John Deere 318

 
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Rob R.
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Post by Rob R. » Thu. Jul. 28, 2022 8:28 am

Many of you know I inherited my grandmothers 1997 Suburban and have been putting it back to work with some minor repairs. Well, I also ended up with her 1984 John Deere 318. This machine was purchased new, dealer serviced, and always parked inside. You would never guess it has almost 2000 hrs on it.

I had the boys start mowing with it and have had some minor problems with it. I will follow up with some updates as I work through the issues.

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oros35
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Post by oros35 » Thu. Jul. 28, 2022 8:33 am

They are amazing machines. Durable as they come. My dad has 4 of them and I have a 420, larger brother to the 318.

 
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Rob R.
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Post by Rob R. » Thu. Jul. 28, 2022 8:52 am

First issue I had was a misfire. Cured that by tightening a loose screw on the condenser. Adjusted the points and replaced the original plug wires for good measure.

Next issue, excessive oil consumption. Read through service records and see that last change was the first time the engine ever saw 10w-30 instead of straight 30. Manual recommends straight 40 or 15w-40 for hot weather, so I made good use of the 1/2 gallon of 15w-40 I had on hand. Mowed 4 hrs, no oil consumption - great.

Got some heavy rains and grass got a bit tall, mowed for 1/2 hour in 90 degree weather and started to see blue smoke blowing out front grill. By the time I got back to the shop the smoke was unreal. Diagnosis is loose bolts on the oil filter adaptor and a blown gasket. Oil was spraying on the cylinder head, lucky it did not catch on fire.

Parts on order, and cleaning the cooling fins in the meantime. I will also adjust the valves since there is no evidence it has ever been done.

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Post by freetown fred » Thu. Jul. 28, 2022 9:14 am

Yep---thanx grandmom!!!! :)

 
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Rob R.
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Post by Rob R. » Fri. Jul. 29, 2022 6:04 pm

Torn down for a valve adjustment. Need to get specs from book and tackle it tomorrow morning.

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Post by lincolnmania » Fri. Jul. 29, 2022 11:17 pm

Nice garden tractor!
I have a collection of narrow frame cub cadets. one was my pop pops.

 
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Post by Rob R. » Sun. Jul. 31, 2022 7:52 am

Valves adjusted and engine mostly reassembled. The valves were definitely overdue for adjustment. The intakes were loose and the exhaust was too tight. The engine is spotless inside with minimal carbon buildup.

Still waiting for one part, but should have it back in action soon.

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Post by Rob R. » Wed. Aug. 03, 2022 1:17 pm

I just finished a “qualifying run” in the orchard with the freshly assembled 318. Prior to mowing I degreased the engine and frame, and treated the gas with a fuel additive to help remove any carbon from the combustion chambers.

I ran it hard and so far everything sounds good and I don’t see any leaks. The exhaust fumes are another story. After about 5 minutes of mowing the fumes really started to stink, and by the end the muffler and side panel were black with soot. I think I will have to mow perpendicular to the wind for this tank of gas. :lol:

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Post by freetown fred » Wed. Aug. 03, 2022 3:07 pm

Hey Rob--howv do ya DECREASE a frame!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :lol:

 
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Post by freetown fred » Wed. Aug. 03, 2022 3:10 pm

Whoops!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 
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Rob R.
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Post by Rob R. » Wed. Aug. 03, 2022 3:21 pm

freetown fred wrote:
Wed. Aug. 03, 2022 3:07 pm
Hey Rob--howv do ya DECREASE a frame!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :lol:
I used my board stretcher in reverse. :roll:

 
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freetown fred
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Post by freetown fred » Wed. Aug. 03, 2022 5:25 pm

Hmmmmm, OK, I can see it now!!! :lol:

 
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Post by Hoytman » Tue. Aug. 30, 2022 4:04 pm

Always wanted a 318. The 214 isn’t bad though. Just put all new deck bearings in and other minor engine work my son did, and did a nice job too. We should probably run a tank or two of some type of fuel system cleaner as well.

Never seen that kind before. Any other suggestions?

 
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freetown fred
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Post by freetown fred » Tue. Aug. 30, 2022 5:04 pm

Marvel Mystery Oil has been workin fo eons Billy!!! :)

 
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Post by Rob R. » Tue. Aug. 30, 2022 5:39 pm

freetown fred wrote:
Tue. Aug. 30, 2022 5:04 pm
Marvel Mystery Oil has been workin fo eons Billy!!! :)
Marvel Mystery Oil (MMO) is a good choice to keep things clean, but I think the Schaeffer product is more aggressive at removing old carbon deposits. I had already run a few tanks of gas treated with MMO through this 318 before I used the Schaeffer product.

One other note on MMO - another member reported good results with MMO eliminating off-season corrosion issues from poor quality gasoline in antique carburetors. I treat all of the gas that goes in my zero turn with MMO (have been doing it since it was new).


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