No power at dash/ignition

California · Mar 18, 2022

Jdcolby said:
I believe this is the voltage meter? Not positive, however, the location matched your discription. Looks original to me. I bought the tractor and it had been gone through and fixed up.

Voltage regulator. Notorious as a trouble point after 40 years. The modern replacement is electronic and potted in plastic (tar?), so waterproof. I think (?) that's the same regulator used on YM240 and 70's Datsun.

rScotty · Mar 19, 2022

Jdcolby said:
this is the rebuilt starter. There is a guy in a town nearby that is amazing at rebuilding auto/tractor electronics.

Is that starter wired correctly? It looks to me as though the hot from the battery is connected to the solenoid terminal that goes to the starter. If so, it would start cranking - but in the correct direction - the moment the battery is connected.
If that fat wire that is connected to the nearest solenoid post is the hot from the battery then the solenoid is being bypassed. What is connected to the other solenoid post?
rScotty

rScotty · Mar 19, 2022

Jdcolby said:
Again, new to all of this. I assumed this motor has an alternator. Maybe it’s a generator?

That's a universal fanbelt driven alternator. In fact it looks like the general type of Datsun alternator that has been already been mentioned. If so, you can just use an automotive alternator and the MATCHING voltage regulator as several have done.

But lets get the starter fixed first.

bmaverick · Mar 19, 2022

Jdcolby said:
I believe this is the voltage meter? Not positive, however, the location matched your discription. Looks original to me. I bought the tractor and it had been gone through and fixed up.

ugh. That is the old school VR for sure. Hoye, Fredricks, ASAP, and the Kumar Bros all sell the solid state replacements.

Even though my machine was a UTDA restore, the VR looked great back then. BUT, a few rodents made a nest for the winter one year and another year a miniature bird made a nest there too. Well, those wires on the VR got a few bites and pecks from the hungry critters. So, I replaced it this year with the solid state.

Jdcolby · Mar 19, 2022

rScotty said:
Is that starter wired correctly? It looks to me as though the hot from the battery is connected to the solenoid terminal that goes to the starter. If so, it would start cranking - but in the correct direction - the moment the battery is connected.
If that fat wire that is connected to the nearest solenoid post is the hot from the battery then the solenoid is being bypassed. What is connected to the other solenoid post?
rScotty

View attachment 738007

Yeah, that was hooked up wrong. I left the wires in the position I took them off, when the starter fried.
However that was almost 4 months ago. And just trusted they hadn’t moved. That’s when it got exciting when I hooked the battery up. The wires are switched now.
As for the wire on the other post, I’m not positive. Tracing that today.
Through this process I’m learning to take pictures before I remove anything, so I can put it back correctly.

rScotty · Mar 19, 2022

Jdcolby said:
Yeah, that was hooked up wrong. I left the wires in the position I took them off, when the starter fried.
However that was almost 4 months ago. And just trusted they hadn’t moved. That’s when it got exciting when I hooked the battery up. The wires are switched now.
As for the wire on the other post, I’m not positive. Tracing that today.
Through this process I’m learning to take pictures before I remove anything, so I can put it back correctly.

Excellent pictures and enable us to make wiring comments from the photos alone.

YES, that's a pretty common wiring mistake. I'll bet it was real exciting when you hooked the battery up. My guess looking at the wiring is that it started cranking immediately and didn't even need a key!

Both the large black battery wire and your two white or yellow with a red stripe wires are hooked to the other large terminal. Of the two white with a red stripe...generally one will go to the voltage regulator and then on to the fuse box. The other may go to the fuse box on its way to the ignition switch. The only thing hooked to the nearer large terminal is the two inch heavy wire that goes into the starter itself.

If you had it hooked up like that you did no damage as long as you got the battery unhooked before the starter got too hot. It would be turning the correct direction, but the motor would almost start but may not be able to do so since the pinion gear of the starter could not disengage from the flywheel.

The other wire to the solenoid - the black with the white or yellow stripe - should be the one that is powered by the ignition switch to cause the starter to turn.
rScotty

Williy · Mar 20, 2022

the ignition electronics are usually covered in epoxy
you have no way of finding out what parts being used

willy

Jdcolby · Apr 1, 2022

rScotty said:
Excellent pictures and enable us to make wiring comments from the photos alone.

YES, that's a pretty common wiring mistake. I'll bet it was real exciting when you hooked the battery up. My guess looking at the wiring is that it started cranking immediately and didn't even need a key!

Both the large black battery wire and your two white or yellow with a red stripe wires are hooked to the other large terminal. Of the two white with a red stripe...generally one will go to the voltage regulator and then on to the fuse box. The other may go to the fuse box on its way to the ignition switch. The only thing hooked to the nearer large terminal is the two inch heavy wire that goes into the starter itself.

If you had it hooked up like that you did no damage as long as you got the battery unhooked before the starter got too hot. It would be turning the correct direction, but the motor would almost start but may not be able to do so since the pinion gear of the starter could not disengage from the flywheel.

The other wire to the solenoid - the black with the white or yellow stripe - should be the one that is powered by the ignition switch to cause the starter to turn.
rScotty

Getting both wires correctly hooked to the correct post was the trick. Thank you for taking the time to respond to this thread. Very much appreciated.
Side note, it still wouldn’t start after I got it hooked up correctly, but I had power everywhere I should.
I cleaned the fuel filter and in the process I had let air into the fuel system. Once I bled the air out the tractor fired right up.
Thank you again.

rScotty · Apr 1, 2022

Jdcolby said:
Getting both wires correctly hooked to the correct post was the trick. Thank you for taking the time to respond to this thread. Very much appreciated.
Side note, it still wouldn’t start after I got it hooked up correctly, but I had power everywhere I should.
I cleaned the fuel filter and in the process I had let air into the fuel system. Once I bled the air out the tractor fired right up.
Thank you again.

I'm glad to hear it started right up. You are very welcome to the help & thanks for the update.
rScotty