966 starting problems

I have an international 966 tractor that won't start. there is nothing. I put a new keyed ignition switch and starter button. It started and I ran it for 30 min. when I tryed to start it again there was nothing. I looked at the starter button and it looks like it shorted. I checked the key switch with volt meter and it showed 9.75 volts, but nothing at the starter button.

You'll need to do some basic electrical diagnostics.

Start across the battery with your volt meter, make sure there is enough charge in the battery. It helps to put a load on the battery, such as turning on the lights.

Test the actual posts, then move one lead at a time to the cable ends. Continue testing along the cables at each connection, working your way to the ignition switch. It's methodical process of elimination...

When a new switch fails quickly like that, it is usually because the voltage went to ground, as in a pinched wire, wrong connection, something grossly overloaded the circuit. When that happens, there may be more than one failure.

Any chance the starter wire got put directly to the starter terminal instead of through the solenoid?

My 966 has given me these very same problems
over the years. Usually it is either a poor connection
at a battery or on of the batteries has a weak or
dead cell..

Hello Bika welcome to YT. I am surprised Steve didnt ask this. We need to know what the battery voltage is, if it is 9.7v then it will need to be determined why. A full charged battery should be 12.6 - .7 volts. I would assume if you went to the trouble of changing switches I would think you would have tried to jump start it or made sure the battery were charged. If the battery is at 12.6 then you definitely have some kind of poor connection in the wiring. I am not that familiar with the wiring on that model but I see the parts diagram shows a neutral start switch and also likely a clutch safety switch. Those are likely wired in the circuit between the start push button and the starter solenoid. Steves run down is real good, just wanted to make sure the battery voltage is up to snuff before putting a lot of diagnostics into something that is being caused by low battery voltage. Then also if the battery is low did it get that way due to the alternator not charging the system?

check to make you have a good ground ... which is the biggest problem of intermittent starting issues

(quoted from post at 15:03:27 03/03/21) I have an international 966 tractor that won't start. there is nothing. I put a new keyed ignition switch and starter button. It started and I ran it for 30 min. when I tryed to start it again there was nothing. I looked at the starter button and it looks like it shorted. I checked the key switch with volt meter and it showed 9.75 volts, but nothing at the starter button.

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You've gotten some GREAT help already, if making sure the battery is fully-charged and the connections are clean and tight doesn't solve the problem and you are able to use and interpret a wiring diagram you can find a factory diagram at the link below.



https://cdn.compknowhow.com/carterandgruenewald/wiring_diagrams/IH 66 SERIES.pdf

966 ya have the key switch , the starter button and a clutch safety switch (if it is still hooked up and not bypassed ) . Ya need more then 9.7 volts so lets start at the batterys , clean the terminals , make sure your connections are tight . You need good voltage and batterys that will give you close to a 1000 Amps of cold cranking power , a starter that is in good condition and not dragging . You have and orange wire from the starter button that runs down under the platform to the clutch safety switch ( if it is still hooked up ) or they are Mickey Moused together at that point under the left side of the platform , then the wire runs to the starter solenoid to the S terminal . Now over time and many starts sometimes the contact points inside the solenoid get burnt up .Now sometimes ya can get in there and turn the contact points 180 degrees and squeak a little more life out of it. . Up under the cowl you have and 8 pin connector and you may have a problem there . A simple test light will do a quick check as to where you have power and where ya don't and then ya can back track . By removing the right hand side cowl will let you into the area of where ya need to start checking . Like i said the ORANGE wire is your start wire.