Hello I have a 1964 ford industrial 223 and I need help setting the governor … I have researched and it seems to be a hoof . Any help would be greatly appreciated … Ty
I take it that this is in an Onan generator? A complete model number would be helpful. That should be a constant speed governor at 1800 rpm if still in generator.
Gas or diesel.??
6 cyl gas 223 industrial
Make sure you change the oil, bad or contaminated oil will ruin them quick.
Here is a link to their website "instructions". Hope that helps. Instructions | Hoof Governors
I have found they start to behave strangely when on the way out. I replace them with electronic governors where possible.
What specifically is the issue? Rpm is off? Hunting rpm? They are pretty much dirt simple and usually are fairly trouble free until someone monkeys with it somehow
I got the motor somewhat apart … got it back together but have 0 knowledge on governors ! I understand how and what they do but I need to set this one up and don’t know how … lol ! Ty Seth
Ok. Well to start from zero. The single purpose of the governor (any governor) is to maintain the set point you give it. If engine rpm dips it opens the throttle plate and vise versa. So, basically bolt the governor on and attach the linkages how they were on. This can be a source of trouble as the linkage geometry is important. But depending on your set up it may be simple if there is not several different holes on the arms and such. Now generally once the thing is all on there and ready to fire up It will be sitting at full throttle position. Ie: throttle plate vertical in relation to the throttle body. This is because of the centrifugal weights that control the output. If rpm slows down throttle opens, Ie: the weights are spinning slower causing the output arm to open the throttle. So at zero rpm its at maximum throttle trying to get the engine to speed up ( it doesn’t know the engine isn’t even running) all it knows is the rpm is too low. After its all ready, hooked up and full of oil etc fire it up. Now be ready to shut it off or manually control the throttle incase something is outta whack and it goes too fast uncontrolled. Now basically see where your at your input should control the governor. Usually when the throttle cable is screwed all the way in should be idle and vise versa. As long as it does what you need it to thats it. There isn’t really alot of adjustment. There is usually a screw in the back of the body with a jam nut, thats a physical stopper for the centrifugal weights so it limits max rpm. If you can’t get enough rpm you may not have the cable on the input set quite right. This can be finicky trying to get full rpm and a decent idle rpm. If rpm is erratic or hunts, you may have the linkage set wrong, ie: attached to the wrong holes in the lever arms. Or if you had the arms right off maybe pointing the wrong way like up instead of down Hopefully this helps. They are quite simple and usually work well if there not damaged or clapped out.
Thanks for the explanation. I have seen the Hoof governors but had no idea how they worked. I've seen the 223 Industrial installed in snowcats ( Thiokol 601, for example ) I'm more familiar with Ford 300 Industrial which also uses that governor sometimes . I'm curious what Seth316 is doing with the engine ?
It’s on a chipper . It idles fine and goes up to what I’m calling full throttle. Nothing on the governor has been set … it runs fine wide open and chips but it drops rpm’s and is slow to recover so it needs to be set .
So the thing you need to confirm is when rpm is drooping under load, if the throttle plate is wide open. If it is, then its not a governor issue, you are out of horse power, either because the engine is at max output, or because the engine has issues causing it to not make rated power. You need to have a solid visual to know the position of the throttle. Dont assume or guess. If I were to guess I would say the engine is drooping rpm, the throttle is WFO, and governor is doing everything it is supposed to to try and get rpm up.
Hmmmmm …. I would agree but the machine was apart when I got it and I just threw the governor on to see what it would do . That’s why I’m thinking it needs to be set or adjusted …. It’s not even throwing or moving anything on the governor linkage at all .
So when u fire up, you can control speed correct? It idles when you adjust it to idle and revs up when you pull back the throttle and goes to max rpm? ( you should confirm rpm also to make sure your actually where it needs to be for good power) Its a little tricky to do but you can manually test the governor by running it with the throttle disconnected and with the governor set at full rpm, manually close the throttle closing throttle. The governor should respond accordingly by moving the linkage in direction that would be faster. If you hold the engine at idle with the governor set at full speed it should basically be at its max output to be attempting to get rpm back up. Conversely if you open the throttle past set rpm the governor should start moving towards slower. Keep in mind at low load or no load it takes very small throttle movement to make a large difference. But basically if you are able to control idle and full rpm the governor is doing its job at least somewhat. Having a digital timing light to see rpm is very helpful.
Well I’m going to purchase a tach and I will get back to you . Ty for your help … Seth
I imagine you can pick up a decent timing light for a decent price. Then you could check timing while your at it make sure its good.