Earthsign25 - hi, based on your description the solenoid may be a problem in that it's not allowing the battery to recharge. If it started off dragging and now just clicks, that tells me the battery's either not fully charged or has a dead cell (or two) in it.
How do you know the battery's good? A simple voltmeter test across the terminals without putting a load on the battery won't tell you much. An easy way to put a load on it is to turn on the headlights (if your mower has them) - are they bright or are they dim? If dim, then you have at least 1 bad cell in the battery. (If it doesn't have headlights, simply turn the key to the ON position - not the START position - and measure the voltage across the terminals.) Another way of checking for dead cells is to measure the voltage of each cell. Put the negative lead on the negative terminal and the positive lead into the acid of the first cell next to the negative terminal - measure the voltage. Move the positive lead into the acid of the next cell - measure the voltage. Assuming the first cell's good, the next measurement should be double the first one, and so on. When you have the positive lead in the acid of the last cell, it should equal the battery size (e.g., 12 volts). Places like Advance Auto, Trak Auto, etc. have battery testers that place loads onto your car's battery when they test it; they might be able to test your mower battery (call first to confirm). Or, a mower/tractor parts store should be able to test it under load as well. I don't know if the big box stores can do it or not.
You can also double-check the connections at the battery, solenoid and starter. Sometimes it doesn't take much corrosion to make them go bad. Just disconnecting them and reconnecting them can knock enough corrosion off to allow them to work. Cleaning all of the connections (small wire brush, sandpaper, or even the old baking soda & water thing) and spraying them with a little bit of WD40 doesn't hurt.
Finally, I'd check the oil to be sure it's not way too thick (after sitting all winter, it can gum up some). If you can't recall the last time you changed the oil, it's a cheap investment to keep it running well.
Hopefully, I gave you some stuff to check out and you'll get the problem fixed. Please let me know if it worked or not and we can go from there. My mother-in-law's 1987 Statesman riding mower (made by MTD) did the exact same thing last season...a bad solenoid helped the battery develop 2 dead cells over time by not letting the battery recharge properly, and she killed the battery by having to recharge it all the time. I put in a new battery and a new solenoid last October; the mower sat all winter; and it cranked right up last week when she tried it for the first time. Good luck! Jim D/West Point, VA |
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