Check the voltage on the battery terminals before starting,
then at cutting speed - if not higher after starting then
the charging system is either not functioning or not
charging the battery.

Possible culprits include, but are not limited to; bad
connections, defective alternator coil(s), bad diode, open
protection circuit such as fuse or breaker, current drain
such as shorted wiring.

Patch wrote:

About the only way to tell is to run it & see if the battery goes down. If
you had the right equipment you could put an ammeter in series with the
battery & see if it is charging.

"Dave" wrote in message
m...
i have 10 hp kohler engine (the engine was probably made in the mid
70's) that seems to drain the battery when the engine is running. i
replaced the rectifier but am not sure if that has fixed the problem.
any ideas?

i orginally replaced the battery, but quickly found that was not the
problem.

-david