Dual Cylinders on 1997 Ford 3930 Fuel Filter

jlanglois · Jul 20, 2023

The owner's manual on my 1997 Ford 3930 (New Holland) shows a dual cylinder fuel filter. The filter on the tractor now is a single filter (SF 10082).
Is one arrangement any better than the other? The dual filter has clear bowl that I assume traps water. Why wouldn't the single filter need that?

Thanks.

Jerry/MT · Jul 21, 2023

jlanglois said:
The owner's manual on my 1997 Ford 3930 (New Holland) shows a dual cylinder fuel filter. The filter on the tractor now is a single filter (SF 10082).
Is one arrangement any better than the other? The dual filter has clear bowl that I assume traps water. Why wouldn't the single filter need that?

Thanks.

Does the single filter have a rain port on the bottom? Usually the operator's manual will tell you to open the drain daill to check for water.

Tinhack · Jul 21, 2023

It WAS the same on my 3910. I added a dual filter setup with the water drain on the first bowl. I've yet to drain any water out of it in the past two years.

Harry in Ky · Jul 21, 2023

You might get some usable answers if you post some pictures of what you have questions about.

Ford offered the 3930 various engine versions over the course of production. The earlier tractors had the dual element C.A.V. filter base and at some point changed to a single element spin on filter with a primer bulb on top. Maybe someone here can tell you why they did that, but I can't. Is one necessarily any better than the other? That's a judgement call. There are pros and cons with both.

You say the previous owner of the tractor changed from one to the other. Is that what you were told, or are you just making that assumption?

TractorTech · Jul 27, 2023

The 3930 went through the non-emissionized to emissionzed transition. The transition happened in January 1999.
When this happened, the CAV dual filter and pump was replaced by a Bosch single filter and pump. The single filter is locked on to the head by a plastic ring. As Harry said, there is also a hand primer on top of the filter head.

jlanglois · Jul 27, 2023

Thank you for all the help. Replacing the filter was much easier that I anticipated.
I unscrewed the bottom and the filter came out with some minor tugging.
Even though I had turned off the valve from the fuel tank, it still leaked. So, I used that stream to fill up the new filter and pushed it back into place. I replaced the bottom bracket. I open the valve again and cranked the tractor. It caught right away and I let it run for about 5 minutes.
It never sputtered.

chfrich · Dec 1, 2024

Jerry/MT said:
Does the single filter have a rain port on the bottom? Usually the operator's manual will tell you to open the drain daill to check for water.

I have a 1992 Ford 3930 with dual filter system. Having trouble sealing my dual system, replaced gaskets and still leaks. Wondering if I can replace dual filter system with the newer style single filter system that is on the 3930’s emissions?

Harry in Ky · Dec 1, 2024

You can if you want, but you will also need the lines that go with it, and probably some different brackets. I'm not sure what you're likely to gain after all that. I've changed hundreds of the C.A.V. filters over many years in some hard to reach places and have always managed to get them sealed up. Maybe you need to look closer at the components for some problem areas where the gaskets fit and seal.