Cat 259B3 Sputters, Blows White Smoke Only After Hours of Use

[Nige]

There is this one (also a genuine Cat manual) on CD @$49 + $5.75 S&H. Either would work - your call.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/304263818883?hash=item46d7896e83:g:HGwAAOSw2I1huQP7

 

[Howey Matt]

If it worked around 2 hours with no problems then started acting up then TBH injectors would be right at the bottom of my list of potential problems.

Have you tried blowing compressed air through the fuel line in the reverse direction from the inlet connection at the fuel filter back to the fuel tank.?
Have you tired draining any water and sediment that might be present in the fuel tank.? You are aware I hope that draining the cr@p from the tank is supposed to be done weekly.?

If you haven't done either of the above then they would be my next suggestion of things to try.

Thanks for the link to the manual! I just downloaded a copy. Should help a lot!

I drained the fuel tank and flushed it several times with clean fuel. Nothing really came out other than some metal crud that was magnetized to the plug. I was expecting a lot more. Anyway, I believe the tank is relatively clean.

I also removed the fuel filter and priming motor assembly and cleaned everything again. The fuel filter is brand new.

I did notice the o-ring under the priming motor is a bit stretched and doesn't fit snuggly in the seat. Would that be worth replacing? Could be letting some air into the fuel system? Does anyone have a part number?

 

[Nige]

I did notice the o-ring under the priming motor is a bit stretched and doesn't fit snuggly in the seat. Would that be worth replacing? Could be letting some air into the fuel system? Does anyone have a part number?

If the O-Ring appears stretched then you should replace it. It seems as though there is a kit of seals for the filter/pump assembly rather than a single Part Number.

 

[heymccall]

28869 is the Stanadyne number. I can't recall if it's in that Cat kit.

 

[heymccall]

If not, it's in the Deere RE516553 kit.

 

[Howey Matt]

28869 is the Stanadyne number. I can't recall if it's in that Cat kit.
View attachment 253847

I confirmed it's included in the Cat kit and got it ordered. Hopefully, it does the trick. Here's a photo of the old o-ring. You can see how stretched out it is.

 

[Nige]

That existing O-ring is not only stretched, it's damaged as well.
I've never been into one of these personally. Is the original O-Ring supposed to be blue or black in colour.? If the answer is black then what you have there is most likely the wrong O-Ring.

 

[heymccall]

I suppose it could be a blue Oring. But. IIRC, it sits atop the protusion, not next to it.

 

[Nige]

That's the wrong Oring altogether. It is to be a square profile ring that sits on top of the raised profile, IIRC.

Thought so.

 

[heymccall]

I knew I had one here...

This one has a different insert as it didn't have the electric pump, but, you can see the profile and placement of the Oring.

 

[heymccall]

And, why I suggested teardown and adding a 3972 Napa inline screen filter between it and the tank.

 

[heymccall]

Just got my new FM100 assemblies in. I thought, and now I know, the upper seal tends to be a nearly square profile.

I use these to replace any screen only type water separators, as the screen only units are no longer effective. Ever since the reduction of sulphur in the fuel (circa 2007, IIRC), water now stays suspended in the fuel, rather than dropping out.

 

[Howey Matt]

Just got my new FM100 assemblies in. I thought, and now I know, the upper seal tends to be a nearly square profile.

I use these to replace any screen only type water separators, as the screen only units are no longer effective. Ever since the reduction of sulphur in the fuel (circa 2007, IIRC), water now stays suspended in the fuel, rather than dropping out.
View attachment 254003 View attachment 254004

Well, I got the seal kit from the dealer, and none of the o-rings are the same size as the blue one I'm trying to replace (see photo). Any other place I can find this thing?

 

[heymccall]

If Deere is too far away, it's also in the 121-4480 seal kit from Caterpillar. It'll be an Oring, not square cut, but it's the right one. I gave the Deere number above, with picture.
You most likely bought the 128-8614, which only services the bowl assembly.

 

[heymccall]

The cap and ring under the arrow are NOT used when a priming pump is installed, nor is the "volume plug", the white item under the "X".

 

[Howey Matt]

If Deere is too far away, it's also in the 121-4480 seal kit from Caterpillar. It'll be an Oring, not square cut, but it's the right one. I gave the Deere number above, with picture.
You most likely bought the 128-8614, which only services the bowl assembly. View attachment 254021

The John Deere dealer is actually much closer than the Cat dealer, so I'll pick up the RE516553 kit from them.

 

[heymccall]

And, once you're back together, if it's like my 248b, the pump doesn't come on at key on. To prime, it needs to have the key hit the "crank" position. IIRC, turn the key to "crank", and let it back to run, WHILE the seat bar is down.

 

[Mike85]

Is the fuel tank venting? 3-4 hours would pull quite a vacuum on the tank. If it’s acting up still pull the cap off to check if it’s suctioned on

 

[heymccall]

304-3885 is the fuel cap. I don't see a rebuild kit for it, and, it appears to be vented, but I cannot confirm.

 

[Howey Matt]

And, once you're back together, if it's like my 248b, the pump doesn't come on at key on. To prime, it needs to have the key hit the "crank" position. IIRC, turn the key to "crank", and let it back to run, WHILE the seat bar is down.

I normally turn the key to Run, which causes the pump to cycle for 4-5 seconds. Once it stops, I turn the key to Start and it cranks up. It won't do anything unless the lap bar is down.