M Wont Start - Ideas/Tips?

[Clarkbug]

Hello All!

I have a general question to pick the brains of all of those who spend more time troubleshooting than I do.

I have a '49 Farmall M that has been converted to 12v, Electronic Ignition, and has a key start with an hour meter.

The problem is that it wont turn over at all, not even crank. I pulled the battery and put it on a charger, and then had it tested at the parts store, and it came back as a good battery. I was worried it was the starter, so I pulled it apart, and it definitely had some issues. So, I just had it rebuilt, its fresh from the shop today.

So I hooked things up, and I cant get anything. No noise, no motion, nothing.

My question to everyone here is where do I start to look for a problem on this thing? I would have thought a dead battery, but it tested good, and Im definitely assuming the starter is good. I can flick on the lights, and those work just fine. (Its a separate toggle switch)

Could it be my solenoid? Or could the electronic ignition module go bad and stop the engine from cranking over?

Any and all input is much appreciated! Thanks in advance!

~Bug

 

[old]

Well since it has a solenoid on it just short acroos the 2 big posts on it, be 100% sure its out of gear when you do that. You should get both sparks and it should also turn the engine over if it is a bad solenoid. If it doesn't turn over or try at least you probably have a bad battery cable if it does turn over well you know its the solenoid that is the problem. Use an old battery cable etc to jump across the posts
Hobby farm

 

[Old Ford Mechanic]

I assume that you did check to see if the engine would turn while you had the starter off? If not put it in high gear and rock it with the rear wheel.Does the engine turn now? Also check battery cables for bad connections and other wiring.

 

[georgeky]

Might have a bad connection somewhere. Check battery cable where it grounds to tractor. Sometimes they are just not grounded good.

 

[jamesinok]

My 400 would do same thing if battery ground was not good and all connections polished. Also sometimes it would not do anything if starter bendix is locked in flywheel. That requires backing starter out and reataching. james

 

[John M]

Do you by cane have two small post on your solenoid? If so, switch the post and see what it does.If not, then do as old suggested and see if it will turn over, if so then you either dont have it wired right, or the solenoid is bad.

 

[El Toro]

You may not be getting battery voltage to your solenoid when you push the starter button or turn the key. You should only have voltage on the S terminal when cranking the engine. Take a volt meter and check for voltage on the wire that is connected to the S terminal when you make an attempt to start the tractor. It should only have voltage when cranking the tractor. If there's no voltage when you try this, check back at your switch for voltage. Solenoids are very cheap I only paid around $5.00 for this one. Hal

 

[armand tatro]

If you have help try pulling it another tractor or truck to see if it will start. Turn kill switch on,push cluthc in, put trans in 3rd. or 4th.(?) and gently let clutch out after you get it rolling. Be prepared to push clutch in if and when it starts. Should not have to pull it faster than 5 to 8 mph and not farther than 1or2 blocks. Armand

 

[Clarkbug]

Thanks for all the ideas so far everyone!

Ill double check my cable connections, and make sure Im actually getting a good ground. After that Ill try and monkey with my solenoid, and see what happens there.

I dont have something else handy to try and pull start it, and Im pretty sure the engine is free (I can turn the fan by hand). The starter wouldnt be locked with me just installing it, right?

Ill keep everyone posted, and thanks for all the ideas! Keep 'em coming!

 

[Howard H.]

Are you sure the engine hasn't stuck??

Can you roll the engine over by hand??

HH

 

[Howard H.]

Sorry! I hadn't seen in your second post that you could turn it by hand...

Will the starter spin over properly when putting a battery to it without it being installed in the tractor??

HH

 

[noncompos]

I hope you meant when said "you can turn the fan by hand" that you turn the fan by hand and it turns the crankshaft pulley....

 

[Clarkbug]

Success!

Well, sort of anyway.

I spent the morning going back through the stuff I knew I had changed, and then took a look at the solenoid. I pulled the cable off of one side, and just touched it directly to the battery, and that spun the starter. In fact, she started right up, and then died out since I had the gas turned off at the sediment bowl.

Checking all my other connections, I figured the solenoid was the best bet. El Toro, thats the exact solenoid that I had on the tractor, and I was able to get another one at the parts store for around 10 bucks. I hooked it all back up, and....nothing. I guess the base of that solenoid has to be grounded, and I just sort of had it hanging in the air.

So, I bolted it back to the frame, and she turns over like a champ.

Except now she wont start still, but this is forward progress.

I think my problem is that the key switch also controls what would have been the kill switch. (It has a Denny's Electronic Ignition on it) Since it started right up this morning once I bypassed the solenoid, and I played with the jumble of wires since then, Im pretty sure that I need to just go back through my connections and see if one is loose or grounding out.

Now its down to either fuel, air, or spark, and Im going to guess its spark since thats the system I have been foolin' with.

Ill post back later to give an update.

Thanks again for all the help thus far, its much appreciated.