# Don't laugh....my other mower is a ---



## denno (Jul 10, 2009)

Craftsman, too. This one is 18 HP B+S, 917.272761

Different symptoms than the one y'all are kindly advising me on in another thread.

Presenting complaint: Turn key; motor revolves once, pauses, repeats...
There is no hint of ignition.
It had this problem 3 weeks ago, miraculously recovered, and is now at it again.

I have read bits and pieces around the web (and glad I've ended up at this forum, where a coherent pursuit of problems seems possible --- thank you).

Bottom line is, it seems to have spark, so maybe no gas?
Tested spark by sticking a copper wire in next to the cap in the spark plug wire and holding that a fraction of an inch from the motor and turning key. Saw a spark.

Disconnected fuel line from carb and gas came out the line; so tank, line, and filter are not blocked, I presume.

Put my finger over the spark plug hole and turned key; got alternate suction/pressure. Didn't think, by comparison to my other mower it was a ton of pressure. Not sure about that.

Bought new plug.

Pursuant to something I read, spooned a little gas into the plug hole, replaced plug and turned key. No ignition at all. (Huh? Where did that spark go?) Put a little gas into the air intake of the carb, ditto.

That is as far as I have gone. 

Sonebody tell me whether I have tried these things the right way, and what to do next? (Wife sez we gotta mow [our 5 ac.] really soon or get more goats. She doesn't want more goats).

Thanks.


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## 30yearTech (Sep 14, 2006)

How fast does the engine spin when you turn the key? 

It must spin at least around 600 rpm to generate a spark.


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## denno (Jul 10, 2009)

Hmm. Generously, 30-50 rpm. Pretty agonizing. Remember, it kind of grinds through a rev, pauses to almost nothing, repeats.
Possibly when I saw the spark I had the plug out, no compression, spinning faster.


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## Rentahusband (Aug 25, 2008)

Battery?
Dean


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## denno (Jul 10, 2009)

Battery is new this season, but sure doesn't have any juice in it at the moment. I'm using the car or a jumper box.
Yes, I should get the battery checked anyhow. 

For my information:
I don't actually know the exact process by which a motor starts up. Power from battery goes to starter, which spins flywheel----->crankshaft----->piston, beginning the 2-or-4-cycle business. But does the battery also provide the spark until the engine is up to speed and generating its own spark off the flywheel magnet/coil? (Is that a "magneto?")


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## 30yearTech (Sep 14, 2006)

No, the battery does not provide anything to the ignition system. It's simply used for cranking the engine. Check all battery connections and make sure they are clean and tight. Check the electrical connections at the starter solenoid and engine ground. The battery should be load tested to rule it out as a problem. If all checks then chances are you have a bad starter motor.


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## denno (Jul 10, 2009)

Aha! Now, there's a different tack. The intermitteny of the problem could fit that scenario. Again, I gotta approach this tomorrow. Thanks.


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## denno (Jul 10, 2009)

Think the wires are all attached. Not sure where that motor ground is. But going to go ahead and order a starter motor. EBay resellers have them for around $70 w/shipping.


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## pyro_maniac69 (Aug 12, 2007)

are you SURE its your starter though

easy way to find out is to take the starter off, and hook it up to a battery charger, and turn it on, it the starter kicks hard and spins fast, your starter is good

and just because the battery is new does not mean a thing, I have grabbed brand new batteries and they are junk, so defiantly get it load tested to be safe


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## 30yearTech (Sep 14, 2006)

pyro_maniac69 said:


> are you SURE its your starter though
> 
> easy way to find out is to take the starter off, and hook it up to a battery charger, and turn it on, it the starter kicks hard and spins fast, your starter is good
> 
> and just because the battery is new does not mean a thing, I have grabbed brand new batteries and they are junk, so defiantly get it load tested to be safe


Just because a starter motor spins with no load, does not mean it's any good!

You can loose a lot of torque if you have 2 or 3 of the field windings in the armature shorted out, and the starter will still spin hard and fast without a load!


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## pyro_maniac69 (Aug 12, 2007)

good point

darn your good at contradicting me lol


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## Deathrite (May 21, 2009)

will agree that testing the starter while connected to the motor is a very good idea. 

is there any buzzing or humming from under the hood behind the engine? that might be the solenoid.

otherwise i would agree on either battery or starter. just be SURE its the starter. dont want to buy a new starter and have the same problem and still have to buy a battery..


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## denno (Jul 10, 2009)

Well, point about battery taken, but moot....MAMA kept saying, Have You Ordered That Starter Yet? 

I'll be installing it today [and finding out if I messed anything else up during this process!] and will, one hopes, have a report later on.


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## denno (Jul 10, 2009)

OK. Sort of.

First, the mower is running with the new starter. Took squirting some starter fluid into the spark plug hole to get it started up (picked that up somewhere online). And for the record, got the battery checked and it is okay.

Now....put on a new belt and when the mowing clutch is engaged, the belt is WAY too tight. It is the correct number (144959D. Say --- does the "D" mean anything?)

I will offer this observation: There are a pair of link rods (the name in the parts diagram) attaching the flanges on the front of the mower deck to flanges on the front of the tractor. They would seem to stabilize and position the deck forward and back and a bit clockwise/counterclockwise. The front flanges are bent. [Lemme remark that this machine was sold to us by a nice old guy who assured us it had had very little use; fixing all the evidence to the contrary has taught me a lot about riding mowers and more detail about how to check them over before purchase!] The link rod on the left side was missing; when I replaced it I bent the front flange back to a semblance of its original position in order to gain a few millimeters so I could get the rod into the hole in the corresponding deck flange. I don't know if that messed with the forward/back position of the deck so as to tighten the belt. Only thing I can really think of that's different.

Bottom line questions: is a 144959 belt the same as a 144959D? And is there anything y'all know of to adjust the belt tightness? And if the answers are "yes" and "no," what do I do for an encore?

I will be awaiting your remarks and in the meanwhile examining what I can of the tensioning pulleys and anything else I can see or think of.

As far as getting the motor running again --- thank you for your help!

Other matter: should I take this to a new thread?


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## denno (Jul 10, 2009)

Update Monday evening.
I followed the directions in the manual for leveling the deck. My wife is currently out mowing, with the old belt installed. It will inevitably fail, and probably soon, whereupon I will try the new one again and see if my adjustments have made it fit.
Observations: Using point-to-point comparison (high school geometry?) I obtain a best guess that the new belt is half an inch shorter than the old one. The old one, on the other hand, is worn thin, possibly stretched, burned, and has at least one split. So I don't know the true length of either.


Update on the update:
That wasn't working very well, so I tried the new belt. It went on, but turned the blades (rather poorly) with the clutch disengaged. The clutch will engage, and my wife is mowing again and seeing where we get to.
The belt is too tight for a fact. I suppose I can keep monkeying around with adjustments, see if I can raise the whole deck a little more, see if anything gives that belt a hair more space. For the moment, well....we're mowing. 

I will ask the person who sold me the belt if the "D" stands for "different."
(Note: he said they're the same).

Of course an alternative is a slightly longer belt, if the belt path is going to be static. 

Unless y'all have anything more to say about belts or deck alignment, I guess we can consider this bifurcated thread concluded.

Last Update, couple days later: Now the new belt is working fine. Stretched in, I guess. 

Thanks again. See you 'round my other mower's thread.

denno


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