Lawnmower Problems

Sounds like a nice overwinter project.
Take the worst one and strip it down to the last nut and bolt (take pics, for reference and to show us so we can laugh help).
Clean each part and reassemble.
Presumably your sparkplug gap is 0.75 mmm not 7.5mm.

I remember when my thumb nail was just right for gapping the plugs on my Lambretta which is now doubtless in scooter heaven (Like that insurance company ad on the telly...)
Del

Yes, 0.75mm, I am always making typos. I think it is just the carburettor on them that is making the problem? I am trying to do it before the winter. I have to do it outside, the garage is full of hedge cutters, another lawnmower, strimmers, chainsaws and leaf blowers among some less exciting things.

When I was helping clear out my Brother's garage, there was a spare mower which wouldn't start...we put it outside by the wheelie bins...it was gone in 24hours.
The lawnmower fairy probably took it
Do you have a serious lawnmower habit...? Maybe you need to cut back a bit.

If you suspect the carb, strip it down clean it in fresh petrol and reassemble.
Del

Nah, not a serious lawnmower habit, they are all from ebaY, so I have probably bought that one :D

The above is good advice and:

Oftentimes when a engine will only run at part throttle or needs choke to run when warm or sits a lot between running, the carb passages are clogged. Take the carb apart and clean everything including the jets and smallest passages.

"I am having trouble with three of my 9 lawnmowers"

Awesome Bondy111 - do they have a Craigslist for the UK?

maybe sell 3 or 4 and splurge on a new one?

We have similar. I like the challenge of doing the older ones up, they work just as well, and sometimes better seeing they don't have the shoddy plastic bodies some newer ones have. They have aluminium!

Thanks for such a great reply! GA for that

GA.

I would only add that if it is hard to pull start.try fitting a 3/8" socket adaptor to an drill. use that on the crankshaft to get it started. Once it will restart easily, put the pull cord cover back on.

As far as I know, all of the needed information on a B&S is on the air shroud that covers the pull start end of the engine. Be careful of the chance that a different cover was installed by a previous owner.

There was some very good information presented here. I could not agree more with it. Good luck.

Three functions prevail with gas engines. Compression, timing and fuel. Compression and timing rarely fail, except from wear. Assuming they are OK, leaves fuel. I find gas accumulates water from condensation in the tank. Old gas loses its volatility. Accordingly, I would suggest flushing the old gas and cleaning the tank. With new gas you will have a better chance of the engine working. If not, then it's probably carburation.

Cheers,

Brian

Thanks. They all have new fuel.

I will try pouring fuel in the air intake tonight and see if that can get them to start easier.

Hi Bondy,

The running for a short while then conking out with lots of smoke sounds to me like you need a new air filter on it/them.

It dies because it cannot draw enough clean air in, or in fact, enough air for the engine to run at all almost.

I bet the plug was black and oily when you checked it?

Get back to me please.

What if I took the air filter out and just had the plastic in? - Take the top and filter out. I put in a new plug, because I bought a new engine in the spring, and it had a smashed spark plug, so just swapped the plugs. I don't remember it being too oily, but it had not been used for atleast 6 yrs. Take care.

Hello Bondy,
Yes you can remove the air filter, at least to see if it starts, you will then see if is dirty. But replace it before cutting any grass or you will get dust drawn in, and you want clean air. [p]
I am assuming you had them stored 'flat' as they would be when used?[p]
I know the filters are not very large on most Lawn Mowers but you will need it for proper use to prevent detritus. [p]
[p]
1) Remove the filter[p]
2) You need clean, new petrol.[p]
3) You need to check if you have a spark.[p]
4) If my mowers had not been used and or started for a year or more for sure I would remove the plug, and or check /clean the area you get a spark from and, clean around the spark plug, then remove it and turn the engine over by by hand a few times................... [p]
After years of no use, parts of the body could have grown crystals and or rust that stop the making of even a tiny spark. And also check the oil, it may well need replacing after six year you know? But, turning over the engine will lube' what should be lubed![p]
[p]
Can you tell me what the engines are you are having problems with please? [p]
If you have a Briggs and Stratton with a 'choke' tip the mower forward by lifting the handle up for a few seconds, this primes the carburettor. [p]
If it has a primer 'bulb' look into the carb' when you push the bulb and watch to see if juice is pumping into the carb'.
[p]
If the filter is made from foam, and when you remove the filter holder the carb' has a dusty deposit inside, take the filter and spread a teaspoon of ordinary engine oil on it and squeeze the oil to coat the entire filter. This catches any dust and stops it getting into the engine. If the carb is dusty just where to filter fits on clean it out and put the filter in the holder and put it on the carb when you are ready and obviously after you have seen if it is priming.[p]
If it is a rotary type blade, ALWAYS leave the blade on as it is, in affect, the flywheel.[p]
Remove any grass anywhere on the engine or it could over-heat.[p]

[p]
Sorry if I am 'teaching granny to suck eggs my friend, OK?[p]
Tell me how you get on or if you have solved the problem please.[p]
[p]
Tell me do you have any of the 'Manuals or instruction Books, as this is invaluable in older mowers.
[p]
Take care.

Thanks. I have got the Tecumseh working. Just the two Briggs to deal with now. I have cleaned the air filters on all of them, and re-oiled. All the choke valves open and close automatically - so no problem there. One thing I did notice when I had the air intake off, is that the on the throttle there is also the switch bit which when makes contact, kills the engine. That is not always moving freely with the throttle controls. It is the same on both the briggs.

Check your controls, there will be a 'stop' position on the throttle control. It is a safety item, so you can stop the motor from the handle. That will control the switch you see.

The carburetor diaphragm is a very likely candidate to go bad. Get some carb spray too.

Can any other CR4 reader clock in with more than nine lawnmowers? Phew!

Hi PWS,

hope you are fine.

There is a man on You Tube with a site called "Davidsfarm", he is around 50 now, but started earning money by working on mowers and other small engines when he was 12. So he has about 40 years worth of , well he calls them "spares", but it is really rubbish. Several hundred anyway. He mend them still and can easily mend one a week or more. Very interesting site and videos. There is other silly stuff as well but I find the small engine stuff really great.

I never had any success with most mower engines and gradually learned, but it took a while. A lot and more of the things I learned is on davidsfarm. Some things are just not that obvious unless you are told about it. Like if you think you have checked the oil, spark, plug is clean, etc on a Briggs and straton machine, not all but at this moment I cannot recall which specific engines you can do this to, but, if all is set to start, tip the engine towards the spark plug end for just two seconds before starting, and it will start first time. Tipping it primes the carb'.

Anyway, take care and bye for now.

Well, not lawn mowers, but I just bought another house. And in the back yard there are eleven (11) closed sheds. Two additional non closed sheds. It took me two days of looking to discover that there was a car hidden in one of the sheds. At one time (25 years ago) the previous owner was housing illegal immigrants in the yard. Now they are just filled with junk. The entire yard is only about 80ft by 50ft.

PS the car is a Renault Fuego. Any bids?

Hi bob c,

Sounds like you got a bargain, a home with a free car?

Actually the Renault Fuego, is one I was going to buy from new. But the cost of 'interest' was going up quicker than I could save at the time!

Could be a 'collectors piece'?

Take car, sorry care.

I did manage to find a web site devoted to Fuegos.The interest seems to be in South America, Australia, and Europe. I did find one member in Miami. I am praying he is rich, and intoxicated with desire for a Fuego.

Hello bob c,

I appreciate your reply post, thank you!

I hope you do indeed find that RICH and special person to buy the Fuegos!

It is no surprise that it is popular with the Latin Americans with that name?

Take care and good luck my friend.

Thanks for the reply. BTW, What is your favorite color? You could be the proud owner of a shiny(?) red Renault Fuego.

Hello bob c,

any pastel shade! But 'sky blue pink' come to mind.

Is it a runner then? I think if you fell in sh-t you would come up smelling of roses?

Take care

I still do not even know what the driver's side of the car looks like yet. I have been busy getting rid of years of questionable collections. I have discovered eleven Elvis Presley albums. About 300 Garbage Pail Kids cards. About 30 Michael Jackson cards.

I also have discovered hundreds of used styrofoam coffee cups that are still dirty with the lids attached. Some neatly stacked in cardboard boxes. There must have been three hunrded old peach pits. Not in one spot, just ten here, twenty there. An unpacked suitcase from a trip back in 86.

In the yard, I have 11 sheds to empty, and the one with the car is hard to get to.

One more thing. There is enough STUFF laying loose in the yard to fill another 5 sheds.

I will try to post some of the more interesting finds.

"fell in sh-t" ? You have no idea how close you are.

Hi bob c,

Cheers my friend. I tell you some people collect the weirdest things? But some like the Elvis Albums are a plus? And you never know what else you may find, perhaps Al' Capone's Gold?

Take care and if possible send some pics please. You can send them to my PM if you prefer, up to you OK?

I will send some pictures as I find more interesting things. I have one room that has the ceiling painted black, with bright green walls. Bright like neon green bright. Then that room was closed off with a sheet of drywall. I think closing on the house will be on the 29 th.

Hi bob c,

I thank you most sincerely for you post and look forward to any pics you may send, thanks.

I also wish you luck with the final closure of the House.

Take care my friend.

Back to the news on the new house.

I finally removed enough debris (mostly wooden planking for fences) to get into the Fuego shed. The windshield on it has broken apparently from having too much junk stored on the hood of the car, and then hitting the windshield. The interior seems intact, although the radio and heater controls appear to have been removed.

I made it into another shed and bound a small block Chevy engine sitting under a plastic tarp. It is a 2bbl, with a spin on oil filter, but no EGR valve. That puts it between 68, and 72.

What I thought were 4 attached sheds turned out to be one fairly large shed. As I was picking up steel frame sections from the access point of this shed, I was using a flashlight to look for creatures. A reflective bumper sticker shinned back at me. Upon closer examination, it was stuck to a bumper, which on closer examination was attached to a 1965 full sized Ford. I can tell it is not a station wagon, and that it is red. Beyond that, I have no ideas. It was covered with plastic sheeting to try to preserve it, so I have high hopes.

Other finds so far, 3 artificial Christmas trees, in three different sheds. 6 electric heaters. 3 ceiling fans. About 10 electric circular saws. About 5 bikes, and probably 100 automobile tires. A gum-ball machine.12 gasoline containers. 4 string weed-eaters. There must be 75 aluminum cooking pots. I think there are enough roof shingles here to do the roof twice.

Nice to hear about your bountiful exploration... I wish I had something like that to do. Why not put the Chevy block into the Fuego? More cars you are discovering still! High hopes for it, what will you do once you get it out? Could be valuable.

A small deposit will hold that Renault/Chevy until I can arrange shipping for you across the pond.

No thanks, I don't need it but it would be a great little project.

Hi bob c,

I wish you a Happy New Year!

Really appreciate your post, thank you!

Looks like 2010 is going to be your lucky year, especially if you wanna open a site selling aluminum pans!!!!!!!!! You never know you might even find a complete vehicle or the bits to build one that works? I have never been that lucky on my moves. Best I did was a broken electric mower, and half a rake!

Take care

HNY to you also.

How about you? Wouldn't you like to be the first one on the block with a Renault/Chevy?

Well some good news. That 65 Ford turns out to be a convertible. At least that is what the previous owner of the house says. I still can not see the car.