Super A runs for a few minutes, then stales. Will start again after five minutes of sitting

B

Berhidle

New member
:tractor:

Hello!

Although I am newish to the Super A, I am not new to figuring out mechanical issue or carbs. My favorite car was a 77 Chrysler Newport Royal with a 383 4-bbl. I spent a lot of time loving on that car, and she ran great! Left everyone in the dust, too! (I put my money in the engine and drive train, not the bling!"

So, to the Super A. I believe it is around a 53. I'm not sure how to tell what the age is.


SHORT HISTORY:

This was my grandparent's tractor, until my grandmother passed away fourteen years ago. My brother was 'running' the tractor every once in a while, just to keep it in good shape.

Now I have a need to use the tractor, but have found out that it sat for eight years with gas in it! :evil: When I found out, I was FAR from happy!


WHAT I HAVE DONE:

Needless to say, the battery needed to be replaced. I also pulled the fuel strainer and flushed the tank...three times...to get the junk out of it. It's still not one hundred percent, but the fuel is cleaner.

I replaced the strainer as a whole. It was easier than getting the pieces I needed to fix this one (Bowl was cracked, screen was torn, gasket cracked).

I removed the copper line and put a rubber 5/16" hose in it's place. (Sorry about that, purists!) I'll probably go back to copper, once I am past this headache.

I rebuilt the carb. The old float still works fine, so I didn't replace that, but it DOES have a new needle and seat in, and I flushed it well with carb cleaner and air.

I cleaned out the oil bath air intake. What was in there was more like tar than oil.

Pulled the plugs, cleaned them and gaped them. They looked pretty good, so I was ok with leaving them for now.

Nothing wires yet. I have good spark.

Points look ok. They probably need a filing, though.


THE PROBLEM:

I can start the engine with the choke, and then push it in and it will run fine. Far better than I expected. And it will idle for fifteen minutes without issue. :{_}:

BUT, if I try driving it around, I can get MAYBE five minutes, then it stalls - like it's out of gas. (There's three gallons in the tank)

If I let it sit for about five minutes, it will start and run again for four or five minutes. Idles longer.

I check the ID of the copper tubing. It is less than the ID of replacement nipples I put on the strainer and carb.



THE QUESTION: :help:

Have any of you seen this issue before? Can you give me any ideas of what else I should be checking?

I have considered a low pressure, 6 volt fuel pump for the tractor, with a pressure regulator to drop the pressure down to under one pound, but I really don't want to corrupt the tractor any more than I have!


Any HELPFUL feedback is appreciated!
 
Despite your efforts to date, it sounds to me like you still have a partial fuel obstruction somewhere. I'd go through the complete fuel system again, looking for debris. This time, include the vent holes in the fuel cap. When you do decide to replace the rubber fuel line, use 5/16 steel. That's the way it came from the factory.
 
Coil breaking down. Operate the tractor until it dies. Then immediately check for spark.

No or weak spark, coil. Good spark, fuel related.
 
I have considered a low pressure, 6 volt fuel pump for the tractor, with a pressure regulator to drop the pressure down to under one pound, but I really don't want to corrupt the tractor any more than I have!
Click to expand...

Not sure the carb would tolerate pressurized fuel

Disconnect the fuel line at the carb and see if the line if flowing a decent amount of fuel out of the line.If you have good fuel flow then it may be an ignition coil overheating
 
I have had all the problems that Don, Eugene, and Dale describe. Isn't there a drain on the fuel bowl that you can open, with your pump off, that you can check flow?
 
Thank you for all of the replies.

I failed to mention that I am in upstate New York - Syracuse area. The average high has been around freezing, so not sure how that plays with the coil overheating. When the engine stalls, if I pull the choke it starts up and runs again without any problem, until the fuel runs out.

I’m planning on taking the fuel tank off and rinsing it out. I have have pretty good fuel flow at the carb, and very little debris in any of the screens, which is puzzling me.

From what is being posted, it may be best just to start at the tank and go through the whole system again.
 
It happens if the engine’s RPMs are above idle - say 1/3 throttle.

I have done some more work on the tractor and found that the outlet for the tank is being plugged by sediment. I had flushed the tank three times, but there is still enough junk in the bottom that it’s stirred up when I put fuel in the tank.

I’m going to pump out what is in there and take the tank off. I will let it dry completely, turn it from time to time to get the ‘layers’ of junk out, then I’ll use a scrub brush to clean it out. I think one of this Just toilet brushes will work.

That should take care of it. At least I hope it does!

Thanks for all of the advice!

More to follow!
 
an easy way to confirm whether it's the tank is to watch the sediment bowl. if it's not full and there's an air layer up on top then you know the fuel is not flowing in from the tank. Nomad
 
Hello all!

An update on this: I removed the tank from the tractor this evening and flushed it out with plain water. I rinsed it three times with about a half gallon each time.

I got quite a bit of junk out of it. When I looked inside, though, there was still a muddy consistency of dirt and rust around the outlet.

I have a small wooden dowel I use for checking the level of the fuel in the tank. I used that to loosen this area up. I rinsed the tank twice more, and now it is relatively clean inside.

I’m letting it dry overnight, then I’m going to rinse it with gas to be sure that all the water is out of it.

One question I have for you: do you see a problem adding isopropyl alcohol to the gas to help absorb the water?

I don’t think it will cause any problems for the carb or for the engine, but I want to be sure.

Thanks for all the support! I really do appreciate it!
 
If you're using fuel with ethanol in it, it probably has enough alcohol to absorb any remaining water. Otherwise, I don't think there would be any problem.
 
Thanks Don!

I am presuming I should use a lead additive for the fuel to avoid issues with the valve seats, correct?
 
I would seal the inside of the tank, and it's crud. There are several products that would do that such as Redkot or POR.
Berhidle":3neocbfv said:
I am presuming I should use a lead additive for the fuel to avoid issues with the valve seats, correct?
Click to expand...
Incorrect. No need for a lead additive.
 
Thanks for the suggestion to seal the tank! I’ll do that as soon as can.

For now, though: GOOD NEWS!!!

After flushing the tank and ‘surgically’ removing the junk in the tank, and flushing it out again, and then again...

It is running fine! Clean gas in the bowl, no sediment in it and it ran for over fifteen minutes without stumbling, hesitating or stalling!!

Thanks again for all of the advice! I am very grateful to all of you!
 
Glad you found the issue. Don't let the cost of the Redkot or POR sway you from sealing the tank. Whichever product you use, follow the manufacturer's instructions to the letter.

If you don't want to go that route, then you could search for a good used gas tank that is free from rusty debris on the inside. Placing a Wanted ad here on the Vine or finding one locally would be your choices.
 
Hello all!

Just a quick update on this:

Despite the fact that I was able to clean the majority of the deposits out of the tank, I’m still having issues with sand like rust coming through the line. It’s plugging everything up.

Being that I am in upstate New York – the Syracuse New York area – I’m dealing with cold temperatures. I don’t have a heated workshop that I can warm the gas tank in. This causes a problem, since the coating needs to be at least 50F to dry, not to mention anything I rinse the tank out with.

So, until I have warmer weather – that is around May or so – I can’t really seal the tank, but I still need the tractor for plowing.

Until I can seal the tank, what I have done is bought a 2 gallon gas can, drilled a hole in the lower side of the can, put a barbed nipple in and I have run the fuel line from that through a fuel filter to the carburetor.

The tractor is running great and I am happy with it at this point. I still plan on taking care of the tank, but as I said, the weather is not warm enough for me to take care of it at this point.

Thanks again for all of the advice!!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top