Craftsman YT3000 no start

[Willy56]

Hello all, question on my dads mower. No start one day so we changed the battery. Started three times then no more. Bench tested the solenoid and it checked out. Tried a new solenoid as well and that bench tests ok. Took the starter to local old time starter guru and it checked out fine, just needed some oil. Checked and confirmed ground and continuity on wires. Here is where I am at today....

Running 12 volts from my car battery directly to the starter with starter wire removed. First time it spun the motor around. Then nothing. No click, not much happening at all. I had hoped that by going 12v from a good battery source directly to the starter that something would happen. Also, I took the starter off and direct 12v spins it every time. But when mounted on the mower, not much happening.

On one test, we ran 12v direct to starter (no key, just direct to starter) starter would not engage just kept spinning. had to disconnect battery to stop it. Should also mention that we had an extra overseas starter and 12v on a bench test is ok but when attached to mower same thing...nothing happening. It might spin it 2 out of 10 times. The inconsistency is throwing me off. Looking for advice please and thanks.

 

[Rivets]

Go through this troubleshooting procedure and post back with results.

Electrical problems can be very easy or very difficult, depending on four things.
1. How well you understand basic electricity.
2. What tools you have and know how to use.
3. How well you follow directions.
4. You don't overlook or assume anything and verify everything.

Remember we cannot see what you are doing. You are our eyes, ears and fingers in solving this problem. You must be as accurate as you can when you report back. The two basic tools we will ask you to use are a test light and a multi-meter. If you have an assistant when going through these tests it would be very helpful. These steps work the best when done in order, so please don't jump around. Now let's solve this problem.
First, check the fuse(s), check battery connections for corrosion (clean if necessary) and voltage - above 12.5 volts should be good. Check and make sure the chassis ground is clean and tight.
Second, check for power from the battery to one of the large terminals on the solenoid. One of the wires is connected directly to the battery and has power all the time so one of the large terminals should light a test light or show 12 volts on a meter at all times.
Third, check for power at the small terminal of the solenoid while depressing the clutch/brake pedal and holding the key in the start position (you may need an assistant to sit in the seat to override the safety switch). If your solenoid is a four wire solenoid, check both small wire terminals as one is ground and the other is power from the ignition switch. If your solenoid is a three wire solenoid, make sure the solenoid body is not corroded where it bolts to the chassis of the mower as this is your ground path back to the battery. If in doubt, remove the solenoid and clean the mounting area down to bare metal. If there is no power to the small terminal then your problem is most likely a safety switch, ignition switch or in the wiring.
Fourth, check for power on the other large terminal of the solenoid while holding the key in the start position (you may need an assistant to sit in the seat to override the safety switch).
Fifth, check for power at the starter while holding the key in the start position (assistant again).
Sixth, check your ground circuit back to the battery.
After you have gone through each of the above steps, let us know what happened when you did each step. At that point we will have great info to tell you how to proceed. Remember you are our eyes, ears, and fingers, so please be as accurate as possible.
Be as specific as possible with voltage readings as this will help diagnose your problem quicker. If you do not know how to perform the above checks, just ask and I will try to guide you through it. Youtube also has some videos and as you know a picture is worth a thousand words.

 

[Willy56]

Rivets! Thank you for taking the time to type and share that in depth advice. I am fairly proficient with electrical and have those tools. Performed most of those tests and just went back to get the other items. Per your request here are my findings of the steps you outlined:

1. Fuse is good, both visibly and with continuity. Battery terminals are clean and read 12.63 volts but that is not under load. I ground down the frame to bare metal to ensure good ground from battery to frame. Checked continuity in cables they check out.

2. Solenoid to battery side has power 12.64 volts all the time.

3. Solenoid is 4 wire. Meter hooked up to white wire reads 9.41 volts when turning key.

4. For the other large solenoid terminal (with cable going to starter), when cranking key I get 7.41 volts.

5. Testing directly at starter terminal, power to starter is 7.17 volts when turning key.

6. Not sure exactly the ground test you mean. I get continuity along all the grounds checking at various points.

Please note: I tried a couple different batteries that I have here. The original old weak battery, the new battery my dad just bought at Walmart, and my chevy nova battery which is good and strong. When running 12 volts direct from my car battery to starter terminal (starter installed) , the starter moves sometimes but usually not. No clicking at all. It seems it might want to do something but nothing, sometimes no noise at all. Starter OFF the mower spins fine when connected to 12v battery source.

Trying to attach video here and can not make that happen.
Thanks again for your help and time.

 

[Rivets]

Steps 3&4 tell me your battery is not good. Step 3 you should have 11.5-12.6 VDC. Step 4 you need a minimum of 10 VDC. I would fully charge the battery and then take it to an auto parts store or your auto mechanic and have it load tested. I know you said you tried jumping the system with an car battery, but depending on how you hooked it up the bad battery may be sucking all the power.

 

[Willy56]

Steps 3&4 tell me your battery is not good. Step 3 you should have 11.5-12.6 VDC. Step 4 you need a minimum of 10 VDC. I would fully charge the battery and then take it to an auto parts store or your auto mechanic and have it load tested. I know you said you tried jumping the system with an car battery, but depending on how you hooked it up the bad battery may be sucking all the power.

Went to auto parts store and got a decent Diehard battery. I had my meter hooked up to the starter so I could see what kind of juice we were going to have on the first try. Turned it over and was getting 7.85 volts and no start. On the second try, the voltage went to 11.1 and it started. Made three more attempts to start it and everything seems fine! Not sure why I got the lower voltage first try. I am not getting my hopes up yet. Will try again in the morning and report back. If it starts up I will consider things good for now. It is the inconsistency that concerns me.
Many thanks Rivets! I believe you to be a gentleman and a scholar.

 

[bertsmobile1]

You can get internal corrosion inside battery cables
Most prevelent with ZTR's
To check you need to take voltage readings at the battery post while cranking then at the ends of both cables while cranking
They should all be the same
Can also been corrosion on the terminals inside the plugs .
These are supposed to be self cleaning and the go is to give them a squirt with contact cleaner or WD 40 then plug & unplug a few times
Finally a healthy slather of contact grease ( any lanolin grease will work really well ) to keep moisture out .
Also could be a wire that has broken at the crimp that is making & breaking contact .

 

[Rivets]

As many on this forum will tell you, I’m not a gentleman or scholar. I just get lucky once in a while. Glad to hear you got it fixed.

 

[Willy56]

Mower worked today. Then it didn't. I see what berts is saying about the cables and wiring. I guess next step is to do those voltage tests on the cables. I will go through thm one by one and see what i see. looking forward to reporting back. Thanks

 

[Willy56]

Howdy folks! It has been some time, finally getting back to checking out the mower. I suppose the grass is getting tall ! Went to start mower and battery is about dead. Actually, it read 2.1 volts. I trickle charged it all day and will try again tomorrow. Afetr all this trouble, it seems to me that somethgn is quickly draining this battery. Solenoid checks out, starter checks out. This is the second battery. I see nowhwre for the battery top drain. Perhaps this is an issue with one of the few safety systems?

Cable voltage seems ok. Visual inspection all around looks good. I can go deeper into looking at each and every connection more thoroughly. In the meantime, I am curious about this extra white wire in the area of the solenoid. I recall always seeing it there, loose and unused. Wondering if this came loose somewhere. I do not see anywhere it would go.

It has been really frustrating not gettign any where with what shoudl be a simple and straightforward electrical issue. I am almost ready to bring this to a local shop. Thanks for everyone help.

 

[Willy56]

Picture of extra white wire that seems to have never been hooked up to anything... thanks for looking