RE: (ET) mower motors

["Elie, Larry (L.D.)" <lelie ford com>]

I've seen this too, and you should fix it.  It should not do this.

On mine, it was the rivets on the thermal interlock (on top of the motor, 
under the cover) were loose.  
The thing wasn't heat sunk well and was going off wrong.  If you have a 
spare, it's just two bolts and 
a screw.  If you don't, you could switch with another motor.

A second idea; a motor with a bent shaft WILL run hotter.  You will be 
able to feel the difference with 
your hand.  Essentially, a motor with a bent shaft is cutting twice as 
much grass.  You can bend a shaft 
hitting one rock, so even a 'new' deck is susceptible.

Tight bearings?  Shouldn't be a problem on a 'new' deck, but do all the 
blades spin the same way by hand? 
If one doesn't spin as far with the same hand push, you might have a 
problem.  Could there be anything 
like fishing line stuck under the blade?


Larry Elie


-----Original Message-----
From: Humphrey Timothy H Contr AFRL/IFEC
[mailto:Timothy Humphrey rl af mil]
Sent: Wednesday, May 21, 2003 11:26 AM
To: elec-trak cosmos phy tufts edu
Subject: (ET) mower motors


Any thoughts on the mower motors overheating.

My rear discharge deck has three motors that were rebuilt by Bill. All have
new blades on them, purchased from Bill.

However when I mow the right most motor(view from the seat) seems to
overheat and cut out a lot more often than the other two. The center motor
cuts out occasionally. The left motor has never quit. Strangely, the right
motor also has a new switch/breaker assembly. Does anybody have any ideas.

I have pondered a few thoughts;

The right motor is not broke in yet...not likely.

The switch is not right...not likely, Bill put it on.

The right motor is furthest from the main cord so has the longest umbilical
lead. Maybe excessive voltage drop? This seems somewhat likely since the
center motor has about half the length and runs for a longer period before
cutting out.

Even after just a few mowings my damn near deaf ears can pick up the
individual hums of the motors singing their sweet tune in three part
harmony. I know when one has passed out. The current meter shows it too. 
The
running motor feels no cooler than the stopped motor.

I was thinking though, maybe it would be a neat idea to have a red/green 
led
display for each motor that changes color when the motor drops. My wife's
hearing is very good but she seems oblivious to the fact that one motor has
dropped. When two go she knows it. Last night two dropped and she thought
the tractor needed recharging, so drove it over to the outdoor plug and let
it drink. Not necessarily a bad thing, but not needed either.

It seems to me that the grass I'm cutting shouldn't drop any of the motors.
Ambient temp is 70, the grass is moist(internal), not wet(external), and
about 4-5 inches long. I'm cutting it in half. I'll really be in trouble
when summer gets here and the ambient is sitting at 85-90. I'm thinking of
upgrading all of the motor wiring to a heavier gauge. Maybe 8 or 10, I 
think
right now it's 12 at best, maybe even 14. While I'm at it, I'll make all of
them equal lengths.

We've got a week of rain forecast, so I'll take this opportunity to switch
over to the new deck also. 

Anybody have any other suggestions?

Stay Charged!

Hump
I5/NY