[Ford-ferguson] Ford 640

[Mike Sloane]

I had another brand of tractor that had a similar problem that drove me 
crazy trying to isolate. It turned out that the PO had manage to drop 
the metal end cap from his gas can spout into the tank. It floated 
around on the bottom, the same color as the inside of the tank and was 
all but impossible to see. I eventually spotted it when the tractor 
quit, and it was lying right on top of the fuel inlet. I fished it out 
with a magnet, and the tractor hasn't missed a beat since. A leaf or 
piece of scale could do the same thing.

The only other common cause of that kind of problem is an overheated 
coil or condenser. If your tractor has been converted to 12 volts but a 
ballast resistor wasn't installed in-line with the wire going to the 
coil from the ignition switch, the higher voltage will (not may) cause 
problems eventually. (Technical name of this is "fried" coil) Next time 
it quits on you, see if you can touch the coil; it should be warm but 
not hot. If it is too hot to put your hand on, that could very well be 
your problem. Before you spend the money for a new coil, make sure that 
the ballast resistor is in place, or better yet buy a 12 volt coil that 
is labeled as having an internal resistor.

Mike

Don Brown wrote:

> 
> My Ford 640 dies without any consistent pattern that I can figure out.  
> Sometimes I can run it for a couple of hours before it dies, other times 
> I'll run it ten minutes and it dies.  I've always gotten it restarted 
> but I've always tinkered with something before I tried to restart it so  
> I may have masked any clues that would be helpful.  A mechanic friend 
> suggested that the screen on top of the fuel cut off valve might be 
> occluded, restricting the last few gallons of gas,  so I filled the gas 
> tank but the problem persisted.  I pulled the plugs and they had a thick 
> coat of carbon, which I scrapped off.  I pulled the coil wire and 
> noticed a whitish coat of oxidation on the inside of the connection.  I 
> know it shouldn't be there but I don't know the cause.  The sediment 
> bowl was clean and gas runs freely from the tank to the bowl.   The 
> motor does not burn oil, it idles good and has normal power.  I will 
> replace the plugs, plug wires,  coil/distributor wire, points and 
> condenser..  The dust cover in the distributor is torn and I'll replace 
> it but can that cause a problem?  I assume that a distributor problem 
> would be indicated by performance, am I correct?  The 12 volt system was 
> installed about four years ago and the tractor ran fine until the last 
> few weeks.  The most recent repairs were a new head gasket and a rebuilt 
> radiator.
> Any ideas?
> Don
> 
> 
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-- 
Mike Sloane
Allamuchy NJ
Email: (mikesloane at verizon.net)
Website: <http://www.geocities.com/mikesloane>
Blog: <www.mikesloane.blogspot.com
Tractor images: <www.fotki.com/mikesloane>
Work: none - retired

Patriotism is supporting your country all the time and the government 
when it deserves it. -Mark Twain, author and humorist (1835-1910)