case 210 tractor won't start with new belt on it

[hydriv]

With a new plug, plug wire, coil and condenser, the only item you did not address would be the points.

You will find the points under the cover that is screwed to the side of the engine block. Follow the wire that is attached to the negative post of the coil and while you are at it... make sure that wire is in good condition, especially where it enters the point box. If the insulation on that wire is bad, then that wire may be shorting to ground and that will prevent spark from occurring.

The contacts of the points must be clean and filed flat so that the surfaces are dead parallel to one another. Remove the spark plug from the head and watch the points to see if they open and close when you crank the engine over. The point gap is 20 thousands of an inch. If you do not own proper feeler gauges, then go buy a set. They are not that expensive.

As for the mower drive belt, I cannot think of any possible connection between it and the "No Spark" situation you have. If you can twist the ignition key to START and the engine spins over, then there are no issues with the starter motor, starter solenoid or safety switches.

One more thing..... check to make sure you have 12 volts at the positive terminal of the coil when the ignition switch is turned to START. Ignition switches do wear out so checking this aspect of your switch will tell you whether it is OK or needs replacing. Use ONLY a switch from an authorized dealer.

 

[theheed08]

I replaced the points and gapped them to .020". It fired right up. Ran a little rough but ok for about 10 seconds then died. Wouldn't start back. Checked spark and no more spark. Checked points gap again. It was still ok. Got angry and went inside for about 30 minutes. Tried to start it again and it did start and run for about 10 more seconds then spark went away again.

 

[hydriv]

When you purchased the new coil, did you make sure that you got one designed to work on Kohler engines or did you just get one for an automobile? There is a big difference between the two types. The Kohler coil is designed to work on 12 volts directly but the automobile coil requires a ballast resistor because it is actually an 8 volt coil that will quickly overheat and fail to provide proper spark.

Another suspect here is the condenser even though it is brand new. Do you have it wired to the points? Or is it wired to the positive post of the coil? Just asking.... It must be wired to either the points directly or to the negative post of the coil.

Are you absolutely sure about "no spark"? Could it be that you have a fuel problem here? Try running a jumper wire directly from the positive post of the battery to the positive terminal of the coil just to rule out any freaky issues with the ignition switch or tractor wiring harness.