Problems with a John Deere 112 high Idle

TimWolve

New User
So i just joined so im pretty new, go easy on me lol i am not a full fledged mechanic, i am learning as i go since i love fixing and learning new things.. My dad always believed that fixing old things is better then out right buying something new.. at lest you own it and it seems the older stuff handle much more then whats out there today.. anyways to the reason im posting.

Ive been trying to figure out whats wrong with my JD 112
It has a K301 motor and ive replaced the fuel lines,
put in a inline filter, cleaned the carb twice, even used a kit.
i have yet to change the oil, someone told me to use 5w30 rather then the 30 for a MN winter.. but ive been putting that off till i knew for sure.. i know there is a mesh in the tank and the tank had rust that i tried to remove with marbles.. so im not sure if thats doing anything to cause this..

Here is a URL to what my tractor is doing.

https://youtu.be/vsFFPY87a8w

ive turned the high speed idle needle 1 and a half turns and the low speed 2 turns as said in the book for the tractor.. and it seems no matter how much i tinker with the high speed idle, it has no effect on it..

It can be stuborn to start, takes a little bit but when it does, low idle seems fine but when i put the throttle up then the motor makes a loud clapping sound, sometimes back firing.. there been random points black smoke will come out of its exhaust but fade or a little bit of white smoke from the carb.

I am learning as i go for small engines, even more so these old john deeres.. i was told to maybe check the valves but i quite dont know what to do or how to in that case.. i just really want to get this thing running to throw some snow.[/url]
 
Just passing by here on the way back to bed, but I'll make a couple of comments... NOT sure what you've got going on in the video, there's nothing like being there!

First of all, the carb settings are just a general starting point and may vary quite a bit, but you do mention the load needle doesn't have any effect, which would point to something in the carb still being clogged.

Not sure from the video if you could have breaker point/timing issues, as well. On these engines timing is set by tweaking breaker point gap using a timing light.

That, as well as checking the valves is covered in the factory service manual I've linked below.

Good luck, I'm gonna go catch a little more sleep!
K301 manual
 
I know you said you put a kit in it but did you soak it in a bucket of carb cleaner for a day or so while you had it apart? If all you used is spray cleaner which I use as a final cleaner it still may be partially clogged. I have had several old small engine carbs that I had to take back apart and soak for several days and then use tiny wires to finish some passages. After soaking, rinsing and blowing out I use the spray cleaner as a last pass before assembly.
 
I think the carburetor still has dirt or a plug somewhere. I know you said you have had it apart a couple of times but it sounds like somewhere you missed something. When
cleaning a carburetor you need to follow each passage and know where it goes to and blow it out with cleaner or compressed air, or both. Sometimes when tracking down
where a passage goes you can guess by seeing where the factory drilled a passage and then closed it with some kind of plug. Make sure there is no vacuum leak in the
gasket where it bolts to the engine, or anywhere else. If the points are set with a feeler gauge to the correct gap it will be good enough to get it running and maybe
good enough anyway, a light is best though. It is good to check the valves but it doesn't sound like they are the problem to me. To get more valve clearance you remove
the valve and grind a LITTLE at a time off the end of the stem. To get less you grind the valve or seat, probably something you would take to a shop. I would use 10-30
oil although 5-30 would probably bi OK too.
 
I would suspect that the carburetor is still fouled, you will probably find some corrosion in the passages.
 
Sound like typical intake "air leak".
While running at a fast idle, spray water around all points of intake manifold and carburetor. If idle goes down, or changes, you have found leak.
Some people use WD-40, carb cleaner, or start fluid.
 
Good suggestions below, try them first.
If you still have problems, remove the hi speed screw and look at the tip.
Is there damage from tightening it too hard? the tapered tip should have a uniform taper and not be missing the end.
I have seen them tightened so tight that the end tip gets broken off in the carburetor.

Good luck and post back with your findings.

Larry
 
Does choking it help any??????

Do as everyone suggested with dipping the carb in come cleaner.

As a suggestion, I use grade 00 steel wool on the carb jets, bowl and whatever else.

When you get the carb sorted out you may want to adjust the timing. I do this and adjust the carb to find the optimum settings. Adjusting the carb only gets you so far. With the points push rod and cam wear the engine usually just naturally wears itself into a retarded timing setting. This can have an effect on starting performance.

Let us know what you find.
 
The timing on those is adjusted by setting the point gap, so gap it at .020, timing should be fine, I gap mine about .022 to get a little more advance.
 
I did let it soak for a night, then used compressed air and then the spray, ill try the water trick to see if there is any leaks.. the high speed the very tip of the needle is there but when i took it apart the tip was really dark and discolored, what other passages is there that i could have missed? i know there is one hole in that chamber, then you have high speed needle, then from the side coming from the air filter there is one or two holes..

I forgot to say that the air filter going to the carb there is no gasket, i need to find one for it.. other wise there is the old one between the carb and the motor..
 
After a thorough cleaning of carburetor, be sure and install an external fuel filter until you can [b:346f67b0bb]clean gas tank[/b:346f67b0bb]--of which can be explained here.
 
So i tinkered with it more.. On the throttle, are you suppost to have it all the way up or is that only if under load? because if its down a little bit from the top kinda next to the rabbit decal then its fine, once in awhile it will rev down then go back up to normal when i was driving it thru the snow it was struggling but when i put the throttle all the way up it had no problem.. but i did find something else, where the fuel pump is there is a little bit of gas leaking along the engine from where the pump is mounted on the side of the motor and then there is this little factory grove vent looking thing on the side of the motor near where the carb is, there is white smoke coming out of that, is that normal?
 
Have you checked the governor cross shaft adjustment???

It's explained in the Kohler manual.

They can get out of adjustment and cause erratic engine rpms.
 
One more thing I'd like to mention is I'm pretty sure those didn't come from the factory with a fuel pump. They were gravity fed. So maybe try bypassing the pump and see what happens. Make sure the fuel tank and strainer are clean.

Also, that little opening you mentioned with a white smoke coming out of is the breather. I'd say that's normal for an engine with a far amount wear.

Maybe you've done this already but if you still have problems you might want to check the carb float level. There's a spec in the book.
 
Would it be safe to run 5w30 in a well worn engine? Our temps range from 30 below to 12 above during the winter.. I'm mainly worried about leaks or damaging the motor if I put this stuff in there
 

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