Connect battery wrong

Larry Hardesty · Jan 29, 2015

I had a brain cramp yesterday and connected the battery wrong on my Farmall A. I have had the tractor probably 15 years and probably connected and disconnected the battery lots of times over those years. Just was not thinking....and forgot it was not one of my my positive ground six volt tractors.

It has been converted by a previous owner to 12 volt with an alternator. I managed to burn both wires connnected to ammeter (one of which goes to alternator. Now, the tractor will not start or even turnover. The battery seems fine and has full charge, per the charger anyway. What did I do $$$$$ and how can I fix $$$$ it?

DeltaRed · Jan 29, 2015

First replace all the burnt wires.Then have the Alternator/regulator tested If it wont charge.

Larry Hardesty · Jan 29, 2015

Yes, I have replaced the burnt wires. I will take the alternator off and have it tested. Even if the alternator is bad, should not the tractor turn over though?

john *.?-!.* cub owner · Jan 29, 2015

Use a test light or voltmeter to see if you have voltage at the terminal on the starter when trying to start it. If not, keep working back toward the battery till you find the problem. May just need to remove the battery terminals and clean the connections, or maybe the ground end.

Larry Hardesty · Jan 29, 2015

Thanks much.

old · Jan 29, 2015

Alternator is in fact bad and was the moment you hooked up the battery. As for spinning over check your battery cables and make sure one or both are not burned out or has a poor connection. Plus depending on how it is wired it could be a simple wire going to a solenoid. Since we can not see it hard to know for sure. Yes I know most A use a push button starter type switch

tim-m · Jan 29, 2015

One thing I do , is paint the positive end of the battery cable RED , just to be sure and the top of the + battery post RED.

pete 23 · Jan 29, 2015

You need to test for power at several points including both sides of your ammeter which probably got fried.

gene bender · Jan 29, 2015

The A has the push sw mounted on top of the starter no push buttons only if someone rigged something wild and even changed starters that had a threaded stud instead of the button.

old · Jan 29, 2015

Gene if you had read all that I said I said something about a push button switch. Guess you did not read all I said. That said I have a Allis C that should have a push button switch like the Farmall uses but some one did away with it so that is why I said what I said one never know what who did

old · Jan 29, 2015

With my son even that would not help any. He always has to ask me which way to hook up a battery charger. Even if the battery cable has the red and black ends

mkirsch · Jan 29, 2015

The ammeter has nothing to do with the starter. All the power for the starter goes through the thick cables.

If it won't even crank, you've got a bad connection on the thick cables somewhere.

Larry Hardesty · Jan 29, 2015

I put in another battery and it fired up. So, either the battery was bad (it did fire up once with it, but not again which is why I was taking the cables off...to clean the connections) or I made it bad when I switched the connections. Now the alternator may be bad but I have not checked it yet.

In the case of this tractor, it as been altered (not by me) so it was a push button start...and not the usual pull rod to activate a start button on the starter.

old · Jan 29, 2015

Alternator went the moment you hooked it up back wards. Only take a split second to fry an alternator. By the way very likely that it being bad will drain a battery in short order so unhook the big lead off the alternator or your likely to have a dead battery in an hour or less

biggerred · Jan 30, 2015

Did you know that if you do that on a car the radio listens, the horn sucks and the lights cast shadows?

FBH44 · Jan 30, 2015

Don't laugh saying ".. the radio listsns.."
Wife woke up our oldest son, a couple mornings ago, asked him if he wanted donuts, she was going to Walmart, she'd drive right past, did he want any?? He said wait aminute, he was not awake yet... he woke up more and said "Huh?? What??"
she repeated the question, and then the boy's smart-phone said "If you'll wait a minute, I'm trying to look up the address..."
THE PHONE WAS SITTING THERE ON THE NIGHT-STAND, LISTENING TO THE HUMANS!!!

Larry Hardesty · Jan 31, 2015

The alternator is still charging...so maybe I got lucky...for at least awhile.

old · Jan 31, 2015

Ya you got lucky. Last one I did that to the alternator smoked and I do mean smoked

Larry Hardesty · Feb 5, 2015

(quoted from post at 14:32:39 01/29/15) Alternator went the moment you hooked it up back wards. Only take a split second to fry an alternator. By the way very likely that it being bad will drain a battery in short order so unhook the big lead off the alternator or your likely to have a dead battery in an hour or less

Yep, you are right. It got the rectifier. An expensive ($89) mistake on my part.

old · Feb 5, 2015

Yep and I almost bet if you had watched you would have seen a bit of smoke come out of the alternator. I did that one time and only one time and it let out a fair bit of smoke before I got it unhooked again

Larry Hardesty · Feb 5, 2015

The smoke from the alternator might have been masked by all the smoke from the burning of the insulation on the wires! I could not get the battery disconnected fast enough. And I was on the opposite of the alternator so could not see it well enough.

I would like to think the "once" is enough for me!

old · Feb 5, 2015

Ya I do my best to make sure I look before I hook things up. And in stuff now days like the newer cars and truck if you hook them up back wards it could cost you well over $2000 to fix

Connect battery wrong

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