Hand Starting TO30

[Trent Givens]

What is the procedure for hand starting a TO30? What do I do with the shifter in start position?

 

[John(UK)]

Put the shifter in neutral,make sure the parking brake is fixed on, turn on the ignition, pull out the choke and turn the starting handle...John

 

[Jerry/MT]

Is your starter not working? Why do you want to crank start it? It"s laible to be a bit difficult unless the ignition system is functioning properly.

Never having started one like this I"ll tell you how I would do it.
Make sure that the tractor is not in gear. (You won"t be able to turn it over very much by hand if it is, but there"s always the chance that even with a little rotation, it could start and run you over.) Since the gear shift is in the neutral position, you don"t have to worry about the Start position. It doesn"t do anything but make sure that the tractor isn"t in gear and connect the battery to the starter anyway.
Disconnect the pto/pump with the lever on the left side of the tractor so you won"t be turning the hydraulic pump. Open the throttle and give it some choke, turn on the ignition and crank it.
make sure that your thumb is not wrapped around the crank lever when yu grip it. It should be gripped with just four fingers.
Some old timer that has done this may be able to give some additional info.

 

[Richard L]

I have never crank started a tractor or never seen anyone else do it. My neighbor was telling me if I ever crank one to get the handle so as I am cranking it on the up stroke as opossed to the down stroke. Why? I don't know that is what he said so I said OK.

 

[Trent Givens]

Thank you for your help. The reason I am hand starting is because I bought this tractor non running and the battery (6V) was shot. Before I spend the money on a 6v battery (plan to convert to 12v anyways), I want to make sure it runs. Thanks!

 

[vinnywv]

i have a story, enjoy it and heed the warning signs but no answer to your question. my grandfather grew up on a small farm in wv along the cheat river, he was one of 13 children, yes 13. busy people back then....anywho, he used to tell me a new story everyday and i think i should pass it on in his memory. he told me they had a big field with really sandy soil on it. growing up they used to work the feild with a team and it was ok but hard work. one day ol dad decided to get a tractor so when the money was there they got one. i asked what kind he did not remember, but he said it had steel cleats going at an angle across the steel wheels. and it was as heavy as a tank. so everyone can wonder as i have all these years. by the way he was born in 1918. old fart.. so he hated that tractor from day one. it did not trac well through the sandy wet soil it would sink all the time and they would have to uses the horses to pull it out and put timbers under the wheels to get it up out of the mud. the other thing is it needed to be hand cranked to start. it was a bear of a chore to turn that thing over he would say. if you stopped on the wrong place the sucker'd kick back on you and if you were in the wrong position it would kick like an ol mule. one day it all went wrong for'im and it kicked back on the compression stroke, the crank let loose of his handand rolled all the way around backwards just as fast as he could blink and it was a trip to the docs with a broken arm. he was in a sling all summer for that one he said. i miss his stories but remember how fun they were. so long story short, sorry for that, watch your arm... be careful if you do it.

 

[ferg0ne]

I have a 1938 allis B it is a hand crank it also has a mag . I can tell you on the Ferguson that you need a battery or a good charging systen to fire the points and like said it will kick because a distributor is not retarted like a mag so
take care

 

[gshadel]

Trent, the crankshaft nut on the front of original TO was, is notched to accept a hand crank. I assume you have a hand crank already since your wanting to give it a try. I have not hand started TO's, but used to hand crank, and pull started 20HP pump engines back in my old Army days. You might have better luck hand cranking as a 2 man operation, one guy turning the engine, the other feathering the choke. You pretty much need an easy starting engine to hand crank start. An engine that hasn't run in long time likely ain't gonna be easy starting. You want to pull up against the compression stroke when you start, mainly because if your pushing down and the engine kicks, the crank can come around and jamb up into your ribs. If you pulling up, much better chance of staying clear of a jumping crank handle.
The other guys are right, if your battery is dead, you may have trouble getting a good spark unless your charging system is in good working order. You might have a little better luck pulling your TO behind a pick-up truck and popping the clutch to start.

George

 

[Jerry/MT]

If your battery is no good, then your chance of starting it is next to zilch. Nothing to make a spark unless you have a magneto which the TO-30 doesn"t have. I doubt you can handcrank it fast enough to have the generator provide enough current for a spark.

 

[Jerry/MT]

You won"t beable to start it witout a decent battery. You won"t be able to spin it fast enough to have the generator make a spark unless you hook a motor to the crank handle.

 

[ben mc]

just stick a 12 volt battery in and it will start twice as fast

 

[McKay]

I recently fully rebuild a TE20 and hand started it with little heartache!

I have always been told not to wrap your thumb around the starting handle and never to keep going round and round!

If you bring the handle up to about one o'clock and and snap it down and round you should'nt have too much bother

 

[Anonymous-0]

been handcranking a old ford since I was big enough to reach the pedal, like the others said, a well running engine is a breeze if its been sitting your probably in for a treat, i don't remember exactly but my father some how hooked a small 6 volt battery up to the tractor one time, i'm talking about like a flashlight battery and obviously it did not have the strenght to turn the starter it did have enough to make the points fire, kinda jumped it to the big battery, anyway, instead of cranking why not pull start it with another tractor or vehicle, just my two cents

 

[Fungus]

Shifter in the Neural Position (important), adjust choke, engage hand crank in the crank jaw, rotate slowly until compression stroke is found, re-adjust hand crank to 7 o'clock position and pull up.

Don't be wrapping your thumb(s) around the handle (two hands is optional) and keep your head clear of the path the hand crank travels on.

 

[John(UK)]

Your neighbour was correct, it is just in case the engine kicks back and you are pressing down, if you are pulling it up then it will slip out of your fingers easily. Something else you should know about it too, never have the starting handle with your fingers one side of the handle and your thumb on the other, if it kicks it will break your thumb..(nice)....John

 

[RonW]

Just pull start it with another vehicle. May save a lot of grief. When I was a kid, that is how we started most of my cars, LOL. RonW

 

[R . l . HULL]

Hand Cranking . Do it on the up stroke with your thumb and fingers on the same side . If it kicks back , it will straighten your fingers and won't leave you hurting .
IF YOU CRANK ON THE DOWN STROKE , AND IT KICKS BACK , IT WILL DISLOCATE OR BREAK YOUR WRIST .
Words from MOM , vintage 1912 . Cranked her dads Model T Ford in the 1920's and dislocated her wrist .
Some lessons are kind of painfull .

 

[AussieDoc]

(quoted from post at 02:41:39 04/05/08) What is the procedure for hand starting a TO30? What do I do with the shifter in start position?

My 6volt Fergy has been running in a 12 volt battery for years and years. No problems. As for the crank handle...that's just for decoration. :lol: