Troubleshoot Lawn Tractor Mower Blades not Engaging

[@tinamarieb49]

Thank you for the step by step process and especially for the very clear explanation on using the multimeter!

[@TheLawnEngineer]

Glad it was helpful!

[@nightrunner14]

When I was told my small engine mechanic was 6 weeks backlogged, I decided to fix it myself. You made the process doable by clear step by step instructions. THANK YOU!!!

[@TheLawnEngineer]

Awesome, glad I could help you help yourself.

[@BigBear843]

Appreciated the troubleshooting steps. Great explanations. Thanks.

[@TheLawnEngineer]

You’re welcome 👍

[@MAHA_CREW]

Heck yea! I really appreciate this video. I'm going to get a multimeter tomorrow and start from there. Thank You sir!

[@TheLawnEngineer]

Glad to help!

[@ocgabe]

Great video, thank you! I am having this trouble right now. The blade was spinning fine, but I hit a wire mesh, it got stuck in one of the blades. I removed the obstruction but since then, my blades won't spin.

[@TheLawnEngineer]

Thanks for leaving a nice comment. I hope you solve your problem, good luck 👍.

[@Mbonner73]

This is the best damn video on this on KZbin! I learned more about my lawn mower with this video than I have anything else, Thank you for posting

[@TheLawnEngineer]

You’re welcome. Thanks for taking the time to leave a comment 👍

[@desertdogdan5920]

Your instructions are very clear, although you use the word "shiv" to describe several different items which could be misleading to some viewers. Thank you very much however for being the best video available for this kind of issue!!! CUDOS!!

[@TheLawnEngineer]

Thank you for checking in and throwing me a subscription! Yes, fair point on the sheave vs. pulley. I guess, "sheave" stuck with me from my days of spec'ing out v-belt drives. It is definitely more common to use "pulley." Also, thanks for the CUDOS.

[@collectingunboxed8628]

Thanks! This helped me see that it was the belt giving me issues.

[@TheLawnEngineer]

Glad it helped!

[@larrymiracle9559]

Thanks for the tip. I just changed the blades and then they would not engage. Belt came of pully.

[@TheLawnEngineer]

I’m glad I could help, thanks for the comment.

[@saxafied]

Nice video...clear and to the point !

[@TheLawnEngineer]

Glad it was helpful!

[@aaronvandoorn1276]

So glad I found this video thank you very much

[@TheLawnEngineer]

You're welcome.

[@davidcard2158]

Thanks,, great video! Really helpful finding out my problem.

[@TheLawnEngineer]

You're welcome, I'm glad it helped you out. Thanks for taking the time to leave a nice comment.

[@luvkountry]

Thank you. that is what I was thinking. When I unplugged the connector wiring harness from the PTO switch I saw eight female slots. Two have 12 volts in them with the key in the on position. Thought if I had a little jumper wire that I might be able to connect one of the twelve volt supplies in the PTO SWITCH plug across to check for the clicking sound of the magnet engaging or disengaging but not to the other 12 volt supply in the plug. That would tell me that the switch is probably defective.

[@TheLawnEngineer]

Yes, that is a perfect test.

[@luvkountry]

Good instruction ..but what if you are not sitting on the seat or the brake isn't locked on....? Doesn't the seat safety switch need to be engaged to get power to the PTO?

[@TheLawnEngineer]

If the ignition switch is on the pto will get power. The seat/brake interlock only kills the engine.

[@luvkountry]

@@TheLawnEngineer Thank you for your quick reply. I did discover that what you have told me is correct. My PTO just stopped working ..Turned it off and it wouldn't re-engage when I turned it back on. Unplugged the switch but was unable to get the locks to release enough to allow it to come out of the mount. Re-plugged the harness back onto the switch and for some reason it is now working again. I suspect that one of the connections on the plug to the PTO switch is possibly corroded creating a loss of power to it. With the PTO plug disconnected, is there any way to use a jumper to activate the PTO in order to see if it is actually working from that point on down to the clutch. Thank you for sharing your expertise.

[@TheLawnEngineer]

@@luvkountry yes, any 12V source (battery or battery charger) can be jumped directly to the pto to check function.

[@breenhue]

ThankS for that InteL. GreaT MateY..ExcllnT👍 😊

[@TheLawnEngineer]

Glad it helped, thanks for the comment.

[@JohnnyTHolland]

HURRAH FOR THE AMERICANS ! Utterly brilliant video - EXACTLY what I needed to know and thank you Monsieur (from Britain !)

[@TheLawnEngineer]

I’m glad this helped you out, long live the King 🤴!

[@bigkk758]

Question my battery is dead it won’t take a charge but I can start the mower by jumping it. Will the electronic PTO not work since the battery has no charge?

[@TheLawnEngineer]

Generally, the magneto (while running) puts out enough voltage to still operate the PTO even if the battery is dead.

[@Rick-8259]

Maybe I'm being thick headed, but what exactly should I do if my elector-magnet IS making the clicking sound?

[@TheLawnEngineer]

Does the pulley rotate with the crank after the click? If its clicking and you have no rotation, the clutch assembly has failed and needs to be replaced.

[@deadmanwalking-9e]

Hello, Could you in one of your episodes. Show how the heck you replace the battery. Plz

[@TheLawnEngineer]

Yes, I should be able to get to that this week.

[@PapawMule]

Jus bought a used mower with elect clutch. An over engineered gizmo. Wud rather have a tension pully with hand lever..

[@TheLawnEngineer]

Yes, the old manual levers work just fine.

[@catbirdfeeder]

my scag pto engages and works just fine for a while then the blades just stop! and they will not engage until the next day....then the blades engage and they work for a while and then they stop right in the middle of the mow! what on earth is the deal? it must have something to do with heat?

[@TheLawnEngineer]

Yes, the pto uses an electromagnet to lock the shaft and pulley. If the electromagnet has an internal short it will get hot and stop working. If it gets worse it will start to blow the fuse. There is a chance it’s something in the wiring, you should disconnect the wiring at the pto the next time it happens, check to see if you are still getting power there. If you still have 12V, it’s definitely the pto assembly.

[@catbirdfeeder]

@@TheLawnEngineer awesome...thank you

[@TheLawnEngineer]

@@catbirdfeeder you’re welcome

[@k9nationalservices562]

My PTO switch does click sound but the blade is not working?

[@TheLawnEngineer]

Is the switch itself clicking or the electromagnet in the pulley at the bottom of the engine? The clicking sound needs to be coming from the pulley under the engine.

[@SirNC89]

The seat switch prevents the deck from engaging on my Simplicity making this video a waste of time.

[@TheLawnEngineer]

Put a weight on the seat.