9-N Fuel Problem - I Think?

[Anonymous-0]

Have thrown hands up in air for weekend. Tractor Ides pretty good. Starts to sputter when you increase throttle. I have rebuilt carb. The fuel bowl seems to have plenty of fuel but tractor seems like it is strarving for gas has you increasee throttle. Not sure if it is fuel now or if I have another problem. The distributor needs bushing replaced but it is not to bad.

The tractor was converted to 12 volt and alternator does not put out more than 8 volts. I keep battery charged and the running of the tractor does not change from Charged battery to week battery. I really believe it is fuel.

Any thoughts would be appreciated.

Allen

 

[Bruce (VA)]

Checking fuel flow by looking at the sediment bowl is like turning the lights on to see if your battery is charged. Neither are very reliable tests.

There are three very important tools you always need to have in your N tool box: a 3 inch piece of wire w/ alligator clips on each end, an old spark plug w/ the gap opened to 3/16” and a 7/16 box end wrench. And, you really do need a working ammeter. With these tools, you can quickly narrow down most N problems to spark or fuel.

First, check for fuel. Remove the bolt in the bottom of the carb; as long as the fuel is turned on, you should see gas flowing out of the carb. If it’s a dribble, or runs for 5 seconds & stops, or none at all, you have solved half the problem: it’s fuel related. If gas flows well out of the carb & only stops when you turn it off at the sediment bowl, chances are very good it’s not a fuel problem. Next, get the old plug, ground it to a rust & paint free spot on the engine, turn the key on & crank the engine. If the spark jumps the 3/16” gap, you probably don’t have a spark problem. If it won’t jump the 3/16” gap, you have a spark problem.

If it does not have gas coming out of the carb at a steady stream w/ the bolt out, you have a fuel problem. First, remove the gas cap. Your vent could be clogged & it vacuum locked. If that doesn’t work, tap the carb bowl w/ a hammer handle in case the float is sticking closed. (don’t whack it w/ the head of the hammer; you can crack the bowl). If you still don’t see gas flowing, the N has three fuel screens; one in the brass elbow, one in the top of the sediment bowl & one on the stem of the sediment bowl in the gas tank. Check the screen in the elbow & the screen in the top of the sediment bowl. (don’t worry about the one in the tank) Both probably need to be cleaned. If you have the fuel knob turned on all the way, it may be trying to feed off of the reserve inlet which is probably clogged. Only open it 2 full turns. Put at least 2 gallons in the tank.
50 Tips

 

[Anonymous-0]

Thanks Bruce,

I think somebody remove the elbow screen because the line comes directly out of the fuel bowl and runs to the carb. The carb float hung which allowed fuel to continue to pour into the carb and overflow. That is when I rebuilt the carb. The tractor behaves as though it is starving for fuel but appears to have plenty of fuel. I did not try leaving the screw out and allow it to run for the five seconds like you suggested. I will do that next. Also it takes a long time for the bowl to fill after draining. If you remove the bowl, the fuel flows fast out of both sides of the fuel valve.

One more question about the spark. I did not quite understand about the spark plug. What do you hook it to. I understand ground. Do I have to take one of the wires off to hook the positive side. Sounds like a dumb question. Normall I have hook the spark plug to the plug wire and then grounded. Is what you are suggesting different.

Thanks

Allen

 

[Bruce (VA)]

The sediment bowl works in a vacuum; it's supposed to take a while to fill. If you take it off, put it back on correctly (as in no leaks) and turn the gas on, it will not fill up unless the float in the carb drops. That's how it's supposed to work. That's why you check fuel flow by removing the bolt in the bottom of the carb.

Remove the plug wire from any plug on the engine. Hook it to your test spark plug w/ the gap opened to at least 3/16". Get a pair of pliers w/ insulated handles & grab the plug. Hold the plug tightly against a rust & paint free spot on the engine. Turn the key on & crank the engine. Look at the gap on the plug & see if you have spark.
50 Tips

 

[wildhorse2k]

Hi Allen

you should get the elbow screen and install it. On the spark -- disconnect the plug wire from one of the plugs on the tractor and connect it to your test spark plug. Lay the test spark plug on the manifold so that the base ( threaded part of the plug) is grounded well and so that you can see the spark jump the gap. Turn on the ignition and crank the starter and look at the spark as the starter turns

You might want to check the main jet on the carb.. mine was blocked -- it would idle but would die if I opened the throttle.


-- Mark

 

[Dell (WA)]

Allen.....you write......"Starts to sputter when you increase throttle ...and... alternator does not put out more than 8 volts".......you don't suppose the sputtering is cause by weak sparkie volts by a BAD alternator do you???

It aint'chur carb and nebber was.....its yer weak sparkies!!!!

Take yer alternator into enny autoparts store for a "free" check-out (cheap, eh?)

And keep yer itchy-twitch fingers away from them handy-dandy carb tweek-ems. And iff'n you done tweeked-em and don't know how to do it right, ask for help. .......Dell, yer self-appointed sparkie-meister

 

[souNdguy]

where are yuo getting this 8v reading. .the wire from the bat to the alt charge stud should have bat votls on it.. if your bat votls are 8.. on a 12v system.. no wonder it runs rough!

post back more info

soundguy

 

[Anonymous-0]

Thanks to all for response... Will follow up with all suggestions and hopefully report back with good news.

Thanks

Allen

 

[Anonymous-0]

Thanks to all. I followed the directions of all of you and ended up with a 9-N that runs like a kitten. Rebuilt Carb and installed screen that was absent at the carb.

Replace the Alternator which was the main culprit. When I bought the tractor, somebody had done half a conversion. It had a 6 volt coil and they had taken the alternator and had jumped two of the wires to reduce the voltage. Tractor had a 12 volt battery and wires running every where. It was a hodge podge of a mess and did not know where to start.

This week I followed the direction of you all and when I turned the key to test it, it started without even choking. Could not believe it.

Again, Thanks to all of you.

Allen

 

[Anonymous-0]

Thanks to all. I followed the directions of all of you and ended up with a 9-N that runs like a kitten. Rebuilt Carb and installed screen that was absent at the carb.
Replace the Alternator which was the main culprit. When I bought the tractor, somebody had done half a conversion. It had a 6 volt coil and they had taken the alternator and had jumped two of the wires to reduce the voltage. Tractor had a 12 volt battery and wires running every where. It was a hodge podge of a mess and did not know where to start.

This week I followed the direction of you all and when I turned the key to test it, it started without even choking. Could not believe it.

Again, Thanks to all of you.

Allen