Everything you need will be in the Briggs # 696537 kit.

I see that the kit has a new starter gear on it & a clip. How can I address the issue with the starter gear sticking when it's at the top?

What I've seen is that the current assembly, when the gear runs up that it will collapse the spring & even if the gear goes down, the spring won't always follow.

I can't make out the spiral on the drive. Should that be worn, you would replace that as well. It seems as the starter itself seems to run strong and doesn't seem like the upper bushing could be worn in the starter. Just make sure we are on the same page. You will have to round up a flywheel puller as well. As a tip: what I do on removing the old rivets is to cut through them with an abrasive disc through the gear and then drive them out. Much less tedious than drilling IMO.

Just used a gear puller to get the flywheel off & was trying to decide if I could grind the heads off, or if there was another way. I was going to take the whole assembly with me to get parts & see what came with it before I decided what to tear up....

The clutch drive (the plastic spiral) is brand new, as is the rest of that starter drive. I purchased it about a month ago, brand new. Spring is the brand new one also. Previous starter had the same issue (sticking at the top & wouldn't disengage).

The sticking can be from the challenges that the gears are having. If the starter is not worn, wobbling or weak and you are using an OEM drive, you should be ok.

Is the starter and flywheel ring properly matched..? Is it plastic against metal or ? Can't recall which way it should be, but somebody on this forum can probably state it...If flywheel rings gears are torn up...replace the ring..Starter gear will properly drop down when spiral is clean and starter is proper match...IMO...

I forget the order but it is backward of logic as I recall. It is most likely a chewed up. gear.Plastic and metal gear issue . I would make sure that all parts are cop-acetic with each other. I had troubles when I first had my 11 HP flat head eat 2 starter drives in short order. Got the right part. and re-did cable connections and made sure the starter was mounted evenly.. No trouble in yrs. Have you tried a spritz of spray lube?

Had to use a gear puller to get the flywheel off - it came off just fine. The (plastic) gear on the flywheel had been chewed off - there was about 3" of mostly intact teeth on it - not enough to catch enough to spin it to start though. That was problem #1.

Shopped around on Saturday looking for a ring gear. No one had one in stock. Found a local guy who had spare parts from other mowers & found a used flywheel with an aluminum ring gear on it. Cleaned it up & got ready to put onto my mower & noticed something wasn't right with the crankshaft. I hadn't noticed when I pulled the flywheel off that the centering tip on the gear puller I used had wedged itself into the top of the crankshaft. It would turn freely, but would NOT come out. After several hours yesterday of trying everything else, I was able to drill through it & eventually pop it out. Miraculously, the crankshaft threads were not ruined. After that, was able to install the flywheel with the aluminum ring gear.

Also on Saturday, looking at the starter more closely, there was a "burr" on the threads of the plastic clutch, I suppose where it wasn't being released & staying engaged with the flywheel earlier. I was able to take the starter & spin it by hand and was able to make the gear stick at the top every time. I bought (another) clutch kit, this time with a metal gear & replaced it. Unlike before, this time I took steel wool to the starter shaft & shined it, then used lithium grease on it the inside of it. Put everything back together & then shot WD40 on the outside of the gear. With this, the gear returns each time, not sticking like the previous one (so far).

Before my original post, I had tried to crank the mower. I turned on the fuel shut off & tried to crank it & eventually gave up. I turned the fuel off when I stopped, but wasn't able to empty what was in the carb since I couldn't get it to start. (Since I had problems earlier, I put the shut off valve in. Other than this time, I never turn the mower off - I cut the fuel off & let it run out of fuel).

Once I got things back together, I tried to crank the mower. As soon as I turned the shut off valve to ON & tried to crank it (would not fire), I heard the glug-glug-glug-glug of the crankcase filling with fuel. Sure enough, oil level was about 1/2" higher than what I knew it was before trying to start it last week.

I haven't rebuilt the carb, but replaced the float & needle when it had this issue the first time. This was the 3rd or 4th time this has happened. It happened the first time earlier this year when I was trying to fix it up for use after it having had sat for several years.

I'm not 100% sure, but the fuel tank (gravity fed to carb) looked really empty before I put gas in it before trying to start last week. I added about 1/2 tank of gas. I use Sta-Bil in it & the stored gas which is about 3-4 weeks old now (I purposely ran it low the last time I used it). I wouldn't have run the tank dry, so I'm assuming the shut off didn't do it's thing.

In reading about some of these engines (mine is a Briggs & Stratton 12.5 HP I/C Quiet, model 28m707-0178-01), I see numerous reports of the same issue. Even though I see that a complete rebuild appears to address the problem, I'm not sure how that is ever more than one failed start or not allowing the carb to run dry to reoccur.

I'm sure that the ethanol is the culprit, but haven't yet found a source for "real" unleaded gasoline. Is there a reliable solution for using gas with ethanol? Also, given my most recent self-induced repair, I'm not sure I want to touch the carb.... ;-)

A few things for you. You really need to use the plastic drive gear w/ the aluminum ring gear, or the process will repeat itself. Depending on which carb and how much patience you have will depend on the best repair route to go. An inline fuel valve being shut off when the tractor is not in use is a great insurance policy, as long as it isn't defective :) but still the oil needs a changing...