And here I dreaded changing the coil on my weed eater.   You got me beat.

Hmmm
Never considered it might be under warranty.
Would take more effort to trailer it to the dealer than to just fix it. Part is $17 from Amazon.  Hope it fixes it…

That looks a little like a Harley engine.  Hmmm ... have you ever considered an engine swap in that machine?  Think of the burnouts

Several of my neighbors had John Deere stuff.  They replaced it with something else (usually either Husqvarna or Hustler) after their Deere equipment failed. 

I've had several Craftsman lawn tractors and they've all been extremely reliable.  The current one has been going trouble-free since 2011 and works year-round - mowing in the summer and snow blowing in the winter.  It's made by Husqvarna.  My Kubota compact tractor has been trouble-free since I bought it in 1996 - a little over 500 hours.  The Kubotas are made in Japan, not China or Korea, and are known to be pretty bullet proof.

MS wrote:

This JD mower is not a Home Depot special. It came from a Deere tractor dealer and has a heavier frame and even power steering. It has a Husqvarna engine with an oil pump and pressurized oil system like a car has. And apparently a crappy solenoid.

Understood.  The neighbors had bought theirs at the local Deere ag equipment dealer so I assume it was the upper tier stuff as you describe.  Their failures were also electrical - they had really strange issues that even the dealer never figured out.  

For my part, I've specifically bought the tractors with the Kohler engines (other than the Kubota).  The Kohler engines (made in Wisconsin) also have pressurized, filtered oiling system.

About 10 years ago I also went to the local JD store and bought a 48" riding mower, it was the biggest piece of crap that I ever bought.  I would absolutely never buy another one.  Thanks for letting me give them some free advertisement and letting me vent a little, cuz I'm still PO'd at that deal.

My old JD has been mowing and pushing snow for 23 years.  I got the hyrostatic drive model which came with a one-lung Kohler engine.  651 hours, one fuel tank, one starter, one spark plug,  and regular oil/filter changes. 
Butt (TS&T), I wouldn't buy a new one.  Thought about a zero-turn but decided to keep the the JD afloat and spend the money on something fun....like car stuff.

BB1
 

$17 Amazon solenoid did the trick!  Of course, MustangSteve’s LAW applies to John
Deere, too.  The new solenoid had 5/16” studs instead of the original’s 1/4” so I had to enlarge the holes in three wire terminals so they would fit.
At least it runs now.  I moved cars around today so I can get the fastback on the lift to replace the rack pinion and install the Opentracker lower control arm adjustable mounts.

Yep, Bob.  I think I will install the kit on the convertible WYAIT

Elongating the existing holes is the only tedious part.  My neighbor has a brand new plasma cutter for sale. Since I have to do BOTH SIDES, that would make cost of buying the machine to cut a hole HALF AS MUCH, right?

MS wrote:

Elongating the existing holes is the only tedious part. My neighbor has a brand new plasma cutter for sale. Since I have to do BOTH SIDES, that would make cost of buying the machine to cut a hole HALF AS MUCH, right?

Yeah ... no. You've only gotta elongate half a hole on each side. 

How does a Murray riding mower compare to a J Deere?      J Deere 3 times more expensive?!  (See where I'm going?)
I doubt many of us will wear out 3 Murray mowers in our life time. 
6sally6

I have a 60" deck on mine and its a 3-1/2 hour process to mow.  Well, 1-1/2 now that my son does the field.  This year I'm hoping for it to be a 0 hour task.  Its time for him to start doing the main lawn too.