My first problem

[bigben 0]

I used my 416-8 all day today. I mover a couple Cord's of wood and cut my grass.

I shut'er down and the lubed all the Zerk's.

When I went to put her away she wouldn't start. no click..nothing.

I then noticed that the positive connection to the battery was all corroded.

I cleaned and sanded the connections and reassembled everything and still nothing so I assumed the battery must have not taken a charge and I had the headlights on for a while, so I pulled out the charger. Usually when I put something on the charger the needle jumps up and as the battery take a charge it drops down. today the needle didn't move..just a little twitch.

I left it on the charger for about and hour. Now the headlights come on and I can hear the started turning, but it's not engaging.

I suspect that either my charger has a problem or the battery won't take/hold enough charge to power up the starter. My biggest concern is that the headlight seemed pretty bright, so there should be enough power to turn the motor.

I checked all the connections and everything is clean and tight.

The battery looks like it could be a few years old, but I hate doing repairs by proses of elimination. Any thoughts?

[Sparky-(Admin) 19,677]

Sounds like a bad starter to me but I would try to jump start it first off another battery. If it starts fine off a jump then its the battery. If it turns over real slow then its the starter.

I hope its just yer battery.

Mike........

[linen beige 14]

If I hook my charger to a truly flat battery the needle only twitches. It takes a moment for the battery to soak up enough juice to start taking a charge. I agree with Mike. Try jumping it or just hooking it up to a hot battery. If it starts, your battery is bad, maybe a dead cell. If it doesn't, then the starter is probably needing a rebuild/replace. I too, hope it's just the battery.

[Teddy da Bear 11]

Check the water levels in your battery if it is not maintainance free.

Then charge the battery overnight.

I agree....sometimes a battery will act like it won't take a charge if

it is really down. Then after a while the needle will move normally.

[bigben 0]

I topped off the water and charged it all day.

When I got home I turned the key and got that buzz sound. The headlights came on for about 5 seconds and then went yellow, that when I knew it was the battery.

I ran down to Walmart and got there best one for $21.99 + $9.00 core charge.

I charged it while I ate dinner and BAM! all better!

Tonight the Wheel Horse will earn it keep.

[bigben 0]

O.K. ...new issue. The seat light keeps flickering and sometimes it tries to kill the motor.

I tried to bend the little metal piece that makes the contact, but it still does it.

I thought about by-passing it, but thought that might be a bad idea. Especially because I have a lot of hills at my place and almost rolled once already.

Has anyone else ever had this problem and if so...how did you fix it?

[CasualObserver 3,406]

Not that I officially condone bypassing safety switches... but I'll just say that bad ideas are sometimes the best ones. :WRS:

[DMESS 24]

I fix em' with a paperclip, but that won't help you properly! :whistle:

[WheelHorse_of_course 99]

Probably just replace the switch!

You might test it first with an ohmeter or a battery and bulb. If the switch is ok you may have a wiring problem.

I have never had a tractor new enough to have one, so I have no idea what they look like. Once you have it out you can go to your dealer, or try radio shack and/or the auto parts store (or buy it off the web, see our links section).

Good luck

[HorseFixer 2,012]

Probably just replace the switch!

You might test it first with an ohmeter or a battery and bulb. If the switch is ok you may have a wiring problem.

I have never had a tractor new enough to have one, so I have no idea what they look like. Once you have it out you can go to your dealer, or try radio shack and/or the auto parts store (or buy it off the web, see our links section).

Good luck

You may want to get some electrical contact cleaner and spray in that switch also. Maybe use a airhose on it to blow out the crud and dust first. I did this on an ignition switch on my 953 and it worked the motor was sputtering and the contact cleaner did the job!

Duke

[bigben 0]

Thanks guys. I'll try the easy stuff first. I'll let ya know how I make out.

[MaineDad 85]

Ben,

Have you looked to see if the negative cable (ground) is making good clean contact. The battery is worthless if the ground is not correct.

[TT-(Moderator) 1,129]

I'll try to keep this short, but I'm not always good at it.

The safety switch for the seat only functions when the PTO is engaged. This is controlled by a second switch mounted inside the hoodstand near the PTO control lever. You will actually find two "micro switches" mounted together in that location - one for the starter motor interlock (so the tractor will not turn over if the PTO is engaged), and the other is for the seat switch circuit. Make sure all of the wires are plugged in tight and that the contacts are clean. You should probably check the harness and make sure it hasn't rubbed through anywhere - especially under the fender and in the hoodstand area.

I'm guessing that it's just a faulty seat switch and recommend bypassing it ONLY TO VERIFY the source of the problem.

I'm not sure what year your 416 is, but the 85/86 models used P/N 106268, 87 used P/N 112418, and the 88 - 91 models used P/N 114240. The 1992 & later models had the switch built in to the seat. (according to the IPL's @ Sohar's)