Magnum pain in the @$&

[curtisbyrne]

Just went to start the Argo up for a cleaning of the tub and what do ya know battery is stone dead.i then try to put the front chains on and can't get the damn things on there, I think me and my dad are selling his thing and getting a new frontier 8 by 8 for $20 000. I know people are going to tell me stick with the old and reliable but I can't take it anymore it must be cursed or something, my grandfather gave the Argo and everything possible was broken for me to fix ( really testing my patience) and now it still ain't charging the battery,sorry pa but it's the end of the line with me and my magnums relationship. You were good back in the day

[Fox Valley Argo Sales]

Sorry to hear that,seemed you where so close to getting it done.
I just checked and found that i never posted my new 2015 frontier in the comercial classifieds,not that im trying to sell you this, but it is a good barometer of what you should get for under 20k.

[tbone9]

Well if you're all done then there's no changing your mind. I think it's safe to say many of us have been there before. I will say if you do change your mind and get it going the rewards are even better knowing you did it yourself. Not to mention all the help and knowledge a guy can gain from the fine folks on this site. I think of it as a learning experience that will help you when you wrench on anything. The best thing to do right now is walk away from it and re visit it later on. Good luck.

[curtisbyrne]

Ok thanks guys,tried it again today with me waud battery turned over once then click click click,solenoid gone,great.so close to putting a match down the gas tank,anyway will try to stay aWhat size socket takes off a castle nut?ay from it for a while and come back to it later on.

[ARGOJIM]

Buy a battery a group 51 or 45 will have the near right size and cranking amps, it has been an issue since the start, make life easier.

[Kris W]

Really sorry to hear bout that Curtis. I gotta say im sorta havin a bad day with this too ... Same machine, yr, etc.. Pa Bought a battery last month a week before he gave me the machine, it says "50 CCA, 85 RC " he got a recommendation on which battery to buy from a local small engine guy that works on argos..Dont know if its the right one... ive had to start it a bunch of times while working on it, and today it wouldnt start, i boosted it off my vehicle. It started right up, ran it 20 min. (at idle) turned it off, turned key to start..... Nothin... So im currious, without an alternator what charges the battery ? Cuz i thought it would have charged the battery back up in 20 min. enough to start it again. ?

[curtisbyrne]

Yeah,kohler magnum engines have charging issues a lot especially on Argos

[North Country Tough]

Yeah,kohler magnum engines have charging issues a lot especially on Argos

I ran Magnums for years they were fairly durable and the red engine was good to me as far as long life went,the bad if anything went wrong with the starter it was a bear to work on,ignition coil issues and forget the charging system it was finicky at best,since I plowed and used a electric fuel pump I needed dependable hydro I have no pics of the way I rigged it but I used a Argo alternator kit and fabbed brackets off of the transmission and cut reliefs into the plastic air intake shroud and replaced the cast aluminum rope starter pulley on the engine and ran a belt,it worked fine and I used that set up for years without issue the only thing you had to fiddle with a bit was belt tension since the engine would shift slightly on its mounts and the alt on the transmission was solid you had to run a bit less then ideal belt tension,the other thing we had taken out the original batt box and made it bigger and used a car battery which had to be as low as possible to clear the alternator belt.NCT

[Canadian_Zuk]

I had charging problems with my Kohler Magnum as well, all my magnets fell of the inside of the flywheel. I upgraded to a GM alternator for around $150 all in. The Kohler engines are great power plants.

here's how I fixed my charging issues.

http://www.6x6world.com/forums/engines/34460-25-hp-kohler-stator-problems.html

[ARGOJIM]

Zuk that's a Command, Magnums are opposed.

[Canadian_Zuk]

Zuk that's a Command, Magnums are opposed.

Oh man, I feel like a fool lol. I had to go look at an old pic to be sure I wasn't losing my marbles. Yes you are 100% correct, my motor is a Command not a Magnum lol, I've been calling it a Magnum all along (even in that thread I linked I refered to it as a Magnum).

[curtisbyrne]

so my best bet is to go with a gm alternator? how would i rig it up? im worried about no frest air duct as well

[curtisbyrne]

do i need to worry about volatge regualtors then if i have a internal ground alterantor?

[Kris W]

Hey Curtis, ive been doing a bit of research on this, what you want is a "one wire alternator" it hooks up just how it sounds, 1 wire going from the back of the alt. to the possitive connector on the battery, and a belt from the "drive pulley" on the side of the engine that spins constantly. Make & rig up brackets of some kind & thats it ! As soon as i sell some stuff off, I am going to try this, i found "mini GM 1 wire altenator" on ebay, amazon etc for around $90. + shipping. Its small and will more than do the job.
Im going to cut spaces out of the shroud , just enough to make room for the alt & belt. I dont think it will effect the cooling because it will still draw air..

https://www.ebay.ca/itm/131207846796

[curtisbyrne]

thanks kris,just back from the argo and i just put all ne wire in that comes out of the stator and goes to the regulator! if that dont fix the problem i dont know what to do.actually i will just buy an alternator and use that becuase this kohler magnum in my argo is getting on my last nerve when it comes to charging the battery.keep me posted on how and when you cut the holes in the shroud or fresh air duct! thanks for the link!!