LS Tractor Won't Start After Hooking Up Bush Hog

[TractorGunn]

Not sure what to do here, hooked up the LS brush hog and when I turn the key it does nothing.

Brake is on. PTO switch is off. Ran fine when I boxed the road, went to bush hog and this is where I am stuck.

Anybody know what went wrong, or what it could be?

 

[monkeyduster]

Sounds like it could be a safety switch problem. Maybe check seat switch, neutral or if hydro the switch activated by the pedal. Also check battery connections as sometimes a loose ground can be a problem on some models.

 

[Torvy]

I had a similar problem once. The selector switch was off, but I had bumped the on-off toggle. I assumed the switch off was sufficient, I was wrong.

 

[5030]

Do the easy stuff first and first check the battery and if good, clean the terminals and the clamps as well as the ground lug for corrosion.

 

[TractorGunn]

I did notice that prior to this the battery indicator showed it was in the 14 volt range. I don't recall if this was when it was running, or when it was simply reading that when the key was in the on position before I started it.

Now when the key is in the on position it is reading around 12.4 volts. But again, not sure if it was reading in the 14 volt range only because it was running and the alternator was engaged.

 

[WinterDeere]

12.4 volts is normal when not running, and 14 volts would be normal when running/charging. If voltage drops near zero when trying to start, it would indicate a bad connection, such as corroded battery terminals, bad connection of ground wire to chassis, or loose positive connection at solenoid.

But my money is on some safety switch or selector lever just getting knocked out of position, but not obvious. Move every damn lever on the machine, and hop up and down on the seat a few times. You could always get a schematic and try to identify every interlock switch in the starter path, but those wiring diagrams published for most tractors can be awful hard to read and trace with any real confidence you're not missing anything.

 

[newbury]

when I turn the key it does nothing.

To clarify:
Can you hear a click from something engaging?
Does it engage the starter at all?
Does seem like a "safety" problem.
On my B7610 I had a bad habit of bumping the forward/neutral/reverse lever just enough to set off a switch.

 

[TractorGunn]

12.4 volts is normal when not running, and 14 volts would be normal when running/charging. If voltage drops near zero when trying to start, it would indicate a bad connection, such as corroded battery terminals, bad connection of ground wire to chassis, or loose positive connection at solenoid.

But my money is on some safety switch or selector lever just getting knocked out of position, but not obvious. Move every damn lever on the machine, and hop up and down on the seat a few times. You could always get a schematic and try to identify every interlock switch in the starter path, but those wiring diagrams published for most tractors can be awful hard to read and trace with any real confidence you're not missing anything.

I noticed the joy stick was jammed but I got it moving freely. Did the seat thing, moved every lever mutliple times, with no success.

I did a search and AI said the pto and shaft could be in a bind, but I don't think that's the case.

Ran great until I hooked that up. 1 year old tractor.

 

[TractorGunn]

To clarify:
Can you hear a click from something engaging?
Does it engage the starter at all?
Does seem like a "safety" problem.
On my B7610 I had a bad habit of bumping the forward/neutral/reverse lever just enough to set off a switch.

Yes, I hear a click, but the starter doesn't engage.

BTW, this is an HST.

 

[TractorGunn]

I had a similar problem once. The selector switch was off, but I had bumped the on-off toggle. I assumed the switch off was sufficient, I was wrong.

Not sure what you mean by selector switch. Are you talking about the L H M N switch?