole gear from a diesel. I think it might fit, but I had a machinist shave off the thickness to match the old gear. I haven't tried to get a head gasket, but there are custom makers who use laser or waterjet
to cut it out of carbon fiber composite. Seems to work in a lot of engines. As far as the front gaskets, and pan gaskets, I would try diesel also. If you ask a custom piston vendor, he may have
pistons that will fit, or they can modify or build new ones. The stock engine has a very low compression ratio, so power and economy would be quite low.

N Ransom · May 21, 2017

Thanks for your responses. The camshaft is broken in half behind the first ( front ) cam journal, at first look found a couple valves that were stuck down and push rods had come off of the rockers found out that the camshaft was not turning.
disassembled the front of the motor found crank and cam gears worn like a lack of oil lubrication and cam broken in half.
removed pan and checked # 4 rod bearing and crank condition so far the crank surface is surprisingly smooth ( bearing has old type pitting but no scratching or dry scrubbing )so far as i have dug into it.
I am surprised that there is no camshaft bearings ( bushings ) pressed into block ( at least what i can see from the front one ??
I hesitate to remove the head for not getting gaskets needed. I removed valve spring pressure and can move all valve up and down, still could have valve guide issues ? I have not done a cylinder leak down test to see if valves or rings are leaking badly.
Thanks

1952 fordson engine ( gasoline )

N Ransom

New User

Majorman

Well-known Member

cdmn

Member

N Ransom

New User

Similar threads