Repairs Kohler Courage hard start fixed?

Castleford

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Hi all,

I just bought my first garden tractor, a used MTD gold with a Kohler 25 hp courage twin, and like a lot of others had starting problems.

So I adjusted the valves and didn't see much improvement and was going to take another crack at it when during the course of working on it unplugged the switch under the seat and forgot to plug it back in.

Now it turns over immediately, no half measures... no "stopping on the compression stroke"....(and I can dismount without the engine stopping), unsafe I know but if that's the problem it may help others with trouble shooting the starter circuit.
 

bertsmobile1

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That is really weird because the seat switch is not in the cranking circuit, otherwise I and all the other techs would not be able to work on the mowers without installing a bypass of some sort.
Hard cranking, getting stuck on compression is always a mechanical problem, unless the battery is flat or the heavy power connections are dirty or loose.
 

Castleford

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It must be a coincidence then but I'll plug it back in and see. I should have done this beforehand I suppose!
I did check the battery with my load tester and removed and cleaned all the power leads, checked the solenoid as well.
 

Castleford

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Yup, it was a coincidence. The only thing that puzzles me now is that to defeat the seat switch all I have to do is unplug it....seems too simple, I thought I would have to rig up a jumper wire.
Weird thing to complain about, eh?
I'll re-check the valve lash...

PS I also took the starter apart to check the brushes/commutator
 
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bertsmobile1

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There is a reason why there are 1,942 videos about how to defeat a seat switch.
If it required the use of more than 3 brain cells then there would only be 2 videos.

Some require jumpers some don't, some require 1/2 the switch to be jumpered, they get more complicated every year.
Some need relays to be jumpered because they will not start nor run if the switch is either unpluged or jumpered.

Removing the starter to clean the communicator & change the brushes would have remade the ground contact which is generally the culprit if the problem is electrical.

We work hard here to get owners that the seat switch is rarely the culprit yet for some reason every one blames it for everything.
 

Castleford

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In fact I did re & re the starter motor to ensure a solid ground before removing the end cap on the motor as the starting didn't improve.
I know what you mean about there being more than one way to skin a cat regarding the deadman's switch I was just amazed that this one was a 3 brain cell job, too easy for a 10 yr old machine.... you know?

I have the plastic shroud off and will re-set the exhaust valve lash to .004". (it was .005")
While I was working on it I found one spark plug lead was scraped bare by the edge of the metal cooling duct and the crankcase vent tube became unhooked from the carb.
 

Castleford

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After exhausting all probabilities I bought a new starter. The latest version with a 9 tooth pinion, P/N 32-098-08.
More expensive than the aftermarket chinese knock-offs but now it turns over with authority on a 4 year old battery. (and starts/runs.)
 
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