Engine Stop Switch; Ignition System - Troy-Bilt Horse Owner's Manual

You will see that there is a fuse on the battery
recharging line coming from the engine, as
shown in Photo 7/58. Remove the fuse and look
at it carefully. (Push the two halves of the fuse
holder together and turn the top half counter-
clockwise to separate the two halves.) If the
fuse is okay, then there is a fair chance that it is
either your diode not recharging your battery
(causing your battery to be run down), or that
the fault is with the electric start motor on your
engi ne. If you feel it is the electric start motor on
your engine, it would be best for you to have an
authorized Tecumseh service dealer look at
your engine to solve the problem.
If your electric start motor turns over but does
not start the engine, it may be that you should
be looking toward other engine functions for the
answer to your problem. Check for problems
with the fuel, ignition or carburetor.
ENGINE STOP SWITCH (6 HPTECUMSEH)
If you cannot start your engine for any appar-
ent reason, one thing to do is to check the ac-
tion of the engine shutoff switch (shortout clip)
underneath the speed control assembly bracket
by the carburetor. As shown in Photo 4/14 in
Section 4 (on engines), the shutoff switch is a
berlt tab underneath the bracket to which is
attached a wire leading into the engine's mag-
neto. If the spring clip is bent so that it touches
the bracket at all times, it will be doing the same
thing as stopping the engine; and therefore,
preventing you from starting the engine.
A
~imple
way to check this is to disconnect the
terminal at the clip and put some electrical tape
on the wire's end to make sure it touches no me-
tal at all-see Photo 7/628. And then, try to start
your engine. If your engine starts right up, you
know that the tab was grounding the engine
out and preventing it from starting. All you have
to do is bend the tab out a little way and then
make sure that the remote control lever com-
pletes the connection and stops the engine as it
should. See Photo 7/63.
A short somewhere else in this wire would be
more serious and would have to be taken care
of by a service dealer. This, however, is a
very rare occurrence.
IGNITION SYSTEM
If your engine won't start, the most common
causes are ignition, electrical (for battery start
engines), fuel or carburetion problems. Many of
these causes can be corrected easily and quick-
ly, once they are determined.
If your carburetor is adjusted correctly, and
you have enough compression to run the en-
gine, and your fuel is fresh, clean and without
any water in it, then not being able to start
might well be the fault of your ignition system.
The first thing to investigate in checking igni-
tion problems is your spark plug and its wire.
Make sure that the connection to the wire is se-
cure and there are no breaks or bare spots on the
wire.
Then, remove the spark plug and look at it. If
the plug is dirty, encrusted with deposits and
corroded, you'd best replace it. Look at the gap
to be sure that it is within tolerance. See the
specifications table for your engine (at the end
of Section 9) for the spark plug gap. If there is
wet oil on the plug, look for the source of
the oil problem (which is most likely your real
problem). Is your oil too full, are the rings worn
on the piston, is the crankcase breather clogged?
If you have a good or a new spark plug (re-
moved from the engine), attach the lead wire to
it and lay the plug down on any metal part of
the engine. Then, pull the starter rope with a
firm pull and observe the gap in the spark plug
while you do it. If you see a strong, bright spark,
your ignition system seems to be in working or-
der, so look in other directions for your failure
to start the engine. If you don't get a spark or
get a very weak spark with a good or new plug
touching metal, you can expect a problem with
the ignition system itself or with the engine
shutoff switch and wire.
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