# rider mower



## Billy_Bob (Sep 11, 2008)

Check your battery and charging system.

A good fully charged battery will have more "muscle"!

I don't know about mower batteries, but on a car a fully charged battery will be 12.65 volts when checking with a multimeter in the DC 20 volts setting.

Then after you start the car, the voltage on the car battery will go up to 13/14 volts. This is the alternator charging the battery.

So I don't know if a mower would be similar?

Anyway the voltage should go up after starting. This would indicate it was being charged. If it is not being charged, then check your charging system.

If it is charging ok, then the battery might be going bad. You might be able to take it to an auto parts store and have them do a load test? (How much "muscle" it has...)

How old is the battery?


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## boman47k (Aug 25, 2006)

Not sure if I bought the battery this year or last year. I know they sometimes get weak from sitting for long periods. Imo, this does not explain why it will turn the engine when I turn the engine backward by hand. Its like it releases pent up compression or something. Maybe I need to check the flywheel for any wobble. Some are attached with rivets from the factory if my memory serves me correctly. Actually, I may need to check the teeth on the drive and the flywheel for any distortion.

Thanks for the response.


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## RDGreen (Aug 20, 2010)

Most of the time this is due to the engine being on the top of the compression stroke, that's why when you back up the engine it will start... Welcome to the world of cheaply made mowers... For a possible cure try cleaning all terminals to battery and starter... Check solenoid terminals and clean... Fully charge battery... Also look to see if the mounting bolts for the engine haven't become loose causing a bad ground for the engine electrical system...


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## boman47k (Aug 25, 2006)

Seems odd it would do it so often. But I did also change the solenoid. I will check the things mentioned.

Thanks to all for the resplies. The battery could be weak I guess.


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