Clutch Starter Safety Switch

[RedRamAndy]

Well, I have to relate what turned out to be a funny story. It could have been quite bad.

Shortly after I got my truck, the clutch starter safety switch went out. It cut the circuit and would never let the truck start. After pricing this funny black barrel-shaped switch, I decided to just connect the wires and live with it hotwired out. (you can see where this is going now, can't you... )

I have a habit standing on the clutch whenever I start it, so no big deal. I always warned the guys at the inspection station too. Well, today was abnormally warm. It got up over 90. I wanted to start the truck pre-cool it with the AC kicked on. I opened the door, let the steam roll out, hit the MAX AC button and twisted the key. OOPS!!! Old Red said "We're leavin' NOW!" Fired right up in Granny it did! DANG, I'm glad I can jump in and drive. AND really glad he wasn't facing the garage, my car, the shed, etc... I couldn't help but laugh and steer and buckle up. I just waved 'bye' to my wife and thought, "yeah, I meant to do that... " :-laf

Oh yeah, stone cold sober too!!! Honest!



Figured I'd throw this out there as a PSA to any fellow who foolishly thought (like myself) they were smarter than this switch. God I'm glad I didn't get run over by my own beloved truck!

BTW, any body got one of these switches??

 

[Bob Beauchaine]

I wired mine to a simple small interlock switch mounted on the panel near hood release. The truck will not start without pressing this switch.



Bob

 

[HHhuntitall]

:-laf Glad no damage was done. You'll be surprised at how well you will remember that..... I think I first did it when I was around 8-9. I was a kid, jacking around, and I dropped a screwdriver down on the old Case 1175. I fell just right and landed across the starter selenoid terminals, and Dad had left it in gear!! Jumped about 3 feet, with me riding the roof before the plow dug in and stopped her!!



More recently, my old '96 tried to go out the back of the barn... . opposite the door!! The switch quit years before, and I knew that, I just looked in, and the shifter wasn't in first, so I "presumed" it wasn't in gear. For some reason, I had left it in reverse, and off she took, me hanging on to the mirror!! I shut her down pretty quick, but it pushed my toolbox and other crap about 4-5 feet!! I wanted to be mad, but I could only be mad at myself.



In the Spring, my wife drove a '91 I had into my barn. She started it in gear, and it scared the crap out of her!! Luckily, I had just done a brake job on it, and it had good brakes, so it actually stopped it, with her mashing on the brakes!! That, and where she hit the barn was where a piece of 10" I beam goes about 6' into the ground!! The big bumper it had on it saved the grill and fender. The tin on the barn... ... uh, not so much...

 

[Bill Stockard]

We had a rule at our I-H dealership to never leave a diesel powered vehicle or equipment parked in gear. Ever have a diesel start up on its own?



I've seen it happen twice. Once a crawler loader and once a farm tractor that had a manual fuel shut offs. The fuel shut off handle was pushed in (which is normal) and the starter relay/solenoid shorted and started the engine. Two different times when we opened the shop in the morning, they were parked in the shop with the engine idling and a burned up starter. With a manual fuel shut offs and mechanical injection pumps, once started they will run without 12-volts until they run out of fuel or someone pulls out the fuel shut off handle which shuts them off.



Bill

 

[JLEONARD]

Ever have a diesel start up on its own?

Yes, years ago in one of the factorys I worked at. There was a backhoe in doing a dig for a press foundation. Saturday am no one was around and the backhoe just started up with me not to far away. Talk about freaky! LOL Good thing it was on it's chocks and couldn't go anywhere. I guess a starter solenoid shorted out.



One day my 1970 Dodge Dart tried to start up in reverse and was slowly creeping up and out of the driveway. The starter relay on that was right under the battery box and was shorted out. (poor placement by design engineers as it was rotted out from battery acid. It didn't start though because the ign switch was off.



I'm glad I can jump in and drive.



This gave me a vision of Audi Murphy running and jumping on a horse. LOL

 

[Mhannink]

I personally have the same policy anything I operate, gas or diesel I park in nuetral or park if auto, set the parking brake, lower all hydraulics if applicable, if it has a manual fuel shut off I leave it in the off position. That way I have done the most I can to prevent an accedent, have been working around equipment all my life and it is just common sense and force of habit to me. Addmitidly I have never had those saftey policies put to the test but its always a potential.

My dad had it happen to him once pure stupid, he was fixing our old oliver tractor, it was stuck in gear, he got it unstuck, installed the shift tower, tested its function, and then while standing next to it in front of the drive tires, he reached over and started it, he forgot that while shifting the pattern he had left it in a gear, when the engine turned over it knocked him down and started rolling up his leg, my dad moved his upper body so that the tractor would roll off his leg, but one of our hands jumped on and stopped the tractor, then backed it off. It all turned out ok, dad had some nasty bruising and a serious limp for a while, nothing was broken or serious. It was an eye opener to him though and he jokes about how he used a lot of stupid that day. From that we came up with the thought that a stupid hurts and b if you use enough stupid at once it'll kill you.

 

[JLEONARD]

It was an eye opener to him though and he jokes about how he used a lot of stupid that day. From that we came up with the thought that a stupid hurts and b if you use enough stupid at once it'll kill you.

You start life with 2 bags. One is labelled "luck" and it's full. The other is labelled "experience" and it's empty.



The goal is to fill the bag with experience before the bag of luck is empty.



Sounds like your dad still had some luck left in that bag

 

[Bill Stockard]

My dad had it happen to him once pure stupid, he was fixing our old oliver tractor, it was stuck in gear, he got it unstuck, installed the shift tower, tested its function, and then while standing next to it in front of the drive tires, he reached over and started it, he forgot that while shifting the pattern he had left it in a gear, when the engine turned over it knocked him down and started rolling up his leg, my dad moved his upper body so that the tractor would roll off his leg, but one of our hands jumped on and stopped the tractor, then backed it off. It all turned out ok, dad had some nasty bruising and a serious limp for a while, nothing was broken or serious. It was an eye opener to him though and he jokes about how he used a lot of stupid that day. From that we came up with the thought that a stupid hurts and b if you use enough stupid at once it'll kill you.

About the same thing happened here in Mount Pleasant at the I-H dealership in the late 60s. I was his factory sales rep at the time, but not present when it happened. The owner started an International diesel utility tractor that he thought was out of gear while standing in front of the rear wheel. The engine started and the tractor hit a heavy work bench, jamming it against the concrete block wall. It caught the dealers leg and pulled him under the rear wheel while it was spinning since the front of the tractor was jammed against the workbench. He suffered a broken thigh, broken pelvis, and broken ribs. It happened so quickly that the mechanic standing nearby didn't have time to kill the engine. He was very lucky there was hydraulic oil spilled on the floor which provided enough lubricant for the rear tire quickly "spin" him out from under the tractor. He spent several weeks in the hospital and fully recovered.



Bill

 

[RedRamAndy]

I wired mine to a simple small interlock switch mounted on the panel near hood release. The truck will not start without pressing this switch.



Bob

Yeah Bob, I'm thinking more along this line myself. I have a spare brake light switch from a 50's Chevy pickup that I think I'm going to mount near the clutch pedal. That style of switch has a big trip-arm on it like a pinball paddle.

 

[RedRamAndy]

We had a rule at our I-H dealership to never leave a diesel powered vehicle or equipment parked in gear. Bill

I thought of that. But I'm in a hilly area and I don't trust parking brakes either. I still have vivid recollections of one member's experience with a small orange wheel chock. I think I'm going to fab up a switch.

 

[RedRamAndy]

You start life with 2 bags. One is labelled "luck" and it's full. The other is labelled "experience" and it's empty.



The goal is to fill the bag with experience before the bag of luck is empty.

I like that! I sure hope that luck can be earned somehow. 'Fraid I just about emptied mine. Not to mebtion just about filled up a different bag when it happened... :-laf

 

[GCroyle]

Andy,



I think I have a 2nd gen switch laying around. If yours matches a 2nd gen, I'll give it to you.



Let me know.

 

[RedRamAndy]

Andy,



I think I have a 2nd gen switch laying around. If yours matches a 2nd gen, I'll give it to you.



Let me know.

Hello Gary,

Your generous offer prompted me to go get my old switch out of the glovebox and have a look. Thanks very much!

When I looked at it, I couldn't see anything wrong. Got out my tester, and it seems to trip just fine. Sooo, I got under my dash and put the little sucker back in. (It's a funny switch that slips over the clutch pushrod and registers on a shoulder step in that rod. ) Yep, works like a champ. Now I know for a fact that it quit working a long time ago! Well, it came to me: My clutch linkage wore out so badly that the clutch would not completely disengage anymore. The pin on the pedal and the eye on the link were almost worn through. (see pics) I think this limited the travel enough that the switch wouldn't work.

Since I rewelded, filed, bronze-bushed the clutch link a few years ago, there's now enough travel to let the switch do it's life-saving job again. Yay!

So, if your clutch switch 'goes out', ya might check the wear in the linkage.

For grins, I included a pic of that switch PN 4428406.

Thanks All!

 

[GCroyle]

Andy,



Your picture is a dead ringer for the wear I have personally seen on mid to late 90's Ford 7. 3L release systems.



Be carefull, if your pushrod is the same as current designs, it uses a one time pushrod keeper, locking it into the M/C very difficult to remove and keep it intact for reuse. Fix that one area and I guarntee that the clutch will feel totally different.



This is one from our clutch tech support issues, the clutch pedal may be moving full operational range, but that does not mean that the bearing is moving its full range.



You might want to pull the sliding portion back and clean out the grunge in there, notice any grease? They put a dab on the contacts, I just looked at a new one.



those older Fords had stamped steel pedal clusters, subject to lots of wear.



Good find Andy.