M59 Cold Starting..Winters on it way

[ManAtArms]

Do any of you M59 owners have a block heater installed? Is one available from Kubota? If aftermarket..what brand?

As the temperature starts to drop, the cold starting is getting harder...lots more smoke than a normal start.

Has anyone figured out a good cold start procedure?

-Mark

 

[Chuck K.]

Hate to ask but did you refer to the owners manual? Luckily we dont get much cold weather exposure here on South East Texas. I thought you just turned the key to the on posistion until the glow plug light went out then you where ready to go..

 

[_RaT_]

Hate to ask but did you refer to the owners manual? Luckily we dont get much cold weather exposure here on South East Texas. I thought you just turned the key to the on posistion until the glow plug light went out then you where ready to go..

Yeah, it is getting cold. Last night it got down into the 50's and in another month we will be in the 40's. By January it will almost be cold enough to get a thin layer of ice on the dos water bowl . I think the glow plugs need to be activated to get things pre heated on these IDI diesels.

 

[nostep]

I just added a Kubota block heater to the lower hose in my B6100. It's based around a 1" pipe thread. I bought standard 1" black pipe parts including a Tee. I made the little nipples to form a union. Here are some photos.

 

[nostep]

After machining the parts, I painted them black and installed the brass block heater I got from Messicks. There is no actual kit available, so I made it myself (with my Dad's help of course). I purchased a new lower hose, which I cut shorter. Good decision as the old hose was original and nasty. After the install, I tried it out. After about ten minutes it sounded like I was making coffee in my tractor. That's a good sound when it's cold out

 

[ManAtArms]

Hate to ask but did you refer to the owners manual? Luckily we dont get much cold weather exposure here on South East Texas. I thought you just turned the key to the on posistion until the glow plug light went out then you where ready to go..

Chuck, yes I follow that procedure...she starts...but runs ROUGH...doesn't sound good either. I ordered up a block heater today from the local dealer. Hopefully that smooths her out.

mark

 

[art]

I've got them starting every day with no problem. We only put block heaters on about a third of what we sell. The Kubota engines are some of the best cold weather starters I know. If you are cycling the glow plugs at this point, and it's missing while starting, I'd say I'd get it back to the dealer.

 

[ManAtArms]

Thanks for the info Art. I'm due for my 50 hour service in 10 hours and I will have them look at it.

-Mark

 

[art]

Mark, we've already been below 32 and we have them starting everyday yet. As a matter of fact it was forty the other morning when a landscaper customers started a M59 at my house while he was there for some landscaping work! It kills me to pay him (my sanity is playing with this stuff) but after the number of machines he bought from me the best I could do was to recycle some funds back to him!

After the glow plugs at freezing temps they may blow a little black smoke for just a second and then smooth out and be fine. I'd say at forty to have smoke and some chugging the glow plugs are not working.

We've started Kubota's without assistance at 22 below and colder with out issues. One farm tractor that we always laugh about was a 6500 hour M8950 that was untouched. That was made a few years back and had only had clutch work do to an untrainable operator.

 

[Charlesaf3]

no starting problems here, though on cold days she coughs on start. I've found running the glow plugs twice fixes it - ie turn the key to glow, let glow plug light go off, turn key off and then back to glow. So the glow plugs run twice before you turn it on. Same principle as letting the manual glow plugs on my 3030 go longer when its cold.

I've had no trouble on the 3030 down to 20. or so. Which is as cold as it gets here