(ET) New (to me) deck motor failure mode.

["Elie, Larry (L.D.)" <lelie ford com>]

90 deg. weather and mowing don't go hand in hand to me.  Regardless, I 
tried a little mowing.  Suddenly I saw smoke on my right motor.  Quickly 
shut down with the two wires welded together.  First guess was the wires; 
wrong.  I pulled the lid, made new connections, and tried again.  The 
insulation caught fire.  The motor was TURNING, and the current (load) 
meter was in the red.  I swapped out the motor, and will pull that puppy 
apart when I get the chance.  It spins freely, just yanks tons of current. 
 My guess; some wire on the armature are fused together.  I have spares.  
Just a bit exciting, my other motor failures have been much less exciting.

Larry Elie