Archive through November 07, 2011

[mgonitzke]

Allen-

The direction of rotation is determined by the way the field coils are wound, not by the polarity of the battery.

 

[jcabral]

I am just kind of confused by the head bolts being on top of the shroud. Some bolts have double washers that are rusted and pitted. How can the torque values be accurate in that setup. When I looks at the parts manuals there is no clear picture on how the washers are used.
I also brought my crankshaft to my machinist who thinks he can polish it so I can use a standard size replacement rod. I think I need to invest in a quality torque wrench that does inch pounds.

 

[ccarney]

Rick Beem -

Nice box! Other than Art's, that's the only original one I've seen. Years ago someone posted one from a 102...

 

[rbeem]

Thanks Craig,
I've been on a Loooong dry spell of good Cub finds, so it was kind of neat to come across a rare thing like the "box".
I figured somebody wound swoop in and grab it before I could pick it up.

 

[cfjohnson]

On my backwards battery, (yes, I did a "double take" about five times before posting) I would leave it except it seems like any time the tractor body touched earth, (like when plowing, or even when covered up with a tarp in the rain) you would have a voltage drain.

 

[rklein]

Can anyone direct me to the engine to shaft coupling for a quietline. I've removed the POS Briggs and Stratton engine from the 1100 and have fit the Kohler 12 in it's place. Looks sweet but I am missing the drive shaft to engine flywheel connection. Would like to get this togther before the first flakes fall.

Thanks in advance,

Bob in Charlestown, RI

 

[dfrisk]

CLIFF J, ALLAN S. - It's entirely possible to charge a battery "backwards", making the pos terminal negative and vice-versa. You typically start with a dead battery and hook the booster/charger up backwards.

Since your battery won;t hold a charge, sounds like it's time for a new battery and go over the electrical system looking for shorts.

 

[aschumacher]

Well, a battery changed its polarity! <font size="-2">Does that come under the heading of 'don't ask, don't tell?</font>

 

[jharvey]

How come nobody don't think the PO got a S/G that turns the wrong direction and just reversed the battery to solve his problem? $0.02

 

[kmcconaughey]

Jerry, that's what I was thinking. How many times over the years have people posted here that they had their S/G rebuilt and now it turns the wrong way. I seem to recall at least 3 times. Could this be a 4th?

 

[pbell]

Kraig M, Jerry H
Reversing the "battery" or polarity, does not change the direction of rotation of the starter.

 

[rrschmitt]

I always been told that if you hook up a battery charger to a battery with the cables switched, it would likely cause it to explode. I would think it would be the same case when hooking up a battery backwards to the charging system. Perhaps your charging system is not working and that would explain the drain on your battery.

 

[jharvey]

Kraig
There are many brands out there that turn CW and the PO may have put one of those on. And yes the repair shop may have changed the direction of rotation too. Whenever I have one worked on I make it very clear I want it back CCW.

 

[aschumacher]

Paul Bell, maybe I missed something in my electronics training a way back, but my understanding was change the polarity and you change the direction of rotation on a DC motor. Matt noted winding direction, true, but I bet if someone messed up and wired a DC motor wrong somehow, you would see strange things happen to whatever its hooked to.

 

[cfjohnson]

First, thanks for all of the input, I think I like the idea of the clockwise starter/generator (even though it looks like it has been there awhile). I put the trickle charger on it this morning before work and just tried to start it. Not even a click, but the charge gauge went slightly towards "charge" with a turn of the key. funny. I'll tear into it this weekend, make sure everything is back to "factory" and see what happens. Thanks again,
Cliff

 

[mgonitzke]

Allen-

There is a physics and EE-intensive explanation for why reversing the polarity does not matter. I can't remember it well enough to try to explain it. Basically the physical arrangement of the windings make it want to start in a certain direction, thus causing it to run that direction regardless of the polarity. (I think...I will not pretend to be an EE) There are CW and CCW field coils, and anyone who had their S/G rebuilt and got it back only to find out it turned CW simply had it rebuilt by someone who didn't think to check (or ask) what direction it turns, as most everything else uses a CW-turning S/G.

 

[pbell]

Allen,
All I can say is there are quiet a few older Farmall tractors still being used that have had the original 6 volt, positive ground, electrical system changed over to 12 volt negative ground, with a one wire alternator rather than a generator, and still using the original 6 volt starter (because there is not a 12 V replacement to use). The starter doesn't care about the polarity, and as long as you don't crank the starter for a long period of time, it doesn't care that you are feeding it 12 V rather than 6V. It is fairly common to see tractors with converted electrical systems on them, at antique tractor/machinery shows.

My wife bought a 1966 Cub Lo-Boy off ebay, and the owner said it would run but if you tried to throttle the engine up it would die. Long story short, the tractor was built with a 12 V negative ground system and someone had put a 6 V battery in it with a postive ground. I corrected that, changed the coil and connected the wire to the points correctly, and the tractor ran like a new one.

 

[rbeem]

I bought my 108 and a previous Original that both had the batterys hooked up backwards.
Both ran fine.
Just switch the wires around and off you go...hopefully.

 

[gcoleman]

Evening all, hope everything is well. Been workin the mini pretty hard lately (once I fixed my condensation problem, wet spark plugs dont fire well). Today and yesterday Ive been using a strap and been pulling big bunches of branches and tree chunks leftover from septembers hurricane ripe for the burnin, so I figured Id use it! Took a couple glamor shots (sorry, no action shots, kinda hard to be in two places at once, still tryin to figure that one out.) enjoy! - Also I got my HD air cleaner in, gonna work swimmingly for my vertical air cleaner in the future.

 

[mhomrighausen]

On running a six volt starter with a twelve volt battery.... If I recall correctly there was a white resistor or something that was necessary to be installed when converting a six volt system to twelve volt so you wouldn't burn the starter up. I can see the little white piece ever so clearly and it was installed on or very near the distributor area. What I was told by my Dad and several mechanics that this little item would convert the twleve volt over to six volt so that you wouldn't burn up the starter (didn't take much cranking to do just that due to the starter getting hot real quick). This item then somehow "helped to achieve an easier start up with the bigger cranking power of a twelve volt battery and yet the tractor starter AND lights would remain on a six volt system once the tractor was running. Similar to what I once heard that the automobile may start on twelve volt only once running it ran on six volts. That was many years ago.

<font size="-2">Geez.... I need to stop recalling so vividly these conversion setups on the old tractors. Of course tractors, trucks and trumpets used to fascinate me a whole lot more than women did. I was around six or seven when I discovered girls and things went downhill fast after that.</font>

To keep this on topic. Anyone looking forward to the wet snow that we are supposed to be getting tonight? My aching body just doesn't seem to want to move snow quite yet. I don't even have the chains and blade on the Keepsake 1650 yet.