This is what carelessness will get you.
This was completely my fault.
Always pay attention to details and finish critical details when you are at them,don't "get back to them tomorrow or the next day".
With wiring,unhook the battery until it's done while you aren't around the tractor.
The wiring on this 990 had been hacked up before I got it and from best I can tell several wires were cut do to a sticking solenoid to stop the starter from running.
I ran the wiring,replaced the voltage regulator and solenoid. I patched in and changed the wiring that needed to be and tested it. All was good.
Even put about half hour on the tractor.
Now it was time to go back in and put good connectors and butt connectors in everywhere now that I had verified the wiring was good but I would get back to it in a few days.
So the 990 sat in the shop the next few days battery connected with the hood up.
I closed the hood at one point and walked away.
I came out the next day and decided to fire up the tractor.
Huh,nothing..!?
So I look under the hood.
The small wire that runs from the battery to the amp gauge had gotten against the battery ground post.
The wire shorted and fried to the Amp gauge,out of the amp gauge all the way forward to the voltage regulator mounted to the back of the grill,then back and over to the starter generator.
So the wiring is now fried and the tractor needs rewired and new electrical components.
And that was all me. My negligence.
After 25 years and working on literally hundreds of old tractors thru the years,I know better than this,so it's on me.
I'm very irritated with myself.
But it could have been way worse.
I'm blessed that the tractor didn't catch fire and burn the garage down which in turn is close to the house and could have caught it on fire too.
So take a note from my "I know better" mistake.
Be diligent. Watch what you are doing on these old tractors and when you walk away from them be sure that you have everything safely secured until you get back to them.
This was completely my fault.
Always pay attention to details and finish critical details when you are at them,don't "get back to them tomorrow or the next day".
With wiring,unhook the battery until it's done while you aren't around the tractor.
The wiring on this 990 had been hacked up before I got it and from best I can tell several wires were cut do to a sticking solenoid to stop the starter from running.
I ran the wiring,replaced the voltage regulator and solenoid. I patched in and changed the wiring that needed to be and tested it. All was good.
Even put about half hour on the tractor.
Now it was time to go back in and put good connectors and butt connectors in everywhere now that I had verified the wiring was good but I would get back to it in a few days.
So the 990 sat in the shop the next few days battery connected with the hood up.
I closed the hood at one point and walked away.
I came out the next day and decided to fire up the tractor.
Huh,nothing..!?
So I look under the hood.
The small wire that runs from the battery to the amp gauge had gotten against the battery ground post.
The wire shorted and fried to the Amp gauge,out of the amp gauge all the way forward to the voltage regulator mounted to the back of the grill,then back and over to the starter generator.
So the wiring is now fried and the tractor needs rewired and new electrical components.
And that was all me. My negligence.
After 25 years and working on literally hundreds of old tractors thru the years,I know better than this,so it's on me.
I'm very irritated with myself.
But it could have been way worse.
I'm blessed that the tractor didn't catch fire and burn the garage down which in turn is close to the house and could have caught it on fire too.
So take a note from my "I know better" mistake.
Be diligent. Watch what you are doing on these old tractors and when you walk away from them be sure that you have everything safely secured until you get back to them.
