[Ol' Bob]

Without that inherited tractor, there would be no Lucky Mud Course. Over the years of the course, there have been a few serious failures involving that machine. I just lived through another one.

My second diesel storage tank leaked water in around the cap and I unwittingly pumped a big glug into the tractor? It more than filled the settling bowl on my water separator/filter (which then failed) and the water made it all the way through the fuel pump, injection pump, and into the injectors.

This was the second to last day that it wasn't raining. The tractor was down in the woods, but pretty much out of view, and for the time, safe from vandals/hunters, etc. It had the wood chipper and trailer connected. I searched all over the net, knowing only that I'd heard nightmare stories about such a diesel/water scenario. The day after it happened I read that you shouldn't wait even a day before tearing into it to remove any water. Any corrosion could kill the $1300 injection pump and the $250 injectors.

I got the new filter element for only $33 (sheesh) on Wednesday. I'd already torn the triple injector pump down part way and blown out each pump with compressed air. I didn't want to attempt to disassemble the injectors which have check valves and bypass valves inside. I just blew them out from the top and baked them on top of the wood stove in hopes of driving out any water, and then I immersed them in diesel.

I drained fuel from the tank and didn't get much more water. I let the fuel pump flush the lines well clear with filtered fuel and hooked it back to the injection pump. With the injector holes open, I cranked the engine until each pump was showing fuel and then I connected each injector in turn to one of the pumps and verified fuel spraying from the nozzle. While I was in that last step, it started thundering and raining.

Getting it all buttoned back up took enough time for me to get fairly wet, but I could taste a possible end to the ordeal. So I just stayed the course. It took a little cranking, but each cylinder caught in time and it was running. The grass had gotten wet, so while the tractor idled, I made a run for it with my car and tools. It barley climbed out but it made it. I ran the tractor home to its shelter and walked back for the car. Now I'm sitting here writing this and the sky has opened to a deluge.