rod7515
Well-Known Member
Im a John Deere fan and I owe and have owned many Deeres in my life. I currently have an X324 with a rear bagging system. This tractor is a all wheel steer which has a very tight turning radius compared to a standard tractor. This has lead to me busting the rear bagger many times with to sharp of a turn when near fences or poles or trees.
Finally in late September I made the final hit on it that it broke the top off and it was non repairable. So I have been on a search for a nice used one to replace it with. (John Deere pricing was almost $400 for new parts!)
Last week I found a used JD that was traded in at a dealer in a non running state but it had a really nice bagging unit on it. I worked a deal on the tractor and bought it for $300 for everything. I thought I would take the bagger for me and then fix the non running engine and give the tractor to my son.
I could tell no compression when you cracked it over so I thought maybe a bad valve. Its an overhead valve engine. Took the valve cover off and the intake rocker arm wasnt moving. So next I pull the rocker off and check the push rod and its straight. So now I bend down and look at lifter, crank it over and lifter not moving very much. I remove the lifter with a small pick and look at cam, lobe looks good. Now I pull the head off and crank it over and find piston stays in same spot. I push on the piston and it slides down the cylinder. Not good so now I know the rod is broken.
So I pull the motor, and drop the lower side of engine. I can hear metal rattling inside engine as I lay motor over side. Ugh! Remove the lower case and there I find both connecting rod bolts. One was snap off and the other must have come loose and worked itself out. Rod and cap broken in many pieces. Then i looked at cam and it was snapped into 2 pieces. Damn! So Im thinking I can still fix it cheap because the crank and cylinder look good no damage. I start to spray cleaner on the inside of the case when I see the cam bearing area built into the block has shattered. Chunks of the inside of case missing. Damn, motor is now junk and the tractor has now become junk!
Its not worth the cost of a new or used motor to give it away. Oh well, at least I got some good bagger parts! Now I need to try to sell a few parts from it to get some of the investment back into my pocket!
Thanks for reading, Rod
Finally in late September I made the final hit on it that it broke the top off and it was non repairable. So I have been on a search for a nice used one to replace it with. (John Deere pricing was almost $400 for new parts!)
Last week I found a used JD that was traded in at a dealer in a non running state but it had a really nice bagging unit on it. I worked a deal on the tractor and bought it for $300 for everything. I thought I would take the bagger for me and then fix the non running engine and give the tractor to my son.
I could tell no compression when you cracked it over so I thought maybe a bad valve. Its an overhead valve engine. Took the valve cover off and the intake rocker arm wasnt moving. So next I pull the rocker off and check the push rod and its straight. So now I bend down and look at lifter, crank it over and lifter not moving very much. I remove the lifter with a small pick and look at cam, lobe looks good. Now I pull the head off and crank it over and find piston stays in same spot. I push on the piston and it slides down the cylinder. Not good so now I know the rod is broken.
So I pull the motor, and drop the lower side of engine. I can hear metal rattling inside engine as I lay motor over side. Ugh! Remove the lower case and there I find both connecting rod bolts. One was snap off and the other must have come loose and worked itself out. Rod and cap broken in many pieces. Then i looked at cam and it was snapped into 2 pieces. Damn! So Im thinking I can still fix it cheap because the crank and cylinder look good no damage. I start to spray cleaner on the inside of the case when I see the cam bearing area built into the block has shattered. Chunks of the inside of case missing. Damn, motor is now junk and the tractor has now become junk!
Its not worth the cost of a new or used motor to give it away. Oh well, at least I got some good bagger parts! Now I need to try to sell a few parts from it to get some of the investment back into my pocket!
Thanks for reading, Rod
