Thread: freeing a seized tractor motor

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We just got a Minneapolis-Moline RTN tractor that had been sitting for a few years. Here in the rain coast rust happens pretty quick.
We pulled the plugs and put some gas and two cycle oil in ( just what we had on hand at the time)
and tried to spin the motor by rocking the tractor in gear while pushing and pulling on the rear tires
Any hot tips you guys have to speed the process.

Remove the plugs. Put WD40 in cylinders let set Any penitrating oil will work. Rocking in probably the best way to do it that way tou have some weight in your favor. If its that bad it probably won't run well if at all .

use plenty of penitrating oil and give it time to work. if you " break it loose" you chance breaking a ring. not fun. been there

If you're lucky you would break a ring. Let the penetrating oil do it's job or could very easily break a piston or worse.......

Pull the head and put a block down in a cylinder and give it a light whack, change cylinders and do it again until it breaks free. Everything is so sloppy in those old tractors your probably not going to break anything.

The gears in the tractors are too low to try to break things loose by rocking it.

I always heard that you remove the spark plugs and squirt some brake fluid in each cylinder, then wait about 24 hrs. If it don't work, repeat the process.

I've heard Marvel Mystery Oil and transmission fluid, too. If it hasn't been stuck too long you have a shot at it. It a long time, probably not without hurting rings or something.


Don

I'm serious, my dad and I had one that we actually towed around the yard and popped the clutch and it wouldn't break loose. He pulled the head and gave it one whack with a block and it was free.
CHAZ

Put it in its highest gear before you try to break it loose. In high gear, its the easiest to turn the engine with the wheels.

Iodine works better than penetrating oil, but now its oily, the iodine won't get down where its needed. A good trick is to make a fitting for the spark plug hole that'll couple to a pressure washer hose. Zap it with a few hundred (thousand?) pounds of pressure every few minutes, alternating cylinders, and you'll be amazed at the results. If you have another tractor with hydraulics, you can hook up to all four cylinders (with dual hydraulics) and things will happen in a hurry.Just don't get too chummy with the old engine when you hit the levers, old iron can shatter and scatter. If the valves are stuck open, make a plate to block off the manifold surfaces.It WILL turn over, but it might not be any good anyway.Its possible to bend rods, cranks, even bust heads this way, so use your head and don't get rammy.

The brake fluid thing has worked a couple of times for me,and some times a BFH.

My reccomendation is to drain the oil and over fill it with tranny fluid (as much as it will take). Then fill the plug holes with tranny fluid and let it sit at least 24hrs (longer if you can). The high gear is going to best for rocking it. If that doesnt work you can puill the head and fill the clynders with tranny fluid and then rock it.....that should work. just remember it takes time for this stuff to soak in and do it's job...be paitient if you want it to run

Try taking the the side engine cover off and loosening the rod caps 1/8
to 3/16. Don't take the caps off. Then try pushing on the piston itself. If you can get the piston to move up you can pull it back into place with the rod cap. This is not too hard when the oil pan on the bottom of the engine can be removed. You can push relitivly straight up. I'm not sure how hard it would be on the Moline coming in from the side. Anyway once the pistons move a little you can try turning it over. If this don't work you'll probably have to pull the head. Once the head is off you have to push the piston and sleeve out. Thing is I don't think the moline has sleeves. I could be wrong there. Good luck! BK

i've used brake fluid and coke, they both work very good