Mower Review

- Why is my Craftman mower coil going bad?
my craftman 18 horse mower blew both head lights then the coil went bad. I replaced the coil and mowed the yard two times ,it went bad again. Its a 2005 18 horse single cylinder Sears Craftman. I checked all ground wires to frame, connections, and switches. There is power to head lights, I didnt replace blown bulbs yet.

A There is a rectifier that is in series with the charging system for the battery. It may be shorted as if were open you would not have a charging system. It is located in the wire harness Mine was wrapped in tape. If you find to be shorted both ways using a ohm test meter make sure you know which it is facing as can be put in backwards. It changes the ac to dc.Hope this helps http://i107.photobucket.com/albums/m314/Restrorob/Briggs/BriggsPushButtonCircuit.jpg

- How do you test the coil on a lawn mower to see if it is firing?
I have a push mower with a Briggs and Stratton Quantum 4 H.P. engine.It suddenly stopped while cutting. I don't seem to be getting any spark. I checked the plug, key etc. Any way to test the coil? Any help?

A The spark plug wire comes directly from the coil. Take the wire off the plug, hold it close to a good ground and crank the engine. If a spark doesn't jump from the wire to the ground you have a bad wire or coil. The wire and coil on a Briggs are one piece so you have to change them both anyway. The coil can also be bench tested but you will have to take it to a shop.