Newbie, 2n SN: 9N242513

7080316

Member
Ford 1946? 2N Tractor SN: 9N242513 with Sherman Hi-Lo 3 speed trans.

I just got my first ford tractor. Giddy like a little child, I have been tinkering and playing with it nearly all of my free time. Started off with flat tires, got the rears to hold some air and put a tube in the front.. Next found a fuel issue, think it was rust. Total disassemble clean and reassemble carb and fuel sediment bowl and screen, adding a secondary filter to watch for trash, seems to be fixed. In that process I reached across the top of the running engine to turn the fuel on and got a huge shock.. Made me ponder. Retrieved a long screw driver, poked spark plug wire that shocked me, and when I was about a 1/2 inch away from the top of the block, all of a sudden I have a huge beautiful spark jumping the gap and the motor starts to falter. I found that plugs 1 and 4 would do that... I figured the wires were bad, but I pondered of that for a spell and decided I wanted to look at the spark plugs.. I am attaching 3 pictures. the first is all 4 plugs 1-4 L-R when I pulled them, next is #4 and last is 1-4 after being cleaned of oil...

My thoughts are the rings must be bad and I probably should do an overhaul. Any thoughts or suggestions?

I have pretty much already decided I wanted to overhaul the engine just because when i got it, the oil was thin and after fresh 15w40 oil I had 5-7psi oil pressure at hot idle 20-25psi cold. I figure overhaul before I do any real damage..

I'm think of a semi restore-work tractor toy. I am looking to get a 6ft finish mower, it does ok with my 6ft brush hog, but that doesn't work so well in the front yard.. I found a Ford 3pt bucket and a Dearborne 3 pt bucket this week for $40 together.. I think this will be a fun toy to tinker and play with, with my boys (3 and 5 years old)...

This looks like a fun project that I can tackle this winter when the snow is blowing and I want something to do in the shop after hours. Not sure what to do about the sheet metal. The hood is pretty bad, painted over rusted through and someone welded the lower skins onto the hood, plus the front is crushed and the grill looks awful.. I run a general welding and fabrication shop with my father and Trike building business on my own. www.premiertrikes.com and www.kceind.com

In an engine rebuild, are there any things not in the 75 tips or the FO-4 manual that I should know? Do I need to line bore the block even though I am sure the bearings have not spun? I don't really know anything about flat heads, give me a chevy LS1 computerized or a 4.3L V6 Computerized or carbureted..

Anyways, I am new, I like this group, so far I have made it 74 pages deep in the forum. I am hoping for any advice or suggestions as I begin this undertaking... Is anyone on here from the Wichita, Kansas area?

Thanks, Jeff


mvphoto11177.jpg


mvphoto11179.jpg


mvphoto11185.jpg


mvphoto11184.jpg




mvphoto11183.jpg
 
Newbie, I would have the block checked to see if it needs line bored. My 51 block had been welded years ago, and when I took it to the machinist to have the machine work done, he checked it and the block was really twisted. Also you might check the line bore for the cam too. Mine was out, but the machinist didn't line bore for the cam. Instead, he took off about .006 off the center bearing of the cam. I was NOT happy about that, but it's too late now. I do have good oil pressure, but I do worry about that at times. Good luck, and have fun, and be safe!!!!
Dave
 
Back when I worked at trivalley machine, Pacheco, CA, we saw flatheads constantly, from Flathead Jack to atomic 4's. On these low rev engines, I'm not sure if it is worth line boring. Will it help? Yes. Is it worth the expense....only you can answer, but, if the crank has properly been checked for clearance, and it doesn't bind, personally, I wouldn't line bore.
Also, it sounds like you just got the 2n running. Run it for a bit, they don't need much oil pressure (idle is 400 rpm, revved up is what, under 2000?) Its not a SBC.
 

You don't know how old those spark plugs are. It may not need rebuilt, that oil pressure is not too bad. I would check compression and see if there is a problem. If it has sat for a while, maybe put a can of MMO or ATF in with the oil to clean up the rings.

I wouldn't waste money line boring unless the block is binding or the block has been repaired.

If it does need rebuilt, it is an easy job. But I wouldn't be in a hurry until you do a little more running.

On a side note, a 6' mower is gonna be a bit much for a 2n. Others may have different experience.

Be careful, specially with the young-ins and have some fun.
 
I am not sure on how recent the tractor was used. By the condition of the tires I am pretty sure the PO didn't really use it much. He delivered it in our craigslist deal.. We turned out to sort of be neighbors. He lives about 4 miles from me.

A part of me just wants to zero time the engine to have it perfect. Plus I don't want to wait till a catastrophe happens and I have to find a new block.. I might be being too careful, but I was trained in aviation maintenance and everything I do is to that standard.

Is there anything I can learn from the plugs?

The shifter handle on the Sherman transmission seems loose and wobbly. Is that just how those handles feel or is that telling me something about the condition of the Sherman unit? When driving in lo, it is quiet and smooth. When operating in hi, it has a groan and is smooth. Does this mean anything?

The 3 point is touchy. When I was mowing I found that a tiny adjustment would lead to it raising all the way slowly when I wasn't looking, also true in the other direction. There seemed to be a magic spot I could not often hit that would keep the mower at the perfect height. Again, does this tell me anything?

As far as 1-3 and R, I am fairly confident all is good. However if the tractor is moving and the engine is on, the gears grind on their own. The shifter handle seems to lay on the gears if not in hand. Should that happen or am I missing something in the shifter?

Again, thanks for any input I can get.

Jeff
 
I wouldn't jump into a rebuild unless you have nothing better to do with your time and money.

Those plugs could have been in there forever and can't be used to diagnose a bad condition. Yes you should swap the wires. Do a new cap and rotor/points too. This will give you a good baseline of sparkies to judge from. You may also have the wrong plugs and if my memory is correct they should be autolite AL37.

If you must consider a teardown do a compression check first.

If you read the archives lots of guys discover cracked blocks and other bad stuff while doing a simple rebuild. I'm in denial now for 15 years and while I think I could use a rebuild, it's still running and I'm ok with that.

Those oil pressures are OK. If they concern you wait until winter and they will go up.
 
It sounds like you got the bug.
They are fun machines.
A word to the wise though.
If you are looking to use this tractor for it's intended purposes - plowing, raking, mowing, etc then before you go plunking down several thousand $ to rebuild the engine, clutch, steering, tires, rims, tin, paint, etc, etc a 2N is not the most desirable tractor to do those tasks with.
No power steering, no live hydraulics, no live PTO, no position control on the 3 point and they don't even have a real drawbar.
An 8N was a better tractor as they at least have position control and a good drawbar.
I have seen it many times since I have been here - a fellow buys an N, spends Gobs of dough on it and then realizes what everyone else already knows which is how lacking in so many ways it is.
If you are just making a toy for you and your boys then have at it. But if you are actually going to use it for more than putt putting around on then sell it now and look for a newer tractor.
Something like a 600 or 800 Ford has way more features and is just as much fun to restore and use.
And it will be worth a couple grand more than an N will after you get it all dolled up so you'll recoup a greater % of your "investment" should you decide to sell it.
The best thing I ever did was never to restore the Ns I've had. I used them and fixed them, parted out a ouple, even partially painted one. But when it came time to move on from the Ns I was able to sell them and get the majority of my money back out of them - and put that $ into a tractor that had far more potential to begin with.
Below is a lovely 801. Not mine, just one I found on Google.

GF0311-103952_1.jpg
 
You've been given some great advice here. What is your OP at working rpms? Your idle OP is gonna be low unless its just a fresh engine. Like everyone else said, your time and money. Ultradog is a wise person, and a bit of a heretic. I'm pretty sure he told me to drop the N a while back, and I'm just now seeing how much better it could be with a tractor just a few years newer. Live PTO would be nice, but live hyd is soooo much better than a non live. Also you were talking about getting the mower to stay in the right spot for cutting the grass. Position control, you don't have it.

All that said, have fun with your new toy, and Welcome!
 
Given your history, you will probably be
overhauling the engine just because... I would
suggest researching oil pumps. You will find it
is integrated into the front main bearing cap.
There are two versions that vary by the gear
width. The newer, wider gears pump more oil and I
wish I had upgraded when I rebuilt my 2N.
Replacing the pump requires a line bore (new
bearing cap), so that question will be answered.
Of course you may have the wider gears already and
just need to rebuild the pump shaft, bushing, and
gears. Enjoy!
 
Everyone has pretty much covered it for you with their voices of experience and I'd like to maybe elaborate a little.

Before your plugs can be any indicator of firing condition, they need to be a new and correct heat range set.

Judging by the oil pressure you'd probably be wise to put fresh 20W50 in the tractor as someone on this forum says he does with all of his tractors. I ,like others here, use 15W40 because happily, my oil pressure is more than "adequate".

Do the points and a carb adjust, run it for a while under load and THEN have a look at the plugs.

If you still have fouling, then also as suggested, do wet and dry compression.

My 1.5 cent's worth . . . deflation :)

T
 
Look'n at those plugs and yer oil pressure you are going to get the build a flathead... Nuttin to it injoy it..., As far as the 75 tips I have read 50 of them they are not all silver bullets,,, They are one mans interpretation of what he read and grouped together as a way to introduce common issues/questions that may arise from those less experienced. Just remember some of the info you gather here are from those less experienced... If you have any mechanical ability at all you will have no problem weeding out those less experienced reply's...

I would drop a fuel injected 4.3 chebby V6 in it... I am not much into front mount dist N's I offer my condolences to ya ... But that would not offer the satisfaction of grooming a old piece of iron and updating it to be reliable... If you can not make it better you can sit on the porch you will not be alone...

I dunno why you asked about line boring so whut's up with that question... If you have to get into that you are in DEEP DODO with any engine... :twisted:
 
I asked about the line boring due to the impression I was getting reading the forum. It seemed like some were saying that due to there only being 3 crank bearings, they had a tendency to have to be line bored at overhaul. I really have no idea, just want a toy to play with and mow, and really the mowing is playing too..
I only have to mow 5acres of the 400, and any real work on a tractor would be done by the guys I lease the land to. It will never plow more then a 20x40 garden plot for my mom next door. She gets a lot of favors since she babysits my kids while I build trikes.

To the gentleman who suggested I sell my toy and get something bigger. Is the 801 larger in size? I like the tiny part of this tractor. It is totally different than the Case 1170, 1030, 930, and now 830 LP I have had in the past when I helped farm the land. I never understood why case built their tractors as sky scrapers.....

You have all given me much to think about. I guess I shall have something to ponder on as I build these gantries for an aircraft company.

Well play time is over, getting get back to work, big contact eating all of my time. Turned the light on in the shop this morning at 7:30am and it is 11:37 pm and I wish I hadn't skipped lunch and dinner now.. Too much to do. Thanks guys, and I am always open for more advice...

Jeff
 
I dont think its so much the size of the tractor he was refering to as the features. Im just a newb myself, i know very little about tractors or anything else useful for that matter, so take what I say with a grain of salt. Your 2n is an old machine with old features. Draft control only, no live hydraulics, no power steering, transmission PTO. It WILL do the work u have planned for it. More modern features and maybe a little more power will make the work easier on you.
I bought an 8N about 2 years ago and its been a good tractor. I bought an 850 a couple of months ago and its probably gonna put the N outta business. Its slightly larger with twice the power and live hyd. Now im wishing I had power steering.
IMHO, you should use ur new toy for a while and see how you like it, then put the money in if you do. Or...put the money into the N and then buy another one to keep it company while ur busy with the trikes.
 
couple thoughts from another 'heretic'
Expensive machine shop work and a N tractor don't belong in the same sentence.
one of your questions, size, put the same size tires on a N, NAA, 600, it would be hard to tell the difference.....until you actually put them to work.
52 8n, 53-54 NAA, 55 600, the engineers must have got tired of the bean-counters and locked them in the closet for those years....lots of improvements.

But,
You own it, and this statement:
"I think this will be a fun toy to tinker and play with"
yes, they are.
Just put a pile of 1 dollar bills in your mind about 500 high.
That's all it gets to fix all systems.(easily possible)
agree with Hobo that the combo of the OP and those plugs, means I'm going in.
Would it run and work as-is?, sure, probably for a long time.
But would it aggravate me with fouled plugs and hard starting? also a yes.
......always keeping in mind what I'm working on.
If bearings, rings, and an oil pump massage won't make it usable, out it comes and swap in a common as dirt good used engine.
(and with your background, that could include a lot of interesting possibilities!! google em)
 
A 600/800 has about a 5" longer wheelbase - 75" vs 70" - about 8%.
It's also about 600-800 lbs heavier - about 20-25%.
You'll sit a couple of inches higher and it'll be a couple of inches wider.
Both are very nimble, rugged, reliable, simple to work on and have excellent parts availability.
But it's all about features.
Live hydraulics was a huge improvement. On the 53 and later machines the hyd pump was run off the engine so anytime the engine was running you have hydraulic power to raise your lift or power a remote cylinder for a snow plow, hyd top link, etc.
More gears, better hydraulics, live pto and power steering are big improvements too.
I'm not putting down the Ns. They are great, small, entry level tractors that can be had for dirt cheap and they will do a lot of useful work for you.
And there are numerous upgrades you can add to them. Member here Old Hokie makes a great drawbar hanger for the 9/2Ns. Another member, Zane makes his ingenious Zane Thang to give you position control. Several people here make and sell add on live hydraulics. But the cost of those all add up.
What I am saying is not to plunk gobs of dough into an N. Run the one you have and see if it works for you. As said, if the engine pukes on you drop another one into it. Used engines are Much cheaper than a rebuild.
Keep in mind that a 2N will never fetch much over $2500 no matter how perfect it is or how many add ons it has. But it's easy to stick double that amount + into restoring one.
A 600/800 will cost about the same amount to restore but a nice one like in the picture will fetch $4500 or more - if or when you decide to move onward from that.
Meanwhile you'll have a tractor that will do more and be just as much fun to own and run.
 

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