Help restoring my late father's Suffolk Punch
Hello,
I'm really hoping someone can help me. My father passed away a few months ago. Before he died, he bought a Suffolk Super Punch 17" which he was just starting to restore before his health deteriorated. He wanted to get it up and running to give it to me, and I really, really want to get it running for him in his memory.
He was a car mechanic before he retired so had a pretty good idea what he was doing. Unfortunately, I am a female pen pusher!
He took everything apart before he died and it looks like some of the parts have been lost in the chaos of sorting everything out. It was missing a petrol tank, air filter and the recoil starter, which I have now replaced. I've taken the carb out and given it a really good clean with carb cleaner, bought a new gasket for it and replaced the recoil starter. I've also ordered a replacement air filter.
I've put everything back together but I can't get it to start. I downloaded the instructions from this website and followed the instructions for opening the jet. I can see there is petrol getting through the fuel line.
The problems: I think I got a spark from it a few days ago, but can't get anything now - even when I remove it and rest it on the unit. I've checked the plug and it was pretty dry. The recoil also doesn't seem to return quite as smoothly as I think it should. There also seems to be fuel dripping out of the bottom of the carb by the air strangler.
Any ideas? My next step is to replace the spark plug.
Thank you so much for any help I've I can get this running, it'll make my year x
Ruth
Forums
Hello again, After lots of…
Hello again,
After lots of trying, I still can't get a spark. I've taken the flywheel off to have a look. Given how hard it was to get off and how filthy it was inside, I doubt my Dad had done much with the points. I also found a bag with some new points in his stuff so I suspect he was going to replace them but never got around to it. I've cleaned it all up and fitted the new points, but I still can't get a spark.
Ha ha. I'm an idiot. The…
This is what I did to try and get a spark.
If the points that you found…
If the points that you found are new and unused it’s quite possible that their faces are coated with some preservative and this needs to be removed using solvent and fine sandpaper. When fitted make sure that your feeler gauge is clean and not transferring oil or debris to them and when you are satisfied with the setting take a piece of clean paper, open the points and put the paper between them, then close them onto the paper and pull it gently between them. However don’t pull it right out or they may snap tight and trap paper fibres - hold them open a little to release it. You can check your work without replacing every thing by replacing the flywheel and flicking it round while holding the end of the plug lead close to some bare metal. Top tip as they say, if the metal governor vane is in place, it unclips easily and avoids cutting your thumb while flicking the flywheel round.
Made some great progress -…
Made some great progress - but two steps forward and one step back.
I bought a new suppressor and got a reasonably good spark. It seems I also hadn't set the points properly and the gap was too big - so it was starting - BUT although the engine was running, it wasn't actually powering the blades? It looks like the clutch is engaged. Also, the govenor arm keeps falling off and the throttle doesn't seem to really do very much and doesn't really move the arm. I have ordered a new spring as the old one was in pretty knackered. Any ideas what to try next?
As you say, progress of a…
As you say, progress of a sort. Governor arm falling off - would that be the crank on the throttle spindle. They can be soldered on to the spindle or, at a pinch, stuck on with Araldite or JB weld etc. In your initial post I noticed that the governor rod had a kink in it. There were three different rods depending on the engine size and age but none had a kink so yours may be home made or modified for reasons unknown! The operating clutch is centrifugal and won’t engage until the rpm is sufficient, however there is a sliding pin clutch on the output side of the centrifugal clutch drum to disengage the drive while making engine adjustments . Your machine is an early 17” with the 75cc engine so I’ve dug out an early ish engine to show you what goes where. May not be exactly the same as yours but will be more or less similar.
Sorry, but the site is refusing to upload my images taken on the iPad . If I can’t sort it I will retake them with the camera and send them from the PC sometime tomorrow.
I think that the first step…
I think that the first step is to make sure that it has a good reliable spark. Hopefully your Dad was happy with the compression and has cleaned and adjusted the contact breaker points which are tucked away behind the flywheel, so to check the spark. Remove the plug and unscrew and remove the little black plug connector from the end of the lead . Then hold the lead about an inch back from its end with the end about 1/4” from bare metal and pull the rope smartly. If you see a good spark on each revolution, it’s reasonably to assume that all is well with the sparks department, so that little black connector may be the issue - they’re more unreliable than the spark plug. You can improvise one with an unraveled paper clip with one end wrapped around the top of the plug and the other pushed into the lead - just to prove the point.
Once you are sure that there’s a reliable spark you can concentrate on the carburettor. Start off by getting an aerosol of flammable carb cleaner or maintenance spray, such as GT85 , remove the air cleaner and with the throttle open give a good squirt up the intake , pull the rope and see if it fires. If it does it tells you that you have the makings and the carb will need further attention.