I believe the compression release thingie that rides on the cam-shaft has went by the wayside.

For two summers, I was able to hand rotate the engine past the compression to the point where it would spin over fairly easy; and, with jumper-cables = real jumper cables = on my three battery truck and 160-amp Leece-Neville, it would whirl past the compression and start.

Recently, not even that will get it past the compression.

The common consensus is that the available starters, even the B&S ones, just do not have enough oomph to over-ride the compression.

I have looked for a recoil rope starter to no avail.

When I ponder on the fact that, until recently, it would whirl with authority when connected to the truck; and, now it won't; I am wondering if maybe my starter has just gotten weaker that it already was --- I hate to lay down forty bucks that I don't have only to find that it still won't crank.

I have tried all the You-Tube tricks to get past the compression; however, every video that I have watched, the engine has an entirely different breather design than what I have; and, the breather I have, it is impossible to close off the air flow like shown on the videos.

I had that mesh top off; and, underneath the little safety covers, is the head of a huge bolt.

I am thinking that, if that bolt does not screw plumb into China, maybe I could replace it with a longer bolt such that a nut on the longer bolt could serve as the "head" and I could trap a big pulley above the shroud; and, either crank it with a rope wound around the pulley; or, belt it to a Pony Engine.

What are you guys thoughts ?

Is there an affordable starter available that will power past the compression; or, what are your thoughts on my other ideas ?

Before someone says why not just replace the compression thingie in the engine, the common consensus is that the repair is very short-lived, even when using genuine B&S parts, costs quite a bit, and won't last through a summer. 

i ran a 22 hp BRIGGS for 8 years then it started doing that... Rotate by hand for 4 years... then adjusted the VALVES as seen on You TUbe... has been OK for 4 years.

Steve beat me... ADJUST THE VALVES !! It's a 'well known' must do thing.....

I raise the front of the riders up, over night , to let the oil drain back into the sump,,,THEN remove the valve covers next morning (far less oil to deal with...) Have the 'proceedure' magnetted to the garage door for easy reference.

jaybmiller wrote: Steve beat me... ADJUST THE VALVES !! It's a 'well known' must do thing.....

Last night, when the wife got home, we did try to pull-start it; it is an all-belt-driven MTD (I think); and, no matter which gear configuration I tried, the belt just slipped on the crank-shaft pulley and the mesh cover on top never gave any hint that the engine/crank moved at all.

Oh....., and don't get "too cheap" confused with plain old Kentucky poverty; --- I am close by circumstances and necessity, not at all by choice.

Turn me loose with just half the money that most have available and watch me come to the front.....

All the above suggestions are good, if it wasn't for a well-known problem with that particular engine.

The problem with that engine, is a poorly designed compression release mechanism located in the crankcase, that breaks, and then fails to operate.

If you do searching on the spec number and the compression release problem, you'll find it ad-nauseum.  You'll see that the replacement of starters, cables, solenoids, starter pinions is followed by valve and timing adjustments, with the end result being the same.

There are only two fixes, one is temporary, the other is permanent.

The temporary solution is to pull the engine, drain it, open up the case, get in there and remove the broken ACR assembly, replace it with a new one.  It wil return to normal operation and run well, until the same failure occurs again.  The factory has no 'improved version' to end this, as they consider this failure to be 'normal'.

The permanent solution is to pull the engine, drain it, and drop it in the recycle bin, and install a different spec engine from a different manufacturer, which is what my neighbor did after pulling apart the crankcase twice.

Is it a shame?  Yes- a terrible self-inflicted wound by B&S.  They deserve every bit of it.

Fortunately, this engine was sold primarily to MTD (neighbors had a "WHITE" brand label on it) with intention of being a 'big box' line.  In the long run, they are victims of their own insolence, and apparently not smart enough to figure it out.  The question is, will their customer base see it, and get wise?  Hard to say.  I'm certain the 'definite life perspective' shared by both the engine manufacturer and the machine's manufacturer, is that this is a 'definite life' product, and if they were to improve it, their regular sales numbers would fall. 

As a quality management type person, I would say that drawing the sales line curves based on definite life assures that the Company's operating culture has adopted the path of 'death spiral'.  This is what happens when bookkeepers and marketing departments get to make all the decisions.  Frankly, they're usually the last people to lose their jobs in situations like this, but once done, they have a really nice record to point to on their resume...  "my performance statistics were really good, until the company folded"

And there is NO WAY you can pull start most lawn mowers.

Yeowww, I still remember the ole gal yanking the pull handle outta my hand. 

I can see being close to poverty by circumstance, even circumstances out of your control, but, necessity??  Maybe I misunderstand you.  

HudCo wrote: adjust the valves and be done with it

How?  Bring the lash in so tight that they close late?  With the ACR mechanism not augmenting the open time, there's really nothing that a valve adjustment will accomplish, that won't cause more harm and performance loss.... save for ONE thing-  It will give you opportunity to SEE that the ACR function is no longer working.

Chick explains it all here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2i54SK_SMPU" rel="nofollow - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2i54SK_SMPU

B&S have a PDF on how to adjust the valves, I have a copy 'somewhere' on this PC. Usually spend 10 minutes finding it, print it off, hang in garage...then lose THAT copy....

I know you need a Torx bit and a 10 or 12mm wrench.

Once you read how to do it , it's not that hard...wel after you find TDC and back off 90*....

I appreciate all the replies and activity and will implement them once I am able to once again stagger around --- right now, my head is swimming, my throat has a nagging raw spot, I am seeing horses, teeth chattering and shivering uncontrollably one minute and sweat pouring off me the next, and this is the longest I have managed to stay off the pot.

From his original post:

BuckSkin wrote: I have a vertical shaft 14.5hp Briggs & Stratton engine model 287707. I believe the compression release thingie that rides on the cam-shaft has went by the wayside. For two summers, I was able to hand rotate the engine past the compression to the point where it would spin over fairly easy; and, with jumper-cables = real jumper cables = on my three battery truck and 160-amp Leece-Neville, it would whirl past the compression and start. Recently, not even that will get it past the compression.... Before someone says why not just replace the compression thingie in the engine, the common consensus is that the repair is very short-lived, even when using genuine B&S parts, costs quite a bit, and won't last through a summer.

This isn't a 'hard start' situation, it is a textbook symptom-set for the ACR Trigger failure.

Pull the spark plug, Lift the valve cover, and observe the rocker arm for a 'double bump'.  If it ain't there, the ACR parts are rolling around in the sump.

Prayers for a swift recovery, Buck!  Keep us posted!