My old toro mower model #20043 that is 21 years old i have a problem and i need some expert advice. When i pull the cord on my recoiler it stops and wont pull its stuck. Now i had my friend come over and replace the recoiler with a brand new one so its not the recoiler and when we took off the old one that one worked too. When we had the recoiler off it was full of dirt so i blew it off with an air gun and sprayed alot of penetrating oil onto the top where the recoiler goes to lube it up. I figured the engine had seized so i took out the spark plug and squirted alot of penetrating oil into the spark plug hole and left it for 4-5 hours now when i try to move the blade it spins freely with no problem, but when i try to pull the cord its frozen and stuck it wont move. Do you think my engine has died? Do you think its worth to take it to a fix-it place to get it checked out to see if they can get the top part unfrozen? I dont want to spend alot of money fixing this but ive put alot into it already and dont want to give up on it just yet. Any comments or suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thank you.
HELP PLEASE FROZEN MOTOR!
- Thread starter chowchow
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Have you. Checked the oil level?
unless this is something other then a regular engine, the top and bottom are two ends of the same crankshaft, if the bottom moves but the top doesnt then you have snapped off the crankshaft completely
it could still be the recoil though so with the plug out try turning the top by hand without the recoil on it to see if it moves or not
i would be shocked if you dont need a replacement engine for it
Yes i just changed the oil with 10w-30 yesterday.
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When i took the old recoiler off of it it was very hard to move and covered with lots of dust/dirt i cleaned that out then put alot of penetrating oil onto it before putting on the new recoiler (i have a toro #20043) regular walk behind mower. Whats that top bolt called under the recoiler? It did moved when i had the recoiler off but was very tight. But whats strange is the engine isnt seized up because the bottom blade i can spin around very very easily with no effort whatsoever. The new recoiler came out of a sealed briggs and stratton box its not the recoiler its that bolt nut thing under the recoiler that im having trouble spinning. But WHY if the bottom blade spins sooo freely why does the top nut/bolt piece so frozen into place(but it does move slightly)
Ah the 20043. I had one my pops gave me. Exhaust valve seat came loose, no compression. I put a new Briggs short block on her. She ran great and mulched like a champion. Then stupid me sells one of the best and lightest mulching mowers on the market. Loved the aluminum deck. So on to your issue.
1.If the blade rotates by hand, one would think the crank and piston is moving. Stick a pencil in the spark plug hole. Rotate the blade. Pencil should move up and down in the bore. If that checks good go to #2.
2.Remove the recoil starter. Hold it in your hand. Pull the rope. Does it extend fully and retract all the way in quick fashion? Is the rope sticky and lazy to retract into the housing? If the rope is lazy, tear it all down. Get the big recoil spring out. Take an oily red rag and scrub it down. Then a dry clean rag, gently wipe off the excess oil. Don't spray any oil on it just to skip a step. You need to scrub the dirt and slime off. Actually you are not supposed to oil it at all. Oil will attract dirt over time. All you want is a tiny oil film on the spring. Rope should snap back in place like new.
3.Next check is the clutch housing with the 6 balls inside that actually rotates the engine. Remove the screen with the small hex headed screws. Then gently lift off the seal (ratchet cover) to get inside the clutch housing. Remove the balls and wipe it all down or blow out. DO NOT OIL anything in the clutch housing where the balls ride. Put some 30w oil on the crankshaft end and inside the clutch ratchet. Inside the clutch ratchet is a felt washer you can give a couple squirts of oil. Put it all back together. Go on Youtube if you need help with this one.
That should be it. If the engine rotates, recoil starter is working and the clutch housing serviced, you should be golden. Holler if this doesn't get you mowing again.
slomo
1.If the blade rotates by hand, one would think the crank and piston is moving. Stick a pencil in the spark plug hole. Rotate the blade. Pencil should move up and down in the bore. If that checks good go to #2.
2.Remove the recoil starter. Hold it in your hand. Pull the rope. Does it extend fully and retract all the way in quick fashion? Is the rope sticky and lazy to retract into the housing? If the rope is lazy, tear it all down. Get the big recoil spring out. Take an oily red rag and scrub it down. Then a dry clean rag, gently wipe off the excess oil. Don't spray any oil on it just to skip a step. You need to scrub the dirt and slime off. Actually you are not supposed to oil it at all. Oil will attract dirt over time. All you want is a tiny oil film on the spring. Rope should snap back in place like new.
3.Next check is the clutch housing with the 6 balls inside that actually rotates the engine. Remove the screen with the small hex headed screws. Then gently lift off the seal (ratchet cover) to get inside the clutch housing. Remove the balls and wipe it all down or blow out. DO NOT OIL anything in the clutch housing where the balls ride. Put some 30w oil on the crankshaft end and inside the clutch ratchet. Inside the clutch ratchet is a felt washer you can give a couple squirts of oil. Put it all back together. Go on Youtube if you need help with this one.
That should be it. If the engine rotates, recoil starter is working and the clutch housing serviced, you should be golden. Holler if this doesn't get you mowing again.
slomo
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Wrong oil weight. Use plain old tried and true 30w. Yes you can use 10w-30. It will burn much quicker and break down a lot faster than 30w. You can get a 2 gallon jug of Supertech 30w for $19.75'ish at Walmart. I wouldn't use any multi-weighted oil in an air cooled engine.
When you checked the oil, did you screw the stick all the way in or park it on the threads? Makes a huge difference. Your mower should have a Briggs Quantum engine. If so, screw the oil dipstick ALL the way in to check the level.
slomo
Sounds like my step 3 is your ticket. The top bolt as you called it is the clutch ratchet. About as big as your thumb or larger? This one in the picture?
While you are there, clean off the top of the cylinder block and cooling fins. Do this yearly at a minimum. You might/will find a ton of oil, dirt, grass and bugs packed on the block and fins. Check all around the cylinder block for dirt and oil on the cooling fins.
slomo
slomo