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Hey guys! I also posted on Honda forum but maybe there is more help here. I am nearing the end of my first rebuild project on a Honda hrm 215 push mower w/ a Gxv 140 engine. I got it back together and it ran fine but started smoking a little from air box breather hose from engine block. I ran it with the air box off so that I could make throttle and governor adjustments at the carb. I stopped the engine and it stopped dead. The piston had seized. I freed that up and noticed the oil was gray in color. Stupid me I ran it again to see if it would still start. It did and I consequently broke the connecting rod and a couple teeth on the cam were gone (maybe melted?). I have new parts coming but am not going to restart engine until I know what is going on. It seems to me like the oil is not circulating properly. It is my understanding that the oil defense pipe (the little black piece that snaps into the oil pan) at least aids in oil circulation. It only snaps in one way, though. Any guidance would be appreciated as the lawn is getting long! Thanks.

RDG9376 said:

It is my understanding that the oil defense pipe (the little black piece that snaps into the oil pan) at least aids in oil circulation. It only snaps in one way, though. Any guidance would be appreciated as the lawn is getting long! Thanks.

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The GXV engines are quite robust; suprised to hear the connecting rod broke so quickly. Probably a really good idea to get a factory shop manual and measure/inspect all the parts when putting it back together. Honda sells them direct on eBay, free shipping and updates for 3 years; here's the link for the GXV140:

Honda GXV140 Shop Manual eBay

When you rebuilt it, did you put the rings in their respective correct groove and not upside down? (top ring wiper down, middle, and oil ring) Did you lube all the parts as you assembled them? Did you have the piston facing the right direction? (arrow) Was the con rod torqued to spec? When you installed the case cover, did you rotate the governor gear to mesh with the other gear before seating the cover to the case?
It sounds like a definate lube problem which "could" be caused if any of the above are not correct.
The oil that was grey in color is metal/aluminum particles suspended in the oil.

chance123 said:

When you rebuilt it, did you put the rings in their respective correct groove and not upside down? (top ring wiper down, middle, and oil ring) Did you lube all the parts as you assembled them? Did you have the piston facing the right direction? (arrow) Was the con rod torqued to spec? When you installed the case cover, did you rotate the governor gear to mesh with the other gear before seating the cover to the case?
It sounds like a definate lube problem which "could" be caused if any of the above are not correct.
The oil that was grey in color is metal/aluminum particles suspended in the oil.

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I thought I did all that stuff. The rings I put on the same way the old ones came off. I will double check the meshing of the governor gear though. Maybe it did not mesh properly like I thought it did. Can't hurt double checking everything I did. Thanks for the suggestions.

RDG9376 said:

I thought I did all that stuff. The rings I put on the same way the old ones came off. I will double check the meshing of the governor gear though. Maybe it did not mesh properly like I thought it did. Can't hurt double checking everything I did. Thanks for the suggestions.

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Some rings have a small dot (.) on them which must face up. You will also notice that the rings have a small recessed edge on one of those faces. This recessed edge is a "scraper" that keeps the oil from going above the piston and into the combustion chamber. If the plastic governor gear was not meshed when it was assembled, it would have been destroyed when torquing down the case cover.