On a honda gcv 530 the solenoid is part of the starter motor and not a seperate unit.
Make sure connections are ok but could be solenoid or starter motor.
OK, I got the starter rebuilt and a new solenoid put on by a professional starter/alternator rebuilder that has been in business a long time.
Next question:
Which direction is the engine supposed to turn? I never bothered to notice before.
The starter spins but does not engage the flywheel. When I take a small screwdriver and pull the gear up in to the flywheel and hit the key the engine will turn but if I release the key the gear drops and won't engage..
The rebuilt starter, when I manually raise the gear turns the motor clockwise. The fan veins on the flywheel appear to require a counter clockwise turn.
I futzed a little with the engine after my last post.
The gear on the starter won't mesh with the flywheel by itself most of the time (just like pre-rebuild).
And when the gear does mesh it doesn't go all the way up. When I use the screw driver to pull it all the way up into place I can turn the key and it starts the engine just fine. Apparently the gear has to be all the way up in order for the starter to spin.