1958 630 Battery Issues

[Phillip w]

Boy, the 30 series tractors seem to have battery/charging trouble. Got a 730 diesel ( the brother to your tractor) and it has similar problems. It is 24v with for 6v batteries. Tried to switch to (2) 12v batteries and did not seem to have the ump to spin it over like it should. You might try to lightly tap on the voltage regulator with say a screw driver handle and see if it starts charging. If it does, you did not fix it, rather discovered your voltage regulator is on its last leg. Time to replace it. I understand alternator way better than generator. You tractor should be gas and gas needs a electric spark to run. With an alternator, if you have the tractor running and pull the battery cable you find out what you got pretty quick. It tractor died, get a new alternator. If tractor stayed running, alternator is good look for different cause. I don't know if that applies with a generator. I will say you generator output seems pretty low. Also a corroded/loose ground or battery cable can cause you not to charge. Hopefully txjim will get in the discussion. He knows John Deere. I don't know if you pulled the generator and took it to say Napa or O'Reillys if the could test it for you. If it does turn out to be the generator, I know an independent tractor repair shop called all brands ag repair. They are probably an hour and a half maybe two hours from you. The are really good, really reasonable and can probably rebuild your generator way cheaper than if you went to John Deere and bought one.

 

[jd110]

To check the generator, get a jumper wire with alligator clips. While engine is running, hook up one end of jumper wire to "F" field terminal on generator and other end to ground. That will "full field" the generator and it should put out maximum voltage. If it does not put out at least 13.5 to 14 volts, then generator needs rebuilding.

 

[Tx Jim]

Sounds as if jd110 answered your question. IMHO with the larger amperage 12 volt batteries that are built today there's no way I'd want to use two 6 volt batteries in lieu of one big 12 volt. If voltage regulator is faulty if it were my tractor I'd install a Delco alternator.

 

[rScotty]

Hold on there. These are nice old tractors, and I don't agree that the two cylinder John Deeres had electrical problems. In fact, I'd say that except for the unusual way that the battery is polarized relative to the frame, that stock electrical is just about the simplest most bulletproof system on a tractor.

We've never had a bit of trouble with the original electrical system on our 1958 JD 530. But I'm basing my opinion on it being the same system that was in common use for half a century. There's a lot of advantage to the stock generator and voltage regulator being so simple and reliable.

Those old mechanically rectified DC out generators & voltage regulators coupled with a battery, points, and coil ignition were the very same system used by millions of cars, trucks, and tractors from early in the automotive era up until sometime in the 1960s. That's a lot of time to take something that is pretty good to start and make it nearly perfect.

BTW, I switched from two six volt batteries to a single 12 volt battery on our JD 530 about 30 years ago. No problems there. But that does bring to mind the one real oddity in that system - in that the JD 530/630 came with the positive (+) battery terminal grounded to the frame instead of the negative terminal like is common in 99% of the rest of the world. Not that it makes much difference whether one chooses to use the the positive or negative terminal as a common frame connection, but most of the world chooses to ground the negative battery terminal. And so JD being the other way round does make it necessary to pay special attention when polarizing the generator and voltage regulator.

best of luck & how can I help get yours going right again?
rScotty