I have an MTD 14.5HP 42" that has a Briggs and Stratton OHV engine.

It is about 10 yrs old and has been sitting out for a couple years because I no longer had much of a yard to cut with 3 kids worth of stuff in back.

We bought a new house that has 2 acres so now I need this again but I do not want to spend too much fixing it.

The engine is not seized and ran the last time I used it. I am trying to replace pieces in order to just get the thing to turnover. I have a new battery and solenoid. The next step seems to be the ignition switch which is somewhat rusted. Is there a way to bypass the keyed ignition switch to see if it is bad?

I have the seat switch working as intended and I have disconnected the reverse cutoff switch. I know there is a cutoff for the deck being down and one for it being in park but I do not know where they are or how to bypass them to get this thing tested.

What other things are in between the battery and the starter? Is there a way I can use an electrical tester to determine if I am getting power all the way through to the starter?

Thanks in advance for reading and sorry for all the questions, I am just trying to determine if this thing is even working enough to justify spending more money if I can't get the engine connected properly.

Rick

I am sorry, but if you are playing with the "safety switches" I can not assist you. However, I am sure someone will.

I have an MTD 14.5HP 42" that has a Briggs and Stratton OHV engine.

It is about 10 yrs old and has been sitting out for a couple years because I no longer had much of a yard to cut with 3 kids worth of stuff in back.

We bought a new house that has 2 acres so now I need this again but I do not want to spend too much fixing it.

The engine is not seized and ran the last time I used it. I am trying to replace pieces in order to just get the thing to turnover. I have a new battery and solenoid. The next step seems to be the ignition switch which is somewhat rusted. Is there a way to bypass the keyed ignition switch to see if it is bad?

I have the seat switch working as intended and I have disconnected the reverse cutoff switch. I know there is a cutoff for the deck being down and one for it being in park but I do not know where they are or how to bypass them to get this thing tested.

What other things are in between the battery and the starter? Is there a way I can use an electrical tester to determine if I am getting power all the way through to the starter?

Thanks in advance for reading and sorry for all the questions, I am just trying to determine if this thing is even working enough to justify spending more money if I can't get the engine connected properly.

Rick
I am only messing with safety switches to determine what might be causing it not to turn over. If I can bypass these switches and am sure I can get it to turn over then I can work backwards to fix the switches that might be bad mostly due to rust. If after bypassing them I still can't get it to turn over its either the starter or the wiring. As it sits now I am blindly replacing things having no idea whether thy are bad or even installed properly.

Rick

Okay. So many individuals want to do away with the switches though, because they cause an "inconvience" and I took more or less an oath long ago, that prevents me from discussing safety switches very much.

Try http://www.tulsaenginewarehouse.com/drawings/allwiring.pdf

Did you ever find a solution? I am in the almost same situation. Done everything you would usually do to get it running but still has no power. I wondered if it was the ignition switch too because mine was sitting outside in the elements for about 2 years.

Anything will help!