Hi, I have just a general question: have a briggs 12 I/C engine on the a lawn tractor I put a new starter on it in may and in November I went to start it and the gears on the starter are stripped. Can anyone tell me why this happened so soon, if I replace the starter or have it rebuilt will this happen again??? how to prevent it from happening ? why is it doing it ?


Thanks!

What kind of starter did you use? Genuine Briggs and Stratton or an aftermarket brand? After Market starters tend to have problems due to the type of material they make the starter gear out of.
Another possible cause could be warn flywheel teeth or since there is play in the starter mounting bolts, it is possible the starter was installed on a slight angle and the flywheel is just tearing the teeth apart.

I'm guessing you have engine model 281707. The starter gear for this and many, many briggs engines is made of some composite mateial that will wear and not affect steel flywheel teeth. They cost around $6.
Could be the problem is that the starter gear is not moving freely up and down the shaft. The shaft has to be absolutely clean, no lubrication of any kind. Clean with alcohol.
There is a small roll-pin that has to be removed to disassemble. I use the shank end of appropriate size drill bit to drive it out.
Clean the shaft the gear rides on, re-assemble with new gear and see what happens.
hope this helps,
thanks,