Hi, I have a John Deere 185 with a single cylinder 17 hp FC540V-CS00 engine. It was running fine, no issues at all. Went to start it up, and it wont start. Cranks and cranks, tries to start, but wont. Actually, I did get it going, and it ran great like normal. Shut it off to try to restart, and it wont restart again. This is why I am unsure of what could be wrong, knowing that it runs fine once started, but its the starting issue. It is getting visible spark via plug removed and resting against engine block, but I don't know if it is sufficient spark to start it? Fuel is fresh and it is getting fuel to the carb, and plug is wet, but not soaked. I put in a new plug (NGKBPR5ES) I have since removed the plug to inspect it after attempting to start, and it has some black carbon deposits on it. I tried a little starting fluid as well. I have cranked and cranked, as it seems like it is so close to starting,with random fires, but it wont. I can hear the combustion, and see obvious signs of smoke coming from the exhaust during this time. After searching the internet for this problem, I am more confused now then initially. Appears as though this is not an uncommon problem with this mower. Seems that Coil and/or Ignitor keep coming up as the most common fixes. Would a bad coil still provide enough spark such that it runs fine, but make it almost impossible to start? I also found information about a Starter Improvement Relay kit that seemed to help a lot of guys. Does anyone know if this kit would increase the speed of the starter, as it kind of seems like the flywheel may not be spinning fast enough to start the engine. Or is this kit solely to make sure the starter engages the flywheel? Any suggestions, questions, or did I miss anything in my rambling?