MTD 61 series, Shop Manual

Page: 81 / 142

Starters
75
Starter Rope
The most common failure mode for most recoil assem-
blies is a broken rope. See Figure 6.5.
NOTE: If the spring was not damaged when the recoil
sprung back, It is possible to simply remove the
remnants of the old rope.
1. Remove the starter by following the steps described
earlier in this chapter.
2. Remove the old starter rope by prying out the starter
cord knot and pulling the rope out with it.
3. Cut a piece of #4 recoil rope 9’ (3 meters) long.
4. Heat fuse the ends of the starter rope, and tie a dou-
ble half-hitch in one end.
5. The rope may be easily installed from the inside-out.
Pull the rope tight to seat the knot firmly in the recess
in the back of the pulley. See Figure 6.6.
6. Wind the spring completely. Then relieve it minimum
1 full turn, counting when the pulley knot aligns with
the rope bushing in the housing. (This usually results
in about 1.5-1.75 complete turns of relief), and
secure it with a spring clamp. See Figure 6.6.
7. Install the handle and handle insert on the loose end
of the rope, again using a double half-hitch. See
Figure 6.7.
8. Remove the spring clamp and carefully let the rope
rewind into the starter.
9. Give the starter a couple of test pulls to verify the
right amount of tension on the starter rope.
Figure 6.5
Recoil assembly,
removed from mower
Starter cord
Knot
Figure 6.6
Spring clamp
maintains tension
while rope
is installed
Press knot
fully into
groove
Figure 6.7
Inset: knot