John Deere H Cranking

[jerryinga]

I have a 1939 JD Model H hand start of course. My problem is the cranking. It will start fine when it is cold but when it is warm that"s a different story. I know you can tell a lot from the deposits on the spark plugs. My plugs have black soot on them, what does that mean? The tractor has been restored last year so everything is new mag,cond,points wires plugs and carb rebuilt. It can be pulled off and cranked easly and runs fine. Where do I go from here? Any help would be greatly appreciated

 

[Husker44A]

You said the carb and mag were rebuilt. On the carb did the rebuilder drill ALL the passages out with proper drill bits ? Is the float highth set correctly ? Do you have a good fuel flow ? When you turn the flywheel does the mag have a good sharp SNAP and not a dull wimpy click. How much choke are you using ? All JD two cylinders start differently. Some need choke for one turn then off. Some use half choke for two turns then off. My 44 A uses 3/4 choke for one turn then OFF. Turn it one turn and its running. What plugs are you using ?

 

[Rick Borland]

The hand start H that I use has been in the family since 1946. Ever since I can remember and even now, old Johnny always started pretty good cold or when slightly warmed up, but once the engine gets above 160 degrees not so good. Always thought it had something to do with the manifold being hot and vaporizing the fuel inappropriately. Once it cools to just below 160 we're back in business. Always parked it on a slope to coast start it in third gear when hot or pulled with another tractor. Just seemed to be the nature of the beast.

 

[Rick Borland]

Also I have used 100DLL aviation fuel in Johnny for the last 15 years. Keeps the plugs real clean. These tractors will foul plugs easily if idled much or not worked hard on regular gas. Plowing and brush cutting works them hard and keeps the plugs looking normal if running on unleaded gas. If just an occasionally used tractor used for putting around, shows or parades, you might want to put D23 plugs in or switch to aviation fuel. My father bought a 1941 John Deere H at an auction back in 1996. The farmer who had passed away farmed 120 acres with just this one John Deere H which he had purchased new. There were two five gallon buckets of fouled spark plugs in the barn where the tractor was always stored.

 

[Richard G.]

My 42 hand crank starts cold with the throttle barely open. I turn it with the choke closed until it fires. Open choke and turn a couple of turns and it cranks.
Warm or hot, barely open the throttle and crank with no choke. Always fires right up.
Every one is different, just have to learn their personality.
Richard in NW SC

 

[leon]

Something strange here! The belt pulley on an H, being on the cam shaft, runs the opposite direction of most tractors. Thus on nearly all machines it needs to run with the belt not crossed. Belts stay on better if crossed so most machines were made to run that way with with most tractors. So why is the belt crossed in this picture?????

 

[jdal]

Hay press will run in either direction.

 

[PopinJohn]

Autolite spark plugs seem to do better than Champions these days.
Also, the carb being set a little too rich will soot up the plugs.
Also, when the throttle disc becomes worn, the carburetor will start pulling fuel through both the idle circuit and the load circuit, causing the fuel mixture to be richer than needed.

 

[Rick Borland]

Most hay presses were designed for the top of the flywheel to turn toward the back of the press. When you see most tractors belted to a press the belt is not crossed. That's why it is great to run the press from the John Deere H because you can cross the belt since the belt pulley is rotating backwards. Steam tractors that have driven this press for me can run either direction. When we run the press from other tractors and the belt is not crossed, I usually jam a pitchfork into the ground so the handle barely rubs the side of the belt. This quiets the belt down acting like a snubber.