John Deere 2010 - Running hot, now won't stay running

[s13richards]

I have a 1964 John Deere 2010RU and as I was bush hogging, I noticed that it was running pretty hot. It started sputtering, so I checked the gas and it was bubbling hot. The temp gage never read over 210 and the oil psi stayed around 25. I started to make my way back to the barn to let it cool down and then it started running very poorly and wanted to die. I pulled the choke and the throttle was up just trying to atleast get to shade and it was crawling then died. Let it cool down and tried it start it again, it started and then died immediately. Any thoughts on what could have caused it to run so hot and now why it won't stay running?

This is my first tractor and I've been redoing things on here and there but I'm leaning as I go, so please forgive my lack of knowledge on some things. Thanks for your time in advance!

 

[Mnethercutt]

Rich,

I'm not super familiar with the 2010 tractor but I've worked on the engine that's in that machine itself and figured I'd post a reply since no one else had.

As far as the not starting I would suspect that you've got a clog in the fuel line, filter, carburetor, or tank that is restricting fuel flow to the carburetor. It's entirely possible that the overheating may have heated up the gas tank and dislodged some crud that had settled down in the tank. Your description that the tractor started and then died to me suggests a lack of fuel. Bubbling gas is also not good...

For the overheating, there's a few different things it could be but there's some basic, easy things you can do to get started.

Please answer the following questions so I can give you the best troubleshooting instructions:
-Is the tractor equipped with the factory fuel shutoff strainer assembly?
-Is the tractor equipped with a metal fuel line?
-Is the tractor equipped with an in-line fuel filter?
-To your knowledge, does the tractor have an elbow strainer at the carburetor inlet?
-The tractor should have a heat shield between the engine and fuel tank. Is this heat shield installed?

Once you answer these I'll type out some troubleshooting steps for you to take.

 

[Tom in Mo.]

You didn't say but I'm sure you checked that your coolant was still in the radiator and the fan/water pump belt is not slipping. Hoses not collapsed and you must have the fan shroud in place as well. The water pumps on those are simple and only fail by leaking seals. It's possible some gunk got lodged in the thermostat to block the coolant flow. As Mcutt says that heat shield is there for a reason.
disconnect the fuel line at the carb and check that you have good flow from the tank. That's a Marvel Schebler carb which are usually reliable. I've owned a couple 2010's and they were both good machines but a whole lot of people had very bad luck with the early 2010's before serial 48000, mainly with the hydraulics.