Anyone a engine mechanic for WD45?

I have a WD45 with loader, I was out moving some dirt around, I parked the tractor for 10 minutes, I went to restart the tractor and it would not start? It fires and the second I let off the starter it quits? here are the things I have done.

Rebuilt and Cleaned Carburetor.
Mag tested good for spark.
Has good clean gas.
I put oil down the cylinders.
Checked valves and all are opening and closing as they should.
put in a set of new spark plugs.
it is getting plenty of gas to the plugs.

The tractor has never burned any oil, so I wouldn't think it would be the rings,
when I pull out a spark plug it is wet with gas, so I should be getting fuel?
the tractor has always ran great with no troubles until now.
If any one has any ideas please let me know,

First thing I'd check is if it had spark. I'd take out a spark plug, or all of them, attach them to the spark plug wires with the bases resting on a grounded part, and use the starter to whirl the engine over. You should see good spark at each of the spark plugs. If not, you know that the problem exists in the ignition system. That would be the first place to look.

In re-reading your post, do you think the engine is flooded (too much gas)?

If this tractor fires when the starter is cranking and if it has a 12 volt battery it could be a bad resistor that cuts the ignition voltage to 6 volt when running 

There is spark on every plug, gas is clean and I put a additive in it to make sure there was no water.
The mag has been converted over to an external coil but don't think that has anything to do with it because it is giving of a really big blue spark on every plug.
It does sometime backfire out the carburetor.
There is no fluid in the oil, so it shouldn't be the heads or block.
Every one I talk to around here have no clue what happened?
I have had several people look at it and no one can figure it out?
Thanks for everyone's help

   We'll you got fuel and fire. If you were using it and it was running fine it was surely in time. Has compression. The only thing left is air. Have you taken the hose off the carb from the air cleaner and tryed it ?

There is no additive that ensures there is no water in the fuel. Additives like HEET trap the water and allow it to run through the fuel system to the engine. If there is significant water to start with, you'll need to drain it. I would still put new points and condenser it it. If it's just puttering while cranking, you can try advancing the timing.

Sounds like it's flooded,shut off gas,take out plugs,run starter couple rounds,clean plugs with ether,install plugs and start.

Lonn wrote: Gordy wrote: If this tractor fires when the starter is cranking and if it has a 12 volt battery it could be a bad resistor that cuts the ignition voltage to 6 volt when running  IH used that system but A WD doesn't unless the mag is converted to external coil and battery ignition and has the key switch and wiring that bypasses the resistor when starting. I don't know of any Allis that used that system. Just so you know.

poster said it is a 45 so should have distributor not mag, easily changed to solenoid push button start and pick up for 12 volt ignition start 6 volt run   

Do you have a crank to crank start it? If so pull the plugs  and hand crank it and see if it still has spark w/o using the starter. I also thought being a 45 it would have a dist. Look at the points and condensor. If it starts using starter then dies when you let off it's related to this somehow. My 45 takes on condensation worse than any other tractor I've ever seen. Look at the sediment bowel for signs of water and smell the gas in it. open the drain on the bottom of the carb and see what it smells like. put your finger under while it's running and you can feel the difference between gas and water/gas. Let it run until it's good gas or drain the gas in a jug so you can save it and try new gas and if you do this open the drain on the carb and let it run a minute with the new gas.

if it has been changed to distributor with coil, it sounds to me as if it is losing voltage to the coil once the starter is let off. try a jumper wire directly to the coil to be sure it is getting voltage. sounds like ignition to me. did the rotor crack and let it get out of time? are the plug wires on the correct cylinder? make sure you are tracing the rotation of the dist in the proper direction.

Make sure your fuel cap is vented, sounds like vapor lock !!! Vent hole blocked ???

Edited by Auntwayne - 01 Jun 2011 at 8:35pm

do not let the fact that it has spark when you crank it fool you. if it fires when you crank it and then it dies when you let off the key it is loosing spark. try leaving one plug out but still hooked up to the wire and turn it over and see if it loses spark when you let off the key. if it starts then you let off the key and the spark goes away, it is a power feed issue. if your tractor has an external coil, it does not have a mag, it has a distributor.

I'm coming in on this kinda late, but wet plugs are usually an indication of an Ignition problem, unless its obvious fuel is running out the bottom of the carb flooding the engine. 45's normally were equipped with a Distributor. To me, you need to emphasize whether or not it definately has a Mag in it, or its normally equipped Distributor and go from there. An external coil can be used in either application, but the symptoms of a no spark problem will differ between the two applications if the problem is in that area. I've repaired many a Mag that had an external coil used with it. Send a picture if you can. A picture is worth a thousand words...

Be sure the cylinders don't have an excessive amount of gasoline in them although if you cranked the engine with the spark plugs out if that were the case at least some of the gas should have come out.  This condition can happen if the float valve doesn't stop the gas flow since this is a gravity flow system.  I'd put a tube in the cylinders and try sucking out any gas that might be in there.  We worked on an engine quite a while one time on a D15 before finding out what happened.