Carburetor flooding

[damianhaarhoff]

Greetings, My 9n tractor is not starting. It is cranking and turning over but not taking. After a while I see gas dripping from the carburetor. This is happening every time I try to start it. Is it flooding? If so, what can I do about this? Thank you for the advice.

 

[Dell (WA)]

damon.......wow, raw gas leaking outta the mouth of yer carb and wonder iff'n its FLOODING??? Would it surprize you that yer carb IS flooding???

Ennytime you have "starting issues", change yer sparkies. NO ARGUE!!!
Recommend AutoLite 437's gapped 0.025".
Don't throw yer FLOODED sparkies away, just clean'n'dry them, one-atta-time in HOT running engine and save'um fer the next time. (and there will be a next time)

Learn to start yer engine without FLOODING it. 2-turns on the glass knob under yer gastank; hand throttle 1/3; ignition switch ON, 2-rumpa-rumpas on the starter motor ...then... a QUICK pull on yer choke knob.

Keep yer itchy-twitchy fingers off'n them handy-dandy carb tweek'um. They seldom need adjusting. Iff'n you done tweeked'um; 'fess-up and we'll tell you how to adjust'em. ........Dell

 

[JCinKY]

Wayyyy too much choke bud. Replace/clean plugs as Dell stated.

Try it with no choke and maybe a little ether. If that won't do it, you have other issues.

Might rap on the carb bowl lightly with screwdriver handle to unstick a stuck float needle. Couple light taps can't hurt.

 

[Royse]

Yep, it's flooded. Good advice on changing the plugs.
I would also check to see if you even have spark.
If you don't have a spark tester, take one of the plug wires
and hold it about 3/16 of an inch away from a good ground and
see if spark jumps. (use an insulated tool or heavy leather glove)
Should be good blue/white spark.
If it won't jump, or it's yellow/orange in color, you need to
clean/re-gap/replace your points.
If none at all, post back and we can walk you through
troubleshooting that problem.

 

[Waterworth Farm]

I found a good way to clean out a flooded carb is to turn the gas off, open the throttle up a good bit, don"t touch the choke, and then crank on it until it starts. You will have to crank a while before it starts, it will spit and sputter some at first and the gradually begin to run smoother. As it begins to run smoother, turn the throttle down and then turn the gas on. The carb is flooding because your float is stuck. A good carb cleaning and float adjustment should take care of it.

 

[Charner]

Make sure you turn the gas off after running. A leaking carb will fill the intake manifold and flood the valves and drain your gas tank into the oil pan.

 

[36 Coupe]

Too much choke.

 

[damianhaarhoff]

Thanks for all the advice fellows! I changed all the spark plugs and when it still wouldn't start, I was looking up behind the steering wheel and found a loose wire. Well, I connected it and it started right up! Silly me, I guess I should have checked that first - troubleshooting tip #1 - is it plugged in??? Oh well, it was probably time for new sparks anyway.

I did run into two issues though during and after mowing which maybe you guys could address. I was mowing grass that was about knee high and I was mowing as low as I could. The brush hog kept bogging down and my 9n would stall so I would have to keep backing up and going at it again. Is this normal? Am I expecting too much from a 20-something HP tractor that is over 60 years old or is there a reason it seems to be lacking in power? I wouldn't think that a 9n would struggle mowing knee high grass in first gear especially as I sharpened the blades before mowing.

The second issue was after mowing, I parked it and it was dripping quite a bit of gas out of the carburetor. Am I supposed to be closing the knob to the glass bowl after each use and then opening it again when I need to use the tractor again?

Thanks again for any advice. As you can tell, all of this is very new to me!

 

[JCinKY]

(quoted from post at 20:16:01 06/01/13)Am I expecting too much from a 20-something HP tractor that is over 60 years old or is there a reason it seems to be lacking in power? I wouldn't think that a 9n would struggle mowing knee high grass in first gear especially as I sharpened the blades before mowing.

The second issue was after mowing, I parked it and it was dripping quite a bit of gas out of the carburetor. Am I supposed to be closing the knob to the glass bowl after each use and then opening it again when I need to use the tractor

1. Yes some bogging is normal. Depends on lots of factors, overall condition of tractor, overall condition of cutter, length/thickness of grass, how wet it is, etc...

Try taking less of a cut to avoid it. Hope you have an ORC on that thing.

2. Turn it off after each use. That's why it's there. 2 turns out for normal flow, all the way out for 2 gal reserve. You need to open that carb up when you get time to get it right.

 

[damianhaarhoff]

Thanks for the reply. Sorry it has been so long. With a little more mowing, I"m beginning to get the feel for what the tractor can handle. Taking less of a cut has been helpful and not waiting until the grass is so long that I can"t see the kids in the back yard! Yes, I do have an ORC which has been a life saver (literally!). I cannot imagine mowing without it. Anyway, thanks again for the help.