PTO problem Yardman

[Jet48]

Hiya I have a Yardman HE 4160 the magnetic clutch on the cutter deck wont engage there is no voltage getting down. Also there is a display underneath the steering wheel which shows if the is battery charging, Brake on and cutter blades engaged, this does not light up at all either. I'm wondering could there be a common problem causing this, I have checked the main fuse but thats OK and mower starts and runs OK in all other respects. Thanks for any help you can give.

 

[Lawnranger]

Start by checking if you have power to the PTO switch. If you have no power then perhaps a safety switch is defective/malfunctioning. If you have power to the switch then remove the wire connector from the switch and jump across it with a paper clip or cotter pin and check for power to the PTO. You can also use an ohm meter/continuity checker to test the switch and see if it is working properly.

Perform the checks and report back with your findings.

 

[Jet48]

Tried what you suggested it did have power on the connector to the clutch, Tested the switch it seemed OK to. So then hard wired the clutch direct to the battery and it worked fine. So really had me stumped, checked a relay which was in the line with the switch turned off the relay was on, but with the switch
turned on the relay switched off, really puzzled me spent three hours trying to figure it out but just couldnt get round it . So I decided to cut the live and ground wire at the switch and run new cables down to the clutch , it now works fine.
The switch was wired into the display which I said wasn't working all I can think is that the display also acts as a safety device and was somehow stopping the clutch from working.
Thanks for your help.
Bob

 

[Lawnranger]

Tried what you suggested it did have power on the connector to the clutch, Tested the switch it seemed OK to. So then hard wired the clutch direct to the battery and it worked fine. So really had me stumped, checked a relay which was in the line with the switch turned off the relay was on, but with the switch
turned on the relay switched off, really puzzled me spent three hours trying to figure it out but just couldnt get round it . So I decided to cut the live and ground wire at the switch and run new cables down to the clutch , it now works fine.
The switch was wired into the display which I said wasn't working all I can think is that the display also acts as a safety device and was somehow stopping the clutch from working.
Thanks for your help.
Bob

Are one of the relay connectors on backward by any chance? Are the relay contacts welded together inside the relay? Maybe try a new relay? You bypassed the relay but the relay is there for a reason. I know you now have a working mower but the engineers have a relay there for a reason. If I were you I'd try to find a schematic and find out exactly what that relay does/controls besides the PTO.

Relays usually use a low current side to control a high current side so you may have bypasses a necessary, protective device that is intended to keep your wiring harness from melting.

Just sayin'

 

[Jet48]

I did try and find an electrical schematic for this mower but could only find a basic wiring diagram
which did not show the PTO on it or the instrument panel.
Anyhow I decided to try and use it as is. It worked fine, the only thing I felt the magnetic clutch and
it was red hot to touch. This is the first time I've had a mower with one of these do the normally get hot?

 

[Lawnranger]

I did try and find an electrical schematic for this mower but could only find a basic wiring diagram
which did not show the PTO on it or the instrument panel.
Anyhow I decided to try and use it as is. It worked fine, the only thing I felt the magnetic clutch and
it was red hot to touch. This is the first time I've had a mower with one of these do the normally get hot?

I can't say for certain but if you think about it, the clutch is mounted the the crankshaft and since that is part of the engine I imagine it would get hot. Check the temperature of the clutch compared to the temperature of the engine with one of those point-n-shoot lazer pyrometers. The clutch could potentially slip and the friction would cause a lot of heat but that would show up when you compare the temperature to the engine.

 

[Jet48]

I only realised after I made the post that the clutch is mounted on the crankshaft and that would probably explain the heat. I have checked for slippage and cant see any, when I was using it yesterday I was cutting quite long grass so it was working fairly hard so think I would have noticed any slippage.
Well I've got more cutting to do today so will check temperatures then, hopefully all will be well.
Many thanks for your help and support Lawnranger it's been great to be able to get help with the problems I had.