possible electrical problems?

Diana

Diana

Diana

The compression factor on these diesels is massive. They must turn over fast to start. If you have ever done much tow starting, gas engines just need a bump of the clutch, gas and the fire of a plug to start, whereas the diesel must turn at 700 to 800 rpm until it starts to diesel. I have tow started diesels without the glow plugs working. It is just a matter of towing them with clutch out and in gear and at speed they would normally travel in that gear, until the engine warms up enough to diesel. It may take a 1/4 mile. On diesels the age of your diesel you don't even need batteries or electrics, just push the kill switch and tow.

You're right about needing more battery, but where on earth would I put it? I wish I had known about the cranking demands when I bought the first battery, as I would have bought two then. The manual shows the battery sorta under the seat. Mine is on a tray to the left side, probably welded there by someone. I hope I haven't ruined a new battery and have to buy two.
I'm wondering about a marine battery. There are some hugew ones out there. Not sure if they would be 6 or 12v. Used to live on a 42ft Chris Craft that had 2 huge chryselor inboard engines and they were huge and so were the batteries at about 3 ft long and 2 ft wide.

Tom keeps saying it's the starter. I know that there is more to it than just the starter.

I have no way to pull it. I don't think his little chevy S10 would. It's also sitting in such a way that it would be hard to maneuver. It's really wet out there and we would just throw mud.

There's a semi truck dealer about 5 miles from here...I wonder if they would be able to accomodate the battery situation.

Something that's bugged me since I cleaned the thing up is that there's an extra wire coming off of the solenoid. I have NO idea what for. It's really clean on the end and stripped like it was ready to use for something. The first thing that comes to my mind is it was somehow used in jump starting that tractor. Otherwise, there is no use for it, I don't think. It comes off of the same connection of the solenoid that goes to the pos on the battery and to the charge indicator.

I'm waiting for it to get light out so I can get out there and look at things a little better.
I'll keep checking back to see what I can find here. Will give me an excuse to come in and sit down.

Is it snowing there? They're forcasting 8-12 inches in the next day or two coming from the north.

talk soon, Diana

I'll keep in touch,
Diana

To you and your family a Merry Christmas and Happy and Prosperous 2004. 2004, what a ring to it, just seems like yesterday we celebrated the millenium. I always said when I was a kid being born in 42," I'll be a senior citizen by the turn of the century." Actually the term senior wasn't around then, we just used old man.

Diana

After that the first thing I would check out is wiring compared with proper diagram. The other thing you mention is battery. (singular) Is that what tractor calls for in manual? Most diesels will either use two 6 volt batteries in series or two 12 volt batteries hooked paralell. I doubt if you have much sucess starting that diesel in cold weather unless you have the equivilant of two 12 volt batteries, 700 cranking amps each and 1 gauge battery cables with soldered on ends. I find the best place to get these heavy battery cables is at heavy truck repair shops. Those glow plugs take a lot of drain on battery in colder weather. The key to all of this is have enough battery and cable to withstand glow plugs then crank the starter. For people like yourself used to gas engines this sounds massive. Remember this, less than ten years before your tractor, all diesels were started either on gas or by a gas pup engine. It takes heavy electrics to replace that.

Go for the electrical check up first, make sure all wiring is up to factory specs. On batteries and cables, I would go 10% to 20% heavier than factory specs. The batteries and cables is one area IH always went too light on.

Diana