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Takeuchi tl140 glow plugs test?

skata

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Tl140 with Isuzu 4jg1t engine
What should the resistance of the glow plugs be?
I'm getting around 1.2 ohm on three of them and 0.8 ohm on another.
 

skata

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Sounds about right... the real test would be put an amp meter between each of them and light em' up.
Somewhere I thought I read these plugs are 20.5v. Sound right ?
Can I test them with 12v to see if they get hot?
Machine didn't start so easy last winter so looking these plugs over now while doing maintenance on the machine.
 

Ronsii

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I thought the tl140 was a 12 volt machine... o_O I ran one for a few months while back and only remember one battery.... or are you saying they have a control board that ups the voltage? Personally I would test them with 12v and an amp meter in line and compare they should be close... but yeah you could just see if they get hot.
 

skata

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The machine is. But when I looked up the glow plug part numbers I saw 20.5v......
 

Ronsii

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Maybe that's a continuous rating... and there is a duty cycle timer like some of the small jd ex's
 

Birken Vogt

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The glow plug controller does not do anything except turn on 12v or turn it off. How it works on that machine I can't say but I did have one with a similar engine with similar readings to yours and one of them was dead shorted. In my case it had the electric eye glow thing in series with the plugs and it would turn yellow and quickly burn out when this was happening. I replaced the one glow plug and the glow thing and all was happy after that.
 

skata

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Ok. I was getting 12v when I turned on the glow plugs. How long are you supposed to hold the key in the glow plug position?
 

Ronsii

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Depends on the climate... 30 degrees I'd hold em' for at least 15-20 secs. your owners/operators manual should have pretty specific instructions.
 

skata

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Depends on the climate... 30 degrees I'd hold em' for at least 15-20 secs. your owners/operators manual should have pretty specific instructions.
I guess that would help if I read it. Lol
I think I wasn't holding the key long enough. No where near 15 seconds.
 

skata

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Just a final update. I pulled all the plugs. Did an ohms test. All good. Then connected them to power and they all heated up quickly. Put the originals back in.
Also. I had bought a set of plugs off ebay a while back and they cost less than $40 for the set, from Japan. They were new, but a lot cheaper in build quality. Particularly the stud on top where electrical connects to. Cheap brittle insulation and the studs would wiggle. Whereas the oem isuzu plugs are solid.
So if you replace your plugs, don't buy the cheap ones.
 

Ronsii

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Good to hear :)

So did you notice easier starting when holding them on for 20 ,30 45 secs? or does yours start right up now and only when the weather gets cold has problems?
 

skata

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Good to hear :)

So did you notice easier starting when holding them on for 20 ,30 45 secs? or does yours start right up now and only when the weather gets cold has problems?
It will start easy with no glow plugs since it's 80-90 degrees outside.
It was just starting rough in winter time. I guess I assumed the plugs were like on the new diesels that heat up real quick. And when holding the key to the left, a red dash light would go out after few seconds and I assumed that was the glow plugs turning off, so I'd let go of the key, and then turn clockwise to start.
 

Ronsii

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Hard to say... I've seen so many different systems, some control the glowplugs some just indicate even though the plugs are still hot some you turn the key halfway to start and it will activate the plugs then you turn the key the remaining couple degrees and crank... I'd put a test light on the glowplugs and hit the key see if the go auto or not.
 

Crimson

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Hey skata, I’m having issues with my tl140 starting really hard in the cold weather right now. I believe at least one of the glow plugs isn’t working properly. Was wondering if you could let me know where they are for testing. Are they under the valve cover or out in the open. I couldn’t tell from the manual. Also been thinking of installing a block heater any advice in that from anyone would be great.
 

skata

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Hey skata, I’m having issues with my tl140 starting really hard in the cold weather right now. I believe at least one of the glow plugs isn’t working properly. Was wondering if you could let me know where they are for testing. Are they under the valve cover or out in the open. I couldn’t tell from the manual. Also been thinking of installing a block heater any advice in that from anyone would be great.
Flip the cab up and the glowplugs are on top of the motor. With a metal rail connecting all together for power. The plugs weren't that hard to remove from what i remember. Check that you're getting voltage with the key held.
And are you turning the key counter clockwise and hold for preheat? Hold for at least 15 seconds in very cold. And don't buy cheap plugs off ebay like I did, if you find they're bad.
 

Coaldust

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The cheap plugs often have contaminated or non-spec porcelain. The moisture in the porcelain turns to steam and swells the glow-plug tips. Now, you can’t remove the plugs from the head, or break them off in the head and now a simple glow plug job turns into a head gasket job.
 

heymccall

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My TL150s, TB53FR, and TB180FRs all have a timer on the preheat. Turn key CCW and hold until the lamp goes out.
IIRC, the cold start instructions also recommend 1/8 throttle during startup.
The caveat is that all of mine are yanmar powered and equipped with agrid heaters instead of glow plugs.
 

skata

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My TL150s, TB53FR, and TB180FRs all have a timer on the preheat. Turn key CCW and hold until the lamp goes out.
IIRC, the cold start instructions also recommend 1/8 throttle during startup.
The caveat is that all of mine are yanmar powered and equipped with agrid heaters instead of glow plugs.
That's what confused me. The light goes out fairly quick. But when I actually tested the plug, it continued to heat if I held the key.
 
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