G1625S

A little background. I replaced the plastic fuel lines on a buddys truck with rubber line. Got it primed and started and ran well with no leaks. Let stand for most of the afternoon and fired right back up, so I figured no air leaks either. Buddy came to get it next day and texted to say it would not start. Apparently he cranked it till the batteries died, but now, even with full batteries, I get just a click when I turn the key. When I put my 'smart' charger on the batteries, it reads dead cell/open short in a/the batteries. When I disconnect the batteries from the truck, they charge fine. Would the starter contacts burning out cause the system to show a short? Any/all opinions welcomed
greg

carl48

could be, charge the batteries and put back in truck. take it out of gear and connect the ground last. if the button on the solenoid is welded to the contact it will spin the motor.