Ford 3910 Drains battery and won't start

[Geesehaven]

Hi everyone, Geesehaven here. I'm new to the forum and exasperated with my Ford 3910 diesel right now. It is very cold here and my Ford 3910 turns over momentarily then quickly drains the battery and won't start. Tried to jump it but basically it didn't help. Battery is 9 years old so decided to replace it - same thing all over again. Charged new battery with charger to 100% and tried again - same thing - turns over but drained a brand new fully charged battery almost immediately. Is this as simple as installation of a coolant immersion heater or there a simpler problem here I'm simply not aware of? FYI I cleaned and tightened all of the relevant electrical connections. Any sage advice would be greatly appreciated! Thank you, Geesehaven.

 

[jimmysisson]

If you're sure of ALL cables and connections on the battery I'd yank the starter and take it to an auto-electric shop to load test. Sounds like worn starter bushings or similar, that makes the starter draw too much current. Pretty simple rebuild, if that's what it calls for. First check for clean connectors and uncorroded cables.
Jim

 

[rsallen]

How long does it take to drain the battery?

Is the pump getting fuel? Is the pump pumping fuel? If not check the lead to the shut-off solenoid for 12 volts.
Are the glow plugs recieving 12 volts?

Let us know.

 

[Winmac]

Some may disagree but its been my experience that When its extremely cold, cold engine, cold battery etc. you may only get 2-3 attempts to crank the engine even with everything in good working condition.
That's why it's important to be sure your starting aids are working( glow plugs ,flame heater, battery heater and or coolant heaters) which ever applies.

 

[rdbigfarmboy]

Bad starter
I have seen some gear drive aftermarket staters on ebay for about 200 which for me has been a good deal.

 

[Tx Jim]

How long does it take to drain the battery?

Is the pump getting fuel? Is the pump pumping fuel? If not check the lead to the shut-off solenoid for 12 volts.
Are the glow plugs recieving 12 volts?

Let us know.

No glow plugs on a Ford 3910. It could have Thermo-start which is an fuel intake manifold heater. I agree on needing to check starter operation.

 

[rsallen]

Agreed.
My bad, I didn't read the op very closely.
All things being equal we shouldn't hear stuff like draining battery quickly or new battery dead almost immediately.

Reading farther I'm gathering this a geared reduced starter?

 

[Geesehaven]

Geesehaven back re Ford 3910 that won't start. I've started to take the starter off to have it tested but it appears there is a 3rd bolt on the top backside of the starter that either requires a special wrench and/or contortionist to get to or I've practically got to take the top half of the tractor apart to get to it. Anybody have any experience with the best way to go about this? To complicate matters further the loader is on and I cant remove it since the tractor won't start. This is getting really frustrating! Is removing the fuel filters the answer? Maybe but doesn't really seem like the answer. Thanks everyone for your help so far.

 

[TractorTech]

Geesehaven back re Ford 3910 that won't start. I've started to take the starter off to have it tested but it appears there is a 3rd bolt on the top backside of the starter that either requires a special wrench and/or contortionist to get to or I've practically got to take the top half of the tractor apart to get to it. Anybody have any experience with the best way to go about this? To complicate matters further the loader is on and I cant remove it since the tractor won't start. This is getting really frustrating! Is removing the fuel filters the answer? Maybe but doesn't really seem like the answer. Thanks everyone for your help so far.

Loosening or removing the fuel filters will help. Take a combination of socket extensions, preferably 3/8" drive, but 1/2" will work, until you have it longer than the starter with the socket for the bolt and slide behind the starter to the bolt. Put your ratchet on and try and remove.

 

[Geesehaven]

Shwew - got it! Had to remove the fuel filters for room to work, use a little pb blast on the bolt and by some new extensions and a breaker bar but thank goodness I finally got it (tortuous design that it is). Thanks to everyone for the help and advice. I've been thinking about all of this and I finally realized where the problem may have started (embarrassing as this will be). When the tractor wouldn't start early in the week - most likely due to a weak 9 yr old battery that probably needed replacing - it was after dark and I briefly crossed the jumper cables trying to jump it. Eventually the tractor did start that night but would not start the next day and you know the rest of the story from the preceding posts. The questions now is, if the starter does fine on the bench test (won't get to that until tomorrow) then where else should I be looking for the dead short that is draining the battery so quickly? I've noticed a small black electrical box opposite from where the battery terminals are when the battery is in place that reminds me of the computer box that you would find on the firewall of a car or truck. Could this be part or all of the problem?