HELP , Ive just purchassed a Howard 700

[vhgmcbuddy]

Should there be somthing conected to that lincage ??

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[vhgmcbuddy]

a few more

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[andyfrost]

The linkage you refer to is the freewheeling system , in the position in your pic it is in freewheel , in other words it can be easily wheeled about without engine running. Slightly and gently lift the tab and move it towards the gearbox and your machine will be in drive , you may have to slightly wriggle the machine from side to side to align the internal splines , but this is common , under no circumstances force it.

Your cylinder bore , although not easy to tell from the pics , appears to be OK , is there any undue “piston slap”??.
Again from the pics it seems to already have had a new coil fitted , so assuming the conenser is OK , I see no reason why you shouldn’t have it up and running fairly soon.

The bane of the 700 was the air filter , if you intend to use it regularly , make sure your hose and joints are all in good order , and that the filter is also , taking care that it seals properly inside the housing. I think I’m right in saying (Hortiman may well confirm) that a Diesel grey Fergie oil filter will do the job as a relacement.
Luckily I haven’t encountered this problem with mine , as it has the very rare and unusual oilbath air cleaner system.

Keep us posted with your progress.

Andy.

[moggyjim]

well done barry i bought one about a month ago a great piece of kit.A little on the heavy side but what ever job you ask of it the 700 delivers.Some good footage on the net of one ploughing and lifting spuds,best of luck with the refurb..

[wristpin]

This may be useful
https://www.dropbox.com/s/zoyfe15o2edqiwe/Howard%207000001.pdf?dl=0

If it is please download it or print it off as it takes up quite a lot of my free Dropbox space and I will delete it after Christmas.

[vhgmcbuddy]

Thankyou everyone for all the info and instructions books etc that you have given me , it realy has been a big help ty very much

[vhgmcbuddy]

ok ive just tested my coil after having to go and buy a new multi meter as my other one wasnt working. Ive done 3 readings on it and im no expert to say if the coil is ok or not, so yes i though id leave it to you guys lol . So here is 3 pictures for you to look at if you wouldnt mind giving me youre expert help , many thanks.

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[andyfrost]

I’ve lost count of the number of times I’ve said on here that multimeters are no good for properly testing coils , they need to be done on a proper ignition tester.
It’s not always easy to tell from photos , but judging on the colour of the coil , it appears to be a later modern replacement , have you cleaned and reset points and tried for a spark , making sure all the wiring is correct.

Andy.

[moggyjim]

is the flywheel on a taper or a key way. Im worried about changing the timing and not knowing how to reset it on my own 700.Also were their any decals on the machine as mine has none?

[vhgmcbuddy]

Thanks for your reply andy , i have no idea on the situation of the motor and points etc as im having to rebuild it all as it was in pieces when i got it. At the moment all im doing is cleaning her all up and re-building her as when i purchased it a fair bit of it was in pieces , so im replacing bits and piecess that i can manage to get hold of. Im no mechanical or electrical expert , so im going by very helpfull info im getting on here and watching videos on youtube etc.
You are also correct in saying its a modern coil also , but going on the reading im getting i believe now that the coil will be ok to use. Fingers crossed i get her going very soon.

[andyfrost]

Barry , looking back again through the pics you have posted , it seems the wrong coil has been fitted , it looks to be a “short” coil in place of the correct “long” coil. In all my years of fiddling about with Villiers engines , I can’t say I’ve ever encountered anyone doing this before, when taking into account both coil types are still easily available

However provided the correct bushing has been fitted , I can’t see any reason why it would not work. The correct coil is a 1030.
With no disrespect to the previous owner , this is more evidence that it has been messed with , by someone who , shall we say , is not quite fully switched on.

Moggyjim , flywheel is held on a keyless taper , set timing to 3/16 BTDC.

Andy.

[charlie]

barry page 22 of the engine manual tells you how to set the timing.

[vhgmcbuddy]

Thanks again for all your help guys , i think im going to bite the bullet and buy a new coil and new Villiers points/condensor box . The one ive got is in a prety poor state and id rather put in the correct parts and have it as close to a genuine machine as i can.

[andyfrost]

That’s a VERY wise decision , only my personal opinion , but I’m not a great fan of the cheaper coils that you have on yours. The new ones sold by either Villiersparts or Meetens are, I would say actually better than the originals. They’re not cheap , but in the long run far better , in terms of value for money, and most importantly performance.

Andy.

[hortiman]

Hello Barryg

I think your best bet is to replace the coil as recommended, the difference can be remarkable, even with a coil that is apparently working.

I would try John Cruse first at ‘the mower centre’ Vicarage Road, Hailsham, East Sussex first, he is a club member who has vast stocks of our sort of spares, and he has helped me with odd coils over the years. I usually post him the old mag and he tests everything and will return it with any replacements needed, fixed and ready to fit.

He is on 01323 842477 weekdays only/not evenings.

Here is a picture of my 700 with Hirth diesel taken a few years ago, when we had a club display at RHS gardens at Wisley. ( could be time for another display at Wisley Mr Chairman !!

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