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Dumb question im sure.. I was looking to change my plugs, i looked and dont see plugs..
Now i see the 3 looks like plugs on the top. i see nuts with wires but dont look like plugs is that the plugs?
the don't look like plugs..
if somebody will teach me something id sure appreciate it

Spark plugs on diesels are under the discombobulator valves. Look hard.

Diesels don't have spark plugs, but they do have glow plugs( are the things with the wires attached by the nuts) to preheat the cylinders for easier starting. the other things with metal lines would be injections to inject the fuel and the correct time for combustion.

ILENGINE said:

Diesels don't have spark plugs, but they do have glow plugs( are the things with the wires attached by the nuts) to preheat the cylinders for easier starting. the other things with metal lines would be injections to inject the fuel and the correct time for combustion.

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i did see the glo plugs in the book.
mine will not start it turns over fine, i check the fuel its pumping out of the filter.
I thought maybe i need to change the plugs
I did see you can put a meter on that to see if its good.
I live so far from town just trying to get it going myself.
so glow plugs need changing as well i take it?
do they go bad or keep it from starting?

Thank you for the reply to help me Im not the sharpest knife drawer at 70 but i do learn from things on here.

Glow plugs do burn out over time and need replaced. I would start by using a volt meter to make sure you are getting voltage to the glow plugs during the preheat cycle. . If that works out you can then disconnect the wires on the top and check the resistance of the plug to see if they are still good or not.

Should not need glow plugs unless the weather is cold.

ILENGINE said:

Glow plugs do burn out over time and need replaced. I would start by using a volt meter to make sure you are getting voltage to the glow plugs during the preheat cycle. . If that works out you can then disconnect the wires on the top and check the resistance of the plug to see if they are still good or not.

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so when you got bad glow plugs the mower will NOT START??

Fatdaddy said:

so when you got bad glow plugs the mower will NOT START??

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Don't need glow plugs all the time. If you have compression and fuel, a diesel will start. Glow plugs just shorten the cranking time of the engine.

Gosh I was hopeing that's why it would not start..
where do i go next to why it will not start, it cranks and about starts a few times.
i checked the fuel fiiter and fuel is coming out to the engine.
I even checked all the fuses.. what it did was getting hot on me i did not notice and I was away from the shop/water and heading back it died on me..

Take us through the steps you follow to start this diesel.

For instance, on my Kubota, it's:

1. Hi-low transmission in neutral, PTO disengaged, clutch depressed.

2. Manual fuel shut-off knob 'in' (the 'run' position).

3. Pre-heat by turning ignition switch to the left for the prescribed number of seconds. This time of year, that number is zero.

4. Crank engine by turning ignition key to the right.

Glow plug(s) could all be burned out and it would still start.

You don't have to do anything with the throttle because when the engine was shut off, the governor pulled the injection pump 'rack' to it's full-throttle position as the engine slowed to a stop. That's why diesels have a surge when they start.

Question:
How did you determine that 'fuel is pumping out of the filter?'

helomech what is failure of the glow plug relay?

cpurvis i disconnected the hose off the filter turned on the key and fuel came out toward the engine...

Unless you are in very cold conditions it is not the glow plugs. I never use mine glow plug position unless it is freezing out. I am willing to bet you have air in your fuel. By this post my advice is get someone to fix it for you.

Fatdaddy said:

cpurvis i disconnected the hose off the filter turned on the key and fuel came out toward the engine...

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In doing that, you let air get in the fuel system. You are going to have to bleed that air out. Check your manual for the procedure.

When you loosen the fuel lines to check the fuel at the filters you got air into the system. I don't know about your engine but I have worked on many diesels and some of them are harder to bleed the air out of the system then others. Many of them have a hand pump to bleed the air out of the system. If worst comes of it, you will have to bleed each one of the injectors. You were told how to test the glow plugs in a earlier post and that a diesel doesn't have spark plugs. Just a caution about diesel fuel injectors or fuel lines, never hold any part of your body like a finger over any exit of these parts because they are under very high pressure and will inject fuel into your body.

for what it worth if means anything when i start it has dark gray smoke ever time it hits..

That is unburned deisel fuel.
Usually this is caused by a bad injector pumping in too much fuel or the tip squirting fuel in like out of water pistol rather than misting it in.
At start up, it can also be caused by bad glow plugs not igniting the fuel properly.
Diesels need fine sprayed fuel and heat to vapourise the heavy fuel so it can burn.
Once it has been running for a minute or two it has enough heat to do this all by itself.
When cold it needs help to ignite the fuel and this is via the glow plugs.

But by 'cold', you don't mean Tennessee in the summer. That engine is not turbocharged and probably has a compression ratio in the low to mid 20's. That generates plenty of heat to light the fuel in the summer.

my bud came over this morning and we checked the injectors for fuel coming in and there was fuel coming in./
put a meter on all glow plugs and they were working...

Now how do you get it to free wheel. I looked in the manual did not find it.
my xmark had 2 levers I turned.. i looked under the seat..
so i pulled it up to the house with my 4 wheeler and pushed it on my tilt trailer..

afraid i got a cylinder gone bad or so my bud said. it tries to start..
I hate the Kubota place that guy is a crook or seems to be..
a fellow told me John Deer will fix it so I took i there, he tells me we don't work on Orange Paint engines..
but we will look it over see whats wrong with it for you..

So that is where Im at on this

i have to have a new engine or buy a new one.

I guess I overlooked the part where you said it overheated and you kept running it until it died.

Expensive lesson on overheating.

Ok found a man to rebuild it.. its going to cost me $3,000 but better than buying a new one id say

It cost me $3,200 to do a complete rebuild EVERYTHING is new..

For $3,200 rebuild, specifically what did he do? What was replaced? What was adjusted? What is the cost of a new engine?

you need to check your fuel shutoff valve, it's an electrically controlled plunger valve. If it's stuck in the off position the engine will not start. Living in Tennessee in May you likely should not need glow plugs to get it to start. Check the fuses first with a test light, then look at the fuel shutoff valve. I bet your problem starts there.

Ha, I'm still stuck on the title, spark plugs on a diesel, that's priceless.

Believe it or not, there are diesel engines which have spark plugs. Not glow plugs, spark plugs.

Starts on gas, switches to diesel when warmed up:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gIfjFQoj3F0

Find the distributor cap and follow the wire to the plug.

cpurvis said:

Believe it or not, there are diesel engines which have spark plugs. Not glow plugs, spark plugs.

Starts on gas, switches to diesel when warmed up:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gIfjFQoj3F0

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Farmall did that on tractors years ago. I ran one for a guy back many years ago that was that way. We used it to feed cows in the winter time when it was real cold. You would go into the shed and start it on gas and then go sit in the truck where the heater was and let it run till it warmed up. Then you went back and switched it to diesel. It would smoke incredibly. When it finally started running on diesel you could then go back and sit in the pickup a few more minutes and wait . After it started and warmed on diesel for a few minutes though then it would run good. It was strong and reliable.

Ozark5179 said:

For $3,200 rebuild, specifically what did he do? What was replaced? What was adjusted? What is the cost of a new engine?

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We bought a 37 hp Kubota tractor that had just had a new engine put in it from the factory and that was $7K.


I used to run a ZD326 before I switched to Scags and mine was about to go out of warranty with 800 hours on it. I got to thinking how much it would cost to fix the engine if it had catastrophic engine failure and that was another determining factor on me going back to gas engines. You can buy a complete gas engine new for a good bit less than you can rebuild one of those diesels. The gas engine will wear the rest of the mower out. If you don't have anything catastrophic go wrong with it the engine will wear out three mowers and still be running. For me that just does not make sense to spend that much money on a diesel for a lawn mower.

I've never pre heated any of my 3 Kubota tractors, no matter how cold it is. They all always start in less than 5 seconds of cranking. Hardest starting one is the 135X.

jekjr said:

Farmall did that on tractors years ago. I ran one for a guy back many years ago that was that way. We used it to feed cows in the winter time when it was real cold. You would go into the shed and start it on gas and then go sit in the truck where the heater was and let it run till it warmed up. Then you went back and switched it to diesel. It would smoke incredibly. When it finally started running on diesel you could then go back and sit in the pickup a few more minutes and wait . After it started and warmed on diesel for a few minutes though then it would run good. It was strong and reliable.

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No not diesel, distillate (kerosene). I had a 50's Farmall dual fuel myself, they won't run on diesel and even on kerosene you'll get a face full if the wind is blowing the right way. They were bullt to adopt to the gasoline shortage during the war.

Allis Chalmers made dual fuel tractors, such as the WD and WD45 which were meant to run on kerosene after warming up on gasoline. I worked on these long ago.

International Harvester made at least one engine that started on gasoline and switched over to diesel after warmup. I have seen one of these in a road grader. It had an inline diesel injection pump. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=762r7cztmuI

cpurvis said:

Allis Chalmers made dual fuel tractors, such as the WD and WD45 which were meant to run on kerosene after warming up on gasoline. I worked on these long ago.

International Harvester made at least one engine that started on gasoline and switched over to diesel after warmup. I have seen one of these in a road grader. It had an inline diesel injection pump. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=762r7cztmuI

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I was referencing farm tractors not construction equipment.The farm tractors use a Marvel Schiebler updraft carb with a heat cover and radiator shutters to run on distillate, not an injection pump. I had one. 49 Farmall.