I replaced the shut off solenoid on my 2003 Century 2535 tractor with a manual choke cable. Since the solenoid just pushes a lever back and forth, I figured that I could do the same thing with a manual choke.
What's really crazy is that the choke pushes the lever just a little farther then the solenoid did and I have more power when running the tractor. It only has 1,000 hours on it, but it was starting to feel tired to me, but after changing to the manual choke, it feels more responsive, has more power going up hills and overall, just runs better.
To stop the engine, I push in the choke and leave it in. When I want to start it, I pull out the choke, and it fires right up.