Hi Kids,
I recently acquired a D17 with an FEL, poor baby has been neglected for years, but the former owner drove it onto the property and parked it, now I cant get it started. Got spark, might be starving for gas, old gas in tank, probably needs a carb kit rebuild.

I'm new at this tractor thing, prbably going to hang here for a few months and ask questions about this, like how to operate all them darn levers..

The FEL is a 417, I was told it used Motor Oil instead of hyd. oil.. can someone confirm this?

Cheers.. Silverman

OK, so, previous owner was previous owner of this property, never did a thing here for 25 years, let the barn roof come off, etc so everything here is a wreck, but I got the D17/FEL for under 1K and I have seen it running.

I followed the instructions to drain the lines, yes, the fuel line was shut off at the tank, I drained the tank, put fresh gas in it, scraped off the carbon on the dist cap,rotor, points, took the plugs out and wire brushed them off, previous owner said to use 10W30 in the hydraulic tank? so I did put in 4 litres, and charged up the battery.

Now it is running, there is no brakes, and there is a horrible crack on the exhaust manifold, but I did manage to set the chicken coop to where it is going, picked up the dead shingles from around the house and dump them into the rented dumpster I got for re=-roofing the house. and I dug out a stump.

Not bad for a days work with a tractor older than me. I'll post some pics of the tractor to the website later

• Tireless farms

What garytomaszewski said. Wouldn't hurt to give the previous owner a call and ask.

S-man, You sure the previous driver didn't shut fuel off at the tank ? That's second nature for most of us with old tractors. If he drove it, it should run for you. Don't start overhauling carbs,etc. until you're sure of what you have.

Get the operator manual to familiarize yourself with all of the controls, lubes, drains, features, etc.

When the D-17 was new yes you used SAE 20 oil for the hydrulics.Later Allis came out with their 821 hydrulic/transmission oil. This was about the same time that JD came out with 303 oil and IH with HY-TRANS oil. What ALL of the manufactures forgot is that the oils would MIX when a piece of equipment with any type of hydrulics was switch between differing brands of tractors. This is where your Universal Hydrulic/Transmission came into being and this is what I would use in the hydrulics of you D-17. This is what Dad uses in his 190XT.

Kent

Silverman, if it has been sitting a good while, the carb and tank will need attention. Gas decomposes when sitting for long periods in the sun. In Texas, it only takes a few months. In Minnesota, it may take years. Pulling the carb apart and making sure every passage is totally clear of gunk is necessary. If you are careful in disassembly, you may be able to save the gaskets, do a good cleaning and reassemble without buying a kit. I'm suggesting this just to get it running. A kit may be necessary in the long term but cleaning may get you going. New gas may be necessary. Remove the line from the carburetor, place a hose to connect this to a drain point like a gas can or pail, open the settling bowl valve and watch the fuel flow. If fuel is clean and runs at a good steady clip, fuel supply should be OK. Reconnect gas line to carb. Open drain on bottom of carb. With settling bowl valve open, observe flow of gas out of bottom of carb for several minutes (collect gas with a funnel and hose to a gas can). If it flows steady and at a good rate, you are ready to try starting again.

Good luck!