Are you trying to keep a battery charger on your tractor? Are you trying to get a battery to fit on your tractor? A 6V battery should be
the GRP 1 style and a 12V unit should the GRP 25 or 35 unit, both all are AG style. You do not want a trickle charger. You do want a FLOAT
CHARGER like the DELTRAN BATTERY CHARGER JR (6V); $30 at Wally World. A trickle charger can destroy a battery if left unattended if it
overcharges and boils out the electorlyte. Whent that happens, you just can't add more electrolyte; it doesn't work that way. The battery
is junk at that point and will never hold a charge. A float charger will keep the battery at full charge under load when attached and
tractor is at idle. You need a full charge udner load to start ignition, spin the starter, and run the machine. Kn0w how a batrey
functions. Specific Gravity is important. An Hydrometer can test it. Your local starter/gen/alt shop has a special test machine to test a
battery - use it -it's free usually. Simply testing VDC with a VOM isn't going to tell you if the AMPS are holding. You also need to invest
in a good brand of battery, and good, correct battery cables. A 6V battery requires HD, thick as your thumb battery cables, not like the
smaller diameter ones used on your truck 12V battery. Finally, whether 6V using a GEN or 12V and with an ALT, you MUST have a fan belt
tension device atteched otherwise you will NEVER charge the battery. Here is the skinny...
BATTERY INFO & CHARGING:
ALL batteries are not created equal. Most bargain-basement units sold have poor lifespans, two years on average, so you might think buying
a $90 part is a good choice, you will be buying another and another a few years later. Best to invest in a good brand like INTERSTATE,
DEKA, EAST-PENN, DURACELL, or EXIDE. If your basic garage trickle charger is left unattended, it can boil out the electrolyte and render
it junk. A basic trickle charger can't fix a depleted battery. Research Specific Gravity. Get battery tested at your trusty local shop
under load on their machine. You need a good, strong, fully charged battery to:
1. Spin the starter
2. Engage the Bendix
3. Provide voltage to the coil.
As the battery gets weaker, the first thing to fail is your spark. The more current you use to spin the starter, the less you have for the
ignition. If your starter motor pulls the battery down much below 5.2 volts (ref: 6-volt battery) turning over is almost a futile effort. 4
Volts is an almost dead unit. It doesn't really matter much if the battery is fully charged until you test it correctly. Simply
connecting your trickle charger to the battery won't do anything if it is dead. Just because you have a 6V battery does not mean that your
system is wired correctly for the 6V/POS GRN setup. Ditto if a 12V setup as well. One item that is also the usual suspect for non-
starting/non-charging is the lack of a fan belt tensioning bracket whether if using 6V and a GEN or 12V and an ALT.
When your vehicle sets idle for more than a week, the battery will start to deplete the lead plates and you lose specific gravity. You can
use a HYDROMETER to test Specific Gravity see your OEM Owners Manual. They sell cheap little hand ones at many local auto parts outlets
and are usually right on the counter. It resembles a large hypodermic needle and has about a half dozen small colored balls in a solution
of Acetone in it. The included chart will tell you how to read the floating balls. A true battery testing unit will give you better
results as well as telling if the battery is good or bad. Take to a shop.
The worse thing for battery life is the constant draining and recharging on it. The best solution is to invest in a good float charger
like the DELTRAN BATTERY TENDER JR (for 6V). Keep it connected when tractor is idle so the battery maintains a constant full charge and is
ready to go when needed. Never just start taking parts off willy-willy and slapping new ones on. Always perform true root cause problem
solving methods.
99.98% of all non-starting issues are due to incorrect wiring regardless if 6V or 12V. Lack of the GEN or ALT fan belt tensioner is often
the root cause of a weak or dead battery - without tension, you will never charge the battery. Once all is right with the world, best to
invest in a good float charger like the DELTRAN BATTERY TENDER JR [6V] , $30 avg.
CHARGING BATTERY & SPECIFIC GRAVITY:
BATTERY TENDER JR (6V) BY DELTRAN:
Tim Daley(MI)
