I just thought that I would also share some experience about warming up and cooling down engines in WD-9's. I have a great deal of experience with WD-9'S (just like many other people). My father started his farming career with them in 1953 and they have been in use until the present day. At the peak of the our farming we worked 550 acres of Souris River Valley gumbo with WD-9's. We treat the WD-9 engine as respectfully as any large modern, expensive diesel engine. Start and let it run on gas for a minute or two and then switch it over to diesel--let it idle for 15-20 minutes and go grease the implement behind it. Do not take any chances with the cooling system--make sure it is full of coolant, never try to run the engine if it is low on coolant as cylinder heads crack easily. The WD-9 engine is a hard worker--it can work all day under full load and still be quite economical in terms of fuel consumption. At the end of the day let it idle for 15-20 minutes and then shut it off. We have operated WD-9's for years using these simple rules. The operator's manuals tell you to switch back to gasoline before shutting the engine off--I have tried this a couple of times and frankly I see no benefit in it. This may have been advised to improve starting but our engines have always started well regardless of whether they were stopped on gasoline or not--no noticeable difference to me. I actually prefer not to shut the engine off by switching it to gas before stopping it for fear of leaving the gas lever up and therefore leaving the starting valves open, risking warping the starting valves.
My experience with WD-9 cylinder heads--I have 5 of them in my scrap iron pile unfortunately. I suspect a lot of cracked cylinder heads can be attributed to bad operating. I have seen many bad practices over the years. Such things as running tractors with clogged radiators--often from filling them with water which had high mineral content instead of good quality coolant or running the engines low on coolant. I have also speculated that over-greasing the water pump can put grease in the cooling system--operating manuals have warnings about this.
1. My brother (teenager at the time) cracked the first one of ours about 40 years ago by starting the engine in the spring and not realizing there was no coolant in it. He added cold water to the radiator which naturally cracked the head.
2. We purchased used ones and one repaired cylinder head. All proved to be cracked as well. WD-9's will often run well in the yard or in a parade with a cracked cylinder head with no sign of a problem. Put them in front of a cultivator or plow and the cracked head will come to light. I never consider a head to be good until I have had a chance to work the tractor for a day in the field.
3. Engine operating temperatures--I have monitored the coolant temperature closely with a digital thermometer and have compared the three WD-9's that we use regularly (I have seven 9-series tractors--this is becoming an addiction!). Presently we have one that will idle 20 degrees warmer than the other two--it also runs considerably hotter than the other two when worked in the field but never overheats. This tractor has cracked a cylinder head with no explanation and I now have a replacement head on it and it still runs warmer than the rest. It will not return to work in the field until this problem is resolved. I have replaced thermostats, replaced the radiator--basically addressed all the obvious things that could be a problem. No luck to date--it did receive new pistons and sleeves before this problem started. I intend to begin dismantling the engine to check things like piston ring gaps, water header plate condition, etc. Kind of "grasping at straws". I am open to suggestions on this one!
I will search for my records on the actual coolant temperatures if anyone wants them for reference. It may help prevent a cracked cylinder head on your tractor.
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Today's Featured Article - The Cletrac General GG and the BF Avery A - A Bit of History - by Mike Ballash. This article is a summary of what I have gathered up from various sources on the Gletrac General GG and the B. F. Avery model A tractors. I am quite sure that most of it is accurate. The General GG was made by the Cleveland Tractor Company (Cletrac) of Cleveland, Ohio. Originally the company was called the Cleveland Motor Plow Company which began in 1912, then the Cleveland Tractor Company (1917) and finally Cletrac.
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