[johnkosir]

if the capacitor was gone that is what would happen. as a retired hvac contractor i would want to check the 3 connection's on the compressor to see that they are in good condition. no burnt wires or loose connectors. they will be marked c s r (common,start, run) there should be line voltage between c and r and c and s when the compressor tries to start,the capacitor puts the start windings out of phase with the run winding which is what makes the motor turn, if the cap is open or shorted or weak the motor will not start. lots of meters will check capacitors, if the cap is good, i would try a hard start kit before i would replace the unit i have seen them work for a really long time