Is one starter relay better than another??

I have a Ford 2000 1966 Gas. I'm getting ready to replace my 3rd starter relay in 4 years. I doe not use the tractor a dozen times per year. I know they are not that expensive but this is getting pretty boring. Is there a brand that is better than the others or a type of car relay that would work better?? Took my old one to a autoparts store and got the last one from there.

(quoted from post at 02:10:38 09/19/16) I have a Ford 2000 1966 Gas. I'm getting ready to replace my 3rd starter relay in 4 years. I doe not use the tractor a dozen times per year. I know they are not that expensive but this is getting pretty boring. Is there a brand that is better than the others or a type of car relay that would work better?? Took my old one to a autoparts store and got the last one from there.

Click to expand...

I doe not use the tractor a dozen times per year. " In my 'opinion', that right there is the problem. A weak battery (seldom used) causes excess starter current & over-currents the relay. Not much more to be said. The average guy thinks that a weak battery means lower starter current, but that isn't the way it works. When a starter won't spin up to speed , there is little to no back-EMF and as a result the current goes to the sky, being limited only by resistance.

Thanks for the reply, but the battery is stored at home on a smart charger. I thought it could have been the battery Just to be sure I checked it with a hydrometer and tested it with a 100amp load tester. Battery is 3 years old and all cells were good and the load tester showed over 800cca, way more than my tractor needs.

Adding your comment J, for ct Ford: If you haven't been inside one, you have 2 ⅜" copper studs mashed flat and a copper disc that is attached to
a steel rod that is sucked down into the energizing coil when you put current through the small contacts on the solenoid, causing the high current
circuit to close. The conducting area is made deliberately large to handle the 100-200 give or take amperes that it takes to roll your engine.

Like any inductive circuit, when you let go of the start button, key, what ever, the current in the circuit continues to flow and just like when you are
arc welding steel, you arc the mating surfaces as they separate causing pitting. Over time the area gets so small that it cannot adequately satisfy
the current demand and either it just quits, or it welds shut, remaining in contact and your starter won't stop spinning when you let off the
button/key.

Differences in solenoids are usually in the case material, mounting, and wiring hookup including number of terminals. Course if you are talking
about starting a 500 hp rig obviously you need more current and they will be larger contacts. Back when I started this journey called farming,
when I burned one up, I would drill out the rivets, take it apart, grind off the surfaces till smooth, put it back together and be on my way. Haven't
had one go out in a good long time.