Diesel Cub?

[Dieselrider]

In farm show magazine Volume 29 no 2 in 2005 there is an article on page 38 of a guy doing this very thing to a 184 lowboy like mine using a Yanmar 3 cyl diesel. He had to rework the flywheel as it was different. I admit I have thought about contacting him for more info with the trouble I have had with mine but, I will see if I can't straighten out my issues first. I didn't even want to mention anything of the sort on a board dedicated to Cubs for fear of finding crosses burning in my front yard. LOL This is a cool thread.

[kencombs]

Check ebay, there is a seller or sellers that often have small used Kubota engines available. They import used tractors and engines from Japan. They will likely have a source of manuals and info.

[George Willer]

A conversion on a 184 could be a lot easier since there's a frame to support the radiator and front end that the F-Cub and Lo-Boy don't have.

Don't worry about burning crosses... you're among friends here.

[wdbtchr]

I found some dimensions on the Kubota engine at: http://www.dieselenginemotor.com/drawings/d722-e.htm

Looking at pictures of the engine it looks like the plate on the back of the engine is bolted on and appears to be reversable, would move the starter to the right side of the engine. Don't know if it would match the cub mount, but modification would be simple even if you had to fabricate a new plate to move the starter up or down slightly.

I was wondering if it was possible to use the Cub clutch disc with the Kubota pressure plate, would eliminate the need to drill the Kubota flywheel to match the Cub pressure plate.

Which leads to the question, does anyone have a Cub flywheel laying around or have the dimensions of it? I need to know the dia of the flywheel. My Cub is down on the farm and I haven't taken it apart that far yet. I have an old disc, it's 6 1/2" in dia with 15/16" dia with 10 splines.

I'm thinking of trying to line up the alternator with the crank pulley and mounting an electric radiator fan to get it running so I can finish owing the fields. Conversion can be a nice inside project for the winter.

Thinkin', always thinkin'.

[Gary Dotson]

On the right side of the Kubota engine, there is a very nice & very necessary fuel injection pump located where the starter would need to be!

You could probably mate the Cub disc with the Kubota pressure plate, but the input shaft won't reach it. My plan calls for an adapter hub to mate the Cub flywheel to the Kubota crank. I did a little rough measuring at one time & if I remember correctly, it would need to be about 1 1/4" thick to put the flywheel in the correct location.

The plate on the back of the engine needs to be replaced with one fabricated to fit the Cub bell housing.

There are several obstacles that will require consideration, but that's what makes it fun. Rick Prentice & I have discussed this & most of my plans are just the way he put the V-6 in Harley. Of course, he had other concerns as well. There was no way he could mount his starter to the engine, so he cleverly used the PTO, that wasn't going to be used anyway.
My hope would be to make it look as "factory" as George Willer's Trike.

[Hengy]

Since it is a 184, aren't they Key start? Wouldn't need to switch the starter around... Just wiring, right?

A new starting switch would be in order, right...to get the glow plugs glowing before kicking in the starter...

This sounds like a neat project!

Mike in La Crosse, WI

[George Willer]

I'm wondering if the 184 starter/generator would have enough moxy to crank the Kubota? The 184 pulley is quite a bit bigger than the normal Cub. If it could do the cranking by belt there would be more mounting options than a ring gear offers.

[kencombs]

I would really doubt that the S/G could do the job.

Even thought the Kubota will have less displacement, (depending on series of course but 36 or so cubes for a z600) the compression ratio is over double that of the little C60.

[George Willer]

Correction: The 154 uses a starter/generator as I think the 185 does as well. I'm not very familiar with the number series but I think the 184 uses a bendix gear to the flywheel just as the F-Cubs do.

[Bigdog]

George - some of the early 184's still had the starter / generator setup.

[Hengy]

I was thinking more that you could use the same switch that is in the dash of the 184 and just use the starter and relay that would be on the Kubota engine...just with different wiring to the switch. Wasn't thinking that one would use the starter or S/G from the 184...

Mike in La Crosse, WI

[George Willer]

I was thinking more that you could use the same switch that is in the dash of the 184 and just use the starter and relay that would be on the Kubota engine...just with different wiring to the switch. Wasn't thinking that one would use the starter or S/G from the 184...

Mike in La Crosse, WI

Mike,

The problem with using the Kubota starter on the left side of the engine is with the Cub Bell housing. No place to go. Anything can be done, but sometimes the obstacles are major. Wiring, etc. is very minor by comparison.

Still thinking about the starter/generator--- since the pulley system would have to be rigged (fabricated) anyway, what about using a Gilmer belt?

[Larry Barb Dotson]

George
I like your idea of the Gilmore belt for the starter generator. I just got home from Plain City and A guy across from us had a Cub Cadet with the starter/generator and it squeeled for 5 or 10 seconds before it wiuld turn the engine over. Sure hated to see him get on the tractor to go some where. Regarding the 184, only a few earlier units had the inferior S/G unit as most were equiped with a good starter and a 12 volt alternator (all 4 of mine have starters and alternators). This is only part of the changes that made the 184 vastly improved over the 154 and 185 units.
Larry Dotson

[Jackman]

I have a JD 850 with a 22 hp 3 cylinder Yanmar diesel. An intresting thing on the Yanmar diesel is that the starter actually bolts to a spacer plate that is between the bellhousing and the engine, seems to me that reworking the spacer to put the starter on the other side would be doable. the 22 hp Yanmar is probly too big for the Cub because the engine is about 3 inchs longer and taller than the C-60

[Hengy]

Mike,

The problem with using the Kubota starter on the left side of the engine is with the Cub Bell housing. No place to go. Anything can be done, but sometimes the obstacles are major. Wiring, etc. is very minor by comparison.

Still thinking about the starter/generator--- since the pulley system would have to be rigged (fabricated) anyway, what about using a Gilmer belt?

Well, that just goes to show how green I actually am! Sorry about that!

Mike in La Crosse, WI