52 B, starting restoration

About to start my first restoration on a 52 B that's been in the family for about 50 years but hasn't run in 30+.

The engine is stuck and I've been soaking it with diesel, coke and kerosene for 4 months to no avail. My thought is the rings are still froze on the top of the block where my concoction doesn't reach. I'm planning on pulling the head and block so I can set the block upright to get better soak with penetrating oil and/or pound out the pistons.

Is there anything special I should do or consider before taking apart the engine?

Well you"ll need a big pocketbook for starters. I"d take head off, block out and take to a press and push the pistons out the rear...I wouldn"t hammer on them...maybe even have a machine shop soak them in cleaner and let them push out...parts are out of sight price wise....good luck....

Envy you. Family tractgor, been in family half a century, one of the nicest little machines there is, aslways wanted to restore a B myself, go for it, money don't matter in this case.

Was it sitting inside a building all those years or outside ?

Have you removed the valve cover and rocker arms and then tried to see if the valves move ?

I don't know - I'd say anything sitting THAT long untouched is a special case that's probably not wise to do the soak and force method.

A lot depends on how it was stored of course - stored indoors in a dry climate is obviously a different case than outside in a wet climate.

But assuming somewhere in the middle - a lot can happen over thirty years. The cylinders can be so badly pitted they need to be bored anyways which means there's no sense continuing on this path.

Valves can be stuck solid so even if you get the pistons free you'll be bending pushrods, etc etc.

I think I'd start by pulling the breather tube cover and looking in to the bottom of the cylinders - then pull the head and see what you've got in there.

Head gaskets aint cheap for that engine - but I don't think you're going to be able to avoid ripping the engine apart to at least inspect everything.

It's inevitable - pull the head.

If you find things don't really look that bad -you can still keep applying penetrating oil to the pistons. And keep rocking the tractor by the back wheels.

That's how we freed ours up - put it in gear and just keep rocking back and forth. It seemed totally hopeless, but then we saw the flywheel jump a little. Then a little more... then finally free.

Mike and JR:

My dad said when the tractor quit running, my grandpa left it outside for a year before he pulled it in the shed. The engine was still free at that point. There it sat in a steel, uninsulated pole building out of the Michigan elements.

A little more info on what I've done and my observations. I drained the oil to flush the crankcase, there was a little water, but nowhere near what I would have expected. I removed the valve cover and everything looked clean, valves all moved, though one stuck a little at first. Pushrods also seemed good and were not sticking.

I removed the cover to the crankcase. Piston on clutch side is near top dead center, a few small spots of surface rust on the cylinder wall. My thought is this one is stuck. Flywheel side piston is near bottom of cylinder, I can see where my penetrating fluid has leaked through and ran into the crankcase, leads me to believe a ring job is certain.

There is a little wiggle in the flywheel, but not much. Just enough to see the bearings on the crank are not stuck. Overall, I'm impressed and surprised with the condition of things considering how long it has sat.

You sound determined so here is what I'd try first....a cheap shot at freeing the engine. I'd remove the rocker arms and push rods, marking their location and position installed...I'd pull the plate over the connecting rods and then check and spray the inside of the cylinders...i'd then soak the rod bearing...pour or spray thin oil over them...now I would get a bar attached to the flywheel...a hand cheater to keep from tearing my fingers or hands on the flywheel ring. I would work the flywheel back and forth to see if I could free up the piston....I would probably attach a floor jack hand to the flywheel...I might even try putting some cleaner or lubricant into the spark plug holes with some air pressure....who knows you might be lucky and work loose and get the flywheel to turn a revolution...then you could go to the starter....don't get over horsey with the bar as you don't want to damage the rods...then if you get it to turn over...you can reinstall the push rods and tappets and then try for a fire up...might be lucky...an old friend of mine used to do it all the time....

Loosen the connecting rods and work the flywheel back and forth. I've rescued several that way.

condensation can still cause a lot of rust - but it's conceivable that you can break it free.

fill the cylinders till it leaks out the spark plug holes. Then stick an air hose in and blast the fluid so it bubbles and splashes all over everything inside there.

Do that often -

the penetrating oil will do its work, the parts don't necessarily have to bathe in it. As long as you constantly wet them like that.

Put it in the highest gear and keep rocking it back and forth, kind of hard.

Keep an eye on the flywheel. When you lose faith and feel it's never going to move, you might just see a little jump. That'll keep you going till it fully pops free.

for something untouched for that long, I'd definitely avoid pulling with another tractor, or something more extreme. Better to operate first.

Good luck - keep us updated.

It's a family tractor that you don't plan to make a quick buck on. Do it right and take it all apart, press the pistons out, and rebuild it correctly. Everyone seems to only have the money and time to do it the quick cheap way, but then come up with the time and money to do it again later. Do it right the first time and forget about it. You will be time and money ahead in the end. This applies to something you don't plan to hodge podge together and sell for a quick buck.

Personaly I like JDfans approch. I bought a stuck
'49 B, pulled the block & pressed out the pistons.
I was lucky & only had to hone it & replaced the
rings. Cant say that it cost a lot of money. I
used the press at work, wasn't a bad push. Did the
same to an R I bought sight unseen, that took a
bit more & will need to be bored, but old pistons
could be sold. Think if I never had the use of the
press I would have tried cribbing the block in the
barn & using the weight of the hay above, with an
old barn jack. Just a thought, push as close to
the cylinder walls as possible, they are the
strongest there. Good luck. Kevin

My 49 A was stuck when I got it from my family. I pulled the
head and jacked the front wheels up and put on blocks so the
front was high enough penetrant would run back under the
pistons. Removed the flywheel cover so i could use a chain
and bar to gently wiggle the flywheel. After soaking and
wiggling a little at a time I got it freed up. Must not have broken
any rings as it runs perfect and doesn"t smoke or use oil.
Patience is the secret.

You can only gain at this point because if you get it freed up and running you can check it out before ripping it apart. I have had great sucess if they still have the cast iron pistons in them.
Get the valves lubed up and free. Last one I did was worse then yours. Fill the cylinders up with diesel or kerosene I used this because it was cheaper then special penetrants. With plugs in fill up intake and exhaust I pull the carb. AND EX pipe pull mag. as these will all need reworked anyhow. Let sit. If you see it seeping out the back of the pistons you are gaining and it should go. Leave rocker arms and push rods off at first. When ready to try and turn remove spark plugs. If I can chain a spud bar to the flywheel to where I can stand on it I do and then bounce up and down on it. Last one bar was not in good spot so I chained a comealong to the fylwheel up top or past wraped the cable over and down and hooked the other end to the drawbar frame. Worked the ratchet end underneath and in no short order it budged. This actualy lined up for a really nice pulling action. Keep everything lubed up as you go and work it both directions gaining more each time. Once you can go all the way around then it is time to flush it out. Just dont get too carried away and NEVER tow one around in gear until to get it turning by hand.

The posts I mostly see advocate brain surgery which would work but initially I wouldn't even consider going to this length. I'd take the rocker arms off till I got the engine to turn over then check the valves being free then I'd see if I could get it started...even with stuck or worn rings the tractor could be pulled for starting...30-40lbs compression will get it running and you can see what you have after that...the complete tear down may need to be done but why not try the other method first. It may be perfectly okay....

put it in high gear and gently rock the tractor back and forth