[Ford-ferguson] Draining radiator of Ford-Ferguson 9N

[Mike Sloane]

cwi813 at earthlink.net wrote:
> My coolant is dirty and I need to change it. I've got the I&T Shop
> Service Ford SHOP MANUAL and paragraph 7  (page 13) says, "Check the
> condition of the coolant. If it is dirty or rusty, drain the radiator
> and cylinder block and remove the thermostat. Clean and reverse flush
> the radiator and engine block, and refill with fresh coolant."
> 
> How do I do that and where do I drain it from?
There are two places to drain the cooling system on the 9N, and both 
need to be opened to completely drain the system. At the bottom of the 
radiator, slightly to the left of center (all locations are based on 
your view when sitting on the seat), there was originally a tap with a 
flat "handle" that needs to be turned 90 degrees (counterclockwise) to 
open it. The original taps sometimes got damaged over the years and were 
replaced by different designs or even just plain threaded pipe plugs. 
The other problem is that the engine should be at least warm when 
draining, so you are almost guaranteed to wind up with a fair amount of 
warm liquid running down your arm. Once you have opened the tap, remove 
the radiator cap to allow the coolant to be released more quickly. The 
second tap is located on the left side of the block, in the vicinity of 
the starter, right behind the oil dipstick. Opening this tap will drain 
the remaining coolant out, and, while you are less likely to get wet 
doing so, the condition of the tap is even less likely to be good (due 
to the operating heat of the engine, dirt, rust, etc.).

If neither tap responds to your best efforts (due to damage or 
corrosion), the next best solution is to simply remove the bottom hose. 
But I suggest you wear rain gear, as coolant will go all over the place. :-(

(The old coolant, assuming that is had antifreeze in it, is poisonous to 
animals who might be tempted to drink it. If you manage to capture the 
old coolant, be sure to dispose of it properly, but if it spills, hose 
down the area to disperse the stuff and reduce the danger.)
> 
> It also goes on to say that I should add ethylene glycol antifreeze
> as it contains additives to inhibit the formation of corrosion and
> rust, and suggests using distilled water or rain water if the local
> water contains lots of lime, which mine does.
Virtually ALL modern antifreeze products are either ethelyne glycol or 
propolyne glycol based (some folks used alcohol based antifreeze back in 
the 1940s, which is why the manual has to make to comment). If you have 
a water softener, you can use water from your indoors sink, but I have 
extremely hard water and have not see a problem using it for the last 35 
or so years.

The bigger problems is that it is very likely that there is a build-up 
of "crud" in the cooling system that no amount of draining will correct. 
This material gets into the various parts of the engine water jacket and 
prevents adequate cooling, especially in the rear two cylinders. When I 
tore down my 2N engine (identical to your 9N), I found that condition 
and ended up having the block "boiled out" while I was having some other 
work done. You can buy and use cooling system cleaning products (from 
any auto parts store), but I have not been overly impressed with the 
performance of the products I have bought in the last several years - I 
suspect that manufacturers have responded to fears of lawsuits and made 
the products much weaker than the stuff we used to buy. But I still 
think it is worth running through the cleaning process: closing the 
taps, adding the product, filling with water, and running the engine for 
20 minutes or so, then draining it all out. Plain tap water of any kind 
can be used for cleaning. Then, assuming that you had some good results, 
close the taps again and fill the system with a 50/50 mix of water and 
antifreeze. After running the engine up to operating temperature, let it 
cool off, open the cap, and add more 50/50 mix to the system.

If you look at 
<http://public.fotki.com/mikesloane/1946_ford_2n/2n_overhaul_4_4_05_08.html>
you will see the hole for the block coolant tap and also the black areas 
where the core plugs were removed. Those black areas were completely 
filled with "crud" that I scooped out but could not completely remove. 
Core plugs are easy to remove and are inexpensive to replace, but 
installing them takes a little skill and experience, so I would not 
suggest you do that unless you have some guidance (they have to be 
destroyed to remove them, so they cannot be re-used).
> 
> What else do I need to do? The manual suggests I'm a mechanic, which
> I'm not.
I suggest three other things: 1. carefully examine the hoses and belts: 
they should be flexible but not brittle or soft. While you have the 
cooling system drained, replacing them is not difficult nor expensive, 
but you may need to cut the old hoses off to replace them. 2. Make sure 
that there is a thermostat in the middle of the upper hose (a very 
unusual place for a thermostat, but it was an inexpensive arrangement 
for Henry Ford). If you cut the old hose apart note the direction the 
thermostat faces before removing it. Then put the thermostat in a pot of 
water on the stove and bring the water to a boil. The thermostat should 
open well before the water boils (about 180-190 degrees F), which you 
can determine using your household meat thermometer with the end 
submerged in the water. If it is either always open or never opens, you 
need to replace it. A working thermostat should always be present in any 
water cooled engine (except for thermosyphon systems) and should never 
be omitted. Replacement thermostats can be obtained from your local New 
Holland tractor dealer, Valu-Bilt <www.valu-bilt.com>, or any number of 
other replacement parts sources. If the hose clamps are not in good 
condition, it is a good idea to replace them as well. 3. Make sure that 
the fan/generator belt is properly tightened, which can be done by 
adjusting the threaded rod on the generator mount. Examine the cap and 
make sure the rubber is in good shape. Replacement caps with the fancy 
"wing" are expensive, but you can make do with a standard cap rated for 
the same pressure (which I don't recall at the moment - 5 psi sounds 
about right).

If you need more information, feel free to contact me at 
<mikesloane at verizon.net>

I hope this helps,

Mike
> 
> Thanks.
> 
> CJ Wilhelmi
> 

-- 
Mike Sloane
Allamuchy NJ
<mikesloane at verizon.net>
Website: <www.geocities.com/mikesloane>
Images: <www.fotki.com/mikesloane>

We cannot defend freedom abroad by deserting it at home.
- Edward R. Murrow, journalist (1908-1965)


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