Melted small wire from battery NEG to alternator

[BobRip]

All this makes sense that the actual ground was not connecting good so it grounded through the little wire but if the ground was that bad then why does it still start fine now that the little wire is melted and not connected?

Also, the wire definitely is factory. I have seen it on other tractors and even brand new 2012 CK20's at the local fair.

I am not totally satisfied with my last comment, but I would check that big ground. Measure the voltage between the negative battery terminal and the alternator while cranking. Should be less than 0.25 volts, probably much less. If you see a drop then check just the ground battery cable and every other connection. You should be able to isolate it pretty easily. Edit The ground is still working just high resistance.

 

[RickB]

All this makes sense that the actual ground was not connecting good so it grounded through the little wire but if the ground was that bad then why does it still start fine now that the little wire is melted and not connected?

Also, the wire definitely is factory. I have seen it on other tractors and even brand new 2012 CK20's at the local fair.

That small wire was literally " the path of least resistance". Right up until it burnt to a crisp.

 

[BobRip]

That small wire was literally " the path of least resistance". Right up until it burnt to a crisp.

Another guess here. The wire is to reduce voltage drop so full alternator voltage goes to battery. I actually did that on my 1969 Rambler. They had the alternator voltage set too low by design. The alternator had some resistance between it and the engine. I tried cleaning the alternator and related areas. I did not seem to help. That was a very critical system. The battery would gradually run down in about six months if the terminals were not kept super clean. I eventually put a diode in the regulator ground to raise the output voltage. It was then a little too high and the battery would use a little water, but it stayed charged.

 

[Little_Grizzly]

Just to add my 2cents... Do NOT replace it with a solid wire. A vibrating engine / tractor is no place for solid wires. (personally I haven't found a place for solid wires period. Except motor windings but I don't build a lot of those.). (there is one other exception but unless you build ultra clean uv lasers like I do then no need to discuss here lol)

 

[Dmace]

Just to add my 2cents... Do NOT replace it with a solid wire. A vibrating engine / tractor is no place for solid wires.

I should rephrase that, by "solid wire" I meant an un-cut piece of 10 gauge stranded wire and not using a connector in-line. I did not mean a single solid copper line.

Thanks to all for the ideas!

 

[PoorMansCat]

All this makes sense that the actual ground was not connecting good so it grounded through the little wire but if the ground was that bad then why does it still start fine now that the little wire is melted and not connected?

Also, the wire definitely is factory. I have seen it on other tractors and even brand new 2012 CK20's at the local fair.

Ford used to put this on lots of their vehicles out of the factory... Every time somebody lost the main ground, this little wire would "let the smoke out"... Sounds like Kioti may need to run a dedicated bat- cable from the starter to the battery...

 

[northcreek2624]

All this makes sense that the actual ground was not connecting good so it grounded through the little wire but if the ground was that bad then why does it still start fine now that the little wire is melted and not connected?.

Most of us remember having a car that would just click when attempting to start it,the fix was to simply twist a perfectly looking battery post connector and it would start.
This may be your case too.A starter can draw 500 amps and to do this it needs a perfect connection.Some of the nastiest looking connections work fine while a clean appearing connection may not be doing the job...Mike.