Still, it was disappointing, working on the lawn tractor. I could not get it running.
I did find a lot of faults. The rubber seal at the bottom of the oil dipstick tube was not screwed in all the way. Unfortunately, I tore it while trying to remove it; will order a replacement. Found that the dipstick tube doesn't want to go as deep as it should go; we'll have to bore a slot in the bracket to facilitate this. The plastic pinion gear on the starter motor was missing half its teeth; will order a replacement. After finally locating and removing the solenoid, I learned that it, on the bench, while still clicking, was not passing current; will order a replacement. I jumped the solenoid and saw the motor turn. That meant the safety switches were all working correctly. And that the motor wasn't seized.
And I was able to fix some issues. After dismounting the start motor, Tony and I put power to it and it spun; we know it works properly (despite the missing teeth). The pivot bar assembly, essentially the front axle, was completely loose; I tightened the four top bolts and the two front. The steering gear segment bolts were also completely loose; tightened the two bolt-nuts. This dramatically improved the steering response.
Trevor and Tony helped at various stages. I was grateful for that. It was particularly good viewing the mechanicals from under the unit was Trevor operated the controls. Inspected the shift rod in the transaxle to ensure it was extending and retracting correctly. Found the disc brake actuator was not releasing; disassembled it, straightened the arm a little, lubed it, reinstalled it, avoiding tightening the arm too much. I will order a spare arm.
Certainly learned a lot about the machine. I have a much better understanding of the electronics. I learned it does have a fuse. The motor is a lot cleaner than it used to be. This will obviously require more work... after the parts come in...
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