TC33d overheat problem

[Hooked_on_HP]

What did you find.
Bill

 

[BigE_]

What did you find.
Bill

It's been pouring rain the last few days, so I've left it tarped. I'm trying to avoid getting a bunch of water in the cylinders. Shade tree mechanics are somewhat dependent on the weather.

Hopefully I'll be able to get to it this weekend. Still stormy out today, though.

 

[BigE_]

Well, the rain finally stopped today and I got another chance to work on the tractor.

I got the fuel injectors off. One was carbed up really bad. It looks like it had been leaking diesel fuel for quite a while. (It was loose). So, I guess it's a good thing I found that.

I got the head bolts loosened up. I moved each one a little at a time until they were all loosened to avoid distorting the head. Finally pulled them all out, except for the back two, where the engine hanger strap was in the way.

I spent the next 30 minutes trying to get the top off, finally resorting to a mallet and a 2x4. I put the end of the 2x4 on the head and hit it with a mallet. I knew I had problems when it was loose enough for the little bit of remaining radiator fluid to come pouring out, but the top still would come off.

It turns out that there are two bolts behind the hanger bracket, going through the bracket, holding the top of the head in place.

I had to take the other half of the hood off, then take the dash off (disconnecting all the wires, etc.) and finally remove the fuel tank just to get those two bolts off. Took them out and it was finally loose!

In the process I also ended up taking the radiator out since it was just getting in the way and was loose already. Much easier to work on things now.

Here's what I found:

In addition to the head gasket, there was some rubbery greyish silver material, some sort of sealant used to "glue" the head gasket in place. Is this normal? I haven't heard of anything like this before, but maybe?

Whatever the material that was used, whoever replaced the head gasket used way too much. 3 or 4 of the orifices were plugged or nearly plugged, with just a tiny little hole. Lots of excess of this rubbery stuff.

It seems to me that even if using this stuff is normal, with this extra amount, it was definitely reducing the compression in the chamber. It was nearly as thick as the gasket itself on each side.

OK, now for the gasket: it was almost like the gasket was for a similar engine, but not this one. There were two orifices completely plugged off by the gasket itself. There were two more where the hole in the gasket was much smaller than the hole in the head. Finally, there were two holes in the gasket that didn't correspond to holes in the head.

The two extra holes in the gasket ended up being where the gasket failed. There was a thin line etched into the metal of the gasket from the cylinder wall to the extra hole. Then from the extra hole you could see where it was getting into the antifreeze orifice.

This is a 2000 (or 2001) tractor, and I know that they changed some things around in the engine right around then, because the guy in the parts department said he really needed to know the exact year.

The engine on the tractor says 6/00, which I read as June 2000. But the plate on the engine also says TC33D-01, which I would read as an 2001 model? That would make sense if the engine was produced in 2000, and the 2001 model year was produced a short while later in time for a Sept 2000 market. Does that make any sense?

Anyway, I got all of the silvery gray goop scraped off the two mating surfaces. I used a very sharp wood chisel (no longer sharp, I'm sure) to scrape it off. I checked the head for flatness using a level and a feeler gauge. I couldn't find a place where a 0.002" feeler gauge would fit under the level, so I think I'm OK there.

I measured the extension of the piston above the head, and it read 0.025", so that puts me at the thinner head gasket, part number 111147490. If it was above 0.027", I would have had to use part number 111147500.

Now to just figure out if I have a 2000 or a 2001, get the correct head gasket, valve cover gasket, water pump gasket, and any gasket sealant that I might need...

Put it all back together, fill it back up with radiator fluid, and see if it starts. If it runs, then I'm going to change the oil, because I know I got a little radiator fluid in there during the head gasket change, if nothing else.

Since I had to remove the fuel tank, I'm also going to replace the fuel filter. While I'm at it, I'll also change out the hydraulic fluids and filters...

I should fix the steering wheel tilt cylinder as well, but I really need to start using the tractor...

 

[RickB]

If you know you have antifreeze in the crankcase, for gosh sake drain it before you try to start the engine.
You can't actually be willing to sacrifice the crankshaft and bearings for the sake of 5 quarts of oil?:mur::mur:

 

[DieselMonk]

Interesting read BigE!

 

[BigE_]

If you know you have antifreeze in the crankcase, for gosh sake drain it before you try to start the engine.
You can't actually be willing to sacrifice the crankshaft and bearings for the sake of 5 quarts of oil?:mur::mur:

The antifreeze was drained before I pulled the head, so at most I got maybe a few teaspoons of antifreeze in the oil. I plan on running it just long enough to verify it works, and then changing out the oil. This will give it a chance to wash through any remaining antifreeze.

Then I'll change out the oil, run it for a few hours, and change out the oil again.

 

[RickB]

The antifreeze was drained before I pulled the head, so at most I got maybe a few teaspoons of antifreeze in the oil. I plan on running it just long enough to verify it works, and then changing out the oil. This will give it a chance to wash through any remaining antifreeze.

Then I'll change out the oil, run it for a few hours, and change out the oil again.

You won't know it works for certain until you get it up to operating temperature. I think you are nuts to start that engine knowing there is ANY antifreeze in the crankcase. But hey, it's your tractor.

 

[SPYDERLK]

The antifreeze was drained before I pulled the head, so at most I got maybe a few teaspoons of antifreeze in the oil. I plan on running it just long enough to verify it works, and then changing out the oil. This will give it a chance to wash through any remaining antifreeze.

Then I'll change out the oil, run it for a few hours, and change out the oil again.

You won't know it works for certain until you get it up to operating temperature. I think you are nuts to start that engine knowing there is ANY antifreeze in the crankcase. But hey, it's your tractor.

Before you start or spin the engine drain a little oil into a transparent container. Any significant coolant will be in a pool on the bottom and will flush out first. You can then pour the oil back in off the top of your container. Now you can run the engine w/o worry to warm it completely.
larry

 

[BigE_]

You won't know it works for certain until you get it up to operating temperature. I think you are nuts to start that engine knowing there is ANY antifreeze in the crankcase. But hey, it's your tractor.

OK, I'm listening. How would you do it differently?

 

[BigE_]

Before you start or spin the engine drain a little oil into a transparent container. Any significant coolant will be in a pool on the bottom and will flush out first. You can then pour the oil back in off the top of your container. Now you can run the engine w/o worry to warm it completely.
larry

Thanks, Larry, I'll give that a shot.