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New problem. My engine goes dead soon after starting it. The 9 year old battery goes dead but will take a charge enough to start again but the engine dies quickly. I tried to take a voltage reading while running and the voltage drops quickly. I'm not familiar with the charging systems in these mower engine. I know a car will run with a bad battery after being jumped and I've jumped the battery before on this thing and it kept running before. I can't recall if I've ever had an alternator go bad on any car I've owned over the years.
Yesterday when it died when mowing the battery seemed like it was boiling when it happened. Does the charging system go crazy before it dies? Is there any component that can be tested without needing the engine to be running?

C,MON Bleach .... fork over the $20.00 for a new Walmart battery already, you're so "chincy" you squeeze a nickle so hard, you make the poor buffalo schitt!! ..:laughing: ..:laughing:

I'd buy a new battery if I knew for sure that was the problem. While it was running I would think it would show it was charging even if the battery was weak. I'm trying to find my engine manual to see if there is something in the charging system I need to test.
Yes, you are right. I am cheap. I also make my own copper wire from pennies.:laughing:

Bleach said:

New problem. My engine goes dead soon after starting it. The 9 year old battery goes dead but will take a charge enough to start again but the engine dies quickly. I tried to take a voltage reading while running and the voltage drops quickly. I'm not familiar with the charging systems in these mower engine. I know a car will run with a bad battery after being jumped and I've jumped the battery before on this thing and it kept running before. I can't recall if I've ever had an alternator go bad on any car I've owned over the years.
Yesterday when it died when mowing the battery seemed like it was boiling when it happened. Does the charging system go crazy before it dies? Is there any component that can be tested without needing the engine to be running?

Click to expand...

The Kohler Regulator/Rectifier will not charge a battery that drops below 11 volts. If your battery voltage drops that quick, you have a short in the battery. No fixin' it, just have to replace it. Also, when you do manage to start it, it dies soon after because the battery can not supply enough voltage to the fuel solenoid and it closes off your fuel supply to the carburetor.

So, as noted previously, the first step is to purchase a NEW battery.

Honda Tech, your explanation makes sense. Even the Kohler manual doesn't explain it that simply. I hooked up the charger again and the ampmeter on it pegged and then fluctuated wildly. It's time to go get another battery.
Walmart $20 really?

OK, I found the $20 battery at Walmart. It might be a bit small for my engine. My old battery is 340 cca and the one from Walmart is only 230 cca. I have to check my books to see if this is enough.
EDIT: It needs to be a minimum of 280 cca.

Make sure you use a sealed battery and by prefference an AGM and PVR battery.
Mower batteries cop it tough.
The regulators/ Recti-fryers are crude and the mower has almost no suspension so batteries tend to boil ( open top batteries ) or mechanically self destruct.
Thus you need a battery with thicker grid plates, better supported.

Car batteries ( except 4 WD ) usually crap out .

Neither battery this tractor had was a sealed battery. The first one was the one that came with it and it lasted over 10 years. The one I'm replacing is the second one and it lasted 9 years. Both were DieHard's though that might not make much difference since all batteries are probably made by the same manufacturer. I guess I've been lucky with both of them. The first one died without any of the excitement the second one did.
I don't think any of the U1R batteries I've searched were sealed or AGM's. Sorry but I don't know what a PVR battery is.

I just replaced the battery in my 46" Murray with the 275A. ( I believe) at the end of Feb. WALMART ... $30.00 I have the 21 HP Briggs twin eng, it spins it like a top, When it first died I went to using the (230) A. ..?? out of my 42" Murray with a 17.5 HP Briggs which I had down for maint. THAT also works GREAT ! Over time I found, adding an "extra" ground wire to my start solenoid body ( 3 term. solenoid ) for a better ground has made a great improvement in starting. The secret (I believe) is good CLEAN & SECURE cables/connections. The choice of battery is your's of course, but ALWAYS check your cables as routine maintenance . Here in Florida IF ya get 3 years out of a battery, .. you're schittin in tall cotton ! ..:thumbsup:

Replacing a 340 CCA battery with a 230 CCA is not something I would advise. Won't get into electrical why, but engine will not turn as fast (harder to start) starter will have shorter life (working harder) and you'll be lucky to get 2 years out of it.

I am a stickler for clean connections. It drives me nuts when I get any sort of corrosion on the terminals. The positive terminal on the current battery kept getting corrosion no matter how clean I tried to keep them clean.
I believe there is a good reason for the amp requirement. The last thing I want to do is fry the starter. It's still original and works fine.

It's not the battery

It's not the battery. I bought a new battery and I nearly cooked it. It started OK but quit after a few seconds of running. The voltage dropped quickly and the battery started smoking. Both cable were super hot. There's something shorting out. Where to start checking? I've never had anything happen like this on a car so I haven't a clue what is the problem. It doesn't seem like the starter solenoid is sticking.

Starter. Pull it off and take it to a starter/alternator shop and have them test it. Some auto supply stores can test them, too.

The starter is the only thing on the mower that has heavy-gauge wire running to it. Anything else would have been cooked long before your battery cables smoked. They probably should be replaced now, too.

The starter seemed to work fine. It didn't run on after the engine started. I had a volt meter hooked up on the battery and it didn't start dropping until the engine ran and then the voltage dropped fast and the cables and battery got super hot. I disconnected the cables almost immediately. I hope I didn't kill the new battery.
If it's now a bad starter. I wonder what else is going to crap out next? I've rebuilt a head to cure a bad oil burning issue. The governor quit working. I had to pull the transaxle just to refill it. Now this. All of this has happened in the last two months.
No I'm not going to buy another tractor. I can't afford a new one I would need and I don't want to buy someone else's headache.
I have plans on moving next summer and I won't need any kind of tractor where I planning on moving to.

Of course you can't buy another tractor now. That would be admitting defeat!

This is now a quest. A quest to make this mower, and no other, mow the yard.

That's why I won't let this thing defeat me. I've got to fix this thing. But right now I wouldn't mind seeing it melt into a smoldering blob like a plastic toy.

Wonder if one of these would be sufficient?

https://www.sonicelectronix.com/item_17907_SHURiKEN-SK-BT20.html

I use the Kinetic brand small form factor car batteries in all my vehicles. They have some serious power, but they will die quicker than a standard battery. They put up with total abuse though.

Not in my situation. It's not a battery problem.

You have a high amp short. It would say that you have a dead short some place between the battery and the starter solenoid. Either the positive battery cable has a bare spot against the frame, or the starter solenoid is shorting straight to ground after you crank the engine. Anyplace else in the system would just melt the insulation and burn the small wires in two very quickly, and wouldn't heat up the battery very much doing it.

Bleach said:

The starter seemed to work fine. It didn't run on after the engine started. I had a volt meter hooked up on the battery and it didn't start dropping until the engine ran and then the voltage dropped fast and the cables and battery got super hot. I disconnected the cables almost immediately. I hope I didn't kill the new battery.
If it's now a bad starter. I wonder what else is going to crap out next? I've rebuilt a head to cure a bad oil burning issue. The governor quit working. I had to pull the transaxle just to refill it. Now this. All of this has happened in the last two months.
No I'm not going to buy another tractor. I can't afford a new one I would need and I don't want to buy someone else's headache.
I have plans on moving next summer and I won't need any kind of tractor where I planning on moving to.

Click to expand...

Says it all.
Problem with the charging circuit.
Common on old dynamo powered motorcycles where the dynamo would reverse polarise when not used for long periods.

Yes I do agree about the high amp short. The positive cable is OK. Maybe it's something hanging in the starter but it's happening only after starting and the key is released.

I didn't see your post here Bert, but wouldn't that have shown an increase in voltage?

not if you are trying to measure it with a DC meter.
If the battery is not getting hot when the engine is not running then the short has to be coming from a power source that only happens with the engine running and that is the alternator.
Remove the rectifier and see what happens then.
When the generator is feeding the battery backwards you get a lot of heat and batteries can & do explode.
Same with feeding AC into a battery because in the - cycle the battery is backwards and acting as a big load resistor.
During the + side of the cycle the battery gets a charge but not enough to overcome the discharge

Yes I was only using the DC setting on my MM. The rectifier will be the easiest to check and less expensive to replace than the starter.
Thanks Bert.

Just a simple dead short.:redface:
See my other post: http://www.lawnmowerforum.com/showt...l-system-CV25S?p=276075&viewfull=1#post276075