G1800 ignition switch

[jinman]

Last fall, I bought a G1800 with about 1700 hours on it. The fellow who sold it to me had several of these mowers he had bought in an auction. This particular one had a hotwire jumper for starting with two bare wires that you held together to energize the starter solenoid. The seat had also been replaced with the wrong Kubota seat and it wasn't a very good job. Otherwise, the mower seems to be solid. The engine starts quickly and runs very well with no abnormal smoke or odd sounds. The HST transmisssion and cruise control lever work perfectly as do the hydraulic deck lift and PTO. Surprisingly, all the u-joints and shaft drive components for the HST transmission and mower deck seem tight and solid. The radiator is also in very good shape and no leaks. The fellow wanted $2100 for the mower and I offered him $1500. He wouldn't take $1500, so I offered him $1800 and he took it.

This week I started working to get the starter working from the ignition switch. I've purchased operator and maintenance manuals, so I installed a jumper around the safety switch logic as a temporary measure and wired the ignition so the start position will always start the tractor. To my dismay, the contacts in the switch are dirty and I only get 9.8 volts to the solenoid when I turn the key to "start" position. I worked the switch back and forth about 50 times and improved the voltage to 10.5. That's just enough to sometimes work and sometimes not work. I disconnected the connector and jumpered around the switch and the starter kicks right off. I suspect this is just a problematic switch. I don't want to spend $50 for a new one and end up with the same problem in a couple of years.

Today, I'll look at a Radio Shack for a pushbutton switch I can install for a starter button. I'll just wire it with spade connectors and install it in the screen vent below the steering wheel. I'll take some pictures and post them when I make the changes. Even if I get all the safety logic working, this switch can still be used to bypass the ignition switch.

Has anyone else had a problem with their G1800 or similar mower having a bad starter switch? The switch is sealed and there is no way to get inside and clean the contacts. Perhaps I'm being too cheap and should really replace the switch. My guess is that the starting current causes an arc in the switch and it's just a matter of time before the switch fails. A cheap pushbutton switch can be replaced for much less and that's why I'm going to that solution. I'll take some pictures and show my kludge.

 

[JC-jetro]

Jim,

I'd do the same thing as you are doing. The solution of the switch might be to have magnetic starter with adequate amp rating for start up and use control voltage to pull the solenoid closed to make or break the starting circuit. Obviously mag starter is for higher current and might not be warranted here. I'd just use any switch that has higher enough rating. I suppose I'd use a switch that later on I can disassemble and sand down the contacts to new copper rather than buy another switch. My neighbor is suspicious that I might have some Dutch in me

JC,

By the way, I feel like a fish out of the water in Kubota forum... I like kubotas just fine and have them on my future short list.

 

[jinman]

The only switch that RS had was a 3A at 125VAC switch. I'm going to use some spade connectors to attach to it and see if it works. If its contacts don't hold up, I've only lost about $2. In the meantime, I'll be looking for a DC switch with a higher current rating. I should probably look at an automotive parts store like Autozone, O'Reilly's, or NAPA.

EDIT: BTW, the g1800 3-cylinder diesel engine has a very nice purr and sips fuel. The mower and deck are extremely heavy duty.

 

[lakeside]

The problem I had wasn't starting, it was stopping. I bought my G1800 used, but it only had 170 hours on it. The first summer all was well, but then I started having problems getting the shut-off solenoid to activate. I finally disconnected the solenoid and installed a manual (pull) shut-off.

Since then I haven't had one problem with the tractor. It's now 15 years old but only has 460 hours on it. I use it to blow snow in the winter and cut grass in the summer.:thumbsup:

 

[milkman]

Have you thought about using a relay in the start circuit, your switch voltage should be enough to activate a relay similar to the ones that Ford had mounted to the fender in the '60's like this one.

 

[jinman]

Have you thought about using a relay in the start circuit, your switch voltage should be enough to activate a relay similar to the ones that Ford had mounted to the fender in the '60's like this one.

Milkman, thats exactly the type switch I first considered. I bought a NAPA 12 VDC, 15 amp pushbutton switch and installed it. What I like about it is that I can cycle the glowplugs and instantly push the starter switch when the glowplug timer stops, keeping them from cooling and providing an instant start. If the switch I used holds up, I'm good to go. If not, I may put a starter switch like the one you posted inline and use the switch to activate it.

I know I still have not posted pictures of my switch, but I will when I return from vacation in a couple of weeks.

 

[milkman]

Ok, sounds like you have it fixed, I thought you were looking for solutions. Your fix was even cheaper than the relay I suggested, good deal.