Radiator and throttle problems...

A couple of new problems rearing their heads...

1. The specifications for the 8n is 12 quarts to fill it up which eqauls 3.79 gallons. I cant seem to get this much fluid in my radiator. Regardless, I have now noticed a small leak on the engine side about two thirds of the way up on the left side. Therefore the radiator is not holding pressure right? Does this also mean that the water pump might not be working? I noticed the engine seemed really hot when I worked her last night even though I filled her up all the way with fluid. How will I know if the enigne is overheating? Radiator boiling out the only way? The radiator is in bad shape with a lot of dents and smashed louvers. Will re-coreing (if possible) be a good option or should I scrap and buy a remanufactured one? If I do change out radiator, should I pull the water pump and check it? Is there another way to verify the pump is pumping?

2. I think I might have a throttle adjustment not set right. The throttle can be turned all the way down and the tractor will not cut off. It idols low and sounds good. However, when I throttle up and ultimately all the way up, the throttle is pushed back down by the governor(?) back to the middle position. The tractor will not stay in a higher rev poisition than other than middle way. What adjustment do I need to make to fix this? The tractor use to be abled to be throttled higher before changing the clutch disc and carbureator rebuild I did. Could it be the governor to carb connection (actually the set screw for regulate the intake to the engine)?

I just recored the radiator on my Studebaker and I was shocked at how much lighter it was when it came back from the shop. I suspect that you have a lot of crap lodged in yours.

It's easy to test water pump... disconnect top hose, remove thermostat, and direct hose toward a bucket.. start her up..

Does your throttle linkage have the compensating spring attached, and does your quad still have ridges on it / your throttle rod still had a detent ball that rides in those ridges, and is it under tension by the spring and bracket at the bottom of the rod?

Soundguy

The quad does still have ridges.

I am unsure about the spring loaded at the bottom of the throttle.

That is ther funny thing, it springs back to the mid posiiton.

It is almost as if the governor is restricitng it.

As the engine comes up to governed speed, the governor pulls the throttle butterfly closed, and, in doing so, puts more tension on the governor spring, which is being acted upon by the throttle lever, tending to move it to the idle position. All that is NORMAL. Simply put, the throttle lever's resistance to movement needs to be great enough that is stays put, unless reset by the operator.

The compensating spring must be in place, as well as the compression spring next to the lever at the bottom of the throttle lever shaft, which pulls the throttle shaft downwards, holding the steel ball against the ridges on the throttle quadrant.

Also, replace the steel ball, if it has a flat spot.

Soundguy

The cooling systems on these tractors are 'overengineered' so they tend not to overheat no matter how hard you work the tractor, unless the radiator gets gunked up bad enough that coolant flow is restricted.

Re the leak on left side of engine, either you have a cracked block, or, could it be the head gasket is leaking?

Re the throttle response problem you indicate there are a number of things that could cause this sort of problem. Governor may need adjustment/rebuild, could be a carb adjustment issue, might also be an ignition system issue such as timing not set quite right, or bad spark advance mechanism.

Maybe some of the other guys will chime in as well here.

My parts manual shows a thermostat assembly for the front-mount distributor 8N. I think that's how you . . . well, that's not what you asked is it? You asked how to know if it's getting too hot.

OK, someone put a temperature sense in Arthur's (my 8N's) radiator hose and it runs to a dial on the dash board. I know some of the guys on the forum have done that and it's in the archives a few months back. So that's a possibility.

Dawn