New to me 370D- Hardest Cranking and Slowest Cranking- Still Won't Run

[sourwood]

I purchased another S370D- god help me- I mainly bought it to prototype the building of PTO reversers. I've got the gear ratios and gears ordered to get right at 541 rpm out of the rear pto the right way. This will be an external bolt on box, output shaft will be standard 6 slot shaft.

However, I can't get the **** thing to run.

Seriously.

Even with 1100 cranking amps and the battery charger on it, it doesn't want to turn over fast enough to start.

The previous owner wired the glow plugs with a push button starter type deal, where the positive lead runs from the battery directly(always seen it run off the starter post before when people start jury rigging) and then to the push button starter and then from the push button starter to the glow plug. The pushbutton starter only controls the glow plugs.

The regular key ignition controls the ignition of the tractor. It is just not spinning over fast enough to get a chance to start. You get some white diesel smelling smoke that's burned, but it doesn't catch and start. Thoughts ?

Fresh diesel, added pump lubricant to it, added a little cetane boost. Ether will not catch it either.

-Removed negative battery cable, cleaned connections.

-Put new battery terminals on cables.

-New battery(Excide- never buy another one, that is for sure).

 

[skylarkguy]

Maybe starter is tired or has dirty/poor connections. Just a guess.

There may be a lot of happy people once you develop your reverser. Good luck.

 

[Ilikeurtractor]

Next step would be a compression test. Might need rings and/or valve job.

 

[techwrtr2]

Before going nuts... do you have fuel at the injectors? I spent months (intermittently) trying to get mine to start again.I felt certain I had both a bad injector pump and cracked pistons. Compression was/is low and it just wouldn't start. I also noticed that even with a new battery and a new starter, it still cranked way too slowly. I banged head against the wall over that issue since I couldn't understand why it cranked so slowly.

Amazingly enough, when I replaced all of the soft fuel lines it started cranking a whole lot faster. And it started. Somebody here suggested the modestly faster crank speed was due to some fuel entering the combustion chamber and igniting thus propelling a faster crank speed.

Saved me a bunch of money on a rebuild.

 

[tcartwri]

Sounds like someone may have messed with the injector timing, or possibly the valves are grossly out of adjustment.

What gauge are the battery cables?

 

[techwrtr2]

The OEM cables are about 4ga I believe.

 

[284 International]

Even with 1100 cranking amps and the battery charger on it, it doesn't want to turn over fast enough to start.

...Ether will not catch it either.

You have new cables, a new battery, new connections, and a ridiculous amount of power available to the starter. So that part is in good shape. Don't worry about it anymore.

You said it won't turn over fast enough to start. There is a difference between it not turning over at normal speed, and not spinning fast enough to start it if there is a compression or fueling issue. How quickly is it turning over compared to your other Beaver? The tachometer on these reads while the engine is cranking, and will provide a good reference.

If it isn't spinning over at the same rate as your other Beaver: There are two choices. There is either mechanical drag on the engine from some source, or the starter is bad/weak. Mechanical drag could come from the hydraulics to a sticking clutch, or a bent connecting rod or crankshaft, or any number of other things. (An infuriating "doh!" moment I had came when I had the position control lever in the raised position, and the starter struggled to push cold, thick hydraulic fluid through the bypass. Make sure the lift lever is fully down and any other potential restrictions like the lowering speed control knob is properly arranged) If the starter is bad, swap it for your other one and try again.

If the tractor is spinning over more or less the same speed as your other machine, verify continuity of the glow plugs. If they aren't functioning, then that is your likely problem. Fix the glow plug situation, and proceed accordingly.

And really, really stop using ether. Especially if you have the glowplugs functioning. The fact that something didn't already crack or break leads me to suspect they may not be operating properly.

I'm very interested in your PTO reverser, and would love to see the build documented here!

Good luck!

 

[mntrails]

Have you bled the fuel system? You mentioned adding fresh fuel, etc... if the fuel was very low or run out, this can cause symptoms similar to what you're seeing. I was experiencing similar problems starting one that had sat more than a year - very slow crank even though I had a fresh charge on the battery and jumped to a running car with heavy gauge cables. Bled the fuel system at the filter, then at the next spot in the line and it fired up. Good luck!

 

[techwrtr2]

Have you bled the fuel system? You mentioned adding fresh fuel, etc... if the fuel was very low or run out, this can cause symptoms similar to what you're seeing. I was experiencing similar problems starting one that had sat more than a year - very slow crank even though I had a fresh charge on the battery and jumped to a running car with heavy gauge cables. Bled the fuel system at the filter, then at the next spot in the line and it fired up. Good luck!

I believe it essential he verify there's fuel at the injectors. Try bleeding first and then crack a line at each injector.

 

[Husaberg]

I purchased another S370D- god help me- I mainly bought it to prototype the building of PTO reversers. I've got the gear ratios and gears ordered to get right at 541 rpm out of the rear pto the right way. This will be an external bolt on box, output shaft will be standard 6 slot shaft.

However, I can't get the **** thing to run.

Seriously.

Even with 1100 cranking amps and the battery charger on it, it doesn't want to turn over fast enough to start.

The previous owner wired the glow plugs with a push button starter type deal, where the positive lead runs from the battery directly(always seen it run off the starter post before when people start jury rigging) and then to the push button starter and then from the push button starter to the glow plug. The pushbutton starter only controls the glow plugs.

The regular key ignition controls the ignition of the tractor. It is just not spinning over fast enough to get a chance to start. You get some white diesel smelling smoke that's burned, but it doesn't catch and start. Thoughts ?

Fresh diesel, added pump lubricant to it, added a little cetane boost. Ether will not catch it either.

-Removed negative battery cable, cleaned connections.

-Put new battery terminals on cables.

-New battery(Excide- never buy another one, that is for sure).

First I would verify that both glow plugs are working. Check compression; the use of ether WILL crack the pistons reducing compression. If you need a new starter go to O'Reilly auto parts a get one for a 1978 Dodge Colt with the 2.6 four cylinder motor for $60. Just have to drill out the mounting holes to fit the studs for your motor. I've done this and it spins a lot faster.