Hello,

I am having a problem starting my Craftsman t1000 mower. Sometimes I get a click but the engine doesnt turn over. It has a Koohler 17hp engine. Here is what I have done so far. Rebuilt starter, adjusted valves, new solenoid, new battery.

It used to start really hard until I adjusted the valves, which worked great. It ran all last fall and most of this year without a problem. One day it wouldn't start. Battery is good and seems to charge. I can take a positive jumper cable from the battery straight to the starter and it fires right up. I have 13 amps on the battery and 13 on the front side of the solenoid. I tried jumping over the solenoid thinking that that would help and it didn't. I put my old solenoid on and that didnt work either.

I have only had the new solenoid on for 6 months could it have went bad already? How do you test them?

I am out of answers at this point. Any help would be great.

Chris

Does the solenoid have 2 spade terminals on it,or just 1? If it's just one,the mounting plate is the ground on that style.
If there are 2,then usually the manufacturer's use that for the safety interlock,meaning if a safety switch isn't being activated that should be,it doesn't connect the 2nd terminal to ground resulting in no cranking.
So if it's a 2 terminal solenoid,1 is your 12v,the other is your remote ground.You may have a safety switch not activating,or if that unit has a interlock module,that could be the culprit.I had a Scag rider that acted that same way,and it was the interlock module.I had to rule everything else out using an ohms meter to test all the switches in the interlock system.
I also had both a Briggs and a Kohler acting sorta that way last year,and they would turn over ok if the spark plug was out,and even after adjusting the valves so that the compression release was working right,still would not work against compression.Turned out they both needed new starter motors.It's like they only had about half the torque that they needed.Worked perfect after that.Just something to double-check since you
said you rebuilt the starter.
Hope you get it solved OK.

Steve

It is a two spade unit. I'll keep checking the system to see if I can find what is going on.

If you have two connections at the starter solenoid, the white wire should give you 12 volts when the key is in the start position and the blades are disengaged with the clutch/brake pedal depressed. Test the black wire for continuity to ground again with the brake pedal depressed and blades disengaged.

Post back your findings and we can advise how to proceed.

Best of Luck...

Just checked continuity to ground on the black wire and it was good. The White wire only reads 3.5 volts when the key is turned.

Another thought, last time I used it the blade had a hard time disengaging until I dropped the throttle down to idle. I am wondering if there is a safety switch that is malfunctioning or the blade isnt fully disengaged. Any ideas?

I just worked on a Murray with the same issue. Owner did the same with a jumper. I did the same tests with a multimeter. Turns out the ground wire from the battery did not have a clean contact with the frame. Cleaned connection and it worked fine.
Dean

You need to trace down the safety interlock switches and test them for continuity. You should be getting 12 volts on the white wire to the starter solenoid. Find the wire coming out of the ignition switch and test the voltage when the key is in the start position. If all is good then follow the wire to the blade switch and test the voltage coming out of the switch with the blades disengaged. All good?? continue on to the clutch switch and test voltage on output side. Both switches are under the dash, you may have to remove the battery and base plate if the battery is located under the hood.

Also as Dean suggested, check the battery cables at the battery and other ends for good clean tight connections.

Thanks guys. Checked all the safety switches and they were good. Battery connections were good........except for the ground wire to the frame. It was barely noticeable but there was a thin film of rust on it. Cleaned it off and it fired right up. At least I know where all the switches are now.

Thanks guys. Checked all the safety switches and they were good. Battery connections were good........except for the ground wire to the frame. It was barely noticeable but there was a thin film of rust on it. Cleaned it off and it fired right up. At least I know where all the switches are now.

Yep, same issue I had, there was just enough corrosion for a bad contact. Some of these electrical issues can be frustrating.
Dean