Need Wiring Help

I just bought a International Cub Lo Boy 154. Would not start. I put on new oem factory wiring harness, new battery. New Solenoid. When I go to put on battery cable, it arcs. and amp gage goes all the way below D . I replaced the solenoid with a 2 Prong type, Is that ok? did the same thing with the 1 prong solenoid. Thought it was the bad wiring but now I am just at a loss. Where do I start?

One of the most common mistakes made when rewiring a tractor is crossing up polarity and remembering if you're working with pos or neg ground. The spark and ammeter are indications of a direct short. Be careful, under those conditions, you can quickly destroy components or even cause a fire or explosion.

Assuming you have a wiring diagram and a PROPERLY color coded harness, double check everything. I've run into 2 wiring harnesses where the colors matched the diagram, but for the wrong wires. If it looks good as is, then your harness is not coded right. Hopefully you find an error. If the harness is wrong, you can still use it, you just have to recode it yourself. Use the diagram and an ohm meter to determine which wires are which and label them with pieces of masking tape.

We really need to know if it is using a generator, alternator, or non stock alternator. If an alternator, remove the wires from it and see if it discharges as before. if not, the ground polarity of the battery might be wrong alternators are almost always negative ground. The fact that the amp gauge went to D is an indication that there is either a short to ground from wiring, or a short to ground through alternator diodes with the battery in backwards. Let us know. JimN

Take your test light and hook it between the the battery and the cable. Hook the ground cable up. If there is any draw on the system the light will glow. Now start unhooking one thing at a time starting with the alternator, or the voltage regulator/generator. Then the ignition, headlights, ect. With the test light hooked in series on the cable you wont have the amp draw to hurt anything and even if you accidentally short a hot wire out to ground it will just ground out a small load and turn on the light.

When you find the problem the light will go out. It's much easier on a car or newer tractor as all you have to do is pull fuses, but many more. Just remember on a car or newer tractor you have to pull the radio/clock fuse, dome light, hood lights to get rid of all the normal parasitic draws.

This has the original starter/generator. Been checking one wire at a time. When I try to attach the red wire to the BAT.terminal on the voltage regulator, it arces. Have tried two other regulators(same thing happens). Could the generator have a enternal short? Every thing else is new.

Great question. Probably not. I will assume the following:
The battery is in with positive ground
The regulators you have tried are either non polar (good for either pos or neg ground), or says Pos ground on the underside.
That the "red" wire (above) is from the load side of the amp meter.
That the regulators are for regulator grounded field(A)type charging system. Not "B" type with field supplied with regulator voltage. (Ford type)

If the above is OK, the regulators (all three) are faulty, or connected incorrectly.
the regulator has two separate components inside.
a cutout relay that prevents the gen from sucking current from the battery when it is not turning fast enough to charge the battery, (or spinning at all) This consists of a set of contacts that are normally open. They connect the BAT terminal of the reg to the ARM terminal of the reg, when closed, and break the connection when open.
The contacts are closed by a winding that senses the gen output voltage, as the gen spins up it produces output from residual magnetism in the iron field poles(not electric current in the field) this voltage pulls in the contacts and starts charging the battery.
If the tractor is idled down, the gen will not produce enough voltage to charge. As current begins to flow backward to the gen windings, a second set of coils in that cutout counter the first, and the cutout opens (usually at about 2 amp discharge backwards.)
Thus if you measure the electrical resistance from the Bat terminal to the Gen terminal with the regulator in your hand disconnected, it should be infinite (open)
that should also be true from the Bat terminal to ground (frame of the regulator), but not from the Gen terminal to reg frame.
If there is conduction from Bat to Gen in your hand, the contacts are welded together/stuck or broken. Pull off the cover and look it will be the relay with the big contacts.
Let us know in a new posting. JimN

The voltage regulator that i have says 12 volts positive or negative ground. Is this ok? I am still at a lose. Should I buy a new regulator?