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A lawn mower made by the American Company Toro

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Time cutter 4200 blades will not stay engaged

My time cutter zero turn will run fine. However, the blades will not stay engaged. I will be mowing and the blades will just shut off. I push the switch button down and pull it back up and they engage again. The engine does not stall or react.

I am assuming the switch is bad, but before I start chucking money, I figured I’d ask.

Some days are worse than others. Some days, I can mow for hours without any issues. Today, I could mow for about 5 minutes at a time.

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The switch / wiring is a good place to start. The PTO clutch is next on the list. I made a troubleshooting video on a Cub Cadet Zero turn. It shows how to check the switch and clutch wiring. The troubleshooting is about the same on any machine. It goes on to show clutch replacement, which might help you a little if you determine that is the problem. Back to the wiring though … Did you do a visual inspection to see if something damaged the wiring? That can happen. Did the plug on the switch vibrate loose? Is the chassis ground wire connection tight? Are both battery wires and starter wire tight? Switches usually last a long time, but they do fail sometimes. The intermittent behavior usually indicates a loose connection (which is the exact result when the contactors inside a switch start to deteriorate) A bad switch is the equivalent of a loose wire. However the vast majority of the time, when a clutch coil burns out, it’s out for good How old/how many hours on your machine? Here is my video If you have any questions, you can comment on the video or here. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YCx0BJYB...

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3 Comments:

The contactor and clutch solenoid will both "click" without the engine running. Just put something heavy on the seat. Don't troubleshoot the electrical devices on a mower while the engine is running. If everything clicks like it should, remove the weight from the seat.

Then if the blades don't turn you need a clutch. VERY IMPORTANT>>>BEFORE STARTING ENGINE, check for TOOLS UNDER MOWER. After starting engine, MOVE MOWER Before Engaging Blades (in case you missed a tool) I have seen a mower (42" Cub Cadet non-commercial zero turn) throw a softball over 100 yards. I have seen a 36" Wright Stander throw an old brake pad through the fender of a car. (Yes, it left a hole in the metal on the rear quarter panel.)

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Thanks. PTO Clutch was good. Switches were good. Wiring was good.

Turned out to be the brake module. A few drops of water had gotten into it. In these toros, that module contains all of the safety switches. Just a few drops of water had me buy $200 worth of spare parts and about 30 hours of troubleshooting.

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I believe this may be my problem. My 2016 Toro Timecutter PTO disengages only when going downhill. I can turn it back uphill and the PTO engages. Until I mow downhill again. I'll try drying the brake module connectors and check wiring connections and ground.

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Jaron McFall will be eternally grateful.
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