WOULD NOT START

[Jag]

Hi,Guys -- a new one that I have not seen on the board. Yesterday morning I hooked up the brushhog and cleaned up some brush around the house, got off to get a drink and when I came back and the little orange one would not start (turn over). After checking everything, decided it had to be a safety switch on the PTO or shuttle shift. It turned out to be the safety switch to make sure the PTO is not engaged when starting. Looked like some very small twigs may have taken some tension out of the little spring that follows the cam to work the switch. I put the PTO in high range and could bend the spring around the cam itself. This worked and is doing ok so far. But looking at the way this switch works, it seems very frail, and can not believe that I have not seen this on the board... Has anyone else had problems, or is it really hard to get something into the switch and mess it up.... Thanks

 

[Thomas]

Jag,
What model is your Kubota?
On my riding mower I have a safety switch,for soon as I leave the seat w/ mower also the tractor running the mirco switch will shut the tractor off/w3tcompact/icons/frown.gifbut safety is safety and I don't loke to hot wire safety devices only need be./w3tcompact/icons/wink.gif

The B7100 has no safety switches....will at least I found yet/w3tcompact/icons/smile.gifbut if one was to be install I would like to see one for cold morning starts.
Stay safe and/w3tcompact/icons/cool.gif

Thomas..NH

 

[Bird]

Thomas, you say the B7100 has no safety switches? Doesn't the range selector have to be in "neutral", the PTO "off", and the clutch "depressed" or "disengaged" before it will start? Those are all safety switches.

Bird

 

[Thomas]

Bird,
You are so right about the safety devices on the B7100 which I taken for granted,and thank you for reminding me./w3tcompact/icons/wink.gif
Like the saying goes,whats the since of having safety devices if you don't use them or take them for granted.

Take care and stay/w3tcompact/icons/cool.gif


Thomas..NH

 

[MChalkley]

Jag - Essentially the same thing happened to me with my previous L3600GST, but I never thought to mention it here.

Mark

 

[Bird]

I was glad to see this post, because I've never had such a problem, but if twigs can do it, I probably will some day. Being a firm believer in most safety devices, I like the ones my Kubota has, but I'll admit that when I had a Cub Cadet riding mower, I disconnected them. One was a switch that turned off the mowing deck if you backed up, then you had to turn the switch off and back on to start the blades turning again when you went forward, and I go forward and backward often enough that I wanted it to mow both directions. The other was the switch that killed the engine if you came off the seat (and everytime you shifted your weight or leaned toward the high side on slopes, etc.). I just couldn't use it on my place without disconnecting those two switches.

Bird

 

[MChalkley]

Bird - I very much understand why you disconnected those switches; they sound very much like "overkill" (sorry) to me. They wouldn't have lasted a day with me, either. That's the problem with safety devices - they have to be workable or they're worthless.

Mark

 

[Roy]

Twice, I had a problem with the transmission neutral-sense switch. Convinced it was a sensor, I followed the wiring through the system. Found a switch behind my rear-left tire. Depressing it allowed it start (even when in gear, so it's function was obvious). Both times it happened, I was playing in the dirt (grading) and it was pretty messy around the switch.

 

[Jag]

UPDATE... The tractor is a L2650, after bending the spring on the switch it worked fine for two days, maybe 10 to 15 starts and then it would not start again. This switch is located on top of the transmission case behind the PTO plate, just above the floor board on the left side. Do I need to wire around the switch so I do not have to spend the half hour to get it started when it acts up or does this switch just need to be replaced every 300 hours. (the Kubota does not have 400 hours on it yet.) One way or an other it looks like a lot of sheet metal to take off to work on it. Thanks

<P ID="edit"><FONT SIZE=-1>Edited by JAG on 8/1/00 12:55 PM.</FONT></P>

 

[W5FL]

Don't guess anyone can actually answer that question buy you. If it were mine, I would see what kind of a switch it was and how the mechanism is adjusted to depress the switch. If the problem is dirt in the switch, I would replace the switch. I have never seen a switch go bad on a neutral switch (as opposed to being misadjusted) but the mechanism can be bent. Things close to rear wheels operated in mud, rocks, and sticks tend to take a beating. I would not disable the switch.

Probably cost $20 for a switch and the deductable for an emergency room visit is $50 if you make it that far. Good cost avoidance. /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif

 

[Kelvin]

Bird,
Trivia #1: To my knowledge my older B7100 only has the clutch safety switch. I know that it'll start with the PTO engaged, range selector in any position, and gear selector in any gear.

Trivia #2: Curosity got the best of me, so I connected my newly aquired "used" Landpride Air Tunnel AT 25-60 (normally used on my B2150) up to my old B7100 just to see how it would handle it. To my surprise, it didn't appear to strain it at all. Even going up one hill the B2150 (with attached FEL) bogs a little bit but the B7100 (with attached mid-mower and rear mower) didn't.

I am still very impressed with the old B7100.

 

[MChalkley]

Jag, as Wen said, you'll have to make that call, but I'd see what's wrong with the switch. If it's a weak spring, you might be able to put a stronger spring on it. If it's dirty, you could clean it and perhaps put a boot on it if it happens again. I don't think I'd defeat that one, though.

Mark

 

[Jag]

Mark, on this switch there would be no way to put a boot. If one could go on why did the tractor not come with one. I do not believe that you could change springs on it. The switch is about 1/2 inch long and maybe 1/4 thick mounted flat on the transmission case. The spring is of a dog leg shape, attached to the switch case on one end, and runs along the switch body and then turns away from it. The end runs along about a 3 inch cam plate on the PTO shaft just below where it turns down vertical. To remove the switch you would have to remove the steering wheel column pedestal sheet metal and most likely the instrument panel and cover. If a replacement switch will only last as long as the first I do not want to replace it. Why should I have to change a switch every 300 hours. What I really wanted to know is does this switch go out that often. If it does I will wire in a momentary switch mounted just above the PTO lever that I could push to start the tractor, when the safety switch acts up. Since no one says they are having a problem with this, I guess I have a bad switch. But looking at the design it looks to me like it set up to fail. Thanks

 

[MChalkley]

Jag - My guess is that you just happened to get a lemon switch. If it's that big a pain to change, and they were going bad with any sort of regularity, there would've been a running thread discussing it already. Hopefully, if you change it, it'll be fine for forever. How old is the tractor?

Mark