Workhorse 800, with tecky hh80, no spark

[chevyaddict83 39]

Met, and made a trade with jimmyjam. Complete gentleman, and pleasure to meet. Now, we made a little trade... and my little trade has no spark. Tecumseh hh80. Anywhere to start with?

Sent from my 416-8

[Sparky-(Admin) 22,915]

Does this motor have the Tecumseh Solid State ignition? I hear that part is NLA and used ones are big $$.

Hope thats not it.

Sorry I'm no help.

Mike...............

[JimmyJam 542]

What exactly is "Solid State Ignition"? I do believe the label on that Tecumseh engine sez "Solid State Ignition". I do know the Previous Owner to me replaced the ignition and he said the engine fired up if you "jiggled" it. I could never get it to work. I had cleaned all the contacts. What are some alternatives?

[JimmyJam 542]

Chevyaddict: Could you read me the numbers posted on the engine.... after model number "HH80". I will continue to search for parts.

[chevyaddict83 39]

Jimmy, I found the. They aint cheap! I put in an ignition switch, it turns over but no spark.

Sent from my 416-8

[JimmyJam 542]

Just putting it out there! Is "Solid State Ignition" referring to the ignition switch? Could there be something in addition that is missing or not working?

Faulty spark plug or spark plug wire. Possible faulty ground. ???? Anyone out there that maybe familiar?

[TT-(Moderator) 1,162]

"Solid State Ignition" means breakerless / electronic / no points. It is often powered by windings in the stator and does not require a battery to produce spark.

The engine manual is in the manuals section here on the forum.

Unless the kill wire is shorted to ground, it's probably a bad SSI unit and (as previously stated) they aren't cheap.

I put in an ignition switch

I hope it is the correct switch for magneto ignition. If the coil was OK and you applied power through the kill lead, it's probably toast now.

[JimmyJam 542]

Thanks Terry for clarification. When everyone says "they are not cheap": What is the approximate price for those that have looked into it? Just curious!

[TT-(Moderator) 1,162]

The last new one I saw sold for more than it would cost to buy another nice tractor.

Used ones show up on eBay occasionally. All that are currently listed are roughly $190 to $210.

[chevyaddict83 39]

190 $$$ is the cheapest I have found. The ignition switch is wired up properly. I have to further disassemble to look into it.

Sent from my 416-8

[JimmyJam 542]

Okay. So perhaps it's a coil or kill lead if everything in the ignition checks out fine?

[chevyaddict83 39]

The switch checks out ok. The solid state ignition om gonna try and take apart. Maybe.....

Sent from my 416-8

[Save Old Iron 1,571]

This is an overview of the SSI system

Just as TT mentioned, there is a single coil on the stator which is designated to provide low amperage but high voltage to the SSI module.

On the diagram above, the "charge coil" is pointed out at approximately 12 o'clock on the flywheel picture. The charge coil will output over 300 volts of AC voltage when the engine is cranking or running,

The 300 + volts AC will leave the stator and arrive at the SSI module and charge up the condenser sealed within the SSI module.

When trigger pins on the outer surface of the flywheel pass the "flywheel pickup coil" on the SSI module, the pickup coil sends a signal over to the "capacitive discharge electronics" which then fire the ignition coil portion of the SSI module. The style of ignition coil in the picture above is only for reference purposes. There is an ignition coil sealed in the SSI module metal case but it does not resemble an typical automotive coil. The internal ignition coil most closely resembles a garden tractor magneto coil.

Below is the start of an SSI module autopsy. The rear of the SSI modules are encased in epoxy. Removing the epoxy to inspect the module will usually result in physical destruction of the SSI module.

The ignition coil is on the left (spark plug wire attached), condenser on the right (tubular silver metal) and the pickup coil at the bottom (black and silver cylinder with red wire attached). The "capacitive discharge electronics" are located and seen slightly below the loose grounding strap at the 3 o'clock position in the module.

I will put together a few tips to check out the system and post later tonight. For now, check for obvious issues such as split spark plug boots arching to engine block ground

or broken wiring to the spark plug clip under the boot

or improper setting of the gap between the long flywheel pin and the SSI pickup coil. I believe the gap should be between .006 and .010 inches from LONG TRIGGER PIN to SSI module pickup.

Throughout all of your investigation, bear in mind...

IF AT ANY TIME YOU CONNECT THE CHARGE COIL WIRING TO 12 VOLTS, YOU WILL DESTROY THE CHARGE COIL.

[chazm 413]

Good info ,Chuck, will keep it in the data bank if the ol raider goes goofy :handgestures-fingerscrossed:

[Save Old Iron 1,571]

There are several folks on here who have accomplished an update from the SSI system to a standard auto ignition system. Hopefully they will chime in. I have started to wind my own pickup coils and tailor them to a modern day ignition system,

but time is a factor and my Raider is still working on the old SSI system.

There are a few web sites for anyone wishing to educate themselves further on the topic.

http://home.earthlink.net/~edstoller/

http://overnight-solutions.com/

http://gardentractor...rwiringdiagrams

[chevyaddict83 39]

Thanks so much for your help! The plug wire seems to be ok... so im scared.. im going to email the guy that makes the retro fit and see what happens.

Sent from my 416-8

[JimmyJam 542]

Thanks Old Iron! Again for your assistance!

Cheyaddict: does this help you in your situation?

[Save Old Iron 1,571]

Here are a few additional checks that can be made to help isolate the problem. If you contact the suppliers of the aftermarket upgrade kits, there are some kits where the charge coil is used and the supplier will want to know it the charge coil is functional.

To check the SSI module for continuity in the secondary of the ignition coil, check the following

the charge coil can be checked with a similar resistance measurement

All these resistance readings are approximate and may vary by 10 - 20%.

Unfortunately, the SSI system doesn't make its components accessible for any additional checks. Stators can usually be purchased for $15 - $50. The SSI module is the pricey component. Make sure you take the opportunity to check the charge coil per service manual. I believe there is a statement in the manual to touch the output of the charge coil as the engine is cranking, You should "feel a tingle" in your finger if the coil is good. I never tried it that way.

[chevyaddict83 39]

Thanks SOI!! I am gonna try and jump on these today, and see what happens.

Sent from my 416-8