by dart451 » Thu Jun 08, 2017 4:10 pm
Working on a Craftsman tractor, 917.287121 Briggs 31P977-0635-E. The owner bought a new battery cause the starter was dragging, didn't fix the problem. I installed a new starter, solenoid, same problem. I have bypassed the both negative and positive cables, same problem. It's like it gets on a compression stroke and struggles to turn over the motor. Once it starts spinning, it spins fine. I just checked the compression, I'm getting a max of 135-140 psi. Pretty high for an older tractor I would think. First thought was that gas was escaping into the crankcase...I've had that happen before. Oil level is perfect! Any thoughts from those in the know?