John Deere Starting Problem

[radios1]

John Deere has been selling special starting kits for garden tractor type machines. Likely would solve your problem as well.

High power needing stuff like a starter solenoid or a fuel cut off solenoid are being feed their power through many safety switches and electrical connections. When the power finally gets to say the starter solenoid there are not enough amps to pull in the solenoid.

The relay kit becomes the equivalent of jumping the starter without loosing all the safety features. The relay coil can operate on a poor electrical supply but then send full battery voltage to the required circuit.

This is a home made one on a Cub Cadet. An automotive headlight relay and 10 minutes of work.

Dave M7040

Yep, that's one way to bypass the problem!..

 

[helpfulbook]

Will these kits for garden tractors fit my 4700?
I just got back from working on the tractor. It is definitely a short in the wiring harness coming out of the ignition. I'm just not sure witch wire it is.
When I move the whole harness it starts, move it again, it doesn't start. I took out the fuse panel like I had to when I replaced the thermistor. Move it around now it starts all the time. I know that didn't fix the problem will come back again.
So if this kit fits my tractor, it sounds like the way to go.
I want to thank every body on this thread for your help.

 

[helpfulbook]

Dave M7040, Thanks for the idea and the pics!

 

[RjCorazza]

I made up a relay kit for my problematic diesel zero turn. Worked out perfect, so I made up another one for my primary zero turn.
Using a ready made kit will be easier, but you can make the same thing yourself for a lot less. I used the below instructions I found on an internet forum... perhaps even TBN.

Getting a photo error... I’ll try to find a link.
Google Image Result for https://www.mytractorforum.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=225122

 

[atsah]

Yes open circuit, every time you move the harness you have a wire touching to make contact and then you hit a bump and you lose that connection. They can be a pain to trace if the harness is hard to get to..

 

[radios1]

Will these kits for garden tractors fit my 4700?
I just got back from working on the tractor. It is definitely a short in the wiring harness coming out of the ignition. I'm just not sure witch wire it is.
When I move the whole harness it starts, move it again, it doesn't start. I took out the fuse panel like I had to when I replaced the thermistor. Move it around now it starts all the time. I know that didn't fix the problem will come back again.
So if this kit fits my tractor, it sounds like the way to go.
I want to thank every body on this thread for your help.

I'd actually unwrap the harness, and fix the wire, since it's not good at all to have a wire disconnecting, or shorting to another wire, NOT ground necessarily. although the one that shorts out could be on the other end of the relay power, and might need a ground, or open for the tractor to start, depending on the relay set up.. also, check that a wire was not pinched when you took out the fuse panel..

 

[helpfulbook]

First I want to thank everyone for the help!
I have the fuse box out now and the tractor ran every time I started it all day while trying to find this problem.
So I had the tractor running and I tried to move the fuse box back into place and the tractor shut off.
So can anybody tell me if that narrows it down as to what fuse or relay that wire may be connected to?
Since it shut the tractor down when I moved the box?
That is something the tractor has not done before. Is shut down while it was running

 

[atsah]

I would imagine you have a wire inside the connector that is loose, making contact, move the fuse box and not making contact, your close.. This is actually easier than trying to find a bad wire inside the harness "somewhere between the switch and the solenoid..

Can you visually inspect the connector that's going into the fuse box? I assume you can find the wire going to the solenoid by the amperage fuse.

Has to be the shutoff solenoid wire if it shutdown while running..

 

[radios1]

First I want to thank everyone for the help!
I have the fuse box out now and the tractor ran every time I started it all day while trying to find this problem.
So I had the tractor running and I tried to move the fuse box back into place and the tractor shut off.
So can anybody tell me if that narrows it down as to what fuse or relay that wire may be connected to?
Since it shut the tractor down when I moved the box?
That is something the tractor has not done before. Is shut down while it was running

one of the spade connectors or even a fuse holder is loose, that's the problem!.. all connections need to be snug, and clean!..

 

[helpfulbook]

atsah, radios1 , You guys are like doctors working on a patient cross country!

I was just out here moving ONLY the fuses and I got the machine to start.
I kept playing with the fuses and fuse wires trying to get it to shut down but it would NOT.
It started raining so I stopped.
Will I damage those wires if I pull them out of the fuse and relay box from behind?
Thank you for the help guys.