Ideas for stocking my Mobile Small Engine Rescue Van

grumpygrizzly

Well-Known Member
Joined
Apr 4, 2014
Threads
18
Messages
102
OK,so I've been pondering the idea of using my 96 Grumman (Chevy Chassis) step van (12' box area in back) for my mobile small engine rescue mobile van and I've got the whole right side of the van that has custom made wood shelving cubby holes that are about 15" wide, 9" tall, and maybe 15-18 deep.

I work on chainsaws, weed eaters, edgers, blowers, trimmers, mainly two stroke stuff but, I do get the occasional mower thrown in at a good deal.

I've got a 4x8 stake bed trailer I can tow behind it but, with the step bumper I have on the back, I'm a little concerned how low the receiver hitch would be once I mounted it underneath.

OK, so, remember all those bins I mentioned?? I'd like to have a good stock of parts to put in them. I'm talking basic repair parts like a few sizes of gas line, gas filters, spark plugs, weed eater heads, string, chains for saws, etc.. etc..

I've got a pretty decent supply of used parts already for a lot of weed eaters, a few chainsaws that I've been picking at, some blowers..

So, if you had like maybe $500-1000 to stock up your truck for the season, or a month, or however long that would last you, what would you buy?

I know that's not a lot of money, I'm just trying to figure out like what percentages of your stock would be on plugs, versus gas line, filters, etc..

Any recommendations on where you'd buy the parts from would be very helpful as well.
 

grumpygrizzly

Well-Known Member
Joined
Apr 4, 2014
Threads
18
Messages
102
Wow, over 260 views and no one has anything to say?

If you're not running a mobile van, how about some ideas on what you sould spend $500-1000 on in parts and supplies to use in your shop?

Maybe I'm in the wrong forum, does anyone do repair work on this forum??
 

exotion

Lawn Addict
Joined
Jun 24, 2012
Threads
66
Messages
3,444
Common belts, common cables, common carbs, common blades, starter parts both recoil and electric, and most hand tools
 

Vervepipes

Well-Known Member
Joined
Mar 25, 2014
Threads
13
Messages
357
  • / Ideas for stocking my Mobile Small Engine Rescue Van
Bulk starter cord and a few spare handles, spark plugs, air filters, primer buttons and gaskets, LOTS of carb cleaner. You can go a long way with those parts and they are for the most part very inexpensive. Maybe keep a few basket case engines in the back in case an odd part comes up needing replacement.

For mowers, the only parts I stock up on are Tecumseh air filters and primer buttons, Briggs flat head diaphragms (various types), Briggs Quantum air filter/primer gaskets, spark plugs and starter cord. Those alone will fix 90% of mowers I get in. I always keep a few spare engines around to pull things like cylinder heads or oil sumps if I need them. Usually on the flat heads I replace the entire carb/tank assembly with a working one and keep the old one for a rainy day. This is for mowers mind you and $200 would be many months worth of those parts especially how I keep track of who has the best prices in town, the other stuff I'm not as familiar with.

edit: If you have a power inverter and a bench in there you could get a bench vice and sharpen/balance blades too.
 

grumpygrizzly

Well-Known Member
Joined
Apr 4, 2014
Threads
18
Messages
102
  • / Ideas for stocking my Mobile Small Engine Rescue Van
Excellent information Verve.. Just what I was looking for. I've got a lot of storage bins in my van and putting things like gas tanks, and recoil units in them would fit nicely.

I do have in inverter for my van and even plan to run a marine battery in it so I don't run down my van battery. Also have a small bench grinder but, may swap it out because it's a 5" size and it's a royal pain to find any decent wheels for it. I need a good wire brush wheel to mount on it.

I've also got an older 4000 watt generator I can haul around but, friggin thing weighs a ton. Might use my 1800 watt generator for that purpose. I've got a small compressor that's used for roofing nailers I've really been thinking of adding to one of the bins. Nice to blow things clean and use the occasional air tool. Filling tires, light ratchet use, impact maybe.

You mentioned you're buying your parts locally?? Man that's got be pricey.. I've been searching the internet for decent pricing and things like gas line and primer bulbs are pretty tight. I went to a local repair shop the other day because I need a rare belt for a Tomahawk chipper hammermill and picked up some gas line there.. It was $2.00 a foot!! That's over twice what I'd have paid if I bought it online. Still on the search for buying bulk primer bulbs. Those dang weed eaters eat those things from the inside out.. That and a stock of airline hose and I can get most of them running fairly easily.

I'd definitely like to get a good selection of plugs to save me trips to the local shops. Picked up a good batch of plugs still in their boxes at an estate sale for $15 along with some other odd tools.. I've used 5 of the plugs already and that's paid for the lot easily.

I'd like to find a list of generic plugs that will fit a variety of machines. I guess I can go pull all the plugs from my assortment of weed eaters, chainsaws and blowers and just come up with one that way. It'll take a little work but, if I can stock those various plugs and get them at decent prices online somewhere, it's money earned all day long.

Thanks for your input. I'll be looking for a spool of starter rope and a batch of handles.. also saving every handle, rope of decent shape and recoil set that I can come across. I've already repurposed a couple of the recoil sets.
 

Vervepipes

Well-Known Member
Joined
Mar 25, 2014
Threads
13
Messages
357
  • / Ideas for stocking my Mobile Small Engine Rescue Van
For me shopping locally is the only way to go. Retailers overcharge by a huge margin to ship to Canada, even going as far as including an import fee to cover duties, even though there are zero duties on shipments with under $100 value. Prices definitely are cheap if you shop around and buy things when you happen to be at or near the store. For example, Home Hardware stocks Tecumseh filters for about $3.50 each and about the same price for primer bulbs. A that same filter would be almost $10 or even more if bought online. Wal-Mart has good prices on plugs, any hardware store or camping store for the nylon rope, buy the best you can get, it isn't much more expensive and will have a much better feel and wear. Briggs Quantum gaskets I do buy online, they are much cheaper that way. I actually keep a list on my computer with common items and where to buy for the best deal, and when I happen to be at Home Hardware for example, I will typically empty the stock they have on the shelf, usually 3 or 4 and keep them in my workshop. I also keep an eye out in the clearance section of all these stores. I may not need a 21" Murray specific blade right now, but for $5 I'm sure it will come in handy in the future. I have about 10 blades, new and used, hanging on a couple of hooks in the shop. I also have a small supply of new bolts. Look at the common bolts that hold together recoil assemblies and such, there really are only a handful of bolt types. I took a few and matched them at the hardware store, and keep them in separate bags for when I need one. They are very cheap so they don't break the bank. The hardest part to get is blade brake cables. I have 5 mowers in stock waiting for me to buy these cables. They don't seem to be available locally so Sears has to order them in. Yes, here Sears is still much cheaper than buying online...

Briggs Flathead (and a lot of other small engine stuff like weed whackers) filters are a wash and re-oil type, so it couldn't hurt to have a small wash tub, even just a Rubbermaid container with soapy water.
 

grumpygrizzly

Well-Known Member
Joined
Apr 4, 2014
Threads
18
Messages
102
  • / Ideas for stocking my Mobile Small Engine Rescue Van
For me shopping locally is the only way to go.

I tend to do a good bit of that as well. I love hitting yard sales for chainsaws and weed eaters that I can get dirt cheap (Paid $2.00 for a Craftsman Brushwhacker, $5 in a primer bulb and 6" of new hose and it was running and ready to turn), usually $5-10 per unit.

But, where you really find some of the good stuff for our business is estate sales. I've picked up boxes of new spark plugs, many quarts of 2 stroke oil, spools of weed whacker cord, lawn mower blades, pretty much everything at estate sales for virtually pennies on the dollar. A different type of people generally go to estate sales than yard sales. Estaters tend to be the collectors of the group and they aren't really looking too much at what's in the garage area or out in the tool shed.

A LOT of my hand tools like nut drivers have all been picked up at yard sales for as little as .25 to .50 cents each.. Even scored a Craftsman 18v Evolv drill driver with battery and charger this past weekend for $3.00. Had to attached the charging cable to the base because someone had cut it but, it charges and works great.

For those cables, that's definitely one thing I'll grab off a mower before I have to totally scrap it.. The handlebars are another keeper if they're in great condition. Sometimes you can reuse the motor, other times it's just the deck but, a lot of them are universal.. Ohh, and I always take the blade off the motors if the motor is destined for the scrapper. My wire wheel on my bench grinder cleans them up, then a good sharpening and a coat of Rust O'leum paint (.50 a can at yard sales) helps keep them from rusting a bit more.

Still trying to decide what I want to put in my step van but, it's getting closer.. Gotta stop and answer phone calls, fix stuff, and sell stuff all the time..
 

Fish

Lawn Pro
Joined
Aug 2, 2013
Threads
11
Messages
5,123
  • / Ideas for stocking my Mobile Small Engine Rescue Van
Too get hooked up with the mower distributors, you need to get a state sales tax number, and set up accounts, etc., for
dealer pricing, I have pretty much retired from the repair end, so I no longer have a tax number, but I still have a few accounts
that let me order still, they just have to charge me the state sales tax, if you lived on the eastern side of the country, I could hook you up, but they are fairly regional.
But I am sure that you have some folks around there that are dabbling in the Dist. status arena, and they carry a line card that includes Stens, Oregon, Rotary, etc, as well as Poualan/AYP, Homelite, etc. And they could probably also sell you Briggs
and Kohler at a 10-15% discount, maybe.
 

bertsmobile1

Lawn Royalty
Joined
Nov 29, 2014
Threads
64
Messages
24,647
I study small engine repair, which requires frequent visits to a large campus that has many small engine-powered equipment. I envision a 'mobile' version of my classroom laboratory which would be housed in a van and stocked with various shop tools. This would allow me to bring the shop experience to remote classes and make mobile repairs of small engines, such as lawn mower and chainsaw, easier, more convenient and more efficient.
Good Idea
Do you have a question?
The thread you tacked this onto is 8 years old
 

PTmowerMech

Lawn Addict
Joined
Apr 16, 2018
Threads
387
Messages
2,956
That mobile thing sounds interesting. But working in a comfy setting, where you know where everything is, and you have everything at a hands reach, is much easier. Plus you get the pick up & delivery charge that's help with the gas. Driving all over the place, unknown locations, dealing with kids, their pets, ants, and lord knows what else. I did a few mobile repairs. But always had to take the equipment to the shop, or go back to the shop for something.
 
Top