What to look for buying a diesel tractor at auction

chas036 · Jan 22, 2018

I will going to an auction this week and there is JD 4010 diesel I am interested in. Already I did a walk around and checked the oil for water , and the pto shaft for looseness and everything looks good except for some leaking of water out the weep holes which I was told is normal for a tractor this old.

My question is,,,, when I see the tractor running at the auction, how can you tell if the rings are bad?
With a gas tractor, when you see a lot of blue smoke, this is a good indication of bad rings, but diesels blow smoke naturally, so how do you know if the rings are bad?

Also, how do you know if the injector is bad?
Sorry fior the questions but I have no experience buying diesels

NY 986 · Jan 22, 2018

Check my post on the John Deere board and realize that there are people who do not like 4010's that will not give an endorsement.

rustyfarmall · Jan 22, 2018

I see you are from upstate New York. That 4010 will most likely need to be plugged in before it will start in cold weather. This is normal. Try to be there when the tractor is started. If it starts easily and then runs nice and smooth, it is probably okay. The 4010 and 4020 diesels all have a tendency to smoke blue while idling slowly. This is also normal. When you pull the throttle down quickly from idle, the engine should respond without hesitation, and there should be some black smoke which will then go away

Bob · Jan 22, 2018

There's two O-rings that seal the sleeve, top top one keeps coolant in/up above and the bottom one keeps the oil down below, and is your second defense against coolant getting into the oil.

If the upper rings are leaking coolant, when the bottom ones will start letting it down into the oil is anybody's guess. Mite already be doing just that, or mite not for many hours/years.

If you are going to by it, you'd better understand that/realize that an OH is down the road, either close or possibly a ways off, and budget for it. And hope there's no issues with the block at that time. (Bad pitting in the O-ring area, or cracks.)

NY 986 · Jan 22, 2018

Valid points but one should set aside money on any old tractor unless there is proof that recent work has been done. Then there is the issue of whether the work was done to a high quality level or not.

JDEM · Jan 22, 2018

It is never going to be just "bad rings."

I would not buy any diesel at auction unless I was there to see it started cold. Not unless dirt cheap and I did not mind rebuilding the engine if needed.

In temps around 40-50 degrees F, it ought to start on its own. Hard - yes, and maybe smoke and skip bu it ought to start reluctantly at those temps with NO ether. If they have it plugged into a block heater or use ether - you cannot tell.

Injectors usually work or they don't. An engine with worn injectors can start and sound just like one with new injectors.

Diesels do not blow smoke "naturally" when not under load at at operating temperature. I'd look close for blowby out the breather on a warmep up engine. If an engine skips and smokes after started when fairly warm (engine 50 degrees F or warmer) - it likely needs a lot of work.

Bruce from Can. · Jan 22, 2018

This is getting to be a old tractor, I would want to know the history of the tractor before I would give it serious though

Traditional Farmer · Jan 22, 2018

If you're serious and plan to spend some pretty good money on it you'd be ahead to get a diesel mechanic to check it out for you.Better $50 or $100 up front now than a money pit later.Plus it might be in excellent shape and you'll know that and get a bargain because you'll know what others don't.

NY 986 · Jan 22, 2018

I'll just throw the following in. When my 4010 diesel was outfitted with the original 24V system and used 30 wt Torq Gard (within recommended temp range) it was a so-so starter on days like today (37 degrees F). Since having the 12V conversion and running 50 Plus 15W40 that same tractor will start today just like it were 70 degrees w/o cold weather aids. Get down to 15 degrees F and maybe you have to roll it for 10-15 seconds w/o any aids. Engine has not been apart since 1976 to stick 4020 kit in it. 12V conversion went on around mid-1980's.

buickanddeere · Jan 22, 2018

Using in a collection, odd jobs and peak use on a farm or the sole tractor to make a living.

coshoo · Jan 22, 2018

2nd what JDEM said, especially about seeing it cold started. That will tell you more than just about anything not requiring a wrench (which is frowned upon at auctions).

chas036 · Jan 22, 2018

(quoted from post at 18:33:56 01/22/18)
Using in a collection, odd jobs and peak use on a farm or the sole tractor to make a living.

Uses will be plowing and disking thus relieving my 730 gas to lighter duty like spreading manure.

Lumbersawyer · Jan 22, 2018

I've owned my 4010 since 1987. It had the 4020 sleeves in it already. I converted it to 12v three years ago. I started it on Sat at 22F and it started right up. I love my 4010 for what I bought it for, it has a DuAll loader on it. It has a Cab on it too. Wide front with floatation tires. I bought it to load logs when I ran my sawmill. Now the main use is plowing snow and grading the driveway. I had to pull it apart once because the air cleaner froze and hydraulic locked the number 6 cylinder. It pulled the oil out of the ventilation pump. That's when I found out it has 4020 sleeves. I went though the injectors and head, new rings and mic'ed the crank, all was good. Installed a new injection pump while I was at it too. My block does not have any leaks as of yet.

Once warm it should not smoke much, Cold it will a little.

olgentdc · Jan 22, 2018

A good seasoned JDeere mechanic told me that any good 4020 will use a qt of oil every 10 hours working hard ,.and mine does...

What to look for buying a diesel tractor at auction

chas036

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NY 986

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rustyfarmall

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Bob

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NY 986

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JDEM

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Bruce from Can.

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Traditional Farmer

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NY 986

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buickanddeere

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chas036

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