Greetings HPOCA,

This is my first post here, looking for some advice.
My brother and I found an Oliver Super 77 Row Crop tractor in an abandoned farm. We found the owner of the tractor and he agreed to give it to us for free. The tractor has been sitting for at least 12 years out in the open exposed to the elements.

The tractor has the 6 cylinder Waukesha gasoline engine, muffler and rain cap. Everything looks decent, but before we see if it will run, my better judgement says to open the valve cover and check for stuck valves.

Lets say that 2 of the 12 valves (I am guessing 2 valves per cylinder, not 4) are stuck. Could I simply remove the rocker arms and spark plug for the cylinder with stuck valves and proceed to starting it once the oil has been changed, carburetor cleaned and fresh fuel has been added???

I'd hate to run it for long on less than all operable cylinders, but we do not have any means of moving such a tractor other than under its own power. Depending on how hard the engine is to work on, how easy is it to remove the pistons from the engine in frame, to check for stuck rings and worn bearing shells?  (The engine has 1208 hours according to the gauge)

I will also be looking for a service manual for this tractor. Where is the best place to get a physical or downloadable copy?

Thanks,

Chris