Recent content by PTmowerMech

  1. PTmowerMech

    Old 1440 won’t crank

    You absolutely checked the fuse, right? If you can't see a broken link, check it with a meter anyways. Sometimes they break on the sides, and not the middle, where you can't actually see the break. I've spent 4 hours on a mower on day trying to figure out why I was not getting juice to the...
  2. PTmowerMech

    2002-ish Red Paint ???.

    Decals you say?
  3. PTmowerMech

    2002-ish Red Paint ???.

  4. PTmowerMech

    Funny picture thread

  5. PTmowerMech

    Funny picture thread

    I wonder if he's ever heard of hedge trimmer and ladders.
  6. PTmowerMech

    Funny picture thread

    Customer: Can you get rid of that stupid safety switch? Me thinking about what would happen if I did.
  7. PTmowerMech

    Ariens Model 936073 Lawn Tractor 42" 21 HP Rats Chewed Wires

    They have everything to do with nothing happening. 1st off, the system has to be grounded. You have to have 12v to from battery to the key, to the solenoid then to the starter. That circuit has to go through safety switches also. One good thing about mice eating wires, they don't normally move...
  8. PTmowerMech

    Champion Generator

    I probably should be bringing this all back up. But I didn't have the washers, C clamp, governor all in the right order. So It fried another gov. Took it apart again today and I think I have a little better idea about how all this is supposed to work, now. The governor stays in place with the...
  9. PTmowerMech

    stalls under load

    If it's stalling when you put it in gear and/or engaging the blades, then I see no other reason to stall, other than a seat safety switch. But that begs the question as to how it's starting. Unless you're starting it with the clutch pressed. Try starting it without the clutch pressed. if it...
  10. PTmowerMech

    New Craftsman lawnmowers

    Push mowers are all about the engines. The rest of it, is all basic stuff. The 2nd the most important part of it, besides the engine, is going to be the front trans/diff. But the chances of them going out anytime soon, is rare. Knowing what I know about push mowers, and how easy an engine...
  11. PTmowerMech

    2002-ish Red Paint ???.

    Nice. Very good job.
  12. PTmowerMech

    2002-ish Red Paint ???.

    Actually, you can probably get a paint shop to do this pretty cheap. I had an automobile painter, who did side work, offer to paint my entire mower for less than $200. That sanded, primed, painted and clear coated. With the rust that's on there, touch up pain won't last long. BTW, fingernail...
  13. PTmowerMech

    Houston winter work

    Being in Houston, I'd think you can weed & feed all year long. You'll probably be mowing weeds before the end of February. Things grow when it hits 60ish. What kind if grass is in your yard? St. Augustine? Burrmuda?
  14. PTmowerMech

    Briggs 5hp with no blade

    I drilled the 2nd one today and if it's running rich, I can't tell it, or smell it. Gonna run them a little more tomorrow and check the plug. My calipers don't give me enough digits to say what size the bit I used is. But no surging at all.
  15. PTmowerMech

    Briggs 5hp with no blade

    Check to see if the choke is hanging up on the bracket that holds the carb on. You'll probably have to take the top cover off, to ge a good look at the top of the carb. With the choke off, as in when it's running, that choke lever could stick on that metal carb bracket. And when it cools down...
  16. PTmowerMech

    Briggs 5hp with no blade

    Yes sir. We're on the same page as to those things are located. I had forgotten until working on thsee the last couple of days that the white tube in the middle, that crosses over to the other jet, comes off too. This was important for me because I wanted to make sure there's nothing left in...
  17. PTmowerMech

    Briggs 5hp with no blade

    Update: The float level was fine on this one. Guess I was thinking about the other one. So I drilled out the main jet, one size bigger than the hole, and the surging stopped.
  18. PTmowerMech

    Briggs 5hp with no blade

    I'm about to take one apart again. I remember the float not being level. Not much. But enough to be noticeable. Seems I watch a video about heating up and bending the plastic where the needle rests.
  19. PTmowerMech

    Briggs 5hp with no blade

    Engine 09P602-0085-F1
  20. PTmowerMech

    Briggs 5hp with no blade

    Ah, you may have just solved this for me. I noticed this on the last two. Both are surging. I think this causes the fuel to get too high in the bowl. Am I right about that?
  21. PTmowerMech

    Briggs 5hp with no blade

    I thought I posted it in a different post, from my phone. But either didn't hit the post button or something. I'm inside now for lunch, will post it when I get back out there. I took a blade off another one and put it on. And the only real different was that it rev'd higher. Also the surging...
  22. PTmowerMech

    Learn learn learn

    Finally got the rings in yesterday and pUT everything back together. And the FB25 runs pretty good. I had some problem getting the carb adjusted. Probably because it's been setting for a while since I cleaned it. Still couldn't get a decent response time from low RPM to high. But regardless...
  23. PTmowerMech

    Briggs 5hp with no blade

    Briggs ohv 5hp, (plastic carb) on a Murray push mower. Just picked it up and trying diagnos it to see if it's worth fixing to sell. I've cleaned the carb twice and it's still surging. But I'm wondering if the engine running without a blade could cause this. At the moment I don't have a 20"...
  24. PTmowerMech

    Old 1440 won’t crank

    What do you mean by "sparks everywhere?
  25. PTmowerMech

    Stihl BR 400 blower

    Have you bench tested the coil you have to see if it's good or not? I was working on a Briggs push mower yesterday and everything said it was the coil. No spark with the spark tester. But the meter said it was good. I put that coil on another mower, and it worked fine.
  26. PTmowerMech

    Old 1440 won’t crank

    I sometimes take a starter (that's off the mower), attached the jumper cables to it. When it spins, I put the gear into a piece of soft wood with some force. Something like a 2X4 pine. That tells me if the starter is not only good or bad. But also if it's weak. I'm thinking you have a bad...
  27. PTmowerMech

    Cub 618-0319 trans

    It was about freezing this morning. This afternoon, when I was putting everything up, it was probably about 40f. Or a little below. By the time ou go about 30yds, most of the noise is about gone. Although it never completely goes away. Never has since I got it used late last year. The mower is...
  28. PTmowerMech

    Cub 618-0319 trans

    Updatell on this. The transfer full. And thick. Too thick for my little 12v pump to suck it out in this century. And funny thing, it's not dirty. Belt and pulleys all look good. (I just replaced them last year) Maybe it's just real cold natured. It was cold the last few days. But it's been...
  29. PTmowerMech

    Cub 618-0319 trans

    Thanks for the info. That's just conventional motor oil?
  30. PTmowerMech

    Cub 618-0319 trans

    This is on a cub 1046. At first, it's very whiny. But after a minute or less of traveling, the noise gets less and less. So I'm thinking (hoping) it's just low of fluid. This is a mower with the gas tank on top of the trans. Please don't go through a lot of trouble looking up stuff, but off...
  31. PTmowerMech

    Fuel Shut off valves

    Not til I see if this new location is going to pan out.
  32. PTmowerMech

    Fuel Shut off valves

    I'm gonna give the Oregon ones a shot. When business picks up, I'll get the good stuff.
  33. PTmowerMech

    Business question

    This is what makes me wanna just stay where I'm out. I'm outside the city limits of a small non interventionist town. No codes, not permits. Nothing but me and my customers. Customers are enough to deal with. But most of them pay cash. So all the money I make, is mine. I'll probably make a lot...
  34. PTmowerMech

    Fuel Shut off valves

    This may be the dumbest question I've ever asked on this forum, but here goes. It's common knowledge, for the most part, that buying cheaper stuff online, will get you cheap stuff. It's like the saying "if you play stupid games, you win stupid prizes." Well, I'm feeling pretty stupid today...
  35. PTmowerMech

    Good used deck price

    Good grief. How do you folks stay in business paying those prices? I suppose I need to jump on this deck, for $150. Thanks for all the info, guys.
  36. PTmowerMech

    Good used deck price

    Just wondering what some of you folks would charge for a good used 50" mower deck. I found the one I need. But the guy wants $150 for it. That seems a little steep. But have heard that's actually cheap. The mower it's going on is about 10 years old.
  37. PTmowerMech

    Business question

    I never give more than $100 for a mower. Usually it's just a little more than scrap price. If it's close, I'll pick it up. A lot of the time, I'll get my resell mowers for free. I'm going tomorrow to pick up a John Deere for $45. THE only thing that wrong with it, that I seen myself, is a blown...
  38. PTmowerMech

    Business question

    Dang I can see why you stopped doing that. I get more than that for on during the winter. Sold one a couple of weeks ago for $300. Decent push mowers, (plain Jane with good paint) will go for about $60. Depending on the time of the year. Buy cheap in the winter, sell in the spring & summer...
  39. PTmowerMech

    Business question

    From what I've seen, buying used (cheap) fixing & selling it, makes a LOT more money than repairs. I don't take credit cards. But customers with Facebook accounts, can pay with their cards through Facebook pay. It's free. With a credit card service, IIRC, they charge like 3% to 5%.
  40. PTmowerMech

    Business question

    Thanks for all the replies. After some thought about this, I'm leaning towards just working out of the shop here at home for a year. And just see how much business I can drum up. My only advertising is through facebook. My brother is a contractor around here and knows everyone and their mother...
  41. PTmowerMech

    Business question

    A little about me to start off with, because it might be important later on. I'm 49, I've been doing this for about 3 years now. I'm self taught, with a lot of help from the good folks here and youtube. But no schooling for it. Last year sucked to high heaven. Went though a divorce and...
  42. PTmowerMech

    Starter magnet glue

    Since there was only two, I installed them just by guessing. Don't laugh at me, OK? But I used Gorilla hot glue. After looking at the armature and seeing some of the copper wires broken, It's going in the scrap pile anyways. I saved the keeper, the gear and the washers. But the rest of it, is...
  43. PTmowerMech

    Starter magnet glue

    Starters with just the two big magnets, you can't get them wrong, can you? I took one apart yesterday (off a Kohler) that had 4 magnets. Tell me more about the shims. Are you talking about the distance between each magnet? Or spacing between the magnet & armature?
  44. PTmowerMech

    Starter magnet glue

    Taryl's video show him using JB Weld on fly wheel magnets. I maybe give that a shot.
  45. PTmowerMech

    Happy new year!

    Happy New year everyone. I hope it's a good one for everyone. Hope everyone get's a lot of "easy money" this year. And very few of those "tar babies." Tar babies, being those jobs that you can't seem to get rid of. One problem after the next before it's ready for the customer to pick up.
  46. PTmowerMech

    Starter magnet glue

    Not sure if this is even worth the effort of a thread. But I was trying to find a starter to piece together, a couple of the ones I took apart, had loose magnets. Does anyone every glue their magnets back on? Or just junk them like I've been doing?
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