Start procedure for D7 3T

1- Start pony motor
2- ingage pinion lever
3- in gage clutch lever
Checks- make sure engine lever is in start position crank for a bit move to second notch and then third or run position I am trying to find out if this is the proper way.
Pinion lever should not have to be held in ??
Clutch lever should not have to be held in??
If some one could give proper procedure I would be grateful. and any other tid bits of info would help thanks.

You got it right if everything is in proper working order.

If the tractor has a dry clutch, all sorts of bad things happen to the pinion when you break a clutch link. You do whatever it takes to get it started or tear it down and fix the problem......or resort to push/pull starting.

Hey Ibrooks,

The only comment I would add is to keep the throttle in the off position until the engine has warmed up a bit before you open the throttle. I have witnessed some that keep the throttle open while it puffs white smoke and won't start. The fuel is cold, and prevents it from trying to warm up, so keep the fuel off until it warms. An old timer told me once that on a day 40 degrees and above it is a one smoke start. When colder outside, it is a two smoke start. A lot of people quit smoking now a days , but i'm sure you get the point. Let the pony run a while with the compression closed, in the run position, and create the heat needed to fire it off. When you can feel the side of the block getting warm with the back of your hand, then open the throttle.-good luck-glen

Be sure main clutch is disengaged.
Check to see if throttle on main engine is in kill position.
Turn full on to pony engine.
Check to make sure magneto switch is in run.
Start pony.
Set decompression lever to decompression.
Engage starter pinion.
Engage clucth.
Move compression lever to desired position according to temperature outside. Cold engines turn over very hard in cold weather.
Let pony engine run making sure that main engine is turning over, pony can overheat if main motor is not turning.
I generally let the main motor get warm by using compression.
Move compression lever to decompression.
Set main throttle at half throttle.
Move compression lever to run, this will kickout pinion when she fires.
Move pony clutch lever to disengage position.
Turn fuel off to pony engine and let it run out of gas. You do this so fuel doesn't continue to fill the carb and flood the pony motor getting gas in the crankcase.

Hi Rob, I'm curious as to why you decompress again just before opening the throttle? Not that I know everything (or even much : ) but I'd never heard of anyone doing that - I've only ever heard of folks just opening the throttle after compression warm-up.
Cheers,
Neil.

now im so confuesed i don't know where to start!!

The reason I do this is to put a little fuel on top of the piston then she fires right away. If you just add fuel with it on it may not start as fast. I actually run an excavating business using my D7 3T machine and have been running this machine since '86. Sometimes the old girl will take off with fuel on decompression before I get a chance to move it back to compression, this usually happens with warm engine or extremely hot weather.

Thanks for the explanation Rob, I'll experiment with that technique on my D2 (if I ever get it to the point of trying to start it .... ). I see you're in Columbus - I lived there for 5 years and during that time I picked up this D2 and I still haven't gotten it going (lack of time/dedication more than anything else...). I've now brought it up here to Rochester NY and at least the engine's out of it now and I've refurbished the pony, pony clutch, main clutch. Next step is to figure out why I only have about 45 degrees of rotation on the main crankshaft.

Zip - at a real high level, you start the pony, and then you use the pony to start the main. Before either of those steps, it's good safety practice to verify that the tractor won't accidentally move while you're standing beside it working through these starting procedures:
- apply tractor parking brake (usually a latch on one of the brake pedals - not sure what the D7 has)
- set the main gear lever in neutral
- some engage the main clutch (because when you first start spinning the main, you'll immediately know if it's in neutral or not, or sometimes the pilot bearing in the clutch can seize and so turn the gearbox input shaft thus relying only on the clutch being disengaged is risky), others disengage it
- disengage the pony clutch
- if the pony pinion is latched into gear with the flywheel, you can leave it as is if the drag on the clutch is a) not too much for you to start the pony, and b) is not too much that the main will immediately start turning

To start the pony you have to:
- check the pony oil and the main coolant. If it seems too high, you might have fuel-diluted oil
- turn on the gas tank valve to let the carb bowl fill
- turn on the magneto switch
- set the choke
- set the throttle
- pull the starter rope
- push in the choke as the pony warms up and will run on its own
- let it warm up a bit

To start the main:
- check the main oil
- set the decompression lever to decompression (not sure if that's run or start on a D7)
- pull up on the pony pinion brake (opposite direction to engaging the pony clutch) and engage the pony pinion latch
- (pony gearbox - not sure if this tractor has one but if it does, you can use low gear initially to get the main spinning and "loosen" things up/get oil distributed in the main, and then use high gear to actually start the main)
- set the pony throttle about half
- engage pony clutch, feathering it in so as to keep the pony running
- set the pony throttle at full
- set the decompression level to compression
- have one or two cigarettes depending on ambient temperature
- when you can feel the main engine block getting a bit warm, open main throttle 1/3. If main doesn't start within say 15s, close the main throttle and continue compressing the main engine to further warm it up
- if it doesn't start after a decent long warm up, you might have problems. Check for smoke from main exhaust - should be a decent amount, not just whisps - if whisps you might not be opening the main throttle sufficiently (give it a good yank open), or you have air in the fuel system (bleed)
- once the main is running, turn off pony gas valve, and throttle it down to half. When pony runs out of gas, turn off magneto switch.
(Anyone - if I've missed vital steps, please update. Also, some folks have specific practices that they follow so your mileage may vary as they say..)

Cheers,
Neil