Kubota TG1860 bad starter

Kubota TG1860 about 15 years old. Starter unreliable. Dealer said no repair possible and must buy new starter which he said was quite expensive. Dealer service manager suggested work around of manually rotating fan blade and then retry starter. Works. But not every time. Sometimes have to try 4 or 5 times to get it to work. Difficult when wife using mower, not so bad for me. Unfortunately she loves to mow. Any suggestions? (About starter, not wife; 51 years and counting.)