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Cub cadet LT1045
2008
Worked great then won’t start.
Mowed lawn (3Acres)
Dusty but not high grass
No problems. Then pulled a small trailer with some landscaping stones, worked great.
Parked it, went in, had dinner, came out 2 hours later and it won’t start.
12.2V from battery
Fuse is good, continuity test
12.2V to positive terminal of solenoid
Removed engine cover starter engaged to flywheel
Flywheel Turns manually starter disengaged and dropped
Temporary bypass seat safety
Press clutch/brake turn key, lights in display, but no power to starter
Replaced the solenoid (3Pole), but no change
It’s as if there is a safety switch somewhere preventing it from starting but I can’t think of what else it might be.
PTO is not engaged
Is it possible that the Neutral (lever in back) switch is not engaged even though it is pressed in? I can push the mower even though it is pushed in, so I’m thinking that may be the problem. Any way to bypass that?
Thoughts?

Cranking circuit
Solenoid battery terminal
fuse
B on key switch
S on start switch
PTO switch
Parking brake switch
Trigger wire on solenoid

Jump from the battery cable on the solenoid to the trigger terminal at the base
Solenoid should trip & engage the starter
Some have a ground wire at the base as well
Others ground via the mounting bolts

Thanks bertsmobile
I'll try that tomorrow after church.
It's dark late thirty now, I'll report back tomorrow.

RitchieP said:

Thanks bertsmobile
I'll try that tomorrow after church.
It's dark late thirty now, I'll report back tomorrow.

Click to expand...

Don't blame me.
It is a plesant 22Deg C winters day down here & I am having a nice salad for lunch.

Hey there Bert.
Tried to jump start with a new solenoid....starter engages and tries to crank.
with key in on position, I am getting no power to the trigger on the solenoid.
I believe that implies either a safety switch somewhere or bad connection from key switch to trigger.

KEy has to be in the Start position to get 12V on the trigger
When working on the cranking circuit I pull the plug off the back of the key switch & jump the B & S wires to simulate the key being in the start position.
Then it is a test LAMP to follow the power from the switch to the solenoid
Thus it is a one hand job
My test lamp is home made using an old headlight with a blown element so the load is big enough for a dirty connection to show up.
The leads are 10' long so the light sits out oof the way and being a headlight globe ( High beam to boot ) it is easy to see when it is on.

Good advice - I will start at the key switch and work back to the trigger through the safety switches (PTO, Reverse, Brake, Seat) and then report back.

bertsmobile1 said:

My test lamp is home made using an old headlight with a blown element so the load is big enough for a dirty connection to show up.

Click to expand...

Good to see someone knows the difference between potential and circuit voltage. I tried teaching tech school grads we hired the difference between measuring potential with a high impedance meter and voltage in a circuit with current flow. They just couldn't understand why they could get a proper voltage reading but have a corroded connection. There is a tool called LOADpro that loads a circuit to test for corroded connections. Like Bert i made my own. A good meter is a great tool but you need to understand what you are measuring.

When you ride old British 6Volt motorcycles hundreds of miles for "fun" you learn about voltage drop across a corroded circuit very quickly
You also learn about current flow or you spend a ot of time pushing motorcycles in the dark

Q: Why do british cars and motorcycles always leak oil?

A: that's not an oil leak. That is British rustproofing.

Q: why do Brits drink warm beer?

A: Lucas made the refrigerators.

We come back to my favourite hobby horse
We ran a fleet of Rolls Royces in a different life
One of the most complicated electrical systems you could imagine.
Most of it is Lucas and 50 year old cars worked perfectly because RR used to "good" stuff like marine grade tin plated wires.
The motorcycles were built to a price so you were lucky if a switch outlasted warranty .
The market only gets the quality it is willing to pay for.

My favourite Lucas joke is;-

What is different about a Lucas vaccuum cleaner ?

It is the only product Lucas made which didn't suck .

Buddy of mine had an 70's Jaguar. Kinda embarrassing when he got stranded on a date when it wouldn't start and he called me come help. Stock wiring is a disaster but i got it started for him. Funny thing is the woman he was on a date with introduced me to my wife and she has been our accountant for 37 years. The Jag left him stranded 3 different times before he sold the POS.

unplugged the key switch cable harness, blew out all of the dust, cleaned it up, and reconnected.
it started up and I was able to mow without issue. Thanks for your patience and help Bert. I appreciate it.

bertsmobile1 said:

We come back to my favourite hobby horse
We ran a fleet of Rolls Royces in a different life
One of the most complicated electrical systems you could imagine.
Most of it is Lucas and 50 year old cars worked perfectly because RR used to "good" stuff like marine grade tin plated wires.
The motorcycles were built to a price so you were lucky if a switch outlasted warranty .
The market only gets the quality it is willing to pay for.

My favourite Lucas joke is;-

What is different about a Lucas vaccuum cleaner ?

It is the only product Lucas made which didn't suck .

Click to expand...

Lucas,the Prince of Darkness...

bertsmobile1 said:

.

My favourite Lucas joke is;-

What is different about a Lucas vaccuum cleaner ?

It is the only product Lucas made which didn't suck .

Click to expand...

In the Bogart movie "They drive by night" a guy in a truck stuck says "the only thing on that truck that doesn't make noise is the horn."