104 showing her age - part 1
 

Have mowed, plowed and harrowed, and just cruised around all Spring without problems. Cub came home Sept. 2011 and 1st task was a new battery.

Went out to mow this afternoon and she groaned like she was in agony but nothing turnover over, coughed or belched. Last run was 2 weeks ago so I didn't think the battery should be dead. Reseated my left foot to make sure I was on the safety switch properly and tried again. Saw smoke coming from the right side, which I thought odd since it wasn't turning over(she usually belches out a puff of black smoke when first starting).

Then it occurred to me the smoke was coming from much further down the chassis, specifically, a piece of insulated wire (with tape around it) was glowing. You'd think I would know better than to touch it.

After it, and I, cooled down, I lifted the lid and took a close look around. Photos below. The VR is not bolted down, it seems, only tie-wrapped. I included a view from each side but it seems not to be hot or charred so I don't think it took a hit. The wiring picture is of the harness below the SG, arrow pointing to the weak spot, then a close up of the wire that was smoking.

Obviously I'm going to need a new wiring harness. In the meantime, grass being knee-high, any wagers on how long I could get away with splicing the weak spot? Question 2 - recommendations on what to do about the "floating" VR? That tie-wrap has about a 1/4 inch bit of play in it.

Thanks.
Conig

I'll answer my own questions
 

I got some garage time this afternoon.
1. I couldn't get away with splicing the wire. The wire wasn't the problem, just the weak link that signaled a bigger problem.
2. What to do with the floating VR? There was a reason it was floating. The rear grounding block had shorted, burned, and broke. Honestly, I suspect it broke first, which is why if was floating, and why it burned. Anyway - here are a few pics of the broken lower mounting block (you can read the IH part number on it), and the charred area on the back of the VR, where it grounded, I presume after it broke. I've included a photo of the inside of the VR for anyone who has never taken one apart (until this afternoon, I hadn't). It looks clean inside but I'm not sure whether it is usable in this condition.

More to learn.
Cheers.
Conig

Conig, I would replace the wiring harness if it was my 104. I'm not sure about the VR.

Before the grass grows too high, you can give it a quickie cut by leaving the VR out of the tractor - insulating the wire ends - and running the tractor off a fully charged battery. To be certain nothing grounds the field terminal on the starter / gen, you may even want to temporarily disconnect the wire off the "F" terminal of the SG motor. That way, the field wire cannot accidentally make contact with ground and turn the SG motor on full charge.

If your battery is in decent condition, you will likely be able to get in 60 to 90 minutes of run time on a full charge. At least you can get the first inch or so of grass taken off! Recharge the battery and cut the other inch or two later this weekend.

The VR maybe able to be repaired by drilling out the rivets on the shock absorbing brackets and replacing the sheared rubber with a suitable replacement. I have used rubber mat material from horse stall mats or rubber carpet runner mats stacked and super glued together. Drill and re-rivet.

Assuming you have any interest at all in fixing versus replacement of the VR, I would first inspect the relay contacts on both relays. SEVERE pitting or material transfer may ultimately cause you to replace the VR instead of experimenting with it. Small pitting and material transfer can be addressed but remember, better VR units have a thin tungsten coating on the relay contacts. If that coating is gone, reconditioning the contacts is only a temporary cure.



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Once you have the lawn lookin' good, if you wish to continue trying to save your VR unit, I would be happy to help.

As a quick tip, if you rewire, use MARINE GRADE tinned wire for the project. I have purchased wire from a dealer in PA. that sells by the 100 foot length - but allows to choose how many feet of each color you want in that total of 100 feet. So if you want 20 feet Red. 20 feet black, 20 feet yellow, etc, you can get exactly what you want / need. The wire is superb quality with a thick insulation covering. Being new here, I don't know if I'm allowed to mention the source, but you can always email me.



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Chuck

Duke - I think a wiring upgrade is in order due to the age and presence of multiple patches and splices but I'm going to try to hold out until winter when I don't use the 104 so much.

Chuck - really appreciate the comments, advice, and pictures. I'm not sure I'll try to run off the battery as it's new but I don't know what the charge is currently and I don't have a small charger. I'm really interested in trying to save the VR. I tell my kids I'm 'old-as-dirt' so my eyes don't see in those tiny spaces well but the relay contacts look pretty good to me. And while the outside of the box near the lower rivet is blackened, the inside part of the mount looks okay.

I'm wondering if I could get away with mounting the VR using the good grounding block mount, and just insert a rubber spacer where the bottom mount broke, as a temporary fix. Might try that later today if there is time.

Conig