Craftsman 917258873 /Koehlor 18hp will not start

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Craftsman 917258873 /Koehlor 18hp will not start

Matt	My tractor will not start now. It was sitting for some time and had water in the fuel system. I could turn it over with starting fluid before cleaning the water out but once I cleaned the fuel system it will not start. The solenoid just clicks when turning the key to start. I have bypassed the seat and brake/neutral safety switches and still no turn over. I am looking to find the wiring diagram for the PTO switch to jump that out. Also, if I try to turn the starter over with 12v direct to lug on housing, it will not turn over. but if I remove the starter from the motor it does spin free with 12v applied to lug. The motor DOES spin freely! I can spin it using a wrench on lower bolt to flywheel. Any ideas? Thanks for all help!!!
Joe	Check battery with a hydrometer & try charging same OR jump with a know good/charged battery,due to the fact that sol clicks with/without jumpers proves safety sw's working & sol working,starter may spin free when removed from eng,but if battery weak/dead it will not turn eng under a compression load,but will operate sol,connect a voltmeter to battery,try to start eng,if voltage drops to 11v/less,charge/replace battery.
Joe	After checking/charging battery & same ok,or if eng still won't crank,remove plug(s) & try cranking,if eng spins fast now,you may have a carb problem,if when cleaning out fuel system you removed carb from eng & disassembled or didn't remove/clean out carb,you may have dirt in float needle seat,sticking/stuck float,bad float,incorrect float level,allowing leak by in carb,flooding cyl(s) & hydro locking piston(s) on compression stroke.
Matt	Thanks for the help! Seems I have made progress by firing up the motor bypassing the safety side of the solenoid. If I provide 12v direct to the starter cable from the disconnected battery cable, the motor fires up and runs with the key in the "on" position. It still will not turn over with the battery cable connected to the solenoid. It still clicks at the solenoid. While running, the PTO switch works and lets the blades spin. I am wondering if I need a solenoid or am I missing a safety switch somewhere in the system? Here is the breakdown: Battery cable connected to solenoid, it will not start. Battery cable disconnected and power put direct to starter cable it fires up and runs. No start with all safety switches engaged using key and battery cable connected to the solenoid. Thanks!
Joe	Went to sears website & looked at elect parts drawing for tractor,start circuit is usually wired thru clutch/brake sw & pto sw,the seat sw usually only affects eng ign,contacts in seat sw close when not sitting on seat,this ign kill circuit also runs thru brake/clutch & pto sw,if you engage clutch/pto & not sitting on seat,ign grounded thru seat sw,stopping eng(acts the same as turning ign sw to off/stop)the +12 volts to starter sol also runs thru clutch/brake & pto sw so you can't start eng with clutch/pto engaged,this is how a normal circuit works,however looking at elect parts drawing,tractor has a plug in relay behind dash or in wiring harness,I suspect clutch/pto sw operate this relay & feed +12 to sol coil,the click you hear may be this relay & not starter sol,contacts in same may be bad,locate relay & try jumping/bypassing relay & see if sol/starter work.
Matt	After thinking and speaking to an "olde timer" about lawnmowers, he suggested to try a solenoid because I was making all the safety switches. Well after a trip to Sears to pick up a solenoid, that fixed it. Now it fires right up with the key. Next is to fix the awful idle issues and clean up the carb. Again thanks for all the help!

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