IH 454 Hydro

I just purchased a IH 454 Hydrostatic and I"m looking for a block heater to install on it. Right now, a squirt of ether gets it going but I"ve heard lots of negative comments regarding ether and the long term effects it has on engines. Could someone advise? Also, I can find very little information online about the model I bought, is there a site "out there" I"m missing?
Thanks, Henry.

My uncle bought one brand new 35 years ago and Ive never seen one since,as far as I know it was trouble free,His tractors were always taken care of and never left outside

jimmy

Hi Henry, not many of the 454 Hydro models made, plenty of gear drive models. Hydro part will be the same as the Hydro 84 model and the engine is D-179 German Diesel. The 454 is the grandfather to the 484,485,495,3220 and some industrial models. My brother has both 454 and 495 and he has recirculating tank heaters on them to start in winter time. See following thread from Micheal Price and his 484:
http://www.ytmag.com/cgi-bin/viewit.cgi?bd=farmall&th=688497

Do you know about the START position on the STOP/START/RUN control lever? Over the years the decal gets worn off the dash and new owners don't know about the START position.

Next hint put Diesel fuel conditioner in the fuel tank or add a table spoon of crankcase oil everytime you add Diesel fuel as the older Bosch Diesel injection pumps were not designed to run on ultra low sulphur Diesel fuel and without additional lubrication the front lip seal on the injection pump will wear out and let Diesel fuel leak into the crankcase.
If you require more help post again.

Hope this helps
JimB

A block heater can also be placed in a tee in a radiator hose and work just as well as being inside one of the machining plugs ("freeze plugs") on an engine block.

Hi JimB, Thanks for your reply. I'm curious about your question: "Do you know about the START position on the STOP/START/RUN control lever?" Where is this lever you are referring to? I have 2 levers on the dash - one on either side of the steering wheel. One is Forward/Neutral/Reverse and the other is for acceleration.

Hi Henry, the lever I should not say it is on the dash but the one that you pull up to START and push down to STOP the tractor. The START position is about 1/4 the way towards the RUN position of all the way to the top. Look on the side of the injection pump and there is a cylinder mounted with a plunger coming out of it. The START position is where the plunger is fully extended with the STOP/RUN lever still touching the plunger. This acts like a choke on a gas engine. So in colder weather put the STOP/START/RUN lever in the START position and crank the engine, when it starts let it run 15 to 30 secs in the START position then pull it up to the RUN position.

JimB

Hi Jim, Tomorrow - when it's light - I'll take a picture of my dash and maybe you can help me identify where this lever is. The only 'lever' that I know of to shut the engine off is just below the dash and on the left side when sitting on the seat. I bought the tractor at an auction so I don't have a manual or a previous owner that I can turn to! Thanks very much for your help.

On the 454"s I dealt with (gear driven, 1972"s) the lever being discussed was right above the drive shave housing. Would be between your knees and lower. All the way down was OFF... bout 1/4 up was start (may have been a detent in it) and full up was normal run.

typo.. should have said drive "shaft" housing...

Henry, that is the lever I am talking about. I am sure the decal is missing so 1/4 the the way up from STOP is START, then all the way to the top is RUN.

Jim

Hi Jim,
Upon closer inspection, it looks like the lever you are describing has been removed and a choke type lever added. This lever is actually pulled out rather than pushed up or down. In one of the attached pictures, you'll see a lever whose end is shaped like an end of a dipstick. I'm not sure why they removed the orginal lever. Any idea what the button was/is for? Thanks, Henry

Hi Henry, now I see why there was so much confusion over the STOP/START/RUN lever. Some previous owner probably broke the control cable or battery acid leaked onto it. That is a fault with this series of tractors is that if a battery leaks, it leaks onto all wiring and cables below.
Re button function, are you referring to the button to the left of the slot(from old STOP/START/RUN lever)? If so this is the ether button. Give this a quick push once you have the engine cranking. To much ether will cause the engine to lock up. If this happens don't attempt to start the tractor for at least 30 minutes.

I have attached a photo(copied from REALDIESEL.COM) of the Bosch injection pump showing the RUN START STOP positions of the fuel control lever. Since someone has modified your 454 then during cold weather starts you will have to make sure the fuel control lever is in the START position just touching the end of the plunger. Also make sure that the modified control lever pushes the fuel control lever all the way forward to the stop adjustment screw. This adjustment screw controls the HP of the engine, so if fuel control lever is not all the way forward the engine will not be developing correct HP.

Hope this helps
JimB