# Vermeer 504 SI Equal Fill/Auto-Tie



## dvcochran (Oct 1, 2017)

I recently purchased a Vermeer 504 Super I with Equal Fill/Auto-tie. The baler works fine but the auto tie and monitor do not work properly. The NEAR FULL and FULL work fine and to tie arms automatically retract to the twine feed position. After a second or two an E2 code displays and the beeper goes off. The maunal says E2 is under voltage below 10.5 volts. Also, the field count does not increment and occasionally the auto-tie will start randomly before the bale of full size. I have checked all the reed swithes and they all check good except a switch on the windguard that my Vermeer dealer cannot tell me what it does. It is made when the windguard is up. They are normally closed switches so I disconnected the windguard switch but saw no difference. I have the power plugged into an auxiliary plug on a Kubota M9000. When running the tractor puts out 14.2 volts. The aux wires are small, 14 or 16 gauge. Any advise is greatly appreciated. I would really like some input on how to troubleshoot before I just send the monitor off for repair. Does anyone have a schematic or wire color code so I could test the wiring to the connector and the switches? There is very little electrical help in either the parts or user manual.

Thanks, David Cochran


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## swmnhay (Jun 13, 2008)

Wire it directly to battery,very common problem on all baler monitors is not getting enough voltage threw accessory plug in.


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## StxPecans (Mar 3, 2018)

I would wire directly to battery first. My vermeer bale expert monitor states wire directly to battery. I use my auxillary plug and if i run my tractor at 540e pto(1700rpm) with ac blower motor on high with all lights on it has thrown low voltage code before. Ran it in normal 540(higher rpm) and it does not. So even my new deere is boarderline enough amps at auxiliary.


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## dvcochran (Oct 1, 2017)

Thanks, I will run it to the battery tomorrow and see what happens.


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## dvcochran (Oct 1, 2017)

Any ideas on why the field count is not incrementing? And, what does the windguard switch do?


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## E220 (Feb 10, 2016)

If you see an E2 you definitely need to go to the battery. Clean the inline fuse on the power cord. Clean the plug wires and terminal ends if they are corroded at all.

If the arms go out and don't come back that is almost certainly a power issue, because it draws a lot more juice pulling in against the twine going on the bale.

The wind guard switch just senses the hay going in. The monitor uses a timer to tell you to drive left and right, so if the monitor is sensing hay going in, it increments the timer. That system doesn't work very well because it doesn't account for windrow shape, ground speed, etc. What I am saying is the switch isn't important, and don't follow the monitor for weaving to build a bale.

The count will not increment because your auto-tie cycle is not completing.


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## dvcochran (Oct 1, 2017)

E220 said:


> If you see an E2 you definitely need to go to the battery. Clean the inline fuse on the power cord. Clean the plug wires and terminal ends if they are corroded at all.
> 
> If the arms go out and don't come back that is almost certainly a power issue, because it draws a lot more juice pulling in against the twine going on the bale.
> 
> ...


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## E220 (Feb 10, 2016)

There is a reed switch under the tongue that the monitor is not seeing activate as the arms go out. Check that switch. Maybe swap it with the one on the windguard. Make sure the steel plate passes within a 1/4" of the bottom of the U of the switch.


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## dvcochran (Oct 1, 2017)

That is the switch that says the twine arms are retracted, right? There is only one switch on the twine arms? I may have it backwards but there isn't a switch to say when the arms are extended into the bale. I checked the one reed switch for continuity with a piece of metal and it is good but I have not checked it with actuator. Should there be 12 volts on a wire for each switch? I will look again and see if I am backwards.

If the switch is on the extend, should it start the center wrap count when the switch is made?


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## E220 (Feb 10, 2016)

Yes that switch says where the twine arms are in the retract cycle/when it reaches the end wrap position, but it needs to see it activate on the way out so it checks it both ways. I can't remember if it is 12v or 5v on that circuit.

Start wraps are the center of the bale, center wraps are the center of each half and end wraps are the edges. The end wrap switch tells it when it nears the edge.


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## dvcochran (Oct 1, 2017)

I was finally able to do a little troubleshooting on the baler.

1.) First I checked the tie arm switch for continuity when the arm cycles. The switch is normally closed and changes state to open when the arms are in the retracted position so the baler is adjusted correctly I think.

2.) I checked for voltage on the tie arm switch and there is none (a white and black wire).

3.) I checked for voltage on the wind guard switch and there is 12 volts on one wire.

***All checks were done with both the monitor on and with the monitor off and still connected direct to the battery.

4.) I disassembled the connectors from the monitor to the baler. The cable splits into two smaller cables. They each have large RV style connectors with spades on each wire, wired straight through, color to color.

Wires from monitor are as follows:

Large Purple

Large Yellow

black -Connector #1

white

red - not wired to anything but has 12 volts on it.

brown/white stripe

dark blue - has 12 volts

green - has 12 volts

black - Connector #2

brown - has 12 volts

light blue - has 12 volts

Does anyone have a diagram (pinout) explaining what each wire is used for? And which should have voltage?

I talked to Vermeer and they said they do not provide service manuals and I would have to go through my local

dealer and he said he doesn't want to sell me one which is frustrating.

I see a couple of possibilities.

1.) The red wire should be connected to the baler side, although I checked the baler side cable about 3 feet back and still saw no red wire.

2.)The black wires are swapped but the doesn't seem to make sense because they are on separate smaller cables coming form the monitor.

3.) The black or white (whichever one should have it) wires to the tie arm switch is not getting power from the monitor.

The baler is in really good shape so fixing this is important to me. I just don't know where to go next. I have a good relationship with my local dealer and he says he knows very little about the older balers like mine.

Thanks for any help.


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## E220 (Feb 10, 2016)

dvcochran said:


> I was finally able to do a little troubleshooting on the baler.
> 
> 1.) First I checked the tie arm switch for continuity when the arm cycles. The switch is normally closed and changes state to open when the arms are in the retracted position so the baler is adjusted correctly I think.
> 
> ...


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## dvcochran (Oct 1, 2017)

E220 said:


> dvcochran said:
> 
> 
> > I was finally able to do a little troubleshooting on the baler.
> ...


Do you have any suggestions on what to do next? I ordered a service manual from m dealer today but he could not say what to do next.


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## E220 (Feb 10, 2016)

Hook a test light to the black wire at the end wrap switch. Start wiggling the harness till the test light lights. If it does not light, start unwrapping the harness at the Y where the end wrap wires split off and see if you have power at that junction. Keep tracing the black wire till you find the break.


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## dvcochran (Oct 1, 2017)

An overdue update.

After much banging my head I did a thorough physical check of the cable connected TO the monitor. There was what feeled like a kink so I removed the protetive sheath and found that the white wire was pulled apart, even though it's insualtion was still intact. I splice the wire at the break and the baler now auto-ties. I do not like the protective sheath for this reason. It is just too stiff and does not allow the wire to move in natural ways it needs to a times.

Hopefully this helps someone else.


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## E220 (Feb 10, 2016)

dvcochran said:


> An overdue update.
> 
> After much banging my head I did a thorough physical check of the cable connected TO the monitor. There was what feeled like a kink so I removed the protetive sheath and found that the white wire was pulled apart, even though it's insualtion was still intact. I splice the wire at the break and the baler now auto-ties. I do not like the protective sheath for this reason. It is just too stiff and does not allow the wire to move in natural ways it needs to a times.
> 
> Hopefully this helps someone else.


Great! I'm glad to hear you got it going. I've seen where the wire pulls apart like that before, but often if you hook a continuity tester to it and start wiggling the harness you can pinpoint the issue fairly quickly.


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