I strongly suspect you need to adjust the valves. I have detailed instructions for adjusting the valves on that engine IF you would like them. Address below, put in proper format.

Walt Conner
wconner5 at verizon dot net

Better check your connections at the battery, for rusty bolts and wire ends. Also check at the solenoid, and the starter wire.
Also, if it is the overhead valve type of engine, the valves may need adjusting, or maybe a valve repair job.
you say it is a new battery. how new? Did you try a trickle charge on it overnight?

From your description of the behavior of the engine while cranking, go straight to the valve adjustment. Be sure to use the procedure obtained from Walt. You are by no means the first person to try placing the blame on the starter when this happens (though you might be the first one that didn't buy a couple of new starters first).

No Mownie!

It's battery, starter, solenoid & valve adjust-
in that order!:_)

Just got a message thanking me for instructions he used after new battery and starter.

Walt Conner

Been doing this since I put a new battery in it last year so all connections were cleaned at that time. I never gave a thought to valves being that far out of adjustment to cause this symptom. Engine runs fine once started and starts easy once starter spins past that first stroke. Walt I think I have instructions on the valve adjustment, but will let you know if I should need them.
Thanks all.

"I never gave a thought to valves being that far out of adjustment to cause this symptom."

The compression release on your engine works off a special lever that causes the Intake Valve to crack open just enough to release a little compression for cranking. When the Intake Valve has just a few thousandths too much clearance, the compression release can not work properly. When the engine starts, the compression release is deactivated. It is not the valve its self that is the problem.

Walt Conner

bill, sorry I got it in the wrong order, that happens sometimes. I also seem to remember reading a few threads where the ignition switch was replaced as well (total rehab) but I don't remember which step that was done in. :^)

Walt, I e-mailed you to request the valve setting instructions, did you get it or did I mess up your address?

my e-mail starts weth

"factorypilot"

Didn't get, just replace the "at" with @ and the "dot" with a . no spaces just as you do in your address.

I do not post proper address because of automatic "crawlers" harvesting email address for spam.
Walt Conner

Walt, I tried again. I just switched service providers so it maybe on my end. Thanks. It is verizon

Just to let all those who responded know, I adjusted the valves and problem seemed to be cured.

Thanks.
factorypilot

hi walt i alsso have the same problem new battery and all i adjusted the valves three times and still wont turn over acting like not enough power. if i jump it with my truck it will fire right up???? please help

OK, you can get it to crank and run only if you jump it off from your truck. That eliminates it being a problem with the starter. You installed a new battery. Because of this problem?
Did the new battery crank the engine even one time after you installed it, without having to be jumped from your truck?
It sounds very much like your charging system is not charging your new battery, and unless you charged the new battery up before you installed it, there is no reason to believe it was fully charged enough to crank the engine even then.
Do you have a volt meter (multi meter) in your tool chest?
It needs to be determined if your engine is actually recharging the battery.

Always helpful if you post the model number of your engine. You may want to see that all your connections are clean, bright and sound especially where the battery ground cable attaches to the frame.

When you "jump directly from your truck", where are you jumping to? To the mower battery or to the starter?

A good test is to use a small jumper wire directly from the battery cable where it attaches to the starter solenoid to the small solenoid activating post on the starter solenoid.

What happens?

i went threw and cleand all the conecters and put new ones on the neg and pos side of the battery and i even ran a hot wire from the battery stright to the starter and it wont turn over. the starter will spin but not even fast enough to raise the little plastic starter gear i dont have a volt meter but i can get one. and yes i got a new battey because of that problem. did i mabey get a bad battery?

the model number is 287707 and the type is 0224-01 and i jumped it stright from my truck to the battery on the mower

***" did i mabey get a bad battery?"***
It's possible, but it would be wise to find out if the engine's charging system is even working before you take the new battery back for an argument.
Get a volt meter, set it to "DC Volts". Connect one lead to the battery positive post and the other to the battery negative post. If this battery is fully charged (which I doubt) it should show at least 12.6 volts and maybe even as high as 13.2 volts.
Anything less than 12.6 and the battery certainly has not had a charge. Record the exact volt reading on a piece of note paper.
Next, perform your jump start trick and do it as quickly as possible (meaning don't leave the jumper cables connected for longer than it takes to get your engine running). Disconnect the jumper cables as soon as your tractor engine is running.
While running your tractor engine at max RPM, connect your volt meter to the battery again as you did before. Hopefully, the reading you see will be higher than the first time you checked the voltage. Write down the present reading. Let the engine run about 5 minutes and recheck the voltage reading, write down the reading. After 5 minutes run time, connect the volt meter to the battery again. This reading should be even a bit higher than the previous reading after the engine began running.
If none of the readings show any increase in voltage (or if the voltage actually decreases) the engine charging system is defective.
If that turns out to be true, we will need the model and type numbers of the engine before going further with testing.

the battery was dead i got it on a charger now. i cant get a voltage meter today but i can monday. after having the charger on the battery for five mins it trys to start just no power so i will let it charge for a while. in the mean time i do not think my charging system is working. is that replaceable/fixable the model#is 287707 type# 0224-01

***"in the mean time i do not think my charging system is working."***
Hellloooo! But we need to determine if the engine is charging or not, so even if the engine will crank and start after the battery is charged does not mean you have solved the problem, and it does not indicate for sure that the new battery is good (though it probably is good). A battery must be able to receive a charge when offered, and hold onto that charge for a reasonable length of time (at least a month or 2).
Not to sound "cute", but........are you planning to buy? or borrow? a volt meter? You can buy a satisfactory volt meter at any auto parts store or home improv center for less than $10 to $15.

i plan on borrowing one but i can also get one either way so right now iam at the point where either my battery is bad or it is not getting gharged by my motor i will be able ot find out tomarrow. but for say it is the charging system what can i do?

Matt, please post the brand and full model number of the tractor this engine is in (usually can be found on frame or body under seat or near rear of tractor).
Also answer this: Does the tractor have an electric PTO? or does it engage the blades manually by moving a lever.
Also, can you make the headlights burn with the engine not running? or do you absolutely gotta have the engine running to get headlights?? (all this will help to ID the charging set-up on your 287707-0224-01 Briggs.
Then we can move on to some actual tests, First things first and put the horse before the cart.

iam pretty sure it is a mtd but i will have to double check when i get home and it has the breakpads to stop the blades and yeah it is just done by the lever and the head lights will not run unless the engine is running

Good answers!

so any ideas or do i need that model number first?

It always improves the chances of getting correct answers (and parts) if all the data is brought to the table.
But because your tractor has a manual engage PTO for the deck, and a separate circuit off the alternator to run the lights, we can presume this charging system to be the "Dual circuit" stator configuration. You still need to check the things I outlined Sunday evening regarding the battery voltage readings. Those checks will help determine if the Briggs is charging. Then we can go on to test what is actually causing it not to charge.
You really should create a new thread to cover your problem. Just log in and then go to the bottom of opening page of the forum where it allows you to post a message (thread). Title it like "Briggs not charging battery" (or something like that). It will help if you mention in the first line of the new thread the engine model & type numbers again. Then all you gotta say is "this thread continues troubleshooting my problem from another thread."
The problem that sometimes comes up when a thread gets "hijacked" by another member (and it ends up requiring a lot of posts) is that having multiple machines in a common thread can cause errors of data, specifications, test readings, etc.
So at this time, please just type up a new thread and we will continue from there. Thanks