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Head Gasket repair on 820 JD Code T4HDS S#032888L

D

David Galligan

New User
I was running my JD820 when suddenly white smoke came out of the oil breather (and out of dip stick)..... stopped the tractor...noticed it was down 2 qt oil .... filled it ... ran it for about an hour.....stopped it ..... next day had antifreeze in the oil (filled).

Does this sound like a head gasket issue or more. Would
running it for that hour have caused serious damage....
It starts up immediately (did not run it).
What might be the repair issues I would be facing?

I am trying to decide how much effort to put into it (I am not a mechanic), I have had it for 35 years ... it is a real solid machine (could kick myself for not checking the oil).
Any advice greatly appreciated...


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Welcome to YT
It could be a leaking head gasket or hole in cylinder liner. I would recommend to pull engine oil pan then pressurize cooling system and look for leaking antifreeze in crankcase area. If no AF leak appears then consider R&R head gasket.
 

Thanks for the information. This will be the first time I attempt this level of intervention. Everything is very accessible on these older models, I would love to fix this to leave it to one of my kids...

Is there special equipment to pressurize the coolant system - or is there a port? and how much pressure?

Thanks Again
 
Is it the two cylinder 820 or the little three cylinder one built in the late 60's?. I would sooner work on the three cylinder one as the whole motor might way less than the head on the big one. Tom
 
That tractor you can more than likely do yourself.First thing I would recommend is to get a John Deere technical manual. Ebay is a good place to get one. You are more likely to have a bad sleeve than you are to have a bad head gasket. If the engine has very many hours or any other issues you might be well off to just do a complete engine overhaul. Then you know what you have. My dad bought a brand new 820 in 1968 or 69. I think he said it cost $2300 brand new,his had a seven speed trans and no power steering. Tom
 
(quoted from post at 04:42:53 03/23/17) That tractor you can more than likely do yourself.First thing I would recommend is to get a John Deere technical manual. Ebay is a good place to get one. You are more likely to have a bad sleeve than you are to have a bad head gasket. If the engine has very many hours or any other issues you might be well off to just do a complete engine overhaul. Then you know what you have. My dad bought a brand new 820 in 1968 or 69. I think he said it cost $2300 brand new,his had a seven speed trans and no power steering. Tom
Click to expand...

I am sure I have a manual and I am excited to attempt this ..it has been a great tractor. I would think that if a sleeve was involved it would have difficulty starting ...however I am a food animal vet not a mechanic!
 
A sleeve can do some very interesting things. Dad's 2520 got water in the oil so we drained the anti-freeze and ran it from spring to fall with water and never had any water in the oil. I had a 3010 that got a pin hole in a sleeve and would put compression in the water jacket but never antifreeze in the oil. White smoke is a good indicater of a pin hole in the sleeve as the tractor will be burning some water.Often it is the oring that seals the sleeve to the block that fails.Find a machine shop that knows John Deere as how the engine head is done will affect how the tractor starts.I would replace the fuel injecters and have the new ones checked before installing. Consider new head bolts as often the old ones are stretched.Not as big a problem on the little tractors as it is on 3020 and 4020's.Take your time and you will enjoy it. If you are a vet ask some of your farmers where they would take the head and other machine work. Tom
 
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