8N Starter Problem

Hello. I need some help figuring out a starting problem. 1952 8N, 12volt. Tractor runs fine once it starts. I was out cutting wood and when I tried to restart, the starter would not spin. I thought at first it was a battery issue. Cleaned the terminals and put a jumper on it but starter would not engage. Next on the hit parade was the solenoid. Replaced it with one from Tractor Supply, no difference; starter would not engage. Suspected it was the starter, removed it, took it to an auto store and they said it was bad (not completely sure about that as it turns out, but that is another issue). Put on a new starter and same problem. Changed the ignition switch, no difference. Here are the symptoms. When I turn on the key, the volt meter shows almost 13 volts. When I press the starter button, there is a click, and the volts drop to zero and stay that way. If I turn the key off and let is sit for a minute or so, the volts come back up to about 13. It seems to me it might be a grounding problem, but I would like to hear from someone who maybe had this problem before and can point me in the right direction. Could this be the negative ground strap from the battery? Do the starter buttons go bad and could this be simply a bad starter button? I would like to identify the problem and avoid any more 'parts replacement' method of fixing it. Thanks for your help. Dave

You are on the right track. I would suspect the connection of the ground cable to the frame, expecially if it is connected to the thin metal up around the tool box. I have my 8N grounded to a bolt on the steering gear down closer to the battery.

You problem could be bad cable to frame connection, rusted out metal where cable is connected, or invisible corrosion in the cable.

Also make sure your battery is well charged.

You might try taking a jumper cable and jumper the battery ground post to the frame near the starter and see if that makes a difference.

First confirm battery health.

google

car starter voltage drop test

Don't worry if it confuses you it stumps 99% of the folks BUT it will find were the voltage is dropping with a 100% kill rate...

Is the starter grounded? Check around starter mounting for paint or corosion Is a long shot but happens. joe

Purchased a Ford truck Years ago from a guy. It would not turn over either. He had replaced the starter, battery, solenoid, alternator, voltage regulator, basically every thing. It could be jump started though. Turned out to be a bad end on a cable.
Have some one engage the starter, then, with a meter set on DC volts, Start doing checks. If battery reads volts checking ON THE POSTS, move to the clamps. Then start checking end to end each cable. then across the solenoid etc.

You have changed a lot of parts without troubleshooting, would be a lot cheaper to troubleshoot first! You could use a pair of jumper cables and jump directly from a known good battery directly to the starter and then work your way back to the battery, one component at a time.

I suspect the starter is locked. Rock it in high gear to relieve the binding of the drive gear and ring gear or loosen the mount bolts and wiggle it. New bushings and drive gear are usually the answer to keep this from happening. I have three of my tractors this happened too, but just once in many years.

To diagnose without guessing...

You need a simple test light or volt meter.

Start with the light/meter across the battery posts. Not the cable ends, the actual posts.

While the light/meter is on the battery, try the starter. If the light goes out, or the meter drops to a very low reading, the battery is discharged or open internally.

If the light remains bright, or the meter high, the problem is not the battery.

Next, move one test lead only, move one from the post to the cable end, try the starter again.

Keep doing this, one move at a time until the light goes dim or the meter drops low. When that happens, you have found the bad connection.

What you are doing is "load testing" the system. Trying to test without a load will give false good readings under the symptoms you are describing.

Just be careful, be sure it is in neutral, stay clear of moving parts, as it could start cranking during the test!

Thanks, everyone for the advice. I have a bathroom remodel to finish and will get back to fixing the 8N in a week. I'll post what I found.