After an hour I had
convinced myself the problem was something electrical and started tracing the
current from the battery through the ignition to the starter motor. No
immediate cause of the failure was apparent so depression started to set in and
in desperation I decided to consult the internet. OK so how do I search for the
answer? ‘Tractor will not start’? No, likely to get into the farming forums,
how about ‘ride on mower electrical problem’. Bingo! loads of listings
describing similar problems to my own, strange how so many Americans seem to
spend so long on the net discussing their garden tractor problems!
Several people suggested it
was either the battery, the ignition switch, solenoid or starter motor, oh boy,
this could be expensive. Luckily one clever devil had the answer, use a jump
lead from the battery positive terminal direct to the positive connection on
the starter, if the starter whirs into life then your problem is likely to be
the solenoid or a poor contact between the starter and the battery.
Sounded good so I hot
footed it back to the shed armed with a jump lead. At this point I must give a
warning to those who may follow my example, it is not a good idea to touch a
metal part of the tractor when you apply the lead to the starter motor. It is
surprising how painful 12 volts can be!
The good news is the starter
sprung into life at the same time as I shot backwards, proving the theory that
the fault was in the wiring connection or the solenoid. Having checked all the
wiring it was off to the ‘tondeuse’ suppliers to try and get a new solenoid. Now this is were it starts getting really
difficult as anyone who has tried to get any type of spare part in France
On arrival you will be
greeted with the expert tondeuse engineer who will look extremely grave and probably
utter a few gasps before announcing that the part will have to be ‘sur command’ i.e.
not in stock, one week for delivery. It’s strange how any part for any vehicle
or household appliance will take one week for delivery in France
So here I am now praying for
a short drought to stop the grass growing before next week. Never mind I have
got plenty to do in the garden so I will have to start some of the less
attractive jobs, like weeding and strimming the banks.
Started growing some
vegetables last year, thought I had better be prepared in case the recession
started to bite. Carrots, beetroot and haricot beans were a big success but the
potatoes were a disaster, I should have listened to Yves my neighbor who said
that Brittany
This year I though I would
try some broccoli and cabbages and so far they are looking promising but it is
strange how in seven years we have never seen a rabbit and suddenly one
appears. Surprisingly he has not touched my vegetables yet but perhaps he is just
waiting till they get to a size which is worth eating. I am beginning to think
my rabbit might be a hare? I took a photo of him this morning and instead of
running away he just turned and smiled at me; malevolently.
Just completed my annual
war with the moles and after two weeks without a mole hill I am thinking of
declaring peace for this year at least. Only used three boxes of cartouche (explosives)
this year, one particular little devil seemed to have super human powers and
survived a barrage of three cartouches. One morning I awoke to the sight of a ring of
fresh mounds in my beautiful lawn and in a fit of rage attacked the ground with
a pitch fork, with a sense of guilt I have to admit that I think this may have
finished his run of luck.
wow, really cool picture of the Hare!!
must of been quick with the camera to get that?
Chris
Posted by: Chris Johns | Saturday, July 04, 2009 at 02:05 AM