John Deere 820

[dcditto]

I have a John Deere 820. Not sure what the year model is, as we inherited it. I'm guessing it is a 60's model.

Had the fuel injector replaced about 4 years ago by a John Deere shop. Been running fine ever since today.

Went to crank it today and it fired up for about 30-45 seconds and then sounded like it was starving for fuel and quit. Repeated attempts to start it were in vain. Unfortunately, the last time it was cranked was sometime earlier this year, around early spring.
It appears to be getting fuel, as I checked the part that has what appears to be a primer lever on it, but was wandering if the fuel could go bad in that amount of time. Also checked the air filter for blockage, none there.

I have basic engine trouble shooting skills, but by no means am I proficient at this.

Any suggestions or ideas would be greatly appreciated, as I am trying to get the food plots ready for my son who is stationed in Iraq and is due to come home in November and is an avid deer hunter.

 

[beenthere]

:welcome:
Is this the tractor?
TractorData.com John Deere 820 tractor information

Assume it is, and wondering if the fuel filter is the problem.
Might also be the fuel electric shutoff.


What are you putting in for food plots?

 

[jenkinsph]

Do you have the glass separator bowls below the filters and how do they look?

You should be able to loosen the bleeders and see if you have air in the filters. I would change the filters if they are old and start from there.

 

[Tx Jim]

dcditto
I too am assuming it has a 3cyl engine. If so it could have an electric fuel solenoid on the inj pump. Check to see if it clicks when ign.switch is turned on. If not check for a blown fuse or bad connection. Also check for fuel flow from tank to inj pump. Lastly check for a restricted return line/fitting as a diesel will not run if this line or fitting is stopped up. Normally diesel doesn't go bad just gets contaminated with dirt or water.

 

[dcditto]

Yep, that is the tractor

Putting in some bio-feed. My oldest son gets it from the co-op. Dad just gets to pay for everything.

 

[dcditto]

Will check. Thanks for the advice

 

[dcditto]

Don't have the glass bowls anymore as they were changed out about 3-4 years ago, when I took it to the shop.

 

[beenthere]

Don't have the glass bowls anymore as they were changed out about 3-4 years ago, when I took it to the shop.

Changed out to what? If we are gonna be able to help, then we need to know what you have and what you have done. As much detail as possible would be better.

 

[dcditto]

The glass bowls were changed out to a non glass container, for lack of a better description. Will check this evening to get the name on them.

 

[dcditto]

Someone suggested that I take a rag and dip into gasoline and hold over the intake to get the fumes of the gas into the intake when trying to crank it and see if that will help.

 

[jenkinsph]

If it ran for 30 to 45 seconds as you mentioned in your first post then forget the gas rag. At any rate there should be an ether injection point on the dash near your right knee.

I would go to the dealer or NAPA and pick up a new set of fuel filters and oring seals. clean the lower bowls and change the filters making sure the orings are in place properly. Using the hand/manual fuel pump pressure up the fuel system and bleed the air out of the filters using the vents on the top of the canisters. Lightly tap the fuel lines and filters to dislodge any air bubbles, wait a few minutes and pressure up the fuel and check for air a second time. Make sure the bleeders are tight and that the orings on them are okay.

With a vom or continuity light 12v, turn the key on and check for 12 volts from ground to the terminal on the injector pump. You should hear the soleniod valve click faintly and have the voltage present too.

If you have the voltage and can hear the click then assuming the tractor and ambient air temperature is warm enough try to start the tractor. Be carefull not to overheat the starter and put a charger on the battery and get it built back up before proceeding. You might try adding some ether while cranking in some very small burst to see if that will help.

It would also help if you could tell us the serial number or close to it to determine what addendums apply in the manuals. There were some changes made at different points in the s/n, with this we can determine what year your tractor is too.

Get back to us when you perform the above.

 

[dcditto]

Okay. Several things. First, there is the primer lever, that has a bowl that can be unscrewed and removed, which I did. This has the fuel line coming from the tank and has a line out to the fuel filters. Found that there is a screen on top and it has a hole in it. Next at the base of this I found a fair amount of sludge.
Then I removed the fuel line coming from the tank to see if any diesel fuel was evident. Didn't have any.
Looking at the glass bowls, which are still there, when rocking the tractor, the left bowl shows fluid in the bowl and I can't tell on the right one.
So my plan at this point is to get some new fuel filters, get some compressed air, remove the fuel line from the bottom of the tank and drain and flush. Take the compressed air and blow to the first bowl, the one with primer lever, with the fuel line removed at both ends to make sure there is no blockage. Replace the screen and hopefully they'll have a screen at the tractor shop, if not will have to order one. Replace the fuel filters, put some more diesel in, prime the system and do my best to make sure there are no air bubbles in the system and pray.... Will get the serial number on next trip.