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Starter problems

Big Muddy rancher

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Feb 10, 2005
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Big Muddy valley
Since we are talking JD tractors I figured it's a good time to throw this in. :D
The started on my 7400 clicks when the key is turned on and sometimes you have to turn it quite a few times to get it to start. Sometimes it seems you have to hold the key on and wait a couple seconds before it will engage.

The colder it is the less likely it is to start at all. The batteries are testing 12.66 and 14.5. Think it could just be batteries?
Changes the solenoid last year and thought it helped for a bit but went back to doing the same thing. It always started last summer even it took a couple turns of the key, not so now.
 
Sounds to me like a ground somewhere, I would guess to the solenoid or connection like that some where, that is if the solenoid is still working properly. I was thinking it was the solenoid until you said you changed it, but that does not mean it could not be weak though. Or you have dead spot in the starter. If you smack it with a hammer sometimes they will spin right over. You can test voltage as you start it and see how much drop you get, if you don't get any drop and it does not spin that means no connection to starter, but if you get significant drop and does not spin I would guess dead spot in starter. If you think it is dead spot just give good smack to side of starter and bet it will spin right over.

Clean all connections real well if you have not done that yet.
Clean frame ground real well too.
 
I'd lay my bet on a dead spot in the starter windings. The right guy could bench test it for you so you'd know for sure.
 
I would short the solenoid out with a tool of your choice to see what happens. If the starter works like it's supposed to then the problem is elsewhere, likely the solenoid.
Of course, one should make sure the transmission is in park/neural before attempting this :shock: :D
 
Try warming the solenoid up with a heat gun or hair dryer fairly warm and then try the ignition, condensation and water sometimes get in and then freeze. also the grease they use can be to thick in the cold,especialy in a rebuilt or replacement solenoid.
 
"The batteries are testing 12.66 and 14.5."

That's telling you the volts.

More to 'crank' than that.

A load tester will tell you static volts (motor stopped ) and charging volts.

And it's got a little heating element in it that draws lotsa juice. Cost about 50$ and handy tool.

Some batteries will show hot voltage but fall right off as soon as you load them.

ps--you batterys varying that much make me curious, for starters.....
 
I would bet on a bad battery. 12.6 V is a bad reading it should be like the other one. Jump with a known good one and see if it helps. It could be dead spot on the starter also.
 
I would bet on battery as well. They shouldn't read that much different. Our combine this fall would somehow cook one of the batteries and it would do the same as you described. You could always find out which one was the problem cause it would test low kind of like yours does. Think it happened 4 times never could find the problem. :roll:
 
Big Muddy rancher said:
Since we are talking JD tractors I figured it's a good time to throw this in. :D
The started on my 7400 clicks when the key is turned on and sometimes you have to turn it quite a few times to get it to start. Sometimes it seems you have to hold the key on and wait a couple seconds before it will engage.

The colder it is the less likely it is to start at all. The batteries are testing 12.66 and 14.5. Think it could just be batteries?
Changes the solenoid last year and thought it helped for a bit but went back to doing the same thing. It always started last summer even it took a couple turns of the key, not so now.
my 7410 does the same thing on new batteries. Mine is a bad connection at the solenoid.
 
Big Muddy rancher said:
Since we are talking JD tractors I figured it's a good time to throw this in. :D
The started on my 7400 clicks when the key is turned on and sometimes you have to turn it quite a few times to get it to start. Sometimes it seems you have to hold the key on and wait a couple seconds before it will engage.

The colder it is the less likely it is to start at all. The batteries are testing 12.66 and 14.5. Think it could just be batteries?
Changes the solenoid last year and thought it helped for a bit but went back to doing the same thing. It always started last summer even it took a couple turns of the key, not so now.

BMR, you can clean all your terminals and give it a try but I think you are going to need a new starter.

I would suggest you take your alternator off and have it bench tested. I'm assuming the battery voltage is with the engine off. A reading of 12.6 might be a little low but the other batt testing 14.5 is too high. That's a reading you would expect with the engine running and alternator working correctly. There is possibly a faulty diode in the alternator.

My JD 544C was always having run down batteries. I figured there was dead short somewhere and after much frustration and tracing wires... I traced the short to the alternator. This also set up some strange starter symptoms as well.
Best of luck
 
gcreekrch said:
Solenoid, starter switch or bad connection somewhere.



You have been greasing the muffler bearing haven't you?

What he said.

I'm surprised that he missed this obvious one - if the horn belt is too tight it turns over harder...
 

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