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GlenninPA 
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Joined: 11 Sep 2009
Location: Ashley, PA
Points: 5054
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 Topic: What happens if you reverse +and - ground?
Posted: 08 Jun 2010 at 9:24pm |
I had a guy call me today and ask what would happen to his tractor if he reversed the positive and negative cables on the battery.
I said "I dunno, I never would have thought to do something like that".
Now I'm curious.
For what it is worth, Ford 601, 6v, pos ground, with generator.
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Gerald J.
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Joined: 12 Sep 2009
Location: Hamilton Co, IA
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Posted: 08 Jun 2010 at 9:52pm |
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It will start, it will run a bit poorly, and the generator or cutout or both may smoke.
To do it properly, the battery cables need to be changed, else they fit badly (a hint of proper polarity), the ammeter wires need to be swapped, the coil primary wires need to be swapped and before its started the generator needs to be flashed to set its polarity to match the battery. The owner's manual has the flashing procedure which varies by the generator wiring connections.
The starter won't care, but the generator and ignition will. The generator may complain with a cloud of smoke.
Gerald J.
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CTuckerNWIL
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Joined: 11 Sep 2009
Location: NW Illinois
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Posted: 09 Jun 2010 at 9:24am |
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Glenn, If you unhook the generator it will be fine for a while. Swapping the leads on the coil will make the points last longer if you switch polarity on the battery. The amp meter don't care, it just reads backwards if you don't switch it.
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GlenninPA
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Location: Ashley, PA
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Posted: 09 Jun 2010 at 9:34am |
I suspect this is one of those cases where it was done before he called. He and his son were arguing pretty good when I got the call. Later last night I found out the son had taken the tractor out, but the battery went dead and he walked back.
I suspect they had let the smoke out of their generator, and that ended up draining the battery. I told them to take the gennie to a reputable repair shop, and have the tractor put back together by somebody who had an idea of what they were doing.....
The son is about the hardest guy I ever knew on equipment. He is the only guy I ever knew to snap a 3 pt lift arm in half. He did that by executing a 90 degree turn with the 2 bottom plow still in the ground.
Dad wants to learn to weld. I told him"why don't you have your son learn to weld, because most everything seems to break when he is using it..."
I am not in a hurry to see how all this works out.
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DaveKamp
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Joined: 12 Apr 2010
Location: LeClaire, Ia
Points: 5816
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Posted: 09 Jun 2010 at 11:25am |
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Gee...
Pardon the graphical language, but it sounds like rather than learning how to weld, he needs to get out there and learn how to turn furrows with his hands and feet on the ground, and a double-14 snap-hitch shoved up his arse. He's apparently got larger shoe size than IQ.
Most likely, the battery is dead on account of the generator cutout field contact being stuck (welded) shut... take a fresh battery out, hook it up correctly, and light it up, drive it back to the shop, and shut it down. When you disconnect the battery, if it draws a little spark, that means something's still carrying current... first suspect is the regulator cutout.
Edited by DaveKamp - 09 Jun 2010 at 11:26am
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Dave(inMA)
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Location: Grafton, MA
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Posted: 09 Jun 2010 at 3:32pm |
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Son sounds like a couple of people I know in this corner of the country....ones I avoid whenever possible. Some people have to learn things the hard way, and some just never seem to learn. He could be one of those.
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WC, CA, D14, WD45
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Jeff(WC)(MI)
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Joined: 12 Sep 2009
Location: S.E. Michigan
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Posted: 09 Jun 2010 at 8:58pm |
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for what it's worth...when i bought my wc..the previous owner had replaced the battery...and he hooked it up like he does his car..negative ground...well the gennie wasn;t putting anything out however the cutout was working properly but it seemed to ALWAYS drain the battery when sitting....well two weeks after i bought it i had to replace the batter...quit taking a charge...after i did that i hooked it up pos ground and had the gennie rebuilt...have never to this day after 2 years never had a dead battery and i leave the cables hooked up...can;t explain why...but i am happy
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LouSWPA
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Joined: 11 Sep 2009
Location: Clinton, Pa
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Posted: 09 Jun 2010 at 10:18pm |
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having worked in electronics all my live I have been present on several occasions when the smoke was let out of various components. Let me tell ya', it's real hard to get it all back in! LOL
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acd21man
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Posted: 10 Jun 2010 at 3:56pm |
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didnt some john deere 2 cylinders do this
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2 wd 45,2 D-17 diesel/gas 3 pt, 220,d21, 4020,2 4430s used daily http://www.youtube.com/channel/UCudh8Xz9_rZHhUC3YNozupw
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Kev Card
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Joined: 15 Sep 2009
Location: Millerton Pa
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Posted: 10 Jun 2010 at 8:15pm |
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a good friend of mine had a saying about folk like that fellows son ,Strong like Bull Smart like tractor Kev
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jmm
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Joined: 06 Dec 2009
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Posted: 10 Jun 2010 at 9:03pm |
having worked in electronics all my live I have been present on several occasions when the smoke was let out of various components. Let me tell ya', it's real hard to get it all back in! LOL
hah! love it!
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