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Lucas starter, Ford tractor?
EhlerDave
Member Posts: 5,158 ✭✭
Okay guys I am having a normal day, you know what I mean anything that can go wrong is.
I need my tractor to start, batter was dead, the key has been on for the last 3 months, I am going to blame that on the dog.
I limped my sorry butt outside hooked up the charger last night and let her run. Today I turn the key and she starts cranking over. The problem is it would not stop cranking. I pulled the kill cable so it would not start. I had to raise the hood and break the battery terminal off to stop the starter motor.
I have no idea what went wrong, but to check for bad wiring I took all the wires off the solenoid and left just the battery cable. I just jabbed the terminal in place and jumped the solenoid to see what I got. Same thing it kept cranking until I pulled the cable loose. When I did that I heard the solenoid click and it retracted.
So for those of you who may know and be willing to share with me what am I looking at? Just a bad solenoid or could something in the starter motor cause this, to me I would guess solenoid. It is a 64 Ford tractor, with a 3 cyl diesel and the Lucas starter with solenoid mounted on the top, looks like a chevy starter.
The starter was worked on well over a year ago, the brush holder had broken and I did not have the tools to replace it myself plus busted ribs (funny starter again and cracked sternum) but at that time it got a new solenoid, but by googling this it seems a lot of cheap chinese solenoids are bad from the box. This one has been used just a few times.
I need this up and working fast but MUST fix it myself so any ideas will be tried, well most of them. [8D]
Any help would be greatly appreciated, David.
I need my tractor to start, batter was dead, the key has been on for the last 3 months, I am going to blame that on the dog.
I limped my sorry butt outside hooked up the charger last night and let her run. Today I turn the key and she starts cranking over. The problem is it would not stop cranking. I pulled the kill cable so it would not start. I had to raise the hood and break the battery terminal off to stop the starter motor.
I have no idea what went wrong, but to check for bad wiring I took all the wires off the solenoid and left just the battery cable. I just jabbed the terminal in place and jumped the solenoid to see what I got. Same thing it kept cranking until I pulled the cable loose. When I did that I heard the solenoid click and it retracted.
So for those of you who may know and be willing to share with me what am I looking at? Just a bad solenoid or could something in the starter motor cause this, to me I would guess solenoid. It is a 64 Ford tractor, with a 3 cyl diesel and the Lucas starter with solenoid mounted on the top, looks like a chevy starter.
The starter was worked on well over a year ago, the brush holder had broken and I did not have the tools to replace it myself plus busted ribs (funny starter again and cracked sternum) but at that time it got a new solenoid, but by googling this it seems a lot of cheap chinese solenoids are bad from the box. This one has been used just a few times.
I need this up and working fast but MUST fix it myself so any ideas will be tried, well most of them. [8D]
Any help would be greatly appreciated, David.
Just smile and say nothing, let them guess how much you know.
Comments
http://www.mez.co.uk/lucas.html
"Never do wrong to make a friend----or to keep one".....Robert E. Lee
I will take the solenoid off and see whats up with it, not like I can mess it up. [:D]
Starter is going to be a load getting it out due to the broken/cracked sternum. One of these days crap will break when I am feeling good. [8D]
Lucas can't make a refrigerator that stays cold....
I have had starters keep cranking when the voltage in the battery was not high enough. They will crank over but the solanoid will not dissingage when the key is turned off.
As dead as that battery was this could be, if I find nothing that looks "odd" will swap battery and see what happens. I know for sure I am not going to tighten the battery terminal until I see what happens. Those things get hot. [:)]
And fiery auto crashes
Some will die in hot pursuit
While sifting through my ashes
Some will fall in love with life
And drink it from a fountain
That is pouring like an avalanche
Coming down the mountain
Sounds like a beer problem.
Where do I dump the beer? On the starter or the battery? Or just on the hood? [8D]
I have had starters keep cranking when the voltage in the battery was not high enough. They will crank over but the solanoid will not dissingage when the key is turned off.
Yep, the starter trying to crank on low voltage causes intense heat in the cables and switches. The heat will weld the solenoid contacts together. I have seen this many times on trucks and equipment. I would replace the solenoid, and charge and load test the battery. If it has been dead for three months, it is very likely junk.
The key switch is most likely burned out.
The only way that the solenoid could have gone bad is it would have had power going to it. If it had power then the engine would have cranked over. Believe that you would have caught that before a month had passed.
Not knowing the model series of your tractor. You could try a simple two wire push button starter switch to test with. Just run one wire to the battery and the other to the starter solenoid (with the wire from the key switch disconnected) so that when the button is pushed the engine will crank. If it does crank and then stop when you let off of the button. You will know that the key switch is bad.
If it keeps cranking the solenoid is bad. They are simple to remove from the starter for cleaning, inspecting and lubing. While it is apart. Look closely at the lugs inside of it that the starter and battery wire connect to that the disc contacts when power is applied to the solenoid. If they are showing much wear. You can loosen the nuts that hold them in place and rotate the lugs 180 degrees to give the solenoid a longer service life. I have did this to many Chevy, Jeep and tractor starters to get guys out of a jam and some have lasted for years after rotating the lugs inside of the solenoid.
If the key was left one for a long period of time like you stated.
The key switch is most likely burned out.
The only way that the solenoid could have gone bad is it would have had power going to it. If it had power then the engine would have cranked over. Believe that you would have caught that before a month had passed.
Not knowing the model series of your tractor. You could try a simple two wire push button starter switch to test with. Just run one wire to the battery and the other to the starter solenoid (with the wire from the key switch disconnected) so that when the button is pushed the engine will crank. If it does crank and then stop when you let off of the button. You will know that the key switch is bad.
If it keeps cranking the solenoid is bad. They are simple to remove from the starter for cleaning, inspecting and lubing. While it is apart. Look closely at the lugs inside of it that the starter and battery wire connect to that the disc contacts when power is applied to the solenoid. If they are showing much wear. You can loosen the nuts that hold them in place and rotate the lugs 180 degrees to give the solenoid a longer service life. I have did this to many Chevy, Jeep and tractor starters to get guys out of a jam and some have lasted for years after rotating the lugs inside of the solenoid.
Thanks everyone.
I pulled the wires off the solenoid and tried jumping it to the hot post, as soon as I did the starter tried to crank and would not stop.
I would be willing to bet the batter is dead for good. I had charged it and now have nothing. I mean nothing it will not light my test light from post to post.
I will look in the solenoid and see if it has been damaged, hopefully I can make do with it for now.
quote:Originally posted by Mr. Perfect
Sounds like a beer problem.
Where do I dump the beer? On the starter or the battery? Or just on the hood? [8D]
dump the beer? Remind me not to invite you to any parties.
And fiery auto crashes
Some will die in hot pursuit
While sifting through my ashes
Some will fall in love with life
And drink it from a fountain
That is pouring like an avalanche
Coming down the mountain