Damaging to tractor to operate without a battery?

[Tallbald]

I know diesels are a different breed and I'm learning. Would it do any damage to my 1980 L185 to start it and then (for some logistical reasons) remove the battery while keeping the engine going? A simple question from a simple man, but nonetheless important to know. And I feel comfortable enough here to ask.
Thanks. Don.

 

[skeets]

Yeah you could do that,,,BUTTTTTT it might get really interesting if you managed to ground the lead!!!!!,, Now I have heard of the old guys saying that in some of the old diesel trucks they would put the leads in a bucket of sand and I assume the sand was damp,, and jump starting the motor,, again I have to assume the generator needed to have some kind of a load on it,, hence the sand,, But to be honest I wouldnt do it,,, just MHO

 

[D2Cat]

You could put a pull rope on the engine, then you wouldn't ever need a battery to start it! And you wouldn't have any lights. And you would not have to make that battery hold down clamp.

Your diesel does not need electrical power to operate. It needs fuel, air, and compression.

 

[aeronutt]

The alternator needs the battery to act as a buffer for the spikey nature of rectified alternator output. Without the battery there, the voltage can have significant AC ripples that could peak over 30 volts depending on the quality of the rectifier/regulator. This tends to be hard on electronics and light bulbs. People do what you propose all the time without significant or immediate damage, but you might end up replacing an alternator or a light bulb shortly after. Just to be sure that isn't a problem, you could always temporarily wire a motorcycle battery directly off the alternator while you are moving around the main battery or remove the belt from the alternator.

I'm curious why you need to have the engine running while the battery is removed?

 

[Tallbald]

Thanks you all. Just wanting to know for future reference. Don

 

[alansz400]

My wife came home one day a few years ago in her Ford Escort and the battery was dead. I had a battery from a lawn mower I was working on and stuck it in her car. She drove that car all summer with that little battery in it. I was going to put a real battery in before winter but the car rusted in 1/2.

 

[dandeman]

The alternator needs the battery to act as a buffer for the spikey nature of rectified alternator output. Without the battery there, the voltage can have significant AC ripples that could peak over 30 volts depending on the quality of the rectifier/regulator. This tends to be hard on electronics and light bulbs. People do what you propose all the time without significant or immediate damage, but you might end up replacing an alternator or a light bulb shortly after. Just to be sure that isn't a problem, you could always temporarily wire a motorcycle battery directly off the alternator while you are moving around the main battery or remove the belt from the alternator.

Just wanted to confirm this post.. It certainly true (depending on regulator design) that the voltage could go very high without a battery installed.

You'll find this warning statement in the factory service manuals for many cars..

 

[Tooljunkie]

Lots of people used to test alternator by disconnecting battery with rngine running. Good way to detonate a bad battery. The arc could ignite the hydrogen gas produced while charging or discharging is highly explosive.

 

[Diydave]

Taking the hot wire off a battery while running is a good way to trash the alternator diodes, on alternator equipped equipment...