Getting the BCS 715 ready for work

With ploughing finished in the root break, it’s time to start breaking the soil down to a fine tilth for planting jerusalem artichokes, onion sets and potatoes, as well as drilling mangel seeds. This is one of the few jobs for which we have mechanical aid, so I rolled the BCS 715 two-wheel tractor out of the garage this morning to service it and prepare it for work. I drain it of petrol, give it a thorough clean and oil bare metal before putting it into winter storage, but I prefer to service it immediately before putting it to work as it means it gets a thorough check. I started by giving the 715 a good scrub to remove the dust and then drained the old oil from the sump. The old oil is added to a barrel that I keep for oiling tools. (A safety note: Disconnect the spark plug before doing any work on the 715.)

The oil filling port is quite small, so pouring oil in through an equally small funnel takes some time and patience (SAE 40 summer, SAE 20 winter). The handbook recommends checking the oil every four hours of work and changing it every 50 hours. I prefer to check the oil at the start of the working day, then every two hours (as that’s when I take a break), and again at the end of the day. As part of the servicing, I also checked the gearbox oil (SAE 90, high pressure) on the 715 and the oil level on the tiller (again SAE 90). Both were fine. The manual recommends checking the gearbox every 50 hours and the tiller every 100 hours, but I prefer checking at the start of every working day.

The air filter has an oil bath, which should be emptied and refilled to the marked level every eight hours—more often in dusty conditions. The same oil is used as in the engine, SAE 40 in summer and SAE 20 in winter.

After removing the rubber gasket and clearing out all the dirt in the cavity, the spark plug was removed and checked. It was in good condition, with the electrode a light grey colour and with good, crisp edges. I cleaned the threads with a soft, brass-wire brush, cleaned the electrodes with a fine file, then brushed the plug over with a paint brush dipped in white spirit. After drying the plug with a clean cloth, I checked the spark gap with a feeler gauge, applied a smear of copper grease to the threads and carefully screwed it back into the head. All it needed was a final tighten with the spark plug spanner, although it wasn’t reconnected until the other jobs were done.

I then went over the entire 715, checking all the nuts and bolts were tight, particularly the bolts holding the tiller to the tractor, the bolts holding the tiller blades, and the engine mounting bolts. I oiled the bushes of the handlebar locking rod, then checked the tension on the control cables. The cables should have a little play without being slack, but the clutch cable had slackened noticeably and had to be tightened. The throttle lever was sticking so it was disassembled, cleaned, oiled lightly and reassembled. The engine-mounted stop button was sticking so it was cleaned and smeared with a tiny amount of silicon grease. The tyres were inflated to 39psi—correct tyre pressures are essential for adequate traction. (And thanks to the Wee ‘Un for taking this photo. He framed the photo and focused the camera beautifully, not bad for a five-year-old but then he’s been taking photos since he was two!)

Now, the final test. I fueled the 715 with petrol, reconnected the spark plug, checked the clutch was in neutral, checked the tiller was not engaged and prepared to start it. Throttle to the mid-position, fuel cock on, choke closed, left foot on the right wheel, a short pull on the recoil starter rope to get it in position, and then a strong pull. Brrrrrrrm! I throttled the 715 back and let it run for five minutes, turned the choke to neutral and then checked it over for oil leaks and loose fittings. Everything looked and sounded fine, so after packing the tools away it was time to head out to the field…