Mark: Basically it's build a mount for the alternator, change to negative ground, and I'm guessing your JD M is positive ground currently, same as my SA was. In making that change you must change battery cables, reverse the wires on your amp gauge and coil.
The type of alternator I used was the one with small plug on the side. I purchased a pigtail plugin for that, hooked one of those wires to main alternator terminal. The other initially I used just to scratch on housing of alternator to excite the alternator. Eventlually I ran that wire back to dash, installed a push button switch, hooked wire to one side and grounded other side. After I start the tractor I just give that button a push to excite the alternator. The push button is very important, as you cant afford to forget and leave that on. It will back feed on battery when tractor is not running. All it needs is a quick push on button to excite the alternator. I find this works well, one tends to watch the amp gauge as he pushes the button. I have this on all my tractors, it's simple, it's trouble free, initially my tractors go to heavy charge then drop back quite quickly. It's been 15 years, I'll have to go to tractor and get back to you on which of those wires go to main alternator terminal and which to button.
The biggest single advantage I've found, battery is always fully charged, better for the starter and all other components. I have O gauge battery cables on the SA and I got 13 years out of that new 6 volt battery that was in the tractor when I made the change. Once per year I take the cables off and clean all the terminals. I had never come close to that kind of battery life ever, I always thought 6-8 years was damn good.
I once got 8 years out of a set of 12 volt batteries in a 404 Deere. I thought that was good considering the Deere probably started 300 days of the year, Canadian winters included. I've always done annual cleaning of all my tractors battery cables, and if a cable is looking bad, I'll heave it and go with new. If I loose a battery before it's 5 years old, I consider I over looked something, or made a mistake.
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Today's Featured Article - The Cletrac General GG and the BF Avery A - A Bit of History - by Mike Ballash. This article is a summary of what I have gathered up from various sources on the Gletrac General GG and the B. F. Avery model A tractors. I am quite sure that most of it is accurate. The General GG was made by the Cleveland Tractor Company (Cletrac) of Cleveland, Ohio. Originally the company was called the Cleveland Motor Plow Company which began in 1912, then the Cleveland Tractor Company (1917) and finally Cletrac.
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