riding mower problem

[brats.n.harleys]

alright. i didn't wanna have to ask, but im at a loss. I traded my sandblaster on craigslist for an old dynamark riding mower. it nothing to look at, but had a nice looking briggs and straton 12 hp engine in it. the deck was a bit outta wack, blades were super dull, and it needed a new belt. it started and drove pretty good though.

Heres where i have to admit to being and ***. blades were not comming off with it on the ground, so i lifted the whole thing up from the side, and put the side wheels on blocks to get a better angle on it. WELLLL, the battery slid over, and shorted on the body of the mower. i didn't hear or see it happen, but left to get a new belt, and noticed it when i got back. went to start it and, nothing. not even trying to crank. so i put the battery on the charger, still nothing. put the charger on "start" mode, and ... nothing. did this just completely kill the battery being shorted like that? or would it have fried the starter motor?

 

[brats.n.harleys]

here she is in all her glory

 

[george2c]

I am no expert but slide a new batt in to check it. Spray those blades real good with wd40 and let them set, and keep spraying them.

 

[s1120]

The battery could have shorted out, but you might also want to look for a fuse somewere, or maybe a burned through wire somewere. There would have been a lot of amps going through it, so something would have to go.

 

[brats.n.harleys]

the guy that i traded with says that battery has a warranty still, and i can use his phone number to use the waranty. so i'll give that a try. i got the blades off and sharpened the hell out of them. cut my palm open putting em back on.

the only fuse i found was an inline 15 amp. it metered good. in the pic you can see all those wires hanging out, those were for the headlights, which were jumpered out since the hood is all busted up. it seems like a basic setup as far as wiring. was just wondering if there was anyway the starter got fried.

 

[creativecars]

It is a basic 12 volt system. Make sure blades are disengaged and it is out of gear. Use jumper cables or a jumper box. Hook the +(positive) jumper cable to the starter hot wire stud. Then ground the other cable to the chassis or motor mount bolt. The starter should spin.

 

[wuck]

Another thing that can be overlooked is the starter safety lockouts - on my old craftsman the starter will not work unless:

1) The clutch/brake fully depressed.
2) The mower deck is disengaged.

Also, there's a "Deadman" switch in the seat, the engine is killed if you vacate the seat.

Pat

 

[mkbrower]

You may have burned a wire in two. If the battery shorted to the frame and a fuse did not break the circuit, than most likely a burnt wire broke the circuit or you would have come home to a burned up mower. They usually burn in two near a terminal lug but not always. I would check continuity of the hot wire from the battery to the starter and everything in between like ignition and safety switches.

Mark

 

[BEAVO]

It is a basic 12 volt system. Make sure blades are disengaged and it is out of gear. Use jumper cables or a jumper box. Hook the +(positive) jumper cable to the starter hot wire stud. Then ground the other cable to the chassis or motor mount bolt. The starter should spin.

exactly what i was gonna say that would atleast tell you your starters fine it could be a inline fuse too. or the selnoid cld have burnt up. do what creativecars says and starter will turn over if fine if it dont try tapping it while trying to get it to turn over might have bad spot in starter as well

 

[creativecars]

I would pull the little plastic cover off the top of the starter, sometimes the plastic gears will bind up too. If the starter will spin, start working backwards from there checking connections and as Wuck said check for all the safety switches. You will find the solenoid that should have power in from the battery and out to the starter, it should be energized by 12 volts from the ignition switch, as long as all the safety’s are accounted for.

 

[brats.n.harleys]

alright, thanks guys, i'll be trying all of these suggestions this weekend

 

[s1120]

You may have burned a wire in two. If the battery shorted to the frame and a fuse did not break the circuit, than most likely a burnt wire broke the circuit or you would have come home to a burned up mower. They usually burn in two near a terminal lug but not always. I would check continuity of the hot wire from the battery to the starter and everything in between like ignition and safety switches.

Mark

Defently. Those wires would have gotten REAL hot!!! [dont ask how I know!!!] Start by tracing the wires from the battery, and then the smaller ones... check all connections for any hints of them getting hot. If you do get the bew battery...be carfull hooking it up. If something else popped it might still be shorted out, and you might get some sparks when you hook up the new battery.

 

[Timpala]

Check out http://www.mytractorforum.com/
Ain't nothing 'bout mowers those guys don't know.

 

[s1120]

Check out http://www.mytractorforum.com/
Ain't nothing 'bout mowers those guys don't know.

I go by the name Ingersoll444 there.

 

[Greatbear]

If the battery post made contact with the frame, the only problem areas you will have is the grounding cable and its attachments, and the battery itself. My vote is you burned apart the ground cable most likely at one of the ends. Remove the cable from both the battery and the tractor frame and test/inspect it. While it's off, measure the battery voltage, preferably with a load. Connect a taillight bulb to it and see if it lights. If it doesn't, you burned apart one of the cell interconnects and ruined the battery.

 

[slopdog]

try pulling the spark plug out , then see if she rolls over . i lifted mine on its side once just for a min . it started up , but sure smoked for a min