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Buzzing/electrical problem


gatorfan33810

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Hi. I am having an electrical problem with my 14hp Kohler Command Regent hydro mower. Mfg. no: is 1693080. When I first attempt to crank the mower, as I turn the key and when the mower cranks I can hear a buzzing sound. If I continue to cut the lawn(about 40 minutes) the buzzing noise has disappeared. However, if by some reason the mower doesn't crank, and I turn loose the key, the buzzing is still there and very loud. The starter motor is vibrating but I can not tell where the buzzing noise is coming from. When I attempt to crank the engine, nothing happens. If I do nothing, the battery drains till its dead. If I disconnect the negative battery cable the buzzing stops, however, when I hook the negative cable back up, the starter engages and trys to start the engine(even with the key out of the switch and no one seating in the seat) If I hurry up and jump in the seat and turn the key on and depress the brake the mower will crank. Everything seems to work correctly when the mower is running. Any help will be appreciated. Thanks, Steve
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It almost sounds like your key switch is shorted out and trying to crank the starter no matter what position it's in. Just a guess on my part, though. Try disconnecting the wire from the switch and jumping from the hot side of the solenoid to the small terminal on it. The solenoid should pick up and crank the engine. !!!!MAKE SURE YOU'RE IN NEUTRAL FIRST!!!! AS YOU WILL BE BYPASSING ALL THE SAFETY FEATURES!!!!
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Steve Welcome to the club Sounds like the solonoid for the starter is sticking. You may have to replace it as it could do more damage and is not safe.
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I also had a simular problem with my 4211...It was the solonoid on mine... Good luck...electrical problems can be tricky sometimes..at least for me..
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I just went through one of those electrical nightmares,down load all the wiring diagrams for your tractor print them out and take them to the tractor and start comparing.Oh,and if you need to replace switch make sure you get the simplicity switch for your tractor, been there done that,now I have a switch and a solenoid that I`ll never use(tried the cheaper genaric one fits all ,WRONG)good luck take your time you`ll figure it out.John:)
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If you don't have one already, you can get a decent meter for about $10 nowadays and it will help a lot. I'm still using a Simpson 260 that's about twenty or thirty years old by now.... It's like these tractors, I don't think it'll ever die!!
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quote:
Originally posted by thedaddycat
If you don't have one already, you can get a decent meter for about $10 nowadays and it will help a lot. I'm still using a Simpson 260 that's about twenty or thirty years old by now.... It's like these tractors, I don't think it'll ever die!!
If you are referring to an volt/ohm meter, don't buy a cheap $10 analog type but invest a little more in a digital type. Analog meters contain capacitors that store high voltages due to their design. And with more of the newer type tractors using some sort of electronic control you can do more harm then good. You may be checking out a circuit with the old type and mistakinly blow out a module or something by accidently frying something. Analog meters had their day but are a unwise purchase today.
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Electrical problems can be a nightmare. Don't rule out anything until you have checked it out. Really study the diagrams. I had a problem once with odd noises and the inability to start my tractor, and found out that the headlight switch had failed and was grounding out on the frame. Boy, did THAT take some time to figure out, since I almost never use my headlights and never even THOUGHT about checking that switch. My philosophy is to replace the things that are the highest probability on an older tractor...in this case the solenoid and maybe the starter switch. Neither is extremely expensive and will probably "go" someday anyway. If that doesn't fix the problem, then you are going to have to really dig. Good luck. Let us know what you find out.
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Thanks Guys, I had already downloaded and printed the electrical group parts diagram and sorta fiquired that it was either the solennoid/circuit breaker/ and or the ignition switch. Something is allowing current to flow even when the ignition is off. Since the ignition starts the process of allowing current to flow and the buzzing but works correctly when there is no buzzing sound I tend to think that something is sticking open allowing current to bypass the ignition. I will more than likely replace the solenoid
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The contacts in the solenoid are sticking on. Current from the ign switch energizes the solenoid makeing a direct connection to the battery if these contacts are stuck it gets its own electrical connection to the battery bypassing the switch
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I agree It definately sounds like the Solenoid to me... I had one do this on a car one time.. and it ran the battery dead before I could get it unhooked..
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Thanks guys for all your insights. I replaced the solenoid and that fixed the problem. The so called local simplicity dealer did not have the simplicity part number but had a sub. The new one had smaller posts so I had to use some washers but it worked. The old solenoid was made by "white Rogers". I live in central florida and simplicity is not very popular down here so I imagine that if anything major happens I will have to order the parts instead of just running to the dealer. Once again, thanks.
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I'm also glad to hear you got it fixed this Club is very helpful when it come to answers to questions to help one another...
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