8N Starting problems

I rebuilt the carb very carefully, but made no improvement. I also put in 4 new plugs. I do have the Genesse electronic ignition system, which has worked well, but I'm wondering if the battery is low and not providing enough voltage for the ignition to work properly.

Any assistance is appreciated.

Pull your connectors off the ignition switch and connect the wires, and see if it makes a difference. I find original Ford 8N ignition switches don't last long. And although my tractor is all original this will be the last $25.00 original ignition switch I buy.

Make sure your carb's in good working conition.

The way to diagnose this problem is to see if there is current going through the ign. wires when it was turning over (there is a small tester you can buy to observe this).

Also make sure you have a good 6V battery.

I hope this helps.

A good diagnostic/work-around would be to jump-start the tractor with 12 volts. Use a GOOD pair of jumper cables, not cheap 10 AWG Made-in-China junk from Walmart. Make SURE the tractor is in neutral, turn the key on, set the choke and throttle. Connect the jumper cables to the assist vehicle. Connect one of the cables to a good ground on the tractor. Touch (firmly) the other cable to the post on top of the starter. The polarity does not matter.

This will more than likely start the tractor -- the fast spinning of 12 volts will usually provide enough inertial energy to the engine so that it is forced to fire a couple of times before the Bendix kicks out, and it will usually stay running on its own. If it still won't start well, a new 6V battery is unlikely to help.

It may be that your 6V battery is tired enough that its output voltage drops very low under the load of the starter as the engine slooowly turns over. The low voltage may not be enough for the Genesse system to provide a good spark. If the 12 volt jump starts the tractor well, a new 6V battery might be a next step.