Old Time Cub Cadet Owner - finally joining a forum

[ShellDude]

I've been using Cub Cadets since the IH days as a kid with my dad and uncle being a big influence. Even though the brand has changed a lot over the years I've found myself going back to it, even though my (latest) one is just another MTD.

Speaking of which, I bought my RZT-50 new back in 2011. I've put a little over 2,100 hours on it and with the exception of a recent bad coil, I've only ever had to do regular maintenance. From what I've read around the internet, I've been really fortunate -- although I know you only ever find the horror stories. People don't spend much time posting on forums / etc about how something is working like it is supposed to. Where's the drama in that?

I'm about a year away from hitting 50 and have been in IT (developer for years, architecture stuff later on, and management the past 10 or so years) since 1990. I got lucky and landed a job as a COBOL programmer right out of high school.

I've always been into reverse engineering stuff. I've done crazy stuff like crack weather station serial protocols, decode the infotainment canbus on a couple of my cars, and actually got to work with an aftermarket ECU maker to build a custom front-end for their stand-alone ECU after they found some software I open sourced detailing their protocol.

Anyway, as I digress, I mention my career because recently found the silly Bluetooth enabled Hours meter gauge. I noticed it was only for a handful of 2015-2017 models but upon inspection noted its connector is no different than the standard runtime meter.

I guess the whole notion of a bluetooth connected meter crashed pretty big because you can buy them right now for about $15 (about the same price as just the sticker for the standard meter).

So, of course, I bought one and plugged into my 2011 RTZ-50. I installed the Cub Connect software and was greeted with harsh rejection plugging in my serial #.

You know what is so great about auction / for sale sites for tractors / etc on the internet? Often times they include the serial #s of the tractors being sold. Long story short, I eventually got connected with the app accepting my 2011 RZT-50 as a 2015 XT1.

Most people would pat themselves on the back and call it quits there. After all, I now I have a cool little gadget that alleviates the need for me to manually jot down my hours for oil / filter changes. But I'm not most people.

I've already collected a bunch of data on the underlying board being used for this meter. It's actually made by Delta Systems and appears to be a plain old BLE device that publishes a couple characteristics.

I haven't gotten much farther that than yet. I've reached out to Delta to see if they'll share a data / protocol sheet with me. Decoding hex can be a pain if the underlying datatypes are packed decimal / etc and nothing has jumped out at me yet as a simple data stream. I don't expect to find a lot. Actually, I only expect to find two pieces of data: run hours and battery voltage.

Being a newbie, I was thinking about starting a thread on this subject but am not sure where the best place is for it. It also wouldn't surprise me if onlycubcadets.net is like other forums and requires incubation for newbs in an intro section like this before allowing them to venture out and post in the broader forum.

Taking a look around, it looks like there are a number of old school IH / (real) Cub Cadets folks here. I don't want to bore you with stuff like this if you don't find it useful.

I've rambled enough for an intro post. Looking forward to meeting folks adding my experiences, and seeking help when needed in the future.

Shell

[Vrobert]

Hello, you are correct that this site is primarily for vintage cub restoration and maintenance, but plenty of the members have newer models as well. The old timers even helped me get an old 1950 Allis-Chalmers tractor running, but you may take some ribbing if it's not a "real" cub cadet.

What kind of information is displayed on this Blutooth gage, maintenance reminders? Cars have ECUs to monitor but what could be monitored on a lawn tractor? Pictures will be helpful once you're allowed to post.

[ol'George]

Welcome to the forum,
Us old skool hippies try to keep you "kids"
out of trouble with your purple hair and blue teeth, faceplant, tweet, bleet, flitter flutter, unsocial communication, but some of us can at least understand what is going on Ha,LOL!
It is fun some times when these kids cannot understand a simple breaker point system but understand computer controlled ign/fuel delivery systems.
So we kid and rib each other till the cows come home, but we all learn from it
You have found a good place, we respect each other.
Again, Welcome!

[ShellDude]

Originally Posted by Vrobert

What kind of information is displayed on this Blutooth gage, maintenance reminders?

It's no different than the regular digital hours meter. It briefly shows battery voltage when you turn the key on and then switches to /100 hours display with a single decimal point of precision.

The real benefit, if you're into it, is the maintenance tracking / reminders for oil, blade sharpening, etc via your phone.

Originally Posted by Vrobert

Cars have ECUs to monitor but what could be monitored on a lawn tractor? Pictures will be helpful once you're allowed to post.

The two are mutually exclusively. I was just mentioning some of the crazy stuff I've done over the years... as I was rambling, my EMS / ECU tuning and software exploits came to mind.

I haven't mentioned it yet, but my 1650 still runs, however I seldom use it these days. I've got a bit over 2 acres of land and the time savings of the zero-turn are undeniable.

[IHCubCadet147]

Welcome to OCC!