Free tractor! Now what?

SmokeEater2 · Jan 1, 2016

I was given a 300 Farmall that has sat since about 1999 or so. I'm told it ran great and had a recent valve job when the owner became ill suddenly and it wasn't touched for years.

If the pics load correctly you can see that the wiring is a mess. I'm told that goats did that.
:shock:

The tin seems to be very straight and I believe the tractor was taken care of in it's day and looks to have been repainted at some point in it's life.

Since I have nothing (so far) invested in it I don't mind spending a bit [i:15da1bee6d]if[/i:15da1bee6d] it's not too far gone internally.

How can I tell if the motor is stuck? The only thing I've tried so far is attempted to turn the fan blade. It will turn about half way around either direction, Does that mean it's stuck?

I think the clutch is stuck since I can push the pedal down easily but the gear shift doesn't seem to want to move and I didn't try to force it.

So any advice where to start?

Andy Martin · Jan 1, 2016

It's like a free puppy! Congratulations on the gift. Rear tires are the high dollar item and yours look great. If they aren't aired up, air them up and keep them up.

If the crankshaft will turn at all it is not stuck. It has a two speed planetary shift to give you ten speeds. Looks like it quit working and levers have been removed. Not a big deal for starting out.

Gear shift my just be stuck, may be stuck in two gears, best to jack up one wheel and see what turns and what doesn't.

Lots of work and questions ahead and you'll get good, sometimes conflicting advice here. Conflicting advice means there may be two answers to a symptom, and both guys are actually right. (why is the tire flat on one side: maybe it has a hole in it and maybe someone let the air out)

old · Jan 1, 2016

As for the engine if the fan belt is tight you should be able to push/pull on the fan to see if the crank shaft pulley will more some or set a batter in it and hit the starter button but use short fast taps just in case it is locked up. I have used the fan belt way one many many tractor I have gotten over the years. If locked up make sure the cylinders are not full of water due to the exhaust not being covered etc. Either way I would fill the cylinder with ATF once I found them to not have water in them just to free up sticking rings and lube it up.
As for the wiring a simple hot wire will be all you need to check the ignition system that is likely to need new points. To me that looks like maybe a days work to get up and running.
As for the shiftier well the transmission could be full of water and if so could be frozen if clod enough or rusted up badly and again fill with ATF after draining the old stuff out to free it up

SmokeEater2 · Jan 1, 2016

Thanks guys! Old, I wish I was as optimistic about a days work to get it running as you.

I'm not a mechanic or even close to being one so this will be either a great learning experience or a great way to learn new cuss words.

SmokeEater2 · Jan 1, 2016

Forgot to say that I did put ATF and acetone in each cylinder tonight just in case there is rust. Pretty easy to do since the goats or squirrels or whatever had eaten pretty much all of the spark plug wires except for the boots.

old · Jan 1, 2016

Well my e-mail is always open if you need that extra bit of help. I have had more then one person give me a phone call when they needed help to figure things out. The plug wires being gone will cause you a firing order problem and the firing order is 1,3.4,2. I have picked up more then one like you have and had them running before I even pulled them off the trailer

SmokeEater2 · Jan 1, 2016

Thanks for the offer old. I may be asking a lot of questions before this is over.

old · Jan 1, 2016

I have a 300U here that we got for a great big $100. Did not run but engine spun over. It drove off the trailer in less then 4 hours after we got it. It had sat for years so they are not all that hard to make run if you know the tricks to do so

CharlieNJ · Jan 2, 2016

(motor)"will turn about half way around either direction, Does that mean it's stuck?" Hmmm, might mean there is a valve stuck, and it contacts a piston at certain positions. Take the valve cover and rocker assembly off, oil the valves and tap them with a rubber or plastic mallet till they free up.

Rex Simpkins · Jan 2, 2016

She'll run get some gas to her and some spark to the points, its old and red that's the only thing that could be wrong

SmokeEater2 · Jan 13, 2016

UPDATE- The motor is free! I've been turning the fan blade every day or so and Monday I poured a quart of ATF down the exhaust ( Don't know if it helped anything for sure) but I thought I'd give it a try.

Walked out this morning after work and pulled the spark plugs out and gave the fan blade a try... And it turned all the way around!

The tractor is outside so I'm tinkering with it as weather allows. I've got a supply of new wire and a set of new plug wires so the next step is restoring the electrical system.

Thanks to all of you for your help so far, It has been greatly appreciated.

old · Jan 13, 2016

ATF down the exhaust does help some but would help even more if you put some in each spark plug hole to help free up sticking rings if it has that problem which is likely

SmokeEater2 · Jan 13, 2016

(quoted from post at 15:16:39 01/13/16) ATF down the exhaust does help some but would help even more if you put some in each spark plug hole to help free up sticking rings if it has that problem which is likely

I put a 50-50 mix of ATF and Acetone in each spark plug hole on the 1st of the month. It's been working in the cylinders ever since and when the motor freed up today the pistons pushed some of the ATF mix out of the spark plug holes.

The ATF down the exhaust was in case there was an exhaust valve sticking. I don't know if that would actually help free up a sticking valve, But I thought I'd give it a try just in case it helped some.

Anyway, 13 days from when I started trying to unstick the motor it's free and I can move on to it's other problems.

old · Jan 13, 2016

Yes ATF down the exhaust will help free up a valve if it is sticking and also help clean carbon off the valves at the same time

tractorguy2 · Jan 13, 2016

Nice 300. don't see many with a fast hitch. least not in my part of Nebraska

krm · Jan 14, 2016

No TA on it?

SmokeEater2 · Jan 14, 2016

(quoted from post at 08:28:10 01/14/16) No TA on it?

It didn't have a lever for a TA. I don't know how to tell if it actually has a TA and the lever was removed or if it was a TA delete.

tractorguy2 · Jan 14, 2016

I'm betting it has a TA.just doesn't work.I have never
seen a hundred series IH that didn't have a TA. I have
seen several that have had the lever removed on nonworking
units.

mj · Feb 2, 2016

(quoted from post at 07:53:40 01/02/16) (motor)"will turn about half way around either direction, Does that mean it's stuck?" Hmmm, might mean there is a valve stuck, and it contacts a piston at certain positions. Take the valve cover and rocker assembly off, oil the valves and tap them with a rubber or plastic mallet till they free up.

Yeah, what I'm thinking. If it hasn't been cranked over with the starter it's possible that the 'lockup' happens when a pushrod starts to bend - Like you said he BETTER make sure there isn't a valve stuck! 8)

Free tractor! Now what?

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