318 charging light

807 Views 11 Replies 7 Participants Last post by ajcan, Sep 23, 2013

indiana_jack

Discussion Starter · Apr 25, 2009

I took the plow off today and mounted the mower and started cutting.
I was happy with the cutting efficiency but noticed that the charge light was on when the front PTO was on. I shut down the mower and the light immediately went off. I fired it back up and continued cutting for an hour and a half before putting it in the garage. The light stayed on the whole time.
I tried the search feature for an answer but came up short. Where do I go from here to alleviate this condition?

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indiana_jack

Discussion Starter · #2 · Apr 25, 2009

I just went to the garage to see how the charger was doing and tried to start the tractor but got nothing.
One thing I did notice is that the alt. light came on with the PTO switch on and they key on.

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Jd318_mazz

· #3 · Apr 26, 2009

Jack - There are several things that could cause the problem. One could be a weak or shorted stator. Another could be a bad voltage regulator. A battery with a weak or dead cell or a PTO clutch field coil pulling too many amps, could be the cause.

I would suggest having the battery check under load for a bad or weak cell. That should be a simple thing to have done at most any auto supply store. There are also some tests you can do on the charging system.

Here are some posts you can check out:

http://www.wfmachines.com/discus/messages/17/390859.html

http://www.wfmachines.com/discus/messages/17/350802.html

http://www.wfmachines.com/discus/messages/17/316700.html

http://www.wfmachines.com/discus/messages/17/390124.html

Post back if you need more help. Good luck. Dave

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mydeskclock

· #4 · Apr 26, 2009

Jack,
Dave's suggestions are far more likely than mine will be- it's an extreme long shot. By any chance do you have the starter improvement kit on your machine? I had the exact same symptoms last spring, and went through all of the fixes Dave listed, and none of them were it. On a total whim, I bypassed the starter improvement relay, and all was well again. My relay went bad over the winter. I did without until I could get a new one and all was well. Like I said, it's a long shot.

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indiana_jack

Discussion Starter · #5 · Apr 26, 2009

Thanks for the help everyone.
Sunday has already been planned for me but I'll check it out on Mon.

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chuckv

· #6 · Apr 26, 2009

Jack,

You might also want to measure the resistance of the PTO coil, as it could have an internal short and be pulling more current than the charging circuit can supply. Anything less than about 3 to 4 ohms is very questionable...

Chuck

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indiana_jack

Discussion Starter · #7 · Apr 27, 2009

Jim D'Atillio,
I owe you one. You had the perfect answer to my problem.
I stopped at the dealer today and picked up a new relay. Got it installed and everything worked as it should. I was so elated that I cut grass in the rain for 10 mins to be sure it was OK.
Thanks again and to all the others that responded.

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chuckv

· #8 · Apr 28, 2009

Jack,

Glad to hear you are back in operation!

Jim, nothing like the "been there, done that" experiences to keep the really oddball solutions fresh in the memory...

Chuck

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Jd318_mazz

· #9 · Apr 28, 2009

Jack - Good deal! - Dave

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cbgrant74

· #10 · Jul 16, 2009

Jim, it looks like I'm having a similar problem with my 318 - charging light comes on with PTO or headlights. I've checked out the charging system and the PTO but didn't find any issues there. How did you "bypass" the starter improvement relay? Mine's less than a year old, but I might as well take a look at it. Thanks.
- Charlie

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julias77

· #11 · Sep 23, 2013

Hi, my 345 pto bottom bearing is bad. I found a new one, question is has anyone replaced the bearings in this pto before?Anything i need to know before i start pulling and pressing and so on? thanks for info

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ajcan

· #12 · Sep 23, 2013

Jason

I removed the bearing in the pto on my GX345.I suspected they were dry as they were just starting to get a little noisy.I removed the bearings and seals,re greased them and reinstalled the seals.Pretty straight forward repair.

AJ

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