Starter issues

Softail

New User
I recently bought a Ford 3600 tractor. I just put a new starter on and had a huge arc when I put the positive cable on the battery. All other wires on the tractor were disconnected at the time. I also have continuity between every post on the solenoid to ground. This seems like a shorted out solenoid but it is brand new. Anyone ever have this problem?
 
To have a starter show continuity with a meter between any of the "hot posts" and ground is normal because you're essentially looking at the
very low resistance pull-in winding inside the solenoid.

If the motor did not spin when you hooked up the battery cable, I doubt the problem is with the starter. More likely you have a wire attached
to the starter battery post that does not belong there. Or, you have a short in your harness somewhere.
 
(reply to post at 10:00:52 06/17/18)
I have the entire wiring harness disconnected. Same result, huge arc when I reconnect the battery. Think I will remove the starter and bench test it. The old starter bench tested fine.
 
take the starter off, lay it on some cardboard on the ground beside the tractor., get jumper cables. hook up one color to
battery hot and the solenoid battery post...hook up the other color to the tractor frame and the starter body.. tractor frame
last. if there is current flowing, it will arc at the frame, and not hut the battery post, or threads on the solenoid.
 

did you hook the positive cable to the top lug on the solenoid?
did you make sure it did not short across to one of the other leads as that will activate the solenoid? Assuming its a diesel with the solenoid on the top of the starter, with the two big lugs, one to the battery and the other connects to the motor, and a spade lug that energizes it.

otherwise sounds as if the solenoid is defective and the copper washer is on the wrong side of the spring. so would be a bad starter... maybe bendix is engaged/stuck and the arm is pushing the piston/washer backwards towards the contact lugs?? If so maybe you can screw it back to the "off" position? the piston going back engage the second set of windings on the hd starters so it would hold it on if stuck. (been a while since I have had a solenoid apart.) The old ones could be rebuilt, the newer ones??
 

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