Craftsman YTS3000 Mower caught hidden rope now won't start

if it stopped suddenly when you snarled the rope, it could have broken the flywheel key. If so you will need some mechanical tools and knowledge to fix it. If you flooded it then pulling the spark plugs and cranking it for 10 -15 seconds, then puttin the plugs back in and trying again may fix it. If the rope broke some wires then those have to be fixed. I an sorry but there is not magic wand solution. Do not start throwing parts at it hoping those will fix it.
 
sgkent said:
if it stopped suddenly when you snarled the rope, it could have broken the flywheel key. If so you will need some mechanical tools and knowledge to fix it. If you flooded it then pulling the spark plugs and cranking it for 10 -15 seconds, then puttin the plugs back in and trying again may fix it. If the rope broke some wires then those have to be fixed. I an sorry but there is not magic wand solution. Do not start throwing parts at it hoping those will fix it.
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Is it flooded if those were only our first and second attempts at starting it that day? At that point we stopped.
 
Battery is at full voltage. Do these pictures help? Also realized the picture of the main cover for the engine may not be original. I remember having to get a cover for something and it may have been this machine.
 

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If battery is fully charged, I think the battery is suspect. It could also be the starter or cables from battery to solenoid and then to starter. One of your earlier pics of the engine showed the starter gear engaged, which it should only do when starting. That would be a problem. The audio on the videos sounds like the starter trying to turn. Hydraulic lock can also stop the engine from turning. Pull the dipstick and smell it. Does it smell of gasoline? If so, the carb could be leaking fuel into the engine, stopping it from turning over. You can pull the spark plug and try and crank it, but be aware it may blow fuel and oil out of the spark plug hole it if it hydrolocked. If it hydrolocked, the carb needs work, and the oil needs to be changed.

2 main issues. Either not enough power to starter, or too hard to turn. Neither of these are likely to be caused by running over rope.
 
How are you determining that it's fully charged? I would start by cleaning the battery connections, and the connections at the solenoid. I would also pull the spark plug and turn the engine over, either manually, or with the starter. I would first try manually turning the engine. You should be able to. I would also check that the starter disengages from the engine. Your picture shows it still engaged. Your starter may have failed. If you crank it with the starter, remember that it may spray fuel and oil from the plug hole. If the engine still just tries to turn over but fails, I would use a jumper cable to bypass the solenoid. Of the 2 big connections at the solenoid, one goes to the battery, the other to starter.

I'm really suspecting the starter at this point, but those tests should help us know.
 
I crudely circled the starter gear. It looks engaged with the flywheel. That's what I'm talking about. Normally when you engage the starter, the gear moves to engage the flywheel, and when you stop powering the starter, it retracts. Does that make sense to you?
 

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