Archive through October 30, 2009

[kide]

Ryan:
Thanks for the concern......I'm aware of the law...I've been cleaning my yard for 30 years, I have two large apple trees that I clean up after. Since I'm not "feeding" nor putting out a bait pile, I'm not too concerned. I actually put the apples under an apple tree. DNR needs to get MORE deer killed around here - beans and corn are taking a beating, along with the cars.... BTW - I think the baiters brought it on themselves - I saw dump trucks of carrots being hauled to bait piles..

Really OT (it did start with a comment about the 129, though)

 

[mhomrighausen]

Josh O. No snow here in Colo. A lot colder than this morning though... and windy to boot. I sure don't need snow right now. I have to work tomorrow and haven't even begun to get the snowthrower out of the shed yet. Plus I need the blade for the Keepsake 1650. Just too much to do and not enough weekends.

 

[wshytle]

FSnerd - Why don't you try another carb all together and if that solves things you'll know. I assume you probably have another carb or a temporary doner of a carb to try this. I agree with Kide; you can try a 24 hour soak. It may prove to be the problem. It does sound like a knat hair in one of your jets or something of the sort. This is what I'd do. It eliminates a lot if another carb solves the problem.
Just my thoughts on the matter... Wayne

 

[pfunk]

Here’s a picture of the progress on my latest project. The “fun” part is done. I like doing all the mechanical stuff but really don’t care much for the sheet metal part. It will hopefully be a Mini-cub when I’m finished. It will take at least through the winter to finish and maybe longer if I can’t get motivated.

Also, a little off topic, but it does have to do with a cub hauler. I was with a friend looking for a replacement wheel for his trailer. It requires a 5 bolts on 4 ½ inch center pattern. We took a hub along for sizing, but the guy at the U-Pull told us how to measure. It looks like this:

Maybe everyone else knows this, but it was news to me. It sure turned out to be a handy piece of information in our search. I calculated the distance when I got home just to check. For a 7/16” stud, it’s only off a little over a thousandth for a 4.5 inch bolt circle and 25 thousandths for a 5 inch circle. For a half inch stud, it’s only off 5 thousandths for a 5 inch bolt circle and 29 thousandths for a 4.5 inch bolt circle. That’s as close as I can measure with a tape.

 

[fsnerd]

Wayne Shytle -

i do not have another, working carb.
i have the original, which leaked a lot of gas. stuck floats, i assume. it appeared to be the original carb, so i did not play with it, just replaced it.
this carb has less then 8 hours on it, but i suppose something could have gummed it up while it was sitting during the harness replacement.

i will try the soak.

 

[rpalmer]

frank snerd,

TRY an adjustment on your carb. It changed engines and needs to be adjusted. Just do it. Then report back.

 

[dgallagher]

Is there an easy way to replace the valve guides on a 149? Thanks

 

[dcanfield]

I would like to thank everyone on here for the great tech advice provided. I just bought my first home and now have a use for my father's old 108. After a lot of time spent searching and reading though the old forums I was able to rebuild the carb, test for spark, and diagnose a bad ignition switch. Tonight the switch arrived in the mail (thanks CC Specialties for the quick service) and the 108 made its first laps around the fields in years. A sincere thank you for the great advice.
Dave

 

[wshytle]

Pfunk - What a great little mini-cub. I hope you take the time to finish this little masterpiece. Can you imagine what it would be like to be cultivating a row with this tractor? Will it have belly hydraulics? I'm looking forward to seeing a fine little tractor as a finished product. Farmall cubs are a favorite of mine. Thanks, Wayne

 

[fsnerd]

Richard Palmer

the carb that is on it now is new. it did not change engines.
"this carb has less then 8 hours on it" means it ran for about 8 hours on this engine since it was installed new, not that i got a used carb with only 8 hours on it. in case that is what confused you.
when first installed, engine ran fine, except for the stalling problem that was present before the new carb was installed.

after the new carb was installed, i lost the spark, no electricity to the coil.
after a new wiring harness, the engine will not start, unless you spray carb cleaner in the carb. then it starts ,but stalls in a few seconds.

I am going to try soaking and cleaning the carb.

if I misunderstood why you believe the carb needs to adjusted, please try explaining again.

 

[bjrainey]

Frank Snerd
You may have a new carb, but debris in your fuel lines and gas tank will plug up a new carb just as easily as an old carb. I know that my 1450 gave me fits even after I had rebuilt/cleaned my carb.
It wasn't until I replaced the fuel ines and put an inline fuel filter on that my problems stopped.
If you still have problems after that, check and make sure the float level is set right.
After these things, I don't know. That's been my experience, albeit limited as it is.
Hope this helps, and Good Luck.

 

[dfrisk]

KENDELL, JERRY, ART - Sorry, had to finish up cleaning the shelves in the shop yesterday PM.
I made everything including the impeller & housing for the blower. There's a rebuilt K181 with a dry-type air cleaner on it now. The K161 with oil bath air cleaner was off an old CCO Dad bought Years ago and sold about 5-6 yrs ago to someone in Ohio and I had to return the K161.

The impeller is on a 1" dia. solid steel shaft, impeller hub is 4" in dia. and I had a machine shop bore it and turn a step on the face. A 3/16" thk round steel plate is welded onto the step & OD of the hub, and four 3/16" thk paddles are welded to the hub & side plate. Only purchased items were the tire & wheel, and the two pillow block bearings the impeller shaft mounts to, and the weld-together pulley & hub that drives the impeller. The K181 also has the PTO clutch off the K321 mounted on it now to engage/disengage the impeller. Ohhhh, I had to buy a new throttle cable, but I actually made the throttle control, & yoke for the swiveling wheel, gas tank, etc.

The vac unit is on about Engineering Revision #3. I had the blower originally sitting 90 degrees to the direction it is now towards the right side of the unit and the engine towards the left side. Blower didn't work at ALL.

The cart is an el-cheapo but measures 32" wide, X 48" long and inside height is 36". There's a back door for it but the day I took those pic's I took it off to haul trash to the burning barrels.

I have a special set of blades for the mower with tall wings on them to really throw the material into the chute attached to the deck. A set of Gator's would work great if they made them for the old 38" decks. It doesn't leave the yard quite as clean as a sweeper would but it's a 1-man job now and the loads dumped on the pile are MUCH bigger.

Back when SON was younger He enjoysed pulling the lawn sweeper with His 129 and I'd haul to the burn pile with the 72 & cart without any sideboards on it. We'd mulch the leaves, then sweep. One fall We worked six weekends in a row at least one whole day each weekend.

Best day I had with the vacuum was 4-5 yrs ago on Veteran's Day, I started with the vac about 12:30-1 PM Friday and got done with the leaves at 2 AM Saturday morning, about 14 hrs straight. The 72 ran out of gas a couple times, but I managed to make pit stops most of the time. I aerated the whole yard twice on Sunday also with the 72. I put 25 operating hours on the 72 that weekend alone.

I figure the weight of the whole unit loaded with leaves/clippings has to be right around 2000# No wonder the tired old K241 struggled pulling it and the mower!

I looked at vac's for years also, found one made by Ohio Steel Fab. who also made my moldboard plow, but a service tech at the dealership bought it before I even saw it. Probably 16 yrs ago DAD saw a CC & vac unit sitting along US Rt 6 east of Moline. He told Me about it and I told him to buy it for Me, just the vac, and the seller would not sell it separate. I wasn't going to pay $1000 to $2000 for a cheaper lighter unit so I built one. Including the cost to rebuild the K181 I have about $500 in this thing. Steel was a LOT cheaper back then! I hauled home just over 500# of steel for about $135.

 

[jmuncie]

Dennis,

You're system is about where I would have ended up if I hadn't found this one. I've had plans floating in the back of my mind to build one--just hadn't had time to execute. I would have used one of the impellers that we still have at the shop. I found my Trac Vac for $230. Repower cost me about $255 with shipping. I sold the JD deck chute that came with it for 20-something on ebay. I already had a chute for a 48" deck from a parts tractor. If you figure in the HUGE Trac Vac I bought a couple years ago for $200 and sold for $700 because it was too big for my yard, I guess I'm still a little bit ahead on Trac Vacs.

Jerry

 

[bjrainey]

Frank Snerd
I was just thinking about your problem...again and remember having fits with my 1450. After having done everything that I knew or had been suggested by forum members, I still had the same symptoms as you were having

. I rechecked everything and replaced the coil, and she fired right up.
When you said it stalled when hot and you had spark to the coil, but no spark at the plug and your plug was wet, that was what was happening to me.
It is frustrating(and costly) I know, but keep at and you will get it.
As for the money issue, I look at it this way, a Cub that isn't running isn't much use to you. But one that we had put time and money in is better than most anything that you will buy new these days. Priceless.
I hope I don't sound condescending, because at one time or another we have all been there.
Brad

 

[drohacek]

Frank Snerd,
I agree with replacing the coil. If your running on carb cleaner or ether, there is still a chance that the coil is bad. The coil may fire the ether or carb cleaner because of the difference in volitility from gasoline. (volitility is that a word) The gas takes more spark than carb cleaner or ether. I have seen Kohlers act like it was a fuel problem when in fact the coil was breaking down. I'll be you put a new coil on that thing and go to work with it.

 

[jott]

Mike H, I would suppose not

Marlin H, being that you live in Colorado and dont have any snow seems kinda ironic, but I believe ya!

Guys, on the lift rods, can i inquire why they need to be made stronger? Im just kinda surfing through everything and Im not sure why they need to be reenforced. Is it because with the stock ones you cant apply enugh down pressure to scrape all of the snow or what? PLEASE help!

 

[dfrisk]

JERRY - I bought a used Pronovost P-503 tandem axle hyd. dump cart a little over a year ago, 3000# capacity, box is 70" long, 50" wide and with the side boards added by the prior owner the sides are 18" tall. If I had a hyd. remote on the 72 I'd make sides & top for it to pull behind the vac. The cart alone weighs almost 600# compared to maybe sixty pounds for the el-cheapo minus the tops, sides, & rear door I pull behind the vac.

SON thinks I should make Engineering Revison #4 to the vac and attach it to the Cat O 3-pt on the 982 and power it off the rear PTO. Since I pull that cart now with the 982 and dump with the aux. frt hyd remotes I would use the big cart with the vac. I think I'd be better off starting from scratch building a whole new blower then.

 

[wcompton]

The next size up is usually attached to a silo, blowing corn stalks!

 

[bmcclure]

I need some help/advice from the experts. I have a 125 hydro that is hard to start. By hard to start, I mean it turns over poorly. With a fully charged battery, even jumped from a car, it turns over slow. When I jump it from a running truck or on the boost or start option on a charger it turns over much better and starts. Could my problem be the starter generator and/or the regulator and if so, how can I find out which it is? I am only assuming that it is wired correctly but am not sure. Any help you could give we is much appreciated.

Bob

 

[dcanfield]

Frank
Just last week I was exactly in your shoes. My cub was doing the exact same thing with the starting fluid. It would start for a few seconds then run out.

I mistakingly thought the engine might be starving for fuel so I disassembled my old carb and cleaned it with carb cleaner, replaced my old fuel line with new, swapped in a new fuel filter, and cleaned my tank with mineral spirits. This cost me less than $10 and was a cheap easy way to eliminate a possible problem. The motor still behaved the same way.

I didn't believe I had an electrical/spark problem since it would run on starting fluid. The best advice i received was to buy a 12V test light. (They are dirt cheap if you don't have one. I paid 5.99 for mine.) I started at the coil testing for voltage with the key on and then again with the motor cranking. I found I had a very dim light at times and other times I had no light at all. When the light was dim the motor would start on the starting fluid but not run once it burned off. I thought this meant a bad coil, but I continued backwards down the line. I found at the voltage regulator I had a bright light on the terminals that were powered. I finally found that I had a bright light on one side of my ignition switch but not always. I put my test light on one of the coil posts then slowly rotated the ignition switch. I found that as I turned the key, the intensity of the light at the coil post fluctuated quite a bit. From slightly on, to off, then flickering.
I replaced my ignition switch yesterday, I now have full power at the coil posts and and a great running cub.
I would start by testing voltage all over the motor and tractor before replacing anything. You may find that its not your first suspect thats wrong.
Good luck,
David