Recent content by cprodave

I took the head off and observed some light scoring at one location in the cylinder wall. Soaking for a day or so with Marvel Mystery Oil I got the piston moving freely again. I reassembled and ran a few start/stop cycles. It froze up again. I drained to oil and am now ready to remove the side...

As I recall the carbon seems to be dry. So is that oil (not fuel)? Going to be at least a week until I get back hands-on to this project...

OK, will do. If I can't get to it tomorrow then it will be at least a couple days until I get this done and advise back. Thanks.

I got the head off--bolts not frozen on as I feared. There is a lot of carbon (photo to follow) which MIGHT indicate a stuck valve. I can rotate the Flywheel just a bit which results in the Piston moving up and down about 1/64 to 1/32inch. So I suspect that the Piston is not seized to the...

Thanks for the inputs. I will check for these situations. I hope the engine is not "toast".

Update: yesterday I ran a couple Start/Stop cycles to see if I could determine exactly where the excess Fuel is coming from. As I went to do another Start cycle the Rope Starter does not move! Engine is acting like it seized-up. This is very surprising because each cycle I ran only a minute or...

Rivets, Thanks for the idea. That is actually a pretty good question, not stupid at all. I haven't researched what the factory-recommended spark plug is. I know only that when I purchased this old rototiller it had a very rusted (i.e. seized-in!) Champion CJ8 spark plug so I replaced it with...

ILENGINE, thanks for your prompt input. Good to know that 60psi is not unusual for these older engines and that "all is not lost" . If I can find a Head Gasket for this then I will probably clean up the carbon/relap/reset. (this assumes old gasket is not reuseable). Meanwhile I will diagnose...

I recently bought an old Southern States brand rototiller that has a 5HP B&S that is hard to start and fouls plugs. Model is 130202, Type 1915 01, Code 84120606. Looking inside the spark plug hole I can see quite a buildup of carbon. Compression is only 60 psi ( I work on a lot of old small...

Hi All, the Mower Belt on my 37inch Side Discharge (2 spindles/blades) is cracked and show signs of failing very soon. Mower was giftet to our son after sitting around 10 years in good dry storage barn. I have the original Operating and Maintenance Instructions for the Mower Deck (as well as the...

Thanks for the input but the video you reference is for a front wheel drive vs. Rear-wheel drive (which I am trying to fix). I have replaced belts/cables on the front-wheel drive Troy-Bilts before, but this rear-wheel drive is entirely different design.

On Troy-Bilt 21inch 7.75 hp Professional model 12AI869F011 what is the easy way to replace Drive Control Cable 946-04440? I am thinking I can remove the Blade and then Plastic Baffle(s) above the Blade to gain necessary access. Thanks for any advice...

Mower is running fine now. Thanks for the inputs, especially to check for Fuel in the Oil. Oil does not smell like gasoline. I checked Oil "necking" between thumb and Index finder--seems fine, i.e. Oil is not thinned. I had a neighbor who accidentally put gas in his mower's Oil Fill. That did...

I removed about 2 ounces of Oil to get back to within Fill Range. I always keep the cooling fins etc clean (although this was a good reminder). I removed the carb, disassembled it--didn't see any obvious sign of Stuck Float but soaked the carb in Isopropyl overnight, blew out all passages and...

This engine on my TroyBilt TB200 mower is suddenly fouling plugs and doubling fuel consumption. Was previously mowing whole lawn in 1/2 tank fuel. Now it uses more than 1 tank to complete the job. RPM'S cycle up and down more now vs. before. Oil level remains fine, possibly slight overfill but...