Points gap on sidemount

[Milesvdustin]

My FO4 manual says .0025, everyone on here says .025. Which is it?

 

[HFJ]

.025"

 

[Milesvdustin]

So the manual is wrong?

Also, i installed a 180 degree thermostat with the spring end facing the head. It boiled over, but I saw on other posts here that I have it in the correct orientation. Or do I?

 

[JMOR]

(quoted from post at 19:29:41 07/04/17)
So the manual is wrong?

Also, i installed a 180 degree thermostat with the spring end facing the head. It boiled over, but I saw on other posts here that I have it in the correct orientation. Or do I?

have two different FO-4 manuals 9ppblished about 50 years apart and both say 0.025.

 

[ZANE]

I have operated 8Ns since 1948 and never had a reason to think it had to have a thermostat?????

Zane

 

[HFJ]

(quoted from post at 20:29:41 07/04/17)
So the manual is wrong?

are u sure your manual says .0025 and not 0.025?

 

[Richard G.]

I agree. I have been running my 52 8N 55 years and it has never had a thermostat.
Richard

 

[Bruce (VA)]

You installed it backwards.

75 Tips

 

[Royse]

The gap is 25 thousandths.
The purpose of the thermostat is to get the engine up to temp,
not to keep it cool. If you run your N for short periods of time,
which I do many times, it is essential. Otherwise your oil doesn't
get warm enough to get rid of the moisture that condensates in it.
Are you sure you didn't just have the radiator over filled and it
pushed the excess out once it got up to the proper temp?

 

[Bruce (VA)]

Ford put a t-stat on the B Model Ford in 1933. All the N's came from the factory with them. See tip # 25. The purpose of a t-stat is to quickly get the engine up to efficient operating temp and keep it there.
75 Tips

 

[Milesvdustin]

Bruce, in your picture thats exactly how I had it installed. It puked a bunch but now I can see the coolant flowing. I am surprised it puked out sice I had just barely covered the core with coolant. Just mowed for 20 minutes, no issues.

Here is the picture of what my FO4 says regarding points gap.

[/img]https://flic.kr/p/WqYyXF

 

[Milesvdustin]

Bruce, my stat is installed the way your picture indicates. I had the coolant level right at the top of the core, so I was surprised it puked out. I just mowed for 20 minutes, tractor runs great now.

Here is the page of my FO4 that shows the points gap.

What would happen if I ran the smaller gap?

 

[HFJ]

miles, the way flickr has that setup, u need to click the share button on that page, then click the BBCode tab and copy the text that comes up and paste it into your post here to get the image embedded:



Untitled by milesvdustin, on Flickr

i don't know what to tell u lol, you're certainly reading it right. different version of the FO-4 with a typo maybe?

 

[HFJ]

typo(s) for sure. it states a metric equivalent of .61mm etc. .0024" = .061mm

 

[Phil N]

"Ford put a t-stat on the B Model Ford in 1933. All the N's came from the factory with them. See tip # 25. The purpose of a t-stat
is to quickly get the engine up to efficient operating temp and keep it there".

I fully agree with Bruce in his statement above. To add to that, a thermostat also helps bring oil to temperature and boil off
water which is a by product of internal combustion. If the water is allowed to accumulate in the oil, it will form corrosive acids
that attack all those machined surfaces in side your engine. I've seen crankshafts that measured in spec but had to be ground
because of corrosion from acid attack. Absolutely run a thermostat.