720, Onan starter selenoid

[Les 3]

Looks like the selenoid is bad on the 720. Have voltage to the wire but no go. Can these be rebuilt. How much trouble is it to pull up the engine and replace it? Thanks in advance.

[BradW 0]

I don't know anything about a 720. But, is you solenoid "clicking?" The plunger on the old GM style solenoids would beat the terminals down in time. When that happened those solenoids would "click" but not complete the starter circuit. The terminals could be rotated 180 degrees and used for many more years.

[Sandy_Lake_Imp 2]

We have sometimes tucked an auxillary solenoid along side the battery to get a full 12 volts to the starter solenoid & remidied an intermittent starter after all else failed. This is in lieu of replacing the starter solenoid as they are quite pricey & are crimped together with no good way to repair. 'Bout a 1 1/2 hr job to tip the engine to access the starter if you are not too familiar with the process. Bill

[KraigTM 0]

Les, my AC620 had very similar symptom. I had voltage to the solenoid but it wouldn't work, all the" interlocks" like the neutral position sensor and PTO switches were OK. Floyd Stocker had told me that it might just be sticking, after I pulled the engine I found that it was just as Floyd had said. It was sticking due to an accumulation of oil and dust. After I cleaned it, it worked great. At each oil change I now spray a bit of WD40 down on the starter to keep it loose, (another hint from Floyd). The engine is pretty easy to pull especially if you have the service manual to follow. Kraig

[Les 3]

I tried spraying down the solenoid/starter area with WD40. Now I get a slight "ping" when I turn the switch. Also the ammeter goes negative about half an inch. Does this solenoid give a "click" when engaged? Is the ping noise an indication that I have low voltage?

[Les 3]

Les, like I said I don't know anything about a 720. So take my comments for what they're worth, probably little to nothing. To me a "ping" noise with the ammeter swing to negative would seem to indicate a circuit breaker tripping due to a short circuit or overload. Unless others can give you better direction, it's time to get out the multi-meter and test light. Start with a battery you know to be good. [A href='http://www.simpletractors.com/clubhouse/ShowMessage.asp?MsgID=2441&mode=short&startwith=0']http://www.simpletractors.com/clubhouse/ShowMessage.asp?MsgID=2441&mode=short&startwith=0[/a]