8n Ford Or.. A Fool And His Money

bosephus

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after following some advice from a fellow member on buying new toys while the little woman is already mad
i ended up with this 8n ford .

it sat for at least 10 years but supposedly ran when parked . i have it moved inside my shop and managed to get the hood off and a preliminary inspection done .

the engine turns over freely ... if it has compression is the next question to be answered when i find someone to borrow a compression tester from .

i threw on a resistor to check for spark and not fry the coil and points with a 12v battery .. no spark to be found
so i tested the coil and found it to be doa along with the condenser so no love there .

the sheet metal isnt in to terrible bad shape and is salvageable . the rear wheels however are going to need some rather extensive welding/patching or replacing .
tires are fairly well dry rotted ... but considering i have no real use for the tractor except to a firewood cart around a few times a year if i can get them off to fix the wheels they will go back on after .

i think my first course of action is going to be finding a compression tester and if it has acceptable compression
move on from there ,... if it doesnt . its going to get parted out .

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Nice find.
What the heck if you are all ready in trouble with SWMBO you might as well throw another log on the fire.
I got the same problem with the Kubota I got to find a compression gauge that reads to 500lbs.
*G*
 
If it were me, I would look at restoring the tractor. They are extremely popular and command a good price.

My 8N is a 1950 tractor, S/N 319252. I got it in 1972 and it has had several rebuilds. It's a bit tired now but it still is the go-to tractor for general work. It has a low center of gravity and I used it extensively for more than forty years to bring firewood out of the woods as well as hauling deer out during hunting season. It reliably negotiates 30% grades.

Many years ago, I made a box for the 3 pt. which will hold 1/6th of a cord of wood A 3 pt. mounted grader blade has moved more snow than I care to think about.

The 8N was designed to run on either kerosene or gasoline. The spec. for compression was 90 psi, minimum. There were some aftermarket piston sets which increased compression for more hp. You will find that there are abundant parts available.
 
The compression can be pretty low on an 8N and it will still run. Check the oil pressure as well. If you can't get it running consider rebuilding it. The engine is very simple and easy to work on and parts are available despite the age. You'll want to convert it to 12V if that has not been done already. The starter will work as-is on 12V. I've had an 8N for 25 years and I'm very happy with it.

Take a look at this site: http://www.yesterdaystractors.com/
 
I concur about the 6 volt starter on a 12 volt system. One of my Studebakers had been converted. It really spins that big V8.
 
I'd love to have an 8n I have a 1946 2n that I've been very slowly restoring. The lack of live hydraulics is a real PITA, but there's a little gizmo that you can rig to take care of that when mowing or grading. I have a Ford 2-bottom plow and a Montgomery Ward bush hog, and some who knows brand of disk harrow that I've used with it.

If the tractor was stored outside over the years without having it's hydraulic/transmission oil swapped out every year, you may have a cracked hydraulic pump. Pretty common in these. The shifter boot can crack and let water in as well. On my tractor, the ignition key can be turned to "start" and then removed, which can burn out your points. Don't ask how I know.. :) Lots of parts available for these, and there's a healthy online presence for owners of these too.

edit: I was going to go back and add the URL for yesterday's tractors, but I see someone else beat me to it. Great site.
 
I wouldn't worry about compression unless you get a sea of blue smoke when you get it running...

Yep, change to 12 volt. this costs almost nothing, just need to mount a GM alternator, 12 volt battery and 12 volt coil. If you do this, ask me for more details.

I'd also highly suggest electronic ignition. Genesee products has it online. http://www.gp6.com/ it just fits right in the distributor cap. Replace the wires and plugs at the same time. If you do all this it will start so fast, you can't hear it turn over first. For a test, i went out when it was -35F and had not run in months. Took about 15 seconds to start.
 
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I don't look to do a whole lot to it , if it has compression I'll get it to run and kind of play it by ear past that .
and i had figured on a twelve volt conversion. Having to buy a coil anyways I figure why not .. that's near half the cost .

I've blown my fun money for the next few months so there's not going to be a whole lot of progress with it as far as anything that costs real money goes.

I might get ambitious and get the real wheels off and the calcium drained out and see if the wheels are salvageable .. depending on if it has compression .

I don't many concerns about the lack of live hydraulics or pto . Or even if the hydraulics work for that matter

If it'll run and move to pull a firewood cart around I'll be one happy camper
 
You can tell if it has compression by pulling a plug, putting your thumb over the hole, and cranking it. You may want to take the carb apart and clean it out. Don't bother with a carb rebuild kit. You can cut out a gasket with an Xacto knife. It's better to convert to 12V but not necessary. Check the point gap: it can be fiddly. If you don't use the lights it will run all day on one charge of the battery so don't give up if you can't get the generator working.
 
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