[joeydocks]

Hi All,

New to the forum. Picked up a 1984 JD 316 last summer with the intent to restore it to great working condition. With the winter breaking I've got to working on it and I had some questions I'm hoping some experts can help me with.

1. It has an Onan B43E engine. The manual says to use 20W50 for a temp range from 30 to 100 degrees F. I was at the JD store this morning picking up a new oil switch and they said they didn't even stock any 20W50 and said that a regular SAE30 would work fine. Am I ok with this?

2. The Onan B43E doesn't have an oil filter. How often should I be changing the oil? I mow about an acre - nothing too dusty or nasty.

3. In regards to the hood decals, mine has the simple 316 and John Deere like you'd see on the Kohler powered 316s. I've never seen an Onan powered 318 with those same decals, only with the more modern yellow striped fade to black. Do I likely have an older hood/wrong decals?

Thanks all!

 

[inspired_metal]

Joe,
Welcome
You can never go wrong following the manufacturers suggestions on oil or oil change intervals. If your situation is extra dusty or the oil is overly dirty you may want to change it sooner.
Hood decals changed over the years. What is the serial number on your tractor? Thats the only way to tell the year. You can check out the year by doing a model search at the top of the page and see where ours fits.
Hoods get broken and replaced all the time so it may not even be the one that came on your tractor.

Dom

 

[chuckv]

Joe,

Welcome to the WFM forums and to owning a vintage Deere. The TM1590 service manual covering your 316 and other Onan powered tractors has the following chart for oil grade versus service temperatures:

For me, 10W40 does everything I need in my climate -- but there is a wide range of opinions on oil on this site around synthetic versus dino, etc...

The hoods on the open frame tractors like your 316 Onan and the 318/322/332 have a different headlight lens than the older closed frame tractors like the 316 Kohler, 317, etc. The lense on the later tractors wrap around the front corner a bit, and as you note the decal is the striped "bumble bee" style. It is possible to put the older decals on a newer hood as they are a bit longer -- but you also could have an older hood from another tractor. Post pictures and we can tell for certain.

Here is the front of my 317 showing the hood and decal. As you can see, the 317 hood stripes represent yet another variant on the decal theme:

Here is a similar picture of a 316 that passed through my herd showing the proper hood,decal,headlight lens combination:

Hope this helps...

Chuck

 

[chuckv]

Joe,

I noticed another picture elsewhere on this site that better illustrates the wrap around of the older style decals on closed frame tractor hoods. This picture is of WMF member John Moore's 300K and 314 -- and shows both style decals that preceded the one that SHOULD be on your 316 Onan...as seen in my post above.

As a new member, you will find the search engine here can access a wealth of information about these vintage Deere machines -- just play with the search terms and use multiple key words and the "and" function to narrow your searches.

Chuck

 

[joeydocks]

Thanks for the replies, Guys. My decals look like the one on the 300, which were the same as on the 316 Kohlers. Must be a different hood as it doesn't have the wrap around lights. As I work through it I'll have to see if I can get a matching hood.

 

[danvan54]

Welcome to WFM Joe! I have spent two years completely restoring my 1984 Deere 316 with the Onan B43E engine. You will find a wealth of info in the forums here and it will be invaluable to repairing and maintaining your Deere. Good luck...

 

[Hammerdown-7]

Hello Dan
Very Nice Looking 318 You have there another good save for the Elusive 318's done well. Regards, Kurt

 

[dirtweed]

Joe

Welcome to WFM and the 316 club. I have a 1984 as well love the tractor. I have an extra 316 hood that was off my 1984....it's not green, but a little paint and it would be perfect. Has new decals on it that you can mask around.

It you're up in the Rochester area shoot me an email if you are interested.

 

[inspired_metal]

Darrin, Love the yellow. Did you ever think about green wheels and deck? New patio series??????
Dom

 

[Hammerdown-7]

Hello Darrin
Cool Looking 316 I have Not seen another one Like it with that color. I Lived 50 Miles south of Rochester at the foot of Canadaguia lake in a small town named Naples and drove to Rochester daily to work as a concrete truck driver for Dewitt Concrete before moving to Knoxville, Tennessee. I am Old enough that I can remember John P. Halpin & son's who was a huge John Deere dealership in Henrietta, New York a suburb of Rochester. They closed back in the early 1980's time span and we had their Head Lawn & Garden service mechanic working with us at Dewitt Concrete he was the Truck shop Boss. It was He that Turned me on to John Deere lawn & garden Tractor's back then and I have owned Nothing But John Deere's since. Here is a recent restoration of my son in law's John Deere 316 that I did for him. It is a 1991 with the later made Open Frame and P-218 Onan engine in it. He has a grand total of $632.00 in it built as shown. I Gave $50.00 for it when I dragged it home to restore these 316's are great Tractor's they are as tough as Nails. Regards, Kurt

 

[dirtweed]

Man I don't want to tell you how much I have into mine....I don't think I want to remember, all I know is I will have it forever!


Dom, yeah did a mock up on the PC and it did not look good at all!

Someone posted this 316 Kohler many years ago. I guess it is at some dealer and I decided I wanted to do my 316 Onan the same way.

 

[jlang]

Darin, That 316 in the dealer's show room makes me hungry for Raisin or Banana Cream Pie!

 

[danvan54]

Those 316 tractors are an excellent choice for restoration. They are almost always less money to buy than a similar 318, the only difference is only one pair of hydraulic outlets out front and no power steering. I am looking to add a second pair of hydro outlets up front and after I rebuilt the steering box, my 316 feels like power steering when moving. Kurt, nice job on that 316 resto!

 

[Hammerdown-7]

Hello Dan
I appreciate your Kind words. it was a very tedious Six week effort to bring the 316 back from it's Poor Beat down state but well worth it as it has Not missed a beat since I built it. It is Mowing my Son in Law's Yard weekly now, but when the mowing season end's this Fall we will get it back into my shop for some starter engine work. It has what I feel a bad solenoid on it's starter as it click's a few times before the engine starts. I Know it is Not the Key switch as I have all ready replaced that and all of the wiring connection's are good. It has about 360 Hour's on it now since the build it quit smoking and run's smooth it has had it's second oil change. This winter I plan on pulling the engine to repair it's solenoid on the starter and while it is out I will also Pull The head's to give it a de-carbon job before Placing it back in the Tractor. My son in law is very happy with it he Likes it Much more than he did his 1991 Cub Cadet that was a Model 1541 with a Hydro Transmission and Kohler Magnum 18 Horsepower twin cylinder engine in it, he say's that the Onan has a Lot more Power. Regards, Kurt