Stalling Farmall Super C

farmallphred · Oct 9, 2023

I have a 1953 Farmall Super C. The tractor starts right up and runs fine for a while, then starts sputtering and stalls. This has been an ongoing problem for a couple of years now. The tractor gets used a few hours every month doing some grading with a belly blade or mowing on occasion. I have rebuilt the carburetor with no change. Thinking maybe I'm not as good rebuilding carburetors as I thought I might be I sent it to a professional rebuild shop, still no change. I did replace the coil and put in a new plugs, points and spark plug wires. This seem to help for a while but the condition is becoming more frequent again. I've also replaced and cleaned all of fuel strainers and added the strainer that projects up into the tank. All the strainers are clean. The sputtering usually starts when the tractor is under a bit of a load. The run time before this starts to act up varies, sometimes running a couple of hours but this past weekend I was only getting 15 minutes of run time. After the tractor sits for a half hour it starts and runs for a while. Outside air temperature does not seem to be a factor. I am tempted to buy another new coil, but thought I'd try posting to see if anyone has advise on this condition.

gab · Oct 9, 2023

Make sure you're gas cap vent is open.

rustred · Oct 9, 2023

one important fact... do u have a full line of gas flowing to the carb... people never give us this info. u might have the stand pipe in the
tank plugged. and the coil have you felt the coil when it stops? if its hot that your problem . is the coil wires connected correctly ?
another thing we never get the ya i connected the distributor wire to the pos on the coil and thats for pos ground 6 volt.. give every bit
of info to the situation. cause if i was standing by it i would be checking it , but i am am a long ways away and dont have eyes or hands
on it. is this tractor original 6 volt? or switched to 12 volt and alternator? like lots to take in. so tractor sitting for a while means
its a lack of gas in carb till the bowel fills or the coil cools off and then it starts.

farmallphred · Oct 9, 2023

Good suggestion. A lot of my use is dusty work which I suppose could clog the vent. I just put on one of the tall gas tank caps that are designed to prevent gas from staining the top of the tank. I guess when the tractor starts acting up I could release the cap and see if it starts running better.

Tgrasher · Oct 9, 2023

Sounds like it's starving for gas. To
double check, pull your choke out and see
if the motor smooths out next time it acts
up. Most likely you have debris in the fuel
tank blocking the gas flow to the sediment
bowl. Check your gas cap by trying to blow
air through it.

farmallphred · Oct 9, 2023

Rustred - I've pulled the drain plug on the carb and get good flow but not sure exactly what good flow should look like. Do you know if this is like a quart a minute or how much should be expected? I have not felt the coil after the stalls but will the next time I run the tractor. What would cause the coil to overheat? The tractor was converted to 12 v when I bought it but I converted back to 6 v. I followed all the wiring diagrams religiously and have double checked them multiple times.

teddy52food · Oct 9, 2023

How many condensers have you tried????

farmallphred · Oct 9, 2023

Rustred - When you say the coil is hot is that like hot if I keep my fingers on this they will blister or I can keep my fingers on this but feeling really hot?

farmallphred · Oct 9, 2023

I've replaced the condenser at least once, with the points, plugs, wires and coil.

farmallphred · Oct 9, 2023

Most are suggesting gas flow issue. Do Super Cs have vapor lock issues? I am going to pull the sediment bowl with the in tank strainer to check for clogs before running the next time. If after that I continue to experience the problem I will, when tractor starts to sputter release the gas tank lid to see if that restores gas flow.

Athol Carr · Oct 9, 2023

There is a fine fuel filter on the inlet to the carburetor. have you checked that it is clear.

rustred · Oct 10, 2023

It will be hot to the touch when you wrap your hand
around it. If so its toast. Replace it.

used red MN · Oct 10, 2023

The amount of fuel should be a pint in 3 minutes that is
2.5 gallons an hour. It is a bit more than the 2.3 per
hour that the tractor tested as using new under full
load. And a proper test is out of the carb drain plug not
catching the first 5 seconds of flow as the reserve in
the carb bowl is released.
Look at my reply in the other Super C post a bit after
this one. A lot of it is covered here, may be some tips
there. I linked a video to it by a guy who is very
meticulous.

redtom · Oct 10, 2023

If your bowl has that fine screen in it, be
aware that a very small amount of water in
the gas will spread accross and plug that
screen. If you drain your tank catch it in
a clean bucket and let it sit and see if
water drops pool in the bottom. Take that
little round screen and put a few drops of
water on it and see how it film's over
closing it off.

farmallphred · Oct 10, 2023

(quoted from post at 07:46:50 10/10/23) The amount of fuel should be a pint in 3 minutes that is
2.5 gallons an hour. It is a bit more than the 2.3 per
hour that the tractor tested as using new under full
load. And a proper test is out of the carb drain plug not
catching the first 5 seconds of flow as the reserve in
the carb bowl is released.
Look at my reply in the other Super C post a bit after
this one. A lot of it is covered here, may be some tips
there. I linked a video to it by a guy who is very
meticulous.

sed red MN - Is there a link or search topic to the other post you reference? I'm not finding it.

used red MN · Oct 10, 2023

Yes here it is, probably saying the same thing a
different way. Farmalls rarely have vapor lock issues.
Ran them many a day in 100 degree heat in Kansas
with no issues.
Other post

farmallphred · Oct 22, 2023

(quoted from post at 06:49:30 10/10/23) It will be hot to the touch when you wrap your hand
around it. If so its toast. Replace it.

I finally had some time to work on the Super C. I'm doing some grading work with a belly blade. I ran the tractor until the stalling issue started and then checked fuel flow removing the plug at the bottom of the carb. I got 1 pint in 2:30 minutes, so fuel flow was not the issue. I put my hand on the coil and it was hot, you could hold it but not comfortable very long. I have a super M that has always run great. Both tractors are 6V positive grounds so I decided to pull the coil from the Super M and put on the Super C. When doing so I noticed that the coil + was connected to the distributer on the C and on the M it was connected to the switch cable. When putting the coil on the C I reversed the connections to match the M. The Super C ran great during a hard workout the rest of the day. Does anyone know definitively what the right hookup is for the coil?

The coil that was on the C was new this spring. It was the metal jacketed version, like original (more expensive replacement). If it was wired backwards is that why it was hot? And is it now toast? Or if put back in with wires reversed might it still be good?

This post was edited by farmallphred on 10/22/2023 at 05:52 pm.

ShakerPrairie · Oct 22, 2023

If I'm understanding this correctly, I believe you originally had the Super C wired correctly, and the Super M was actually wired backwards for a positive ground system.

This post was edited by ShakerPrairie on 10/22/2023 at 06:51 pm.

farmallphred · Oct 22, 2023

(quoted from post at 02:49:56 10/23/23) If I'm understanding this correctly, I believe you originally had the Super C wired correctly, and the Super M was actually wired backwards for a positive ground system.

This post was edited by ShakerPrairie on 10/22/2023 at 06:51 pm.

That's what I was thinking as well from the wiring diagrams I could find. The + terminal on the coil should go to the distributer. However the M was wired reverse of that and that is how I hooked up the C and it ran great. Either way I likely need a new coil. Any suggestions on a source? I've bought 2 and neither have lasted more than a year.

ShakerPrairie · Oct 22, 2023

Lately I've not had very good luck with coils and condensers, so I'm hesitant to say.

Stalling Farmall Super C

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