Random thoughts thread

[trashmanssd]

Did you drain the fuel and was it out of the weather over the winter?

WINTER????? he is in Texas that thing couldnt have been away that long.

[trashmanssd]

Screw it time for UPGRADE!!!!!!!!!!!

[Ronkh]

Screw it time for UPGRADE!!!!!!!!!!!

now dats a texas size mower

[Nizmo]

Last time i used it before "winter" i ran it till empty.

Never been a fan of this at all. With proper fuel treatment, fuel in the bowl over the winter is no issue and provides "lubrication" for the seals in the carb.

[Migue]

My yards are simple enough that i can get by easily with an electric mower thank goodness. Starts right up with the push of a button and my garage doesn`t smell like gas/oil. Having a cord was a bit of a pain at first but once you get your pattern/system down, it rarely gets in the way.

[GearHead_1]

Never been a fan of this at all. With proper fuel treatment, fuel in the bowl over the winter is no issue and provides "lubrication" for the seals in the carb.

Having worked on small engines for 30 years, I can tell you first hand that fuel stabilizers create their own set of problems and seals in the carb are some of them. Draining the bowel and emptying the carb completely is the only way to prevent jets from becoming plugged.

[512detail]

Cleaned the air filter. It was horrendous. My dad said i need to get fuel to the carb. I decided to have a burger and beer instead. My box should arrive soon enougj to divert my attention but for some reason my tapatalk wont let me load pics from my phone anymore.

[Nizmo]

Draining the bowel and emptying the carb completely is the only way to prevent jets from becoming plugged.

Most people don`t take the bowl off to drain it though. I`ve ran across a couple machines they did and left it for a year. After adding fuel, it went everywhere since the seals dried out. Never had a problem with any of my machines using Sea Foam as a fuel treatment/stabilizer. Doesn`t work for everybody, your mileage my vary

[GearHead_1]

That`s an L-Head (not overhead valve) Briggs & Stratton in the picture. The deck is an MTD manufactured Snapper branded mower. No offense intended but Snappers that use the fabric bags are a significantly better machine than that MTD produced machines when you replace it jump up a model or even to their commercial machines and you will be very well served. These are work horse engines that typically take little maintenance and they just keep going.

These engines have two problems that show up somewhat regularly after sitting for extended periods of time. The first is one that is typically easily checked. With the plug in the mower, pull the rope, do you fell resistance when you pull it? When you pull it does the flywheel continue to spin after you`ve pulled? If there is no resistance or the flywheel just keeps spinning you have a compression problem. These heads are known to have valves stick open when sitting. This is most common if the mower is left sitting in the weather. If the rope pulls more easily than it should it can be an indicator that there is no compression, stuck valves cause this. You can also pull the plug and put your finger over the plug hole, have someone else pull the rope and see if it blows your finger off and of course you can use a compression guage. Often times these valves when stuck can be worked back and forth using carb cleaner and a bit of patience without disassembling the engine, though you may need a head gasket when you pop the top. Often times the old gasket can be reused.

More common is the main jet being plugged with gunk (I`ve seen it as solid as stone at times). This can happen with even the slightest amount of fuel left in the bowl. I can`t tell you why one mower does this and the next doesn`t. You can be fine for years not draining the fuel and then all of the sudden you have a plugged jet. It`s a good idea to not only run the mower out of fuel but to drop the bowl on the carb and drain the remaining fuel out. You can do this with the carb still on the mower.

These carbs are easily pulled and and the jet removed. In fact if in some cases you won`t necessarily need to pull the jet (though I would). You can clean a gummed up jet using a strand of wire out of a wire brush or a acetylene welding tip cleaner, working it back and forth in the hole using a little spray carb cleaner. Check the float while it`s in your hand and make sure it doesn`t have fuel in it. Depending on the carb, you can have a jet that not only has a hole down the center of it but a very small passage that is just above the threads on the jet and goes into the main jet. Both need to be clear. As has been said, check for spark, coils that sit outside can rust and become less than effective. Look at the plug closely, you`ll usually find your problem with these quick checks.

[Poorboy]

how about a hammer or a big stick

[512detail]

Gearhead-
It has resistance when i pull the cord. It tries to crank. Makes a slight putter noise and then it dissapates.

I was hoping it was the air filter clogged. Never had issues storing it over winter with gas in it but last year i decided to run it dry.

This is like a foreign object to me. I will try more when i get back home IF the box is not there yet that is.

[512detail]

how about a hammer or a big stick

3wood. Haha

That`ll fix er

[Poorboy]

3wood. Haha

That`ll fix er

works for me .. don`t play golf either so I``d kill them both

[trashmanssd]

Could use little of this,

or a lot if you want an excuse to get a new mower.

[GearHead_1]

Most people don`t take the bowl off to drain it though. I`ve ran across a couple machines they did and left it for a year. After adding fuel, it went everywhere since the seals dried out. Never had a problem with any of my machines using Sea Foam as a fuel treatment/stabilizer. Doesn`t work for everybody, your mileage my vary

Not trying to be arguementive here, I can see that potentially happening in a carb with paper gaskets but 90% of these small engines simply use a rubber o-ring on the bowl and that isn`t a problem.

I have a 5 gallon bucket full of spare carbs that were pulled off of mowers that were sent to the bone yard. These have the fuel drained and sit for years, seldom have any problem with them related to dry rot on the gaskets. Not saying it doesn`t happen but my belief is odds are in your favor by draining the carb, most manufacturers and repair manuals will support this mindset. Virtually all of your better machines produced today will have a drain plug in the bowl that allows the bowl to be drained without pulling it. Sta-Bil fuel stabilizer is the product I`ve frequently seen problems with. Oddly some mowers come packaged with this product. Yes, I would use this if I couldn`t drain the fuel but I wouldn`t say your odds are as good with this as your regular practice.

I also can see a situation just like this where a person runs there machine out of fuel for the first time and has a problem, then thinking this is a bad practice when in fact the residual in the bowl likely caused the problem. I absolutely believe a person could use a fuel stabilizer as a regular practice and never have a problem but having looked at thousands of engines over the years can only give you my opinion on which practice will serve most owners better.