yeah i just recently put a brand new battery on it and well it cranks it over at the same speed still. i guess thats just how it is? the brushes look ok in the starter. i needed a new batt, i had 2 dead cells in the old one.
I have had a hard time finding a really good six volt battery. I finally found ones branded "American Energy" that appear to be made by GM/Delco in Indiana. They've worked the best of anything I've ever used and had the highest cranking amp rating.
You should consider overhauling your starter. It's probably quite worn after all those years. And making sure that all the electrical connections between generator, starter and battery are both tight and clean will help.
Eight volt batteries can be had, but they're a cheat at best and will stress your generator and its regulation.
You can get a newer, solid state regulator for the generator if you need one, and I'd recommend it if your tractor doesn't have to be all original.
If you do convert to twelve volt, the original six volt starter motor can be reused, and it works fine even if you go to a negative ground system. Six volt starters have very nice, very heavy windings inside.
Have you gotten the magneto switched out yet? I wonder how it was made to run the mag as a distributer system. I got a ford 9n that im currently working on and hope to have up and running soon once parts arrive.
i havent touched it yet. my mag actually has a distributor on the back of it. its a strange set up. the electricity from the mag exits the mag through a terminal at the top goes through a wire and then enters the bottom of the mag where the distributor end is. so what they did is pop the wire that feeds the distributor from the mag off and feed it with an external coil powered off the the tractors lighting circuit,
yeah. thats for sure. I have gotten use to mostly one lunger or single cylinder engines. simple wiring on them. I have a uncle who can help me get mine up and running so ill see what happens when i get it all together. I'll get a video of it up when i get the ol gal running
All the unstyled L's were made with hercules engines. And for a small period of time, they put hercules in styled L's. John Deere then made a almost direct model of that hercules engine and put it in the later styled L's and the LA's. They were then replaced by the M
all true! but the john deere had hercules build the engine to their own specs, and the switch from the hercules to the deere engine happened in about 1942 even though the tractors were first syled in 1939. also the engine used in the la was ever so slighty bigger and govered to run a smidge faster making the la have about 12hp belt pulley vs the model l's 10hp at the pulley. and yes the m was the direct replacement to the l series! the front axle on the m is the same as the l series front axle!
well yours would yes have the same engine and tranny, but your tractor would be lower and wider than my l. yours also will have thicker frame tubes! this makes the li more stable and an ideal mowing tractor
generator works fine! i have another hot magneto to put on it! so im going to open up the engine and see what needs to be done! then im going to restore the electrical system back to original!
another way to tell what year you L is is the front spindle if is 1 and 1/8 is an earlier L and if is a 1 and 3/8 is a later L i think the cut off was 43 or 44 not sure i don't remember also its a thin tube with makes it earlier, usually.
also the Hercules engine the throttle is backwards you push to get more RPM's instead of pull and the way i go by is the oil tube if its angled out its a Deere if is straight up its a Hercules
well what your saying may be true for you, but ive spent countless hours trying to find the year of my l. i now know its impossible to know exactly. but we both can agree its possible to narrow it down.
whats the best you really can do is just narrow it down to which year WITH out taking it apart
the brake bands were changed to a different style in 45 which are better the grip all the way around and the old ones griped on the back mainly
yo can not go by the sheet meet do to the back that in the earlier years of the jd L's they had the piece cut out to, my 41 LA is like that and it is original not question
thank you that is what attracted me to the l series! i love their small size, they do have plenty of power despite their size, and i love its ability to turn on a dime this is my classic i love it! i do have vids of it running now! its not fixed yet but it will start again!
ok i will tell you from experience with L's what is wrong with you tractor from lose of power and hard starting. it is you valves get them ground and refaced lap them ALOT! and fix the valve guide if needed.
The valves are really the only thing that i see that needs redone on every single one i got.
my 1940 L has almost NO wear on the cylinder walls do to the fact that the valves made it hard to start(its a hand crank engine)
yeah weve been planning to get them ground but never got the time. we do have 2 valve machines i have a vid up of the small one. just we never got the time. but we did get it to start by dragging it behind the truck
yea it all takes time, i bring these l's to school and get about 2 hours a day to work on them. We dont have a valve grinder or refacing tool so i bring them to school XD and do them here. the way i do it( the long way) takes me about 2 weeks on valve just because i do them right. i grind the face and head lap them and lap them and test them. and it takes so long do to the fact every needs help on there own project -_-"
you have a 13 tooth harrow cool ive never seen another! well its a very simple mount literly just 2 hooks that hang from under the drawbar mount. ill make a video and outline the dimensions for you! no prb. ill even show my restored implaments! i may try and start my baby had it running fairly well yesterday! just have to charge the battery!
no my dad is buried in projects and not feeling well. i dont see this thing getting fixed until next year. i guess i could drag it with the case and see if it would start but it wouldent run too good if it did. i wish my dad would get motivated and help me get started on this. it is exatly as you saw it in the vid. exept it does have a bunch of cobwebs on it now lol.
that wire on the back of the magneto was simply popped out of its socket. but i belive the mag is dead that is why we got another known to work! and it does run off the generator now! or at least it did
Hey nice tractor! we worked on a John Deere model L in school! it was in HORRIBLE condition, but metal was pretty good, but we restored it, i love it! It has hand crank start! its real real neat!
Could that be a LA? I thought L's didn't have starters or generators. Just wondering. I have a 38 L with the Hercules engine. I use it all the time. You have a great looking tractor thanks for posting.
absolutly 100% no!! i have resarched the model l to death. electric start and lighting was brought to the model l serise in about 1941 +or- one year shortly after Henry Dreyfuss restyled the apperance of the L the LA was introduced in 1941 with electric start and lights. there was never an unstyled la. also in 1941 the john deere built engine to replace the hercules was introduced for the L
thanks you really think it's that nice? it was restored when we got it but not great. so i added weights and repainted the whole thing. i just really want it to run again bad!! i miss my favorite toy!!!!
On my 6-volt Allis chalmers I just "cheated" and used a 12 volt battery to start it even though it's a 6-volt starter. It runs on a magneto so the battery is not needed to keep it running and the generator is not connected.
Have you done any engine overhauls on your tractors? my Allis WD has a cracked rod in the engine so sometime I need to completely take apart the engine.
after going back to mowing with the 446 like we used to i had forgoten just how slow low range really is my 210 john deere just had the mower deck rot out beyond repair so we got a bigger deck for it but now i am waiting on some wider brackets and a longer drive belt. i miss mowing with the jd210. i will visit your site soon maybe i will join in who knows
Thanks for the info. I have an L and I'm gonna check to see what engine it has now.
timtales99ts 5 months ago
the key with 6V is sparkleing clean, and really tight connections, and at least 0 guage cables
mikes47jeep 1 year ago
i dont know what guage cables it has on it off the top of my head but this system works i have done alot of work to it since i made that video.
1944johndeerel 1 year ago
My uncle's 51 B has a 6V System It barely turns over
1936johndeerea 2 years ago
yeah i just recently put a brand new battery on it and well it cranks it over at the same speed still. i guess thats just how it is? the brushes look ok in the starter. i needed a new batt, i had 2 dead cells in the old one.
1944johndeerel 2 years ago
I have had a hard time finding a really good six volt battery. I finally found ones branded "American Energy" that appear to be made by GM/Delco in Indiana. They've worked the best of anything I've ever used and had the highest cranking amp rating.
You should consider overhauling your starter. It's probably quite worn after all those years. And making sure that all the electrical connections between generator, starter and battery are both tight and clean will help.
uxwbill 2 years ago
Eight volt batteries can be had, but they're a cheat at best and will stress your generator and its regulation.
You can get a newer, solid state regulator for the generator if you need one, and I'd recommend it if your tractor doesn't have to be all original.
If you do convert to twelve volt, the original six volt starter motor can be reused, and it works fine even if you go to a negative ground system. Six volt starters have very nice, very heavy windings inside.
Nice tractor, by the way!
uxwbill 2 years ago
cool! thanks for the info!
1944johndeerel 2 years ago
Have you gotten the magneto switched out yet? I wonder how it was made to run the mag as a distributer system. I got a ford 9n that im currently working on and hope to have up and running soon once parts arrive.
41Zman 2 years ago
i havent touched it yet. my mag actually has a distributor on the back of it. its a strange set up. the electricity from the mag exits the mag through a terminal at the top goes through a wire and then enters the bottom of the mag where the distributor end is. so what they did is pop the wire that feeds the distributor from the mag off and feed it with an external coil powered off the the tractors lighting circuit,
1944johndeerel 2 years ago
Interesting. modification who ever did it sure had to know what they were doing
41Zman 2 years ago
well its easier than youd think. im going to completely rewire it because the wiring job they did is a real hack job and is hard to follow and wrong!
1944johndeerel 2 years ago
yeah must be easier then i am thinking. i havent done much with tractors so im picking up on things here and there.
41Zman 2 years ago
it comes with time im still learning myself!
1944johndeerel 2 years ago
yeah. thats for sure. I have gotten use to mostly one lunger or single cylinder engines. simple wiring on them. I have a uncle who can help me get mine up and running so ill see what happens when i get it all together. I'll get a video of it up when i get the ol gal running
41Zman 2 years ago
let me know when you get vids up!
1944johndeerel 2 years ago
will do. I hope to have it up and running by june 13
41Zman 2 years ago
All the unstyled L's were made with hercules engines. And for a small period of time, they put hercules in styled L's. John Deere then made a almost direct model of that hercules engine and put it in the later styled L's and the LA's. They were then replaced by the M
1936johndeerea 2 years ago
all true! but the john deere had hercules build the engine to their own specs, and the switch from the hercules to the deere engine happened in about 1942 even though the tractors were first syled in 1939. also the engine used in the la was ever so slighty bigger and govered to run a smidge faster making the la have about 12hp belt pulley vs the model l's 10hp at the pulley. and yes the m was the direct replacement to the l series! the front axle on the m is the same as the l series front axle!
1944johndeerel 2 years ago
well yours would yes have the same engine and tranny, but your tractor would be lower and wider than my l. yours also will have thicker frame tubes! this makes the li more stable and an ideal mowing tractor
1944johndeerel 3 years ago
it needs to be ethier rebilt or the alternator is bad
450gmc 3 years ago
generator works fine! i have another hot magneto to put on it! so im going to open up the engine and see what needs to be done! then im going to restore the electrical system back to original!
1944johndeerel 3 years ago
another way to tell what year you L is is the front spindle if is 1 and 1/8 is an earlier L and if is a 1 and 3/8 is a later L i think the cut off was 43 or 44 not sure i don't remember also its a thin tube with makes it earlier, usually.
also the Hercules engine the throttle is backwards you push to get more RPM's instead of pull and the way i go by is the oil tube if its angled out its a Deere if is straight up its a Hercules
jdeerem 3 years ago
i go by the governer arm, if it pertrudes out the side of the engine cowling, its a herc, if not jd!
1944johndeerel 3 years ago
well what your saying may be true for you, but ive spent countless hours trying to find the year of my l. i now know its impossible to know exactly. but we both can agree its possible to narrow it down.
1944johndeerel 3 years ago
whats the best you really can do is just narrow it down to which year WITH out taking it apart
the brake bands were changed to a different style in 45 which are better the grip all the way around and the old ones griped on the back mainly
yo can not go by the sheet meet do to the back that in the earlier years of the jd L's they had the piece cut out to, my 41 LA is like that and it is original not question
jdeerem 3 years ago
that is a beutiful tractor beutiful lines
lamonde515 3 years ago
thank you that is what attracted me to the l series! i love their small size, they do have plenty of power despite their size, and i love its ability to turn on a dime this is my classic i love it! i do have vids of it running now! its not fixed yet but it will start again!
1944johndeerel 3 years ago
ok i will tell you from experience with L's what is wrong with you tractor from lose of power and hard starting. it is you valves get them ground and refaced lap them ALOT! and fix the valve guide if needed.
The valves are really the only thing that i see that needs redone on every single one i got.
my 1940 L has almost NO wear on the cylinder walls do to the fact that the valves made it hard to start(its a hand crank engine)
nice horn and nice tractor!
jdeerem 3 years ago
yeah weve been planning to get them ground but never got the time. we do have 2 valve machines i have a vid up of the small one. just we never got the time. but we did get it to start by dragging it behind the truck
1944johndeerel 3 years ago
yea it all takes time, i bring these l's to school and get about 2 hours a day to work on them. We dont have a valve grinder or refacing tool so i bring them to school XD and do them here. the way i do it( the long way) takes me about 2 weeks on valve just because i do them right. i grind the face and head lap them and lap them and test them. and it takes so long do to the fact every needs help on there own project -_-"
jdeerem 3 years ago
yeah no prob. i just got her going with the electric start for the first time in about a year it was well watch and see!
1944johndeerel 3 years ago
you have a 13 tooth harrow cool ive never seen another! well its a very simple mount literly just 2 hooks that hang from under the drawbar mount. ill make a video and outline the dimensions for you! no prb. ill even show my restored implaments! i may try and start my baby had it running fairly well yesterday! just have to charge the battery!
1944johndeerel 3 years ago
oh ok so is it running now or is it still having problems
genmac1 3 years ago
no my dad is buried in projects and not feeling well. i dont see this thing getting fixed until next year. i guess i could drag it with the case and see if it would start but it wouldent run too good if it did. i wish my dad would get motivated and help me get started on this. it is exatly as you saw it in the vid. exept it does have a bunch of cobwebs on it now lol.
1944johndeerel 3 years ago
it looks like the wire was cut, but cant you just redo the wire to run off what looked liek to me to be the alternator instead of the generator?
genmac1 3 years ago
that wire on the back of the magneto was simply popped out of its socket. but i belive the mag is dead that is why we got another known to work! and it does run off the generator now! or at least it did
1944johndeerel 3 years ago
Hey nice tractor! we worked on a John Deere model L in school! it was in HORRIBLE condition, but metal was pretty good, but we restored it, i love it! It has hand crank start! its real real neat!
fordwillkillyou 3 years ago
i have a backup crank starter for it you can see it between the fender and the stering column
1944johndeerel 3 years ago
Could that be a LA? I thought L's didn't have starters or generators. Just wondering. I have a 38 L with the Hercules engine. I use it all the time. You have a great looking tractor thanks for posting.
steamer123 3 years ago
absolutly 100% no!! i have resarched the model l to death. electric start and lighting was brought to the model l serise in about 1941 +or- one year shortly after Henry Dreyfuss restyled the apperance of the L the LA was introduced in 1941 with electric start and lights. there was never an unstyled la. also in 1941 the john deere built engine to replace the hercules was introduced for the L
1944johndeerel 3 years ago
nice tractor! you gotta enter this thing in some shows! i'm sure it will win some prizes!
gasman7777 3 years ago
thanks you really think it's that nice? it was restored when we got it but not great. so i added weights and repainted the whole thing. i just really want it to run again bad!! i miss my favorite toy!!!!
1944johndeerel 3 years ago
On my 6-volt Allis chalmers I just "cheated" and used a 12 volt battery to start it even though it's a 6-volt starter. It runs on a magneto so the battery is not needed to keep it running and the generator is not connected.
Have you done any engine overhauls on your tractors? my Allis WD has a cracked rod in the engine so sometime I need to completely take apart the engine.
retrochad 3 years ago
not to this one but the lawn tractors yes
1944johndeerel 3 years ago
Wow for a 6 volt that moves! haha buddy of mine has a Farmall H that turns over twice as slow as your Deere. You've got a great classic there!
volouro 3 years ago
yup i love the old thing we have a 1952 case converted to 12v let me tell you it starts so much easier especially in the cold
1944johndeerel 3 years ago
Yel them L are nice little tractors.
Jrcaseman 3 years ago
sure is i like antique farm equipment and always wanted a JD L
you'd probably like the case garden tractor we have you may even have one
1944johndeerel 3 years ago
We have 222 210 180 446 155 Case LOL you need to come to my site and join up you would love it there come on over. JR Caseman
Jrcaseman 3 years ago
after going back to mowing with the 446 like we used to i had forgoten just how slow low range really is my 210 john deere just had the mower deck rot out beyond repair so we got a bigger deck for it but now i am waiting on some wider brackets and a longer drive belt. i miss mowing with the jd210. i will visit your site soon maybe i will join in who knows
1944johndeerel 3 years ago
Nice tractor!
radicalnegative1 3 years ago 2