Small Engines (Lawn Mowers, etc.): John Deere Mower(JA62) will not crank, john deere mower, combustion chamber

Question
I have a 4 year old or so John Deere JA-62 self-propelled mower.
It ran find end of season last year. No gas was left in the tank and I ran it dry of fuel.
It will not "crank". I replaced the spark plug, air filter, gasket between the air filter and carb which had torn while troubleshooting and a small spring (govenor) which was worn out. All the cables appear to work the linkages fine. If I remove the spark plug and pour a little gas in the combustion chamber, I can pull the starter cord and the mower fires (runs) very briefly and then dies.
I have also cleaned the carb, drained the gas tank again am using new fuel.
Still will not crank. Any ideas?

Answer
Hi Darrell,

Since you can keep it running by adding fuel, then the
carb most likely has dirt, debris or gummed fuel inside.   
You will need to remove the carb, disassemble it, clean all the small internal openings and blow it out with compressed air.   Probe each and every hole with a
small wire.   Adding a carb rebuild kit wouldn't hurt either.  

For storage, I would recommend keeping the fuel tank full with stabilizer added.  Run it for a few minutes to get it into the carb.  Even running a carb dry may leave fuel that can gum up in a short time.

Let me know how you make out.
Michael