bc.gold 3,399 #26 Posted August 3, 2019 (edited) Hot lead connects closest to small terminal, and forget about the I terminal as it is not used or supplied on all solenoids. Your solenoid was intended for use on an engine that came out with HEI system and did not require the I terminal. Swap the battery leads on your solenoid to correct internal wiring on your solenoid. Edited August 3, 2019 by bcgold Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Jrblanke 840 #27 Posted August 15, 2019 Alrighty, so here is the update. I was baffled that the same style solenoid had to be wired up backwards from the one I took off, but you guys were right. It was indeed wired backwards! Come to find out, when I bought a ford starter solenoid, I bought one for an early 1950s ford, so it was a 6v solenoid. So when I hit the key, it just sounded like a machine gun going off. I replaced it with a 12v solenoid (had to put the wires back the way were originally), and it ended up working fine. So it cranks over. I adjusted the points with a match book and was able to get spark. I put the gas tank back on and it cranked right up. Thanks for all the help guys! 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
posifour11 723 #28 Posted August 15, 2019 Sometimes, it just takes stepping back and looking at it from a new perspective. Glad you got it figured out! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
bc.gold 3,399 #29 Posted August 15, 2019 (edited) 4 hours ago, Jrblanke said: Alrighty, so here is the update. I was baffled that the same style solenoid had to be wired up backwards from the one I took off, but you guys were right. It was indeed wired backwards! Come to find out, when I bought a ford starter solenoid, I bought one for an early 1950s ford, so it was a 6v solenoid. So when I hit the key, it just sounded like a machine gun going off. I replaced it with a 12v solenoid (had to put the wires back the way were originally), and it ended up working fine. So it cranks over. I adjusted the points with a match book and was able to get spark. I put the gas tank back on and it cranked right up. Thanks for all the help guys! Kinda what I had figured, I even opened up a few old solenoids to check out the internals. Started a thread, the Mystery. https://www.wheelhorseforum.com/topic/82491-solenoid-internal-mystery/?tab=comments#comment-811854 On that 6 volt solenoid you could have used the heavy battery connection then added a resistor to the start terminal to lower the voltage. Edited August 15, 2019 by bcgold Share this post Link to post Share on other sites