Some days priorities get changed and today was such a day. When we arrived at the transmitter site, the first thing I noticed was the double trailer parked at the building with no semi attached. We learned that the driver from Mafutseni had arrived yesterday to pick up another load of hay, but the loader/backhoe (Case 570T) would not start. Therefore, the driver dropped his trailers off to return later. We also learned that our maintenance manager, Khumalo, had removed the starter to have it checked in town, only to find there was nothing wrong with it.

Khumalo and his crew reinstalled the starter. Still nothing worked. Tobi suggested they jumper the solenoid contacts, which they did. The starter cranked, but the diesel engine did not start. I concluded that there is an electrical fuel cutoff that is not operating. Khumalo found that there was no power at the key switch which in the ‘on’ position would open the fuel cutoff and in the ‘start’ position apply voltage to the solenoid for the starter.

A wiring diagram would be helpful to diagnose the problem, but TWR has no service manual for the Case 570T. I looked on-line for a diagram, and found a downloadable manual for about $30. But with 1300 pages to download with slow internet service, it would have taken hours, just to get to the wiring diagram pages.

I suggested that a wire be run from battery positive to the key switch. When that was done, the starter still did not work. With the switch in the ‘on’ position, the startersolenoid contacts were jumpered, and the engine started. The engine also stopped when the switch was turned ‘off’. I measured the ‘start’ terminal of the key switch and there was voltage present there when it was turned to the ‘start’ position. I then measured the voltage to the solenoid coil when the key switch was in ‘start’. There was none, meaning there is an open circuit. I suggested that another wire be run from the ‘start’ terminal of the key switch to the solenoid coil. Though I did measure current going through the coil, the solenoid did not pull in to activate the starter. Initially, I concluded the solenoid was stuck and not activating.

By this time it was almost lunch time (1pm) and Khumalo informed me that the hay needed to be loaded and ready by morning. So after lunch the Case loader was started by jumpering the solenoid contacts. I asked Khumalo to tell the loader driver not to shut it off until the job was done.

During lunch, it dawned on me that Khumalo had used a long coil of wire to run to the solenoid coil. It was quite possible that the resistance of that coil of wire was enough to reduce the voltage at the solenoid, such that it was not enough to pull in. I suggested using a much shorter wire to see if that helps.

Since the double trailer was at the building and the bales about ½ mile away in the field, Khumalo had one crew use a low trailer, that can haul 8 bales, go the the field. One of the John Deere tractors can lift the bales onto the low trailer. This trailer was then unloaded near the double trailer. While the Case was lifting these bales on the double trailer, the crew would reload the low trailer. When about 25% of the bales were loaded, the semi driver showed up and said they had another job for the double trailer in the morning, so it had to be unloaded by evening. The semi driver then moved the double trailers closer to the bales for quicker loading, Even so, it was past quitting time (4:30pm) before the 60th bale was loaded.

Yesterday, Virginia made some cookies with the macadamia nuts she cracked last week. She sent some with me to pass out to the site workers, during morning break. Most of them had seen her using the vise to crack them. They were, and are, good. There are a few cookies still left at home and enough nuts to make another batch. YUM!!!