Last Saturday we were mowing the lawn before the rain hit and before we had to leave for a trip to the theater with some friends. Just after turning a corner, the mower went dead. I knew I was low on gas and immediately assumed that a fuel shortage had caused the untimely cessation of activity. (Spoiler alert: A little twinge, perhaps recognized after the fact, ran through my consciousness. It didn't choke and sputter. It just stopped dead.)
All of the gas cans were empty, so a quick trip to the Quik Trip station for some gas ensued. Pouring it into the tank reignited (not literally, thank the Lord) the misgiving. It didn't seem to take as much gas as an empty tank usually did. Ignoring that, I hopped onto the seat, depressed the clutch interlock, and turned the key. Absolutely nothing. No lights, no grunt, like a totally dead battery. I grabbed my trusty electrical tester and registered 12 point something on the volt meter. Full battery.
Maybe the PTO, the mechanism that runs the blade, had not been disengaged. It was off. Pull on, push off. Repeat. Turn key. Nothing. Bummer. Now what? We moved the mower up to the shed and left it a couple of days. The old "maybe it will fix itself strategy." Nope, nothing, nada.
The Internet had bookoo videos on how to check a starter and solenoid. But a failure of those parts would not kill the engine when running. Maybe the battery is bad, but reading good. Vain hope at best, but worth a try. We jumped the battery with the car and turned the key. Nothing.
Next genius thought. Remove the deck and see if something had been pulled loose or something. Nothing looks wrong from the top. The battery is under the hood, so there were no wires or anything running under the seat. Moving toward the front, when what to my wondering eye should appear but a bare wire running to the PTO'ere. (With apologies to *Clement Moore. My rhythm and rhyming was not the best, but my elation exceeded that of his narrator.) It had not been cut, but all of the insulation had been stripped off both strands and bare wires were hanging out.
Friday morning, after waiting out a short shower, I was out there with electrical tape and a pair of pliers. I wrapped the wires, insulating them and wired the little harness to the frame to keep it away from rotating parts. Nagging thought as I took my seat on the tractor–again. If the PTO had shorted out, it might have killed the engine, but after the switch was off, the wires should not be energized or even part of the electrical circuit. Turn key...nothing.
A niggling thought had followed me last night. If the switch is off, then the engine, at least should start, but the PTO would not run. Here we have what you call a dead mower. And then another brilliant thought hit the brain waves. When two wires touch and they are not supposed to touch (*See my story on car repair.) When they touch and are not supposed to, something happens. Either wires fry, or preferably a fuse blows.
Is there a fuse on this mower? I had made a cursory exam earlier, but now did it in earnest. A wiring module was attached to the frame just below the main wiring block of the dashboard. Popping it out of its holder, a yellow, 20 amp fuse appeared. (Sorry, Mrs. Cheney. The fuse did not pop itself out of the holder, I did it and then it appeared to me. I don't remember what English that error is, but still make a few of them when writing. Is it "unclear antecedent?" But I digress.) Extracting the fuse, I noticed immediately that it did not have a continuous filament or link. (Got it right there.) Blown fuses conduct no electricity. Ergo, dead engine. Might as well not even have a battery.
No 20 amp fuses reside in our tool boxes or clutter drawers. But I know where to find one. Quick trip number two, insert fuse, and gratifyingly, rrr, rrrr, varoom! Mower works. Check PTO. Runs.
I am so thankful that I did not hire a guy to come out for $75 a visit to fix my mower. Or even borrow a truck and haul it to someone. For small blessings we are grateful. And our lawn is better for it.
* http://tellinitllikeitis.blogspot.com/2017/08/auto-repair-or-too-late-smart.html
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