Super C overheats

This is the first year I'm heavily using a Farmall Super C with a 6-foot woods belly mower. I know it should have an overrunning clutch (it doesn't and would need a longer belt if I added one) and low gear seems pretty fast for mowing with it but it'll mow a lot of short grass in a little while.

My problem is that it seems to overheat. There's nothing covering the radiator but the grille that belongs there. First time I heard it boiling I idled it for 10 minutes to cool it down. But then after it cooled off I filled it with antifreeze and water, and this last time it blew water and antifreeze out near the cap on top. I did notice rust stains on the hood from the spillage-the water I put in was clear water from the cistern.

First I want to know if there's any possibility I blew the soft-plug out of the block if the water was boiling when I shut it off. And second, what's the proper thing to do to fix it? I'm a little green as a mechanic but I'm willing to learn. I think old used to talk about a vinegar flush, would that be appropriate here?

Over-running clutch is a safety issue for non-live pto's. A longer belt is a small price to pay to avoid an accident.

But that aside, the overheating, assuming a gas engine but most symptoms are appliccable to either gas or diesel - could be due to quite a few causes.

Leaking/blown gasket, rad blocked, block full of sediment from years gone by, thermostat, engine overload, timing, fuel mixture, water pump, w/pump drive belt, fan installed the wrong way round, rad cap (in a pressurised system), inappropriate fuel, etc(?).

Water/antifreeze loss could have been due to overfilling, but might be associated with the above.

Initially, 'seems to overheat' needs to be confirmed. Measure the temperature with a reliable device (compare to, or standardise with, boiling water).

A vinegar flush would not be apporiate unless the 'cause was appropriate to the fix'.

Can't say exactly what your problem is but it needs to be sorted before serious damage occurs.

Fill system up to the rad neck and start engine. If a continuous stream of bubbles are seen at the radiator outlet it probably means a leakage from a combustion chamber to the water jacket - head gasket or a crack are possibilities.

A cold bottom hose (when engine is hot) might mean a blockage somewhere around the circuit.

Feel the rad core when hot (stop engine and do it immediately) to see if the core is cool around the edges or one side, for instance.

Check plug colour for mixture weakness. Check timing is not retarded, Check fan belt for tension or excessive wear.

Hope this lot helps to find the cause. No point in cleaning the rad if it is clean already and the problem is a failed head gasket.... Diagnose first and 'cure the disease, not just the symptoms'.

I wouldn't be surprised if someone jumps in and suggests I don't know a lot about engines or Super C's and that it must be just one of those possibilities, but I reckon the above might help you to sort out the cause, and then take the approriate remedial course.

Regards, RAB

Try pulling the radiator off, and washing it out real good. Shine a light bulb behind it, to check your progress, you will be amazed at the amount of seeds, bugs and crap that accumulate over 50 years or so. Also, an infra-red thermometer is a good tool to have handy, it can identify hot spots in the block, where blockages could be.

You dont need a over-running device on a 6ft belley mower. First i would drain the coolant. Then using OLDS method of filling with vinegar. Letting the vinegar set for a couple of days. Your problem is probably in the block as the passages for the coolant are the size of a nickle and i will bet they are plugged or pretty much plugged. After draining the vinegar i would remove the radiator and lower housing. Using compressed air clean out the passage followed with flushing with water. Using stiff wire and a good flashlite you will be able to find the small holes and clean them you will find a good amount of crud in there. When you think you have the area cleared run water in the top filler neck into the head and then watch thru the lower openoing in the block you should see water coming thru the holes. I just tore down four blocks and everyone had those holes almost or were plugged with crud up to an inch or more deep. Everytime i replace new sleeves i find the same. This is also a good time to replace the fan and generator belt and check the fan shaft for oil inless it has been replaced with the newones with bearings. You can add a water pump at this time also then you will really be in good shape just be sure your pump comes with a pulley. I have been working with these tractors with mowers and without for the last 15yrs done a bunch of them the 6ft on a C makes a fine mowing outfit and it sounds like yours runs off the pto newer ones drive off the belt pulley and and are a better set-up. good luck.

ALWAYS an ORC on non-live pto tractors!!!
What are you mowing? If it's just lawn grass or a thin field, then flush the radiator, replace the coolant and check your water pump. Anything more than just light grass or lawn can be too much for a C or Super C. Could it be heating up just because it is being worked too hard?

I wouold let it run and force the viniger thru the system ,the viniger will do a better job cleaning if hot will disolve crud better ,then I would take the drasin plugs out of the block and use a garden hose to back flush what crud I could get out of there as well

You must not have a belley mower on a B or C they have plenty of power for mowing yds and there isnt enough inertia for the mower to move the tractor when pushing in the clutch. There are tons of them and never seen a orc yet i have had one on a B SINCE 68. B rother same and another down the road no problem.

I have mowed many acres with a Super C and a Koch mower with no problem 40 years ago. I would buy one now if I could find one for sale.No need for an ORC on a sickle mower.The mid mount mower does away with the sore neck you get from watching a mid mount mower.

Does the tractor have the optional radiator shutter in front of the radiator? The control lever is on the left side of the steering column. IF my memory is correct the lever should be all the way forward for maximum cooling.
My SC only overheats if I forget to open the shutter after getting the engine warmed up on a cool day.

All good advice on cleaning the cooling system. Probably what's causing it in the end. The tip about the shutters, if you're equipped with them, is also good. If so, make sure they actually operate and open (lever forward) the way they're supposed to. A lot of them rust in place from lack of use. How's your thermostat?

That said, the only time I've ever boiled my SuperC over it was the timing. Have you done any work on it lately that might have changed your timing? On a long shot, you might have jumped a gear on your timing. Just a possibility.

I'd make sure the cooling system is in good order first. Gene wasn't exaggeratin' about the amount of crud that can build up in there. As a little test with no extra effort, and to get some idea of how much crud might be in there, you might try topping it off and then measure what you get out when you drain it.. System capacity is about 15 quarts, i.e., if you can only drain twelve out, that would tell you that you've got three quarts of sludge in there.

An over running clutch is a good idea, but you don't need it. The way I usually take the mower out of gear on my Massey Pony, I just slip it out of gear on the run. Most of my mowing is on a hillside, and it can get kinda hard on the mower going from full speed to no speed in a very short time. I have a 'remote' pto lever munted next to the gear shifter lever, there is a link that goes back to the original shifter rail/lever.

I"ll echo DiyDave. My new-to-me "49 Super-A was overheating. I took the radiator off and ran water through the vanes. I was ASTOUNDED at the amount of chaff and bugs and crud I washed out. I absolutely couldn"t believe it, and how packed-in it was. It took a good bit of time, with a garden hose with a nozzle.

Maybe you have a plain C they were know for that when it was around 90 degrees.A super C has a
water pump to circulate the water,a C doesn't.