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I apologize for such a delay in getting back to the project and reporting here. Three coils later, I got a good one. The gap is now 0.006". The spark is strong and the engine starts, but runs lousy. I suspect maybe the carburetor, but don't know for certain. To keep the engine running, I have...

The magnet holds a wrench quite well, so I'm confident. That is an interesting idea to flip the coil upside down. Unfortunately, when I tried this there was no way to get the plug wire to the plug. It's a goofy design where the wire has to snake under & through things. The coil is, indeed...

Thanks Auto Doc. Good Point! Yup, I've used that tester often over the years. Before working on the current project, I checked it on my generator. (The wire to the spark plug is a scrap of 10,000 volt neon sign wire. I used it so the potential won't jump out of the insulation.) Yesterday was...

Thanks for the idea, Star Tec.. Unfortunately, I've no gauss meter, nor would I know how strong the one magnet should be. (Just one magnet) I think the coil is upright. The old one had kill wire coming off the bottom & spark plug with the top. So, I copied.

I apologize for my gap in attendance to the thread. (Or to the engine) Troubles took me away. Mark H, thanks for asking. The spark tester is shown below. As far as shade goes: Not much luck yet. I tried having someone hold a box to make shade with only seeing a weak spark. Hopefully I can...

Hello All! Someone had my Wacker Plate Compactor and the original engine stopped working, so he bought a Harbor Freight Predator 212 engine. It sat for many years unused, then returned to me recently. The Trouble: No Spark (Plus ants and larvae paced into the carburetor and who knows where...

Thanks for the part numbers. I appreciate your help. Paul

Thank You for the explanation of the need for this valve. Paul

My temptation, since snaking in a new hose in (old one rotted) involves removing the carburetor and housing surrounding it, was to leave the tank valve open to the air & plug the carburetor end. I empty gas tanks after using engines, so fumes should be minimal. (Or if the gas cap is vented, I'll...

I have no idea if it is bad for the engine, but I've an aerosol can of ether. It was purchased when I was diagnosing an engine a few years ago. Remember eye protection!

Thanks Again Very Much! Paul

Thanks once again Star Tech. you surely know this engine well! (For others scratching their heads, Star Tech was kind enough to help me a lot in another post.) Paul

Thank You Again, StarTech. I apologize, but I forgot to ask if you know the ignition coil clearance to the flywheel & spark plug gap. I looked at the versions of the owner's manual on Harbor Freight site and they varied. Paul

Hi All! I have another post about finding the manual for this Predator 212 & StarTech was kind enough to find me the parts list. It's a Loncin G210FA in real life. (Thanks to StarTech's information) Instead of cluttering that post, I thought it forum etiquette to ask this question separately...

Thank You Very Much, StarTech. I appreciate your help quite a lot. The parts list will be very helpful. Do you happen to know what the valve clearance is for this engine? That I also couldn't find. Thanks Again! Paul

Hi All! Short Version: Brother borrowed Wacker plate compactor some years ago. Kohler K91 engine stopped working. He put on a Predator engine, probably around 2018. He returned the compactor to me yesterday. Engine troubles. Trouble: I searched for the owner's & parts manual at Harbor Freight...

Thank You both for taking time to reply. It is sad that the unit has probably under 200 hours and damaged already. I don't turn the engine on its side during use, but by its nature it is at a 30 or so degree angle aiming to the ground. (I mostly edge with it). But I do store it vertically on...

Hello All, I apologize if this is in the wrong section of the forum. The machine is a homeowner grade Cub Cadet branded CC4175 power head for a string trimmer & several other accessories. I think MTD made it. The unit is from 2007. Each year, I use it about 10 or so hours maximum. It is stored...

Not to be dense, but Huh?

A Question For Which There May Be No Answer: When people can not get E-0 for lawn equipment, is there a way to eliminate the ethanol from the 15% we are forced to purchase? Certainly boiling off the alcohol would not work since it boils at a lower temperature than ethanol. And that would be...

Your engine doesn't have a diaphragm for fuel. It has a real carburetor instead. Diaphragm carburetors are simply that sheet shown in #37, above. That & a Primer bulb comprise the entire fuel delivery system for those engines. Nice and simple. Paul

I usually buy them on eBay for about a dollar. Locally, generic are about 3.00. So I keep on changing one or two a year. E-15 will increase the frequency of changing I am sure.

Thanks for asking, OutdoorPowerMike. It doesn't have either a CO2 or low oxygen sensor as some new ones have.

If your engine has a diaphragm carburetor, be prepared to replace the diaphragm a few times per year. Even with 10% and drying the diaphragm after each use, I still have to replace the diaphragm twice a year. It wrinkles terribly. Fortunately on my old Briggs & Stratton it is a 10 minute job...

Thank You Sgkent for helping. I very much appreciate it & don't know why when I searched on line for the part nothing showed up. Thank you also for the links to James Condon. He has quite a lot of interesting things on his You Tube channel. By chance, I was driving past a lawn & snow equipment...

Hi All, I hope I chose the correct section of the forum to post this. If not, I apologize. I have a Wacker G5.6 generator. The top of the generator is a long, wide fuel tank. Instead of an in-line filter, it has a strainer in the tank. The grommet is cracked and it started dripping fuel when I...

Today, I was able to re-test spark. It was weak. I cleaned the rust off of the magnet and the laminated arms of the ignition. I set the gap and the spark test was strong & blue. I suppose that the rust made the gap smaller? (Guessing) Next, I adjusted the valves' rocker clearance. Intake gap...

Thanks OddJob & Slomo. Experimenting showed that ground to sensor is open until oil is low. When oil is low, the sensor uses the wire to short ignition to frame, killing ignition.

How does one test the Low Oil sensor? It has a module with two wires coming from it. One wire goes to the ON-OFF switch and the other goes to a probe that is screwed in the crankcase. When wires are disconnected, should the probe show continuity to the engine frame? Should the module show...

I'm kind of compulsive about fresh fuel for small engines. Every 3 months & after every running, I drain the entire fuel system, including carburetor. First I run it until it stalls for lack of fuel.Every 3 months I put the gas can gas in the car and buy new for the cans. I add Star Tron...

Thank You all for taking time to reply & offer suggestions,. I wanted to check in to let you know that I appreciate your help and have not been able to work on the engine yet. (Life's demands got int he way) Hopefully I can update soon.

Hi All, I have a Wacker generator with a Honda GX-340 Type VWC2 engine. It used to always start on the first partial pull of the recoil starter rope. I run it every 3 months with fresh gasoline. When done, I run it until it stalls for lack of fuel. I also pull the rope until fir resistance is...

Some of my clients are plastic item manufacturers. I learned that the reason HDPE is used for so many blow molded & injection items is that no mold release is needed & no cleanup is needed. This cuts costs. Unfortunately, this non-stick feature is also the reason that no adhesive will work with...

I'm not a pro mechanic, but would a Link Belt work for your machine? They last about forever and you size it on site. They come in various widths to match 3L, 4L, 5L, etc. Paul

A few years ago, I got bids for interior painting- not including pre-paint washing of walls & ceilings. For ceiling flat, walls stain and trim semi-gloss, it averaged about $150.00 per 100 square feet of surface with reasonable quality paint. (PPG Manor Hall or Sherwin Williams Duration. Neither...

If you choose to replace the engine, often Surplus Center has a wide selection of new, name brand engines for decent prices. It may be worth checking into. (They have a lot of hydraulic items, gear reducers, lawn equipment parts such as seats and other treasures, too.) They usually have mostly...

Perhaps the wrong replacement fuse was installed. Was the original a Time Delay and the new Fast Blow? That's critical. A possibility why the fuse opened in the first place: Fuses can go bad over time due to periods of vibration. The flat element vibrates its brains out. Kind of like bending a...

If you're ever in a jam for a small JIS driver but happen to have a Reed & Prince driver, quite often that driver will operate the screw. I know it sounds odd because the R & P tapers to a fine point, but it works well on JIS when held at a tiny bit of an angle off perpendicular. Taking an old...

Earlier Auto Docs mentioned Star Tron. It saved me several times from the same problem- gel. I used to get that gel like gunk in my plastic Honda fuel tank and it could be seen in the bottom of the gas cans. What I Did To Clean The Tanks & Filters: I'd empty the vessels, but leave just enough...

I've a 60 volt battery leaf blower that I use similarly to what Sequence wrote in #14. It gets used more for sweeping hard surfaces than for lawn leaf moving. But, despite being in the "old guy" category, I still prefer to rake the lawn. Fun exercise, I suppose. (We've maple trees galore). By...

I've a machine with a similar set up: No way to drain without getting oil on the frame. Solution: Dollar store has 16" x 24" x 2" deep aluminum food tray pans at six for $1.25. I buy a stack and, using plain scissors, cut notches out of the pan's walls so it can slide under. The pan catches all...

Learned From An Old Guy 50 Years Ago- I use lanolin smeared on the areas where grass tends to clump. It works very well on the plastic housing of my battery mower for a dozen or so mowings until it needs to be re-applied. Lanolin oil or cream from a drug store works, as does Fluid Film. Lanolin...

Surplus Center might have a steel tank that will fit. They usually have all manner of tanks for small engines. https://www.surpluscenter.com/

Is it possible for you to make an adapter plate that will attach to the existing mounting & let you connect the handle at an angle you like? Electrical junction box covers provide inexpensive, flat steel if you need a couple of small pieces for the job.

I once had a similar, but push version, mower which followed the same instructions that OddJob posted in # 7. Even that wasn't comfortable, so I did a custom sized cheat which worked fine. I don't know if you are interested in doing an "out of the box" repair, but here it is: I removed the...

I'm no pro, but I set the tool rest on the bench grinder to the angle that I want the blade edge and use a 150 grit aluminum oxide stone. I also have a tray of water at the grinder so that I can keep the blade cool in order to protect its temper. When done, a couple of swipes on a honing stone...

Perhaps LawnMowerBoneYard com has the part you seek.

What FreeHardWoods said about JB Weld and new bushings is how I fixed a very similar hub on a Frankenthrower (Snow thrower made of junk unit parts.) I also have done it on fan shafts for very large, industrial air moving equipment with 2" shafts. For the thrower, I bought an oil-tite bronze...

Thank You all for helping and for ideas. I appreciate it. It is a points engine, so I'll focus on that first. Thanks Again! Paul

Hi All! I long-term loaned my Wacker VPG160 Vibraplate compactor to a relative. One day, the Kohler engine would not start when he was on a project. As a "favor" he swapped the engine for I think a Predator or some other Made In China engine. (Whatever he could get quickly) The Kohler used to...