glow plugs

[sootman73]

i cant remember if there are 6 and 12 volt plugs. what are the best plugs to use in a solid state system like mine?

mark7.3idi is having difficulties still with glow plugs. we put a solid state system on his '88 truck from a '92. everything seems to work right but it doesn't seem like they stay on long enough. usually has to cycle twice or more and crank quite a bit.

we tested all the glowplugs from the '92 and put them in. they are Beru's. we put s set of bosch ones in and they didn't work worth crap. we got the best response from the used beru's.

hes been going through starters like every two months or less. warranty but still work nonetheless.

 

[spyder1100]

I use the Autolite 1110 12v in mine with great results, but I have them connected with a switch. Haven't tried them with the controller.

 

[Andylad13]

if your going through starters, and new plugs arnt working worth a damn, have you checked the batteries? im thinking that with week batteries, your getting enough to lighe the plugs, but not enough to crank the engine up to speed. with weak batts, your voltage goes way down when their being used, and when you actuate that starter, the voltage drops more and the amps skyrocket, frying the starter every couple of months.

also, stick with the berus. no matter what. that way when you use the plugs for a long time (and if you put in a manual switch) you can atleast remove the plugs if they burn out.

 

[Agnem]

I use the Autolite 1110 12v in mine with great results, but I have them connected with a switch. Haven't tried them with the controller.

Sure hope they don't swell on you. The 6 Volt Autolite plugs are like the black plague, and should be striken from the market.

 

[sootman73]

if your going through starters, and new plugs arnt working worth a damn, have you checked the batteries? im thinking that with week batteries, your getting enough to lighe the plugs, but not enough to crank the engine up to speed. with weak batts, your voltage goes way down when their being used, and when you actuate that starter, the voltage drops more and the amps skyrocket, frying the starter every couple of months.

also, stick with the berus. no matter what. that way when you use the plugs for a long time (and if you put in a manual switch) you can atleast remove the plugs if they burn out.

oh the motor spins fast but just doesn't start worth a dam. batteries are only a couple months old i believe. these berus are the fifth set of plugs in a month. before he kept putting autolites in it but with his manual switch they would burn up right away. (he kept getting more because they were free.) now that we put a solid state on im not worried about burning up plugs very easy. i knew the berus are a good quality but they were used and i dont know how fast they are supposed to heat up?

like orange in a second or two? or no cuz they didn't do that with a battery charger we used to test to see if they heated up. though they all heated up.

 

[Agnem]

Typical ON time for 6 volt GP's like ours is about 12 seconds. Maximum in really cold weather is about 18 seconds. And those are REAL seconds, not something you pulled out of your head going one mississippi two mississippi...

A glow plug will often pull more amps than a battery charger can provide, so it's not necessarily a good way to test them.

 

[icanfixall]

About the starter... Is it a gear reduction starter??? Can you count the rpms of the motor when it starts turning over?? How long are you cranking the starter?? Berus are about the best you are going to find. Using Autolites are a risk if you know what I mean...

 

[Dsl_Dog_Treat]

A glow plug will often pull more amps than a battery charger can provide, so it's not necessarily a good way to test them.

Yup, test em straight off a good battery. Just don't get your fingers too close to the tip when ya give em juice.









Yes I burned the begeebers out of a finger before.

 

[spyder1100]

The 1110's are rated at 12 volts, not 6 volts like the factory replacements. I've tested them up to 24 volts before I installed them. No signs at all of swelling or cracking. I've had them in for over two years with no problems. I take them out every so often to clean them since I run mostly waste oil, and test them again the same way before I install them. The key to the equation is they are 12 volt, not 6 volt. And they are self regulating.

 

[sootman73]

well they dont stay on that long. we put them on a 40 amp charge and thats only one plug at a time.

the starter spins over fast. maybe not as fast as mine but it still spins fast enough. no you cant count how many times it spins over. too quick for that. it is gear reduction but he has to crank so many times to start it and he probably holds on too long waiting for it to start firing.

 

[spyder1100]

With the factory plugs, if you cycle them with the charger set on high to start instead of charge, when you cycle the key to start you run the possibility of blowing the plugs.

We have a huge 700 amp/24 volt charger/booster at our shop that I tested mine with. Ran them on 12v boost for 15 minutes and 5 minutes at 24v boost. No problems. Maybe I just got lucky with the only good set.

 

[Devilish]

Check the injection timing. If timing is off engine will be harder to start

 

[tractorman86]

+2 on the timing, sounds like yours might be too far retarted. mine was too far advanced and started on the first revolution every time but was low on power, smoked too much, and rattled excessively. i bumped it back a bit and it runs smoother, stronger and less smoke (till i turned the fuel screw that is ) but is a little harder to start, it takes me about 2-3seconds now. also i am running a set of Borg Warner GPs, they seem to be good quality and they look almost identical to the berus, after all BW bought beru's USA inport business so i dont know if they are making them for BW or if they just copied them...

 

[Andylad13]

just a thought, have you checked that resistor on the controller? if thats not working properly, maybe that could be the source of the problem.

 

[Agnem]

...Maybe I just got lucky with the only good set.

One of the issues with doing a "free air" test like this, is it does not duplicate the actual environment the glow plug is in. In the head, the air space is much smaller, and heats much faster. Not only that, but a portion of the glow plug shaft is in the tip bore. This would cause some portion of the glow plug shaft to be at a different temperature than the rest. Being in the head results in a ton of reflected heat, and no where near the cooling effect that open air would have on a glow plug. Thus its life will be greatly extended outside of the confines of the prechamber.