Briggs powered Toro mower, no spark

[Dale_W]

Toro 22" recycler with electric start
model 21464
serial 411953409

Briggs engine model # 093J050173F1
Serial 2110078675580

This is the second season on the mower. Sure enough, on like the second cut of the year the engine starts to run crappy part way thru the cut. This is my wife's mower.
It has electric start so I don't need to be around to start the mower for her. Very nice.
After running crappy for a while, it conked out. I would restart, run crappy, and conk out again. I finished the lawn with a beater mower from the corner of the garage.
A week goes by. Now she is 5 minutes into her cut and the engine starts running crappy again, and conks out. It wont restart. Wait...after a few minutes it starts, but will only run poorly for a minute before dying. I should have checked for spart right then and there, but did not.

Tonight I was going to run the mower until it died, and then check for spark. HA It would not start cold. No spark at all.

I am thinking coil.
Briggs & Stratton 595009
Ignition Coil, Armature Magneto
(Superseded to 84005272)

Is there a way I can use a multimeter to prove the coil is dead before I order one?
Are there any other things I should check before ordering the coil?

Thanks

Dale

[KE4AVB]

Nope...

The only test is to unplug the kill terminal to sure it not a kill wire issue.

[Dale_W]

OK, disconnected the kill wire from the terminal, pulled the operators bail up by the handle into the run/start position and hit the starter. No spark still.
So I will get me a new coil.

Thanks again.

Dale

[bluemower]

hello Mr Dale,

you did not mention how you did that spark check. I have not worked on this engine equipped with an electric starter, so My comments may not apply.

Before buying a new ignition coil, loosen the coil mounting screws to check for corrosion. Ensure the coil to flywheel gap is correct when torqueing the screws.
Position the coil wire close to the metal cylinder head. you may consider using a piece of duct tape to help. establish a gap of .166 between the wire and the cylinder head. The bale shut off wire should be disconnected as mentioned by KEV. You may need a dark garage to perform the spark test. Ask an observer to watch the wire when you pull the cord. If you see a spark, perform the test again with the electric starter. A spark tester (gap style) is a great tool for this test. sometimes a flywheel key may experience failure if the mower hits a rock or stick. Ensure the flywheel magnets are strong. All these checks are quick and free. If you see spark, perform the test and the engine starts, perform with the engine hot.

These thoughts are offered because the electric starter may not be turning the engine fast enough to generate the spark. I recall some of these were marginal and worst when the battery weakened.

[Dale_W]

Hello Bluemower,
Thank you for the input. My testing of spark is quite primitive. I know, I know. I should get an inline spark tester.
I hold the spark plug someplace on the block to ground it, and in this case, hit the starter button.
Ideal? Probably not.
The coil should show up in two days. I will give an update once I get it installed.

Dale

[Dale_W]

just a follow-up
New Briggs coil installed using a business card as a gauge.
The mower started right up and runs like new.
Thank you for your help.

Dale