Will Not Run - John Deere Lawn Mower - Electrical Problems - Trade up Challenge Continues 

I acquired an old boat when I was 16 that needed ‘some’ work. Funny thing. When you’re out on a lake or river and your repair engine dies and/or your freshly re-fiberglass hull starts to leak, and there is no one around, you are in for a great adventure!!! Leave the children on the shore for the first couple of test runs!!!

Cap’n she’s a running! I’m jealous. You have your yard mowed and I haven’t even looked at my mower. I was gonna mow it yesterday but Nana insisted that I wait until the Easter bunny had done his thing. Her reasoning… with the grandkids getting older, they need more of a challenge in finding their eggs. I suggested that we tell EB to color them green instead but… well, tradition requires a whole pastel palette. So, I’ll be wading through ankle deep dewy grass for one more day. Now about becoming a boat owner… I almost became one. My neighbor gave me a bass boat. I was ecstatic at first… then I pulled it home and got good look at it. The shell was immaculate. But, it had sat outside for 10 years. At some point the drain hole had gotten plugged up with acorn shells that tree rats had squirreled away under the transom. Every inch of the inside was supporting a growth of moss that would make the north side of a swamp oak jealous. The seats were even supporting their own garden of greenery. Deck boards crumbled at my touch. The screws holding the compartment lids were corroded. Even though they were stainless steel! The rats nest of wires under the dash were appropriately named because rodents had chewed every spec of insulation of them. Etc… After assessing amount of ‘love’ and money it was gonna cost to get it going again… I decided it was a couple of magnitudes above my excitement over having a bass boat! So, I did what any self respecting RU-vidr would do… I checked on progress of the most famous Bass Boat salesman in America. Donnie Baker (Bob & Tom Show) has been trying to sell the same bass boat since about 1990… and it’s still for sale! That did it for me. I towed mine back to the neighbor’s place and thanked him for offering it to me…. And am watching Donnie Baker to see when his price comes down! Good luck Cap’n. I’m sure it’ll be fine! Hope you and the ladies have a fun and blessed Easter!

Oh boy, a boat!!!! Can't wait for the next video Mike because you working on the mower is like easy-peasy compared to a boat!!! Thank you for bringing us along on your adventure captain!!!!

There's nothing you won't tackle. Excellent job.

Boat + Captain, kind of natural. But you did give me one thought, I remember folks talking about how they love the smell of new-mown grass, but can't say I ever remember someone telling me how they love the smell of new-mown wild onions. Good luck on that project, will be waiting to see more.

My parents were RV dealers. I have done more than enough tent camping in the military both in the USAF and MI Army National Guard. A funny story for you Captain from my USAF time in about 1982 when my movable radar squadron was out in the field for training. I was in the mess tent eating, My Commander, a Major was eating at another table kind of across from me. My CO asked me if I would rather be in a travel trailer? i told him. "Sir yes sir! My parents have sold them for years. Why wouldn't I want one!" My CO had an interesting look on his face like boy did I step into that one. He quickly inhaled his food and left! Growing up in the RV business was great. The dealership was next to the house. Many of their customers not only became my parent's dear friends and mine too. I do miss my parents and our friends. Such good times! So many interesting places we traveled to.

Nice fix for the mower. Boats are not a bad thing to trade up to.

29:16 Look at him go! I mean... Look at it! If that's not a happy mower I don't know what is! Having not even touched a hand mower in my whole life but you know what I mean... you did it buddy! :) Hope it sells for a fair price.

I love this series and I would not have guessed a boat. Thanks Captain, God bless you and your lovely family.

Good luck getting the mower running Captain Kleeman

Great video! You know what they say about boats: The two happiest days in your life! Lee

SOOOO Happy the trade up series is back. I find these really fun.

You know what they say about a Boat don't You Mike...(B)ust (O)ut (A)nother (T)housand. LOL...HAHA... Just Joking Bud. The Family will definitely love that ..Great job getting the old mower running. Can't wait to see what You find on that boat..Good Luck with it ..

At 14:40 you are correct in that the switch was a "safety" switch to prevent mowing in reverse. I, myself, never liked this particular switch as it made mowing cumbersome and a lot of wasted time, and "dead head" cutting. This is "one" of those switches that I would disconnect for myself.

Anti mosquito setting 😂😂😂😂 CK your brilliant man 😁😁

Another type of boat to apply your inquisitive and exquisite skills - great idea for the next trade-up too.

Happy Easter 🐇🐰 🥚 hope to find you and yours in good spirits and health.

Good job Captain. Thank you for sharing and have Happy Easter.

Now you are really Captain, Captain!

You got there in the end, Captain!! Mower sold, and you came back with a boat..... excellent !!!! Happy Easter Mike and family!!

Really felt the ambiance around 7:30 was watching through the steam off my dinner and felt like I was right in the shed with ya 😂

Yes!!! A boat!! This is going to be epic.

Congrats Mike! Likely the boat will be frustrating, but it will be an adventure and lots of fun while you have it.

good luck on the new trade up, can't wait to see you on the river, maybe some water skiing !!!, great video captain 👏👏👏👍👍👍

Mike, a few of your videos back, I referred you to a RU-vidr who works on John Deere's. He specializes in 655's, 755's and 855's. He very detailed and I know you will enjoy watching him. He goes by: The Hole in the Water. I'm headed out to go work on the farm. I'll catch today's video this evening. Thanks, Mike. Lee

That is definitely a perplexing machine. I’d bet it would actually come down to something pretty basic that’s being overlooked but it runs and can be shut off with a kill switch so why keep looking? Now you have a boat to tie up to the dock with the RU-vid Yacht. Good thing you built the boat ramp when you had the DL550. 😉😉

This has been an amazing and fun challenge that you've done for you and your family love to see what you're going to do next thank you for sharing

Good morning young man and Happy Easter to you and your family sir. Always enjoy and wait for your videos. Thank you

Great video Captain. Unexpected ending! 🤔 Interesting... Living up to the name I see huh lol

I know this is an old video. Just thought I would say great humour and the odd things you say does match with the sort of things and the way I say things I am over 60y and started working in my dads Blacksmith shop age 10y also I am dyslexic "thank god" it made me what I am... however my work shop is my dining table and my wife will not allow me to rebuild her 1960 dads motorbike.... So I renovate old sewing machines the current project is a Singer 13k treadle it looks a bit sad but now runs well not bad for an old girl born in 1882. I wished I lived near and could give you a hand, but I am in the UK. My sister is a farmer in Ontario she is closer, her hubby works in a salt mine under lake Huron; prior to that in the UK he operated a cement quarry digger that had a bucket that could scoop up your house. You and DP and MBTS and NYA Millennial make me feel happy. my current project - I just replaced my dehumidifier yesterday the new one seems faulty will not go below 53% humidity, the 8y old one I just pulled apart and the 450v 7uf run capacitor is ssplit open. Now I need to take the new one back for an exchange and fix the old one. So we can dry the washing.

Interesting next trade up project. Simply means family fun time.

Mike you are the man,you have got some serious skills,impressive as always.on to the next project.just keep doing what your doing and thinking and carry on.kudos.😎😎😎👍👍👍👨‍🚒👨‍🚒👨‍🚒

Now you have really opened up a can of worms......hope this doesn't "SINK" this whole trade up series 😉

Great video Captain Kleeman

definition of a boat: a hole in the water into which you throw money. Good luck captain.

Hello from the Netherlands. thanks for the video Mike . Sincerely Hollandduck

Your getting greedy, now you've got a yacht and a boat. Nice trade up, looking forward to seeing you both make it ship shape. 👍🤗

Hi mike. There is no need to remind me to stay tuned as I can generally pick up a trick or two even though you say this is not a how to video. If there are any places nearby that have a comedy night, I would encourage you to attend a couple of nights to see what goes on and then sign up for some nights. I think you would win. Have good days!

This series is exciting. The boat being the most recent surprise. It's neat to watch you fix stuff. And all the , I meant to do that moments. My kinda guy.

that a win for the fix runs great and will keep on running now. well done captain. will see ya on the boat ride. cheers.

This trade up is a great idea. Cheers.

I'd put money on the kill wire being slightly damaged where it passes behind the starter. Common issue and can also be intermittent as it vibrates with engine and sometimes shorts to ground. Not a problem now though with your solution. 👍👍

Well done, keep moving up

Have yourself a happy Easter

A boat " a hole in the water you pour money into " . I sure it work out fine. Have a great Easter brother.

I did a similar cutoff on a mower I restored last year. It's a pull start and the choke when choked all the way down is supposed to kill the engine but it wasn't. So I added a kill switch.

Sweet! And happy Easter to you and the fam!

Awesome video! I am really enjoying this journey with you ❤️

Love being able to catch the Latest video from the Captain first thing in the morning.... What a way to start the day. I went through a similar issue with my mower.... Disclaimer all my safety switches are disconnected ... but I'm not selling mine, lol..

Thumbs up 👍 Trading up or working up it still making up till you get what you want 😊

What the heck. From a camper trade up series to a whole in the water you throw money into boat changeup. Boyo, I didn't see that one coming. Gonna be a fun series that one. Having lived down in the Keys for 10 years and been stuck with doing most repairs on my boss's two boats. One of which I got to use when I wanted (19 foot Hoog with twin 200 Yamaha engines that had 150 on the covers he called a Harley on the water) keeping boats floating and running is not a cheap endeavor. That said, I hope it's not a money pot for you Captain so you and your family can have an awesomely fun summer. You may end up deciding to keep it. It looks big enough to ski behind and if the girls learn how to ski you can pretty much give up on getting rid of it once thet have.

May Father was a farmer and he said ‘nothing runs like a Deere, when it runs’. Although he owned two of them lol

Glad you got it working Mike! I know it wasn't your problem in this case, but I hate those MTD ignition switches! I've replaced the one on my neighbor's zero turn twice in the last 5 years. They're just a copper disc hat turns with the key and a few copper points that wear down. I'm guessing you have the 3.0L 4 cylinder GM block in that thing. I would definitely check that the impeller in the lower unit is pumping so the block is getting cooling water. They're pretty cheap to change, but only last a few years. If the impeller breaks down, you lose water flow and overheat.

It looks like that last plug that you got in your hand right now or the unrengine you got Croatian on there if the other side's got. Corrosion on it too. You need to clean your For your safety switches.

As always, thank you Mike. I enjoyed that.

A fella can always have on a boat! 🤠🤠

Begin TWC... Begin To Watch Captain? Happy Easter buddy

Great series great video still didn't figure out what was really happening but great video thanks captain

Enjoy your video

Sea Ray, love those. Got one myself. Ya'll will have a blast.

Happy Easter!

I did enjoy the video. Love your channel. Thank you Capt. 👍

Keep up the great work.. Happy Easter Mike.. May God continue to bless you and the family!!!!

I expect someone has already said this but "the two best days of a boat owners life are the day he gets it and the day he gets rid of it. Of course I don't have nor have I ever had a boat so what do I know? either way I expect some entertaining videos from yours.

I'm going through my L120 and having the exact same issues. Gave me a few ideas! Hopefully I can get my riding mower back sometime soon. I'm almost convinced to create the kill wire setup you got lol

Good new direction Capt 🇬🇧🇬🇧👍👍

Well, from land to water, interesting. Actually, I kinda had a feeling when you said "No more camper". It's no U-Tube Yaht, but I guess that's what adventures are all about.😉 This one looks kinda fun.🙂 Perhaps a submarine for the next trade-up?🤔

I think you can also just put test light on that wire going to coil witch I think is a ground then a positive with it so light is on.then operate all the functions that has safety switches until light goes out

Love your diagnosis, great job. Really enjoying your videos.

Great show Thank you!

I believe there a couple of diodes involved in the kill wire circuit on the two cylinder engines. The schematic should show them.

I was going to say "mow power to ya!" but that ship has sailed.

Great job Capt,

Ha Bud I have been working on a 1989 16’tri-hull compl restoration hope to have it back water this year good luck and happy fibreglassing lol it’s a job for sure the price as great 👍👋🇨🇦

Quit the trade up bud. 🤗 thanks for the video

Hey Mike, The Only Thing I didn't see you test, and I suspect is the Backfire Prevention Solenoid in the bottom of the carb. I have had those go out and they will prevent fire to the engine. Super easy to test. pull out of carb and turn key to run, see if the plunger goes in and out. Hilariously great design - they usually screw into the bottom of the carburetor, where dirt collects. Someone didn't think that one through!

Nice work.Will you be on the river this summer? Thanks for the video.

Great show…. I like the variety

He is risen! Love your show buddy!

Now, I see boat camping trips up and down the river, take a few days, throw the camping gear in the boat, just take off,or if you have a lake with campgrounds or parks around is another option. nothing like it, best of both worlds. Thanks for the update young man, enjoy the family and boating and camping.

That’s awesome brother ! Keep it up !

A boats a great trade up as springs just about here & trades can get really high value !

I got the same engine, had the same problem, the needle valve plunger that goes to the float in the carburetor gets corroded and just needs to be cleaned . Then it will go another 10 years

nice job

The typical life of a ski boat or fish/ski boat is that it is bought by a young couple with kids of skiing age. The first year it goes to the water every weekend. The second year it goes to the water on Memorial Day, the 4th of July, and on Labor day. The third year it is put up for sale. That's not bad. It's useful toy that needs to be passed on.

A boat? You don’t even have enough to cover the first $1000 of bust out another thousand part. Oh well that’s why we watch your channel. Wouldn’t be Captain Kleeman if half the time you’re not scratching your head and thinking what his he doing?

Nice going Mike

Always check the safety on the grass shute first

Ok ,the motor has magneto ign only needs a ground to shut it off ,it seems to me that mower has a dual function switch on the safetys witch enables the starting motor to work also

👍🏻👍🏻because one is never enough

hello mike its is randy and i like yours video is cool thanks friends randy

Well, Captain, a new one like that will set you back $2,500.00 or so today. Any price less than $1,000.00 is a deal!

Captain a Machine with a problem, and You have a red Letter Day! I wish You and your family Happy Easter

You know what boat stands for right? Breat Out Another Thousand.. good luck! I hope it works our for you guys.

Good job.

Try SEA FOME Good for cleaning carb.

Keep up the great work. 😁

Thank you

Howdy Captain

I do alot of backing up so I unplug the reverse it from turning the blade on and off