KT17 starter-coil problems

Roy Najecki · #1 07-27-2015, 08:21 AM

About a month ago I loaned a family friend a few miles away my 682 with a KT17 Series I. He uses this every week to mow his lawn. A few days ago he calls and says it wouldn't start and he found the positive battery cable jacket had melted. That cable was replaced, terminals cleaned, battery charged, and still wouldn't start. So I drive over. The starter solenoid clicks and the engine barely starts to turn over or not at all. The battery is fully charged, and with a jumper battery connected.

Under the hood I notice the coil has apparently melted a bit with a strand of hardened black goo nearly reaching the engine block. Last year there were often times the starter wouldn't engage the engine so over the winter I replaced the original starter with one of those $60 starters on eBay. I presume for that price they are Chinese made. If the coil melting occurred last summer I can't recall.

With the engine cover off I checked the starter and find the starter cable post is loose yet the cable is tight to the post. So we disconnect the cable, tighten the nut underneath so now the post is tight to the starter, and reconnect the cable. We tried starting the engine and it does turn over, but very very slowly.

I don't know if this loose starter post has caused internal damage. Though I do assume it somehow caused increased electrical resistance and melting of the battery to solenoid cable jacket.

I've got a kit to rebuild my original starter which I presume will cause the engine to quickly turn over, even if the coil is bad and won't start the engine. I haven't yet done an electrical test of the coil. So is there anything else I should be looking at or doing?

R Bedell · #2 07-27-2015, 08:54 AM

Quote:

the positive battery cable jacket had melted. That cable was replaced, terminals cleaned, battery charged, and still wouldn't start.

You make no mention of the Negative Cable or it's condition or connections.

Quote:

Under the hood I notice the coil has apparently melted a bit with a strand of hardened black goo nearly reaching the engine block.

Are you referring to the Ignition Coil....??

Quote:

I checked the starter and find the starter cable post is loose yet the cable is tight to the post. So we disconnect the cable, tighten the nut underneath so now the post is tight to the starter, and reconnect the cable. We tried starting the engine and it does turn over, but very very slowly.

Not a good thing. It is good that you caught it but the damage to the starter "may" have already be done.

I would suggest, that you remove the Ignition Coil and bench test it. In the Technical Library Section, there is a procedure for testing same. If it is outside the specifications....replace it. Additionally. I would look at the Negative Battery Cable and it's connections. Make sure they are clean, bright, and tight.

Roy Najecki · #3 07-27-2015, 11:44 AM

The negative battery cable looks fine, but I will double check that it is clean, bright and tight. We did notice the positive cable was getting quite warm to the touch when we tried to start the engine, even after we tightened the starter post nut. Maybe that is normal, maybe we were cranking the engine too long or too frequently.

Yes, the ignition coil with the two wires to the spark plugs. That is the coil that melted at the rear end. I have your Tech Section instructions in hand and will do the test later this week. I hope it is still good since a replacement, whether the OEM style or the KirkEngines Dual SuperCoil, isn't cheap.

Roy Najecki · #4 08-04-2015, 03:58 PM

It was the starter, and mercifully only the starter. The coil tested well within the specs. I rebuilt the old Bosch starter, which I was surprised was so easy to do, with a $24 kit. Rather than using a bent wrench to remove the lower mounting nut, I access it with a 6" extension socket on a ratchet wrench from under the gas tank.

I still haven't figured an easy way to install two screws under the engine tin shroud. I can get them off easily enough, but holding the tin up and lined up with the threaded hole while holding and turning the hex head screw is a challenge for adult sized fingers.

R Bedell · #5 08-04-2015, 04:13 PM

YUP....to get at the starter on a KT-17 is a major PITA........

J-Mech · #6 08-05-2015, 04:50 AM

If the coil leaked "black goo" out of it, you need to replace it. The coils are oil filled and that is what keeps them cool. It may test fine now, but it will fail shortly with no oil in it. Kirk's coil is far cheaper than OEM.... by at least half. I'm not sure what you think a coil is worth, but $60 plus $11 to ship is a deal. Just shell it out and bolt it on.

Roy Najecki · #7 08-05-2015, 07:17 AM

Jonathan - thanks for the advice and I will order Kirk's coil, new spark plug wires and probably the point saver.

ol'George · #8 08-05-2015, 07:51 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Roy Najecki

Jonathan - thanks for the advice and I will order Kirk's coil, new spark plug wires and probably the point saver.

The point Savers work, but some of us feel they are just are not needed.
I've dealt with points 60+ years and in my book for what these engines are and others of the type, points are just fine.
High performance/racing/pulling etc, or
new modern computer controlled vari valve timing etc, emission requirement compliants are a different ball game, and electronics play an important role.
It is your money, for me, I'm with John, replace the bleeding coil with some of the $$ saved on the point saver, or @ least have it on the shelf so when the coil does beat it's last pulse, one is in hand.