I have a 3820 that seems to be smoking excessively on startup. After maybe 30 seconds, the smoke subsides. The problem seems to be getting worse.
I have pulled the glow plugs and tested them. They all seem ok. Changed the fuel filter and drained a fuel from tank and added new fuel. Engine has some rattle until getting up over 2000 RPM where it smooths out. I am thinking bad injector? I remember a fellow on this forum some time ago putting cummings injectors in his Branson to solve a problem. I believe he said they were a bit cheaper also. Current Branson injector price (HK12020000a3) is over $100. Any suggestions?
I purchased tractor used with 50 hours. Even then it had a rattle at low rpm. I have other diesels but no rattle other than the usual diesel slap. Tractor has 300 plus hours currently.
Cummins is an international company with over a million engines sold world wide. They all can't be manufactured in the USA. Therefore Cummins sets up manufacturers in different countries to manufacture their engines. That's called "licensing". To be licensed you have to agree to certain criteria meaning that the engine that comes out of your facility has to meet the blue prints and test requirements just as if they were manufactured in the USA. You get visited and inspected. You have meetings, probably annually, with a company rep. to discuss progress and problems and all that.
Sales are the biggest expense in the manufacturing process....once you get the assy/mfg line setup. Whomever makes Cummins injectors sells them at wholesale to retailers like Branson. They are Cummins engines and Cummins injectors!
On licensing, the Cummins in my 6530 was built in Japan back in the spring of 2007 under license to Komatsu heavy equipment Co. They build the equipment you see at construction sites, like for sky scrapers in cities; the big stuff along with names like Caterpillar. My 2400 was built in 2016 at the Kukje mfgr. facility in Korea under license. I don't know where current engines are manufactured but if you check out the ID plate on the side of the engine block it tells you where, when and by whom the engine was manufactured.
My 2400 is a swirl chamber rather than direct injected like the 6530. A swirl chamber is a small chamber off the main combustion chamber where the fuel charge is developed and then ported over to the main chamber in sync with the compression stroke. It's used on smaller engines as they are less complicated injection systems, more reliable and cheaper to manufacture since they would otherwise have small orifice openings in the injectors creating the mist that would be required for direct injection in a small engine. (per commercially available info where I picked it up)
My 2400 manual explains that the glow plugs are installed in the engine to prevent just what you are experiencing. The colder the weather the harder it is to explode the cold charge. The timer on the glow plugs is an average time-timer. Hotter weather it's more than needed and colder weather it may take recycling a second time....key to off and back to on the second time before rolling over to start.
The colder the weather the more the engine tends to "rattle" aka misfire on some cylinders since the fuel charge hasn't developed adequately in time for the compression explosion. In the summer, like now, I don't wait for the light to go out, just roll the key over to start and she starts right up, no rattle or vibration, no white smoke.
Since it's summer and you are experiencing an increased occurrence, I'd opt for dirty injectors or bad fuel....fuel sitting out in the sun on stilts at your favorite retailer......we have it here......the lower the volume of business the worse it could be. Farm diesel here is not in underground tanks where the fuel stays cool and at a stable temperature.
First thing I'd do is to get some "snake oil" and put it in your fuel for awhile. I'd opt for highway usage fuel from a regular pump from an underground tank that gets used regularly by diesel trucks.
For snake oil, I use Power Services products, storage and injector cleaners (one in white the other in grey containers) per the directions on the container in my diesels and have zero problems, and it's been that way for longer than I can remember with multiple tractors as you can see....all get used. Another good product is Sea Foam, made from alcohol, light mineral oil, and naptha. It's more of a bland product so you can use all you want without worrying about hurting rubber/plastic parts. Both products are readily available at parts stores, ww and all.
I'd get some fresh fuel as mentioned and douse it good with one of the above. Work your tractor pretty hard for a few days and see if things clear up. Post back here....before you spend a lot of money you may not have to spend.
