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Help Engine Seizing issue!

A

Anonymous-0

Well-known Member
I have a a 1946 Farmall Super A, I just put new rings on the pistons and adjusted the valves, i got it going but am having a issues with it seizing up after running it, it only seizes when i shut it off and as soon as stops turning. it has plenty of oil and plenty of coolant so i dont think it is a lubrication issue. could it possibly be a timing problem where the connecting rod hasnt made it past the peak of the turn on the crank shaft? when it does seize it comes free when i pull it with another tractor or truck and pop the clutch when in gear

you help would be greatly appriciated! i want to get this problem fixed cuz every time i use the tractor i fear shutting it off when in the field working cuz i would have to go get a truck or tractor to pull it and unfreeze it!

Thanks Dan
 
Did you put new rings on a used piston?

Did you clean the carbon out of the ring grooves with a ring groove cleaner?

Allan
 
Dan-
So, it starts fine when cool, and runs fine until you stop? I like the ring answer, but I am surprised it runs fine until stopping. Did you replace bearings? I seem to recall that in some engines, you can put the bearing inserts in backward, and then not be able to turn the crankshaft. Conceivably, you could have enough wear to have clearance while it is cold, and lose it as it warms up, but the engine has enough power to keep moving until switched off- then it seizes.

Another possibility: a small coolant leak into a cylinder that does not affect running, but when switched off, residual pressure in the water jacket puts enough liquid in for hydrostatic lock - that leaks off under the pressure of being towed and the clutch popped.

I don't even know if those defects are possible, good luck
 
Did you check the ring gap before installing them on the pistons?

I find it hard to believe new rings in an old sleeve would be too tight, but I suppose it's possible especially if you put "oversize" rings in it in a misguided attempt to compensate for sleeve wear.

It's not a timing problem, for sure. Timing has no bearing on the engine when the ignition is switched off.
 
I like them tight! Drain the oil, fill it up with transmission fluid, run fast idle for 20 minutes, drain transmission fluid, refill with oil and go plow with it for 3 hours without stopping.
 
Dang modern car engines nobody knows how to break in a new or rebuilt engine anymore. Cousin had his 366 chevy rebuilt in the grain truck prior to the semi one time just before fall harvest. Told me that he wanted me to break it in. First trip to the elevator 50 MPH was about it. She would run 75 empty though by the end of the second day. It ran good until he sold it, didn't use a drop of oil, ever.
 
The starter may be locking on the Flywheel, and not siezing at all. Try loosening the starter when it (Siezes) to see if it is jammed. It will click while loosening the bolts. Or you could push it in high gear by hand a little ways to see if the engine is stuck before you try starting it. A new and improved starter drive is available to fix that problem. If it is stuck for real when shut off, I would agree the ring endgap, or carbon under the rings in the grooves will cause the issue. Does the engine get tight and run with ever increasing difficulty and reduced power just before shutting it off? if so that is a sign of siezure and not of the starter issue i mention. Jim
 
You only needed to "break in" an engine because of the different tolerances of the parts. A correctly built or rebuilt engine will only have a "minor" break in period. Engines built with poor workmanship and lousy tolerances will wear more the first 5-8 hours of operation (break in) than they will the next 1000 hours of operation.

I remember a freind of mine that talked about the oil pans needing to be cleaned out on Russian tractors and tanks after the first few hours of operation because of the massive amount of metal shavings.
 
Yikes - I'd stop using it right away and operate.

how did you swap the rings? did you pull the crank, or (I assume) work around it?

Either way - did you mark the location of all bearing that were involved? And put them back just as they were? If not, I'd be wondering about those...

I'd at least start by pulling the head and take a look at the cylinders. If it's something to do with the rings, you should probably already see some scoring on the problem areas.

Did you cross hatch the cylinders?
 
Well yes, exactly don't you agree he's got a tolerance issue above? Better to be to tight than too loose in the begining. Engines can be amazing depending on how they are built. My dad's old 1960 75HP Johnson outboard was an aluminum block. We had the heads off of it one time, you could move the pistons side to side within the cylinder with your finger. We asked an outboard mechanic about it. Response "normal for cold engine". It swelled that much when it warmed up. No wonder it was a cold natured beast.
 
Did you measure the ring gap on the new rings? Have you tried hand cranking the engine? Did you have the crankshaft measured for wear and checked the clearance on the bearings? You probably should've used a new sleeve kit and pistons along with new rings. Hal
 
Connecting rod caps/bearings had to come off to get the pistons out.

Those really, really, should be kept in their original locations.

Mismatched connecting rod caps can be ugly - as well as mismatched old bearings.

Same applies to the crank mains - But was assuming the crank stayed in - but it is an assumption, so worth mentioning.

But still think it's most likely rings either aren't gapped right - or as somebody else said, carbon in the grooves.
 
First of all you dont have a 46 Farmall A so what did you do with bearings when you installed the new rings. The SAs werent built in 46 so is the engine a 123 or a 113 you must have got something mixed up somewhere.
 
honestly i am very new to this! are the bearings the sleeves that go between the connecting rod and the crankshaft? i really had no idea what i was doing when replacing the rings. i took the oil pan off and pulled the pistons out the bottom, put on new rings and put the pistons back in from the top. it runs fine, starts right up but everyother time i run it it siezes up once i shut it off


thanks so much for your help!!!!
 
i removed the oil pan, took the pistons out the bottom, are the bearings the sleeves that go between the crankshaft and the connecting rods? i just put them back on the way they were. i put new rings on and put the pistons back in through the top. it runs fine, starts right up but every other time i run it it seizes when i shut it off.
 
where do i measure the gap on the ring? i put them on the pistons and then squeezed them together to get them in the pistons sleeves
 
i took the oil pan off and removed the pistons out the bottom, are the bearings the sleeves that go between the connecting rods and the crankshaft? there were little sleeves between them but not traditional bearings like with ball bearings. thanks im very new to this, im 24 and this is my fisrt engine iv worked on
 
Wow.

At this point, you've potentially done so many things wrong that there is no way to really tell where your actual problem is.

For sure, DO NOT run the tractor any more. You are just causing damage and costing yourself more and more money with each minute you run the engine.

When you took the engine apart, you needed to keep track of EXACTLY where everything came from, and EXACTLY how everything was put together.

Yes, the bearings are the sleeves on the crankshaft ends of the connecting rods. Those needed to stay matched. Those needed to be kept in the same cylinders, in the same orientation as they were taken apart.

If you put 1/2 of cylinder #1's bearing together with 1/2 of cylinder #4's bearing on cylinder #3, that could be big trouble.
 
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