New Cub LowBoy 154 owner

[Brynki]

Update: I got all of my parts in, as noted above. It was sickeningly hot and I was frustrated. I, eventually, figured out the problem with the solenoid but it did not fix the problem. So, I replaced the voltage regulator. Still no joy. The next day, I bought a new multimeter because my little cheapy one I'd had for years seemed to be having some issues. I'll replace the battery in it another time and use it for a back up. When I got home, I tried cranking it over and was getting 12V to the generator. So, I started assuming it was probably this genie. In removing the old wires from the generator, I found what I thought might be my REAL problem. The stud sticking out of the generator where the hot wire attaches was wobbly. Still, in the off chance, I decided to go ahead and replace the wiring harness since I'd already bought it and get things squared away. I was so happy to have a nice, clean (subjective) area to work in under the dash. I laid out the new wiring harness and started hooking everything into it that I had removed and or purchased: the new key switch, my old light switch, etc. The previous owner had put in a more modern fuse holder so I married those two together. Today, I got everything wired into place and situated. I went over everything about 3 times to make sure I had everything wired properly. I didn't want a repeat of the time I tried to do some wiring on my VW and burned up a section of the wiring harness. I hooked up the battery, turned the key and... nothing.

A NOTE ON THE WIRING HARNESS FROM HAMILTONBOBS: First off, I believe that this is a wiring harness for a later model tractor than mine own. Either that or someone had removed the PTO safety switch from my tractor. I know that the clutch safety switch was not being used on my tractor. I don't even know if it is operational. I may try it once I get her back up and running. For now, though, I jumpered the wires to the clutch switch. Still nothing.

So, I jumpered the wires to the PTO switch. The solenoid clicked. So, I'm right back to square one but I'm happy enough with that. I'm going to watch some videos on rebuilding generators and pull the one off my tractor. I want to open it and see if the stud problem is an easy fix that might fix my tractor or see if I need to order a rebuild kit or new generator.

[getitrunning]

ii feel your frustration. I got the steering wheel and dash exposed on mine. all the wires crumble to dust when touched. it seems the wiring in these might be simple for an electrical engineer. I hope soon to have at it with rewiring mine. after figuring cost of quality connectors, plugs and tools to put connectors in the plugs to duplicate wiring harnessI found it less expensive to buy Hamilton bob harness. the good news for my machine is when power put directly to outside terminal on starer/generator motor turned over and seems to have good compression. ive come to realize that revitalizing the tractor I have will be a long term project just in tracing each wire down and rerouting new wires correctly. not having a good indoor shop I'll wait till cooler weather will put a stop to every kind of biting insect known to man from tearing me up.

[Brynki]

ii feel your frustration. I got the steering wheel and dash exposed on mine. all the wires crumble to dust when touched. it seems the wiring in these might be simple for an electrical engineer. I hope soon to have at it with rewiring mine. after figuring cost of quality connectors, plugs and tools to put connectors in the plugs to duplicate wiring harnessI found it less expensive to buy Hamilton bob harness. the good news for my machine is when power put directly to outside terminal on starer/generator motor turned over and seems to have good compression. ive come to realize that revitalizing the tractor I have will be a long term project just in tracing each wire down and rerouting new wires correctly. not having a good indoor shop I'll wait till cooler weather will put a stop to every kind of biting insect known to man from tearing me up.

LOL! Well, part of the frustration is relieved when you get a win. I did not get one this afternoon. It was in the mid-90s today and I didn't feel like working on things until it cooled off so I know that pain! I, also, know the pain of not having a covered area to work from because my garage is filled with crap. I'm getting a storage container dropped at the house in a couple of weeks to pull everything back out, finish my drywall job I started LAST year, and then start getting my garage squared away so I can get my projects under cover: 2003 BMW R1150GS Adventure that needs a new wiring harness and I might do some big changes to that, a couple of Gravely tractors (one a walk behind and the other a riding), a Craftsman that I want to get running and get rid of, and a Honda self-propelled mower for up close to the house that has two broken studs on the exhaust.

Anyway, I knew that I had power to the genie when I hit the switch so I'm figuring that I got everything wired correctly in the harness I got from HamiltonBob's. I overthought it all. I printed out the wiring diagrams from the repair manuals, had the wiring diagram they sent in the kit, and even wrote down how everything went together and pulled out the label maker to make sure I had everything squared away. By the time I got all that done, it was kind of stuck in my brainpan and it pretty much flew together. Then I second guessed me myself 3 times, going over everything. As mentioned above, I didn't second guess things on my old 69 VW Campmobile back in the day when changing out the points, crossed some wires and fried a section of harness. So, yeah, get the harness they have, the under dash kit and the rest of it and it just goes right together.

Unlike yours, mine did not turn over with power to it. So, tonight, I pulled it out, pulled it apart and there were LOTS of problems. I've noticed that my tractor just didn't seem to have a lot of power. I think I know why, now. One of the brushes was shot, broken in half. The other one, the wire going into it was coming apart. And then, the main problem was the + terminal stud sticking out of the case. The wires were broken off where it was soldered to the head of the stud inside. So, even if I COULD rebuild it, I don't think I'm going to. I may rebuild it later to have a back up which, of course, I will then never need. We found one in Miami that was a little cheaper than HamiltonBob had on his site and we ordered it. It'll arrive next weekend while I'm out of town, I'll install it when I get home and get my damned mowing done.

[getitrunning]

when it comes to generators, alternators and starters, ive got a small collection put together over the years but the saving grace is this old-timer about 15 miles away that has been in the business all his life and has all the tools, parts and know how along with thousands of old stock of every shape and size on his shelves and he only charges for and changes what is really necessary when making an old thing like new again

[Gary Dotson]

We have an old timer like that! About 20 miles away. My problem with him is that he likes me, known me about all my life and I have a heck of a time getting away from his shop. He’s in his mid 80’s and has no plan to retire.

[Brynki]

Further trails and tribulations...
So, I got the new generator in, finally. I got one from ebay from OEGParts. The first one disappeared in transit and the company was quick to refund our money. So, we ordered a second one. It arrived 2 days earlier than anticipated. So, the seller was pretty good.

It says it is made as a replacement but I'm having a bit of trouble with it. First off, trying to install it, the holes are too small for the bolts on the tractor. So, I reamed out the holes easily enough. Secondly, when I torque down the nut on the pulley, the pulley won't turn. Turns out, the top of the old generator was flat and the new one is recessed. So, I have to find a spacer/bushing/bearing to fit into the recessed space that will hold the pulley off the body of the generator so it will turn. The third, and final (hopefully) problem is that the "-" terminal on the body of the generator is huge and take something like a 1/4-20 screw.

Other than that, like most things today, this one seems a lot more cheaply made than the one I'm replacing. Still, I'm hoping that this will allow me to get my tractor back up and running. I was half tempted to take the internals out of the new one and put them into the old one. I may play around with that this winter when I do my big overhaul or just order one of the full rebuild kits that costs about as much as a new generator. For now, though, I'm just hoping to be able to get this wee beastie back up and running before my yard gets any further out of hand.

[Eugene]

I was half tempted to take the internals out of the new one and put them into the old one.

Have done that.

Parts are still available for the Delco starter generator. Do you have a nearby shop that repairs starters, generators?

[Gary Dotson]

Your old s/g should have a pulley spacer that you need to transfer over to the new one. It might look like it’s part of the armature shaft but it’s not.

[Brynki]

Update: Well, now, sometimes, things just come together. It took me two weeks to find something to work as a spacer on the new s/g. I looked back here a few times but didn't catch the suggestions above. Regardless, last weekend, I was exhausting the last place I thought I might find something in the Elkton, MD area. I had been in and out of TSC but their bushings and metal spacers said they had what I thought I needed in stock, but their pullout drawers were just a jumbled mess. So, walking around the Harbor Freight with the girlfriend and I'm finding nothing. As I'm going up and down the aisles, the GF pointed at something and asked "What about something like that?" It was one of those quick-disconnects for hose fittings. I knew I needed a 5/8ths ID sleeve of some sort to go around the shaft. Home water hose fittings are 5/8ths. I popped open the packaging, disengaged the female connector from the male connector and slid it over the shaft of the s/g that I had been pushing around in a cart and IT FIT! It came as a 4-pack but for $4.99, I didn't mind paying that. Good thing I did because I got a little froggy with my grinder and took off a little too much material the first time.

It only took a few minutes to get everything back together and fire Old Yeller up. She started faster than she ever had before and purred like a mountain lion. It has rained the last week or more here so the ground is still pretty soft and I got some TALL grass to get through. Still, I'm going to put all my plates back on and get ready to get some mowing done, tomorrow. I have to fly out to NC for work on Monday and will be gone for a week. I can't wait to get back and start figuring out the next stuff to start babying my old girl with. I need to contact another seller I found who has a non-running 154 of about the same year with a lot of attachments, including a three-point. He wants to sell it all for $800. The tractor is 4 hours away but would be worth it, I think, to take two tractors and make one that is more structurally sound than my tractor and has all the attachments. I'll eventually get both running well but, for now, I just want one good one to get all my farm work done (just mowing right now) and start working towards turning this little 3 acres into a functional hobby farm.

I think next, with the temps dropping, I'm going to be working on getting space back in the garage so I can wheel the old lady (who's about 3 years younger than me) in so I can start doing odd projects to make sure she stays healthy, now. I have two Gravely tractors, one a walk-behind and one riding, that need work, an old Craftsman riding mower, and a Honda self-propelled that need work. I, also, have two trailers, a flat bed and an enclosed that need some love. Still, Old Yeller will have a spot of pride in the garage.

More to come with time! Thank you everyone who has offered advice. I couldn't have done it without you all!

[Brynki]

I guess I started celebrating too soon. The tractor is running and I started putting it all back together this morning. I get to the very last thing, the steering wheel, and the bolt won't go in. I pull the steering wheel off and run it down into the hole, goes right in. As I pull it back out, suddenly, the guts of the steering column just drop down inside the tube. I look under and the knuckle that the steering column goes into to direct movement up to the front wheels is almost resting on my mower deck. Apparently, all of the welds holding everything together on the knuckle gave way. What welds you might be wondering? All the ones that some previous owner has jury-rigged the steering knuckle into place. I don't have time to fix it, now, as I fly out in the morning to Fayetteville, NC for work. So, now, I have a tractor that runs beautifully, sounds so nice, I just can't drive the damned thing.

I bought both the Steering Plate and the Steering Box Frame Support Repair kit from HamiltonBob's. The instructions left a lot to be desired. I know, I can call Bob but if anything has used one these before, or knows where I might watch a video for it, I would appreciate it. As it stands, I'm probably going to have to drop my mower deck and pull the tractor up on some ramps to be able to get up under the old girl to find out what I need to do to fix this latest problem.

That 4-hour away tractor is looking better and better, I tell ya.

[Brynki]

I, finally, figured out the problems with Old Yeller. First off, the steering plate (544 836 R1) that goes from the left side frame to the steering gear assembly (404 589 R1), what I call a steering knuckle, was broken off and someone had done a nasty job of trying to weld it back together. The steering gear support bracket (404 616 R1) was also broken and someone had tried to weld a bar to that and over to the right side of the frame. I believe that the point where the steering gear support bracket was supposed to bolt into is missing. At least, I don't see anywhere that the new one I got from HamiBob's can attach to. The parts catalog doesn't show a very good picture of it. The only piece of the frame on my tractor that goes from side to side is pretty busted up and I doubt there is enough metal left to screw into.

At this point, I think I'm going to try to use the steering plate on its own to try to get one more mowing out of the old girl before winter hits. While I've got her up on some ramps, I'm going to reattach the mowing deck and give the blades a quick sharpen and hope for the best. I've already started trying to find another tractor with a good frame in the hopes that I can take two tractors and make one good one. Maybe this winter, when I strip the old girl down, I'll find a way to salvage what I have but I am not as hopeful as I started off.

[Brynki]

Okay, so it may not be as bad as I originally thought. I started looking at more tractors in the area here in MD. The 4 hour away tractor isn't showing up but I sent him a message to see if he still has it. I found one that a guy is parting out that showed better pictures of the frame. It showed a better picture of the steering gear support bracket. I thought it was going to be more centered on the frame. Apparently, it is off to the right a bit further. I grabbed my flashlight and went and climbed back under. What I thought was a bent and broken frame piece is actually bent to cup the support bracket better. It looks like Old Yeller may ride again!