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Massey Harris 44 Diesel

A

Alan Harris

New User
I have a MH44 Diesel which I can't get to start on the cold start. I can get diesel into the chamber and I can get a spark but I can't get the diesel to ignite. I have to use ether when the engine is cold. Any ideas please.Another question which I know is a long shot. This tractor was bought at the Gary Phillips sale in Nebraska last April and shipped to England. It would be lovely to know where it spent it's working life. It is a High Crop (High Arch) Model Serial Number 3053 and that is all I have. Thank You.
 
Realistically, you'll probably always need to use a "puff" of ether to start it cold. Your tractor is 50+ years old, and those old ones weren't high enough compression to have much margin for wear until the compression got low enough that they wouldn't start on their own. Block heater would help. Key is not to use too much, and crank the engine without ether for about 5 revs before shooting a LITTLE ether into the intake as you continue to crank the engine.

You'll get a lot of doomsday posts about the evils of ether, but the fact is, if you don't use too much, and do it "on the fly" as described above, it really won't hurt it. I've been starting my Oliver diesel that way for 30 years, and it its going to wreck it, it better hurry, before I wear it out. It still starts as well now as it did 30 years ago.
 
You have a cold start device which is not working?

My advice is fix it so that it is working. It wasn't put there for no reason. Better to start it with the cold start device than ether. The heater will not damage the engine.

Regard,RAB
 
Hi RAB. Thanks for your reply. At the moment I can't get the diesel to vaporise enough to get it to ignite. Regards Alan
 
Hi Mike. I will do as you advise and use the ether sparingly. I can't get it to start any other way at the moment when it is cold
 
Hi Bob. I have heard about block heaters and in line water heaters but I don't know anything about them. Thanks. Regards .Alan
 
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