Belarus tractors

[Alberta Haymaker]

Yes in the 70s they were positive ground and that's what started all the electrical gremlins. As Alberta haymaker said, the problem was mainly at the assembly line level as in all communist production at the time. I wonder though what will happen of today's tractors in 30 yrs with all the electronics in them.

Oh okay yeah I've seen that too with old equipment the early JD 4020's and such were positive ground. Along with various auto's back in the day. I agree some of the stuff they built was quite something for sure. I heard some of the big 4 wheel drive tractors (Russian built and branded Belarus) had a provisions for wood stove type contraption to heat the engine! Below is an interesting option for starting those vintage 70's tractors ....

 

[rScotty]

Oh okay yeah I've seen that too with old equipment the early JD 4020's and such were positive ground. Along with various auto's back in the day. I agree some of the stuff they built was quite something for sure. I heard some of the big 4 wheel drive tractors (Russian built and branded Belarus) had a provisions for wood stove type contraption to heat the engine! Below is an interesting option for starting those vintage 70's tractors ....

OK, I watched the video but what is the "interesting option"? What's he doing?
BTW, my old JD is positive ground, the newer one is negative gnd.
rScotty

 

[Alberta Haymaker]

OK, I watched the video but what is the "interesting option"? What's he doing?
BTW, my old JD is positive ground, the newer one is negative gnd.
rScotty

He's using the little 2 stroke (you pull start it like a chain saw) pony starting motor the tractor has instead of an electric starter. Some big old diesels built over here use to have pony motors too back in the day.

Some Belarus tractors spec'd for I guess remote areas had this goofy 2 srtoke starting motor so they don't have to rely on having a working battery.

 

[rScotty]

He's using the little 2 stroke pony starting motor the tractor has instead of an electric starter. Some big old diesels built over here use to have pony motors too back in the day.

Some Belarus tractors spec'd for I guess remote areas had this goofy 2 srtoke starting motor so they don't have to rely on having a working battery.

I wondered if that was what the video was showing. Here in the US, heavy equipment 50 years ago most medium to large machines - mostly Cats - for road and oil field work had starting motors. We called them "pony motors". I remember them as being two cylinder 4 stroke gasoline engines only marginably more reliable about starting than trying to get a big diesel to crank over on the batteries of that time. Most batteries were six volts back then.
The starter motor had a hand clutch that could be used to get the diesel turning over fast enough for it to start.
It wasn't uncommon to spend a few hours getting all the equipment going in the morning. And that was in the summertime.

I'm not sure that today's diesels are all that much better about starting once they have a thousand hours of wear on them. I don't think it makes a bit of difference who makes it. Instead, the big differences seem to me to be modern low viscosity@low temperature oils, electricity for block heaters is more available, and battery technology has advanced a lot. My newish JD 310SG backhoe/loader is as modern as they come, with computer contolled injection, two monster 12 volt/1000 amp hr batteries in parallel, JD's big OEM block heater plus a factory installed ether boosting system. Right now it's -8 F outside and it would probably take all of those things and a bit of luck to start it up.... I'm not even tempted to try !
rScotty