Another Vanguard Briggs and Stratton 14 hp Diagnosis wanted by a Muppet (me)

[cjdg]

The background is that I have a Countrax ride on mower and lost the key.  Improvised with a screw driver in desperation and finally got round to buying a new key holder.  The new key holder was differently wired.  To cut a long story short I managed to put the wrong wire on the wrong terminal with the result that I got smoke coming out of the top of the engine where the starter motor goes round.  See photo.  The smoke lasted for about at most 10 seconds probably less when the batter was quickly disconnected.  Tried to start it again (more in hope than expectation) and not surprisingly it is dead as a dodo. Now I am an old motorcycle guy and am not familiar with a more modern engine that probably has PCBs and my suspicion is that I have blown something serious... but what? is it the insulation on a copper coil of some sort? (I think not) so what caused the smoke to stop the engine firing ?   

Where will I find a "Haines" type manual to work out how to take the cowling etc off and get to the working parts of the engine? Yrs aye. Chris George

[Tree monkey 1682]

Ebay for manuals or agri manuals? They might have something similar , could you even have shorted a fuse ?

[spudulike]

Get the other half to get you a decent multimeter for Christmas, I have had them since I was 12 years old...saved me a small fortune.

[cjdg]

Thanks Steve, Its not a fuse as that would merely melt. What I saw was wreaths of smoke of something burning not melting. 

Vet Mem The other half would not know one end of a multimeter from the other, let alone buy me one. She is more into socks and underpants! I have three and a reasonable amateur understanding of how to use them.  Can't see how that would help as when I eventually get to take it to bits I expect to find some charred electrical component   Was hoping that the excellent forum would have an idea of what was likely to be burned out by 12 v shoved in the wrong spur of the key switch  It has to be an electrical component or wire and affecting the starting process.  My guess would be some thing that is associated with the spark generation.