Draining coolant .... Farmall A or B

Crazy Horse

Well-known Member
First off, I'm assuming that the coolant drain plug(s) for the model A and B are in the same location. I have an early Farmall A with the non-pressure radiator. So here's my questions .....

- Are there two drains, one for the block and one for the radiator?

- My radiator does not have a drain in the bottom rad pan. Maybe the rad drain is in the lower rad hose? If so, not there in my tractor.

- If there is a block drain location, I sure can't find one. Where would I look? On the right side of the block I see a plug but I suspect it is a blank off for a drilled oil passage.

This little video shows the guy draining the radiator (and maybe the block at the same time). I cannot figure out where he is draining from ....
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Yes there is a block drain and a radiator drain but I would have to go look at my BA to tell you exactly where they both are since it has been years since I drained my BA
 
I just went out and looked at my BA. Radiator drain is on the left side and is part of the lower radiator hose assembly. You have the radiator and working back then a short hose then the part the hose hooks to that is the lower part of the engine. The drain is in that part of the engine lower hose hook up. Mine has a couple of pipe fittings hooked to it to make it easy to drain but many just have pipe plug that one has to reach up and in to remove to drain them
 
Thanks Old, I never looked there. So just the one drain location which would drain both the radiator and the block.
 
Yes that is all I found. I did notice on the right side of the block a little plug sort of thing that takes an Allen wrench which could be the block drain but the location of the radiator drain leads me to believe one would not need to drain the block since the radiator drain sits very low and is part of the engine it self. If yours doesn't have the extra pipe fittings on it like my BA has you may have to also get under the front of the tractor and lay your head on the front tire and look up into the hole under there
 
Thanks Dave ..... I'll check it out, the tractor isn't here at home so next time I'm out there I'll take a closer look. Thanks to all.
 
consider backing off lower radiator hose clamp and loosing the hose to drain the tractor. sometimes those old fittings break or fracture.
 
Here's a pic of the drain on my A. It's in the engine inlet housing The book does not mention any others.
Dennis

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That is why I like the pipe fittings my BA has on it. Plus it sits down low enough that it is easy to pull the pipe cap off
 
Great photo Dennis ...... I've never looked under there before but will today. That's what the guy in the video was removing but you couldn't tell what he was dealing with. Since my radiator is off and all the coolant out, it should be relatively easy to get some heat on that plug with a propane torch from inside and out, plus a bit of penetrating oil and more heat. Hopefully it will budge but I'll proceed with caution, probably hasn't been loosened off in many years.
 
(quoted from post at 07:13:47 09/04/20) Great photo Dennis ...... I've never looked under there before but will today. That's what the guy in the video was removing but you couldn't tell what he was dealing with. Since my radiator is off and all the coolant out, it should be relatively easy to get some heat on that plug with a propane torch from inside and out, plus a bit of penetrating oil and more heat. Hopefully it will budge but I'll proceed with caution, probably hasn't been loosened off in many years.

The housing the plug is in is easily removed with the radiator out if you have to get serious with it. Just pipe thread but I don't know for sure what size. 3/8 maybe. Good luck
Dennis
 
I was out there this morning and yes, everything was there as it should be, funny I never even noticed it before. My rad has a leak, that's why the rad is out. Plug was a bit stubborn but as usual, a little heat solved the problem. I thought it might be 1/2" pipe thread but 3/8 sounds a bit better now that I think of it. Thanks for all the help ....
 
(quoted from post at 15:22:59 09/04/20) I was out there this morning and yes, everything was there as it should be, funny I never even noticed it before. My rad has a leak, that's why the rad is out. Plug was a bit stubborn but as usual, a little heat solved the problem. I thought it might be 1/2" pipe thread but 3/8 sounds a bit better now that I think of it. Thanks for all the help ....

Just keep in mind we are dealing with pipe sizes. They, at least at one time in history, refer to the inside diameter of the pipe not the outside diameter.

For example 3/8 pipe would actually measure 0.675 on the outside. Also the threads on standard pipe are tapered so they will measure a bit smaller if measuring a threaded areas.

So taking that in to account a 3/8 plug would probably measure close to 5/8 inch. So take a 5/8 inch open end wrench and if it looks close then it's a 3/8 inch plug.

I know who asked for all that? It's just the way I can get sometimes!
 
A guy can't learn too much Ken .... next time I'm out there with the tractor I'm taking a couple of pipe fittings with me just for fun. Actually, a short pipe nipple with a cap would clear the housing and make things a bit neater for draining. As long as you held the nipple with a pair of vise grips and then put the cap on and off for closing off or draining.
 
Or you could do like my Grand father did on his 1935 JD B. He put a garden hose faucet at the drain so he could open it up and drain it any time he wanted and it is still on it to this day.
 
Of course back when my grandfather was still alive and using his JD B there wasn't much good for anti freeze so they drained them after they used it. Of course any type of valve in the drain would make it easy to drain. By the way I now own that 1935 JD B and even have the owners manual that came with it when new
 
(quoted from post at 17:39:00 09/04/20) OLD ...... great idea at 10 PM on a cold, frosty night in the fall.

And then do like I have heard some did before good anti-freeze was common. Drain water into a bucket and take in the house and put on the wood stove for the night then in morning carry it back out and dump it back in the engine.

That same guy probably did like my dad said his dad did to take the chill off the frame house up in Minn. Just toss a couple chunks of old car tires in the wood stove! Get the chimney glowing a bit and the house warmed up nice!
 

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