My mower repair thread

[Vervepipes]

I think that I may have solved the Vector engine dilemma. To get it out of the rain, I literally broke the deck apart with a hammer so it would fit in a corner of the shed. That got me thinking that I can cut the deck around the engine to the point that I can grab the bolts with vise grips. I'll soak them in penetrating oil for a few days before I try that though.

Today I acquired a 3 year old Murray with a new style Briggs 5HP OHV engine. This is the first of this style I've ever seen and look forward to examining it. Also to come into my possession was a YardWorks, or something to that tune, with a 6.5HP Vector. The deck looks like it was badly repainted and has bare metal/rust. If I can get the engine running I'll transfer it to a nicer deck, and use this deck for another beater mower that sells so well here. I have a Craftsman self propelled deck that is in decent shape, but with a broken drivetrain that I salvaged the wheel gears and upper belt cover for the Chonda mower that I still have for sale. I have a couple of basket cases with the needed axle assembly but I think they all have the older style cover that isn't quite the same. We'll see what comes of it. Maybe I can put the Vector on the deck that has the Chonda, I'm not getting any bites on that mower at all, even as cheap as I have it listed.

 

[Vervepipes]

Today's progress will have pics later, gotta run to the store before they close. Stripped 5 parts decks, Looked at the red Murray, all it needed was a new blade, it doesn't even need the primer to start on the first pull. Sweet! The backwards Tecumseh had major issues with oil leaks but ran, so I took the adjustable throttle carb and put it on another engine, a 5.5HP mounted proper on a green Craftsman deck. It needs a primer bulb but runs well after 10 pulls. The Vector I picked up yesterday has no spark, I'm going to try to swap out the ignition from the other Vector.

I also washed the John Deere since I was washing the others. While I had it out I noticed that it is the opposite from Zoolander, it can only turn left, binds turning right. I'll have to investigate that. Very nice mower but I hope I didn't get a money pit since I want to keep this one for myself. I started it though just for the satisfaction of the ability to start on a very slow leisurely pull.

That's today in a nutshell, as I said, pics will come later, the two I fixed today will be listed tomorrow after they get the new parts installed. I need to start dismantling engines soon too, I'm running out of engine storage space.

 

[Vervepipes]

Here is the one that now just needs a primer bulb. I gave up on the engine that was on it originally, a 6HP Tecumseh. I had replaced the carb on it twice because of sputtering and coughing, the second time was with a carb that I knew worked, so that lead me to believe that it either had a partially sheared timing key or valve issues. That engine has become a parts supplier. The 5.5 block came from a completely rotten mower that didn't have a carb or muffler when I got it. The carb and shroud combo came from an old Craftsman with a rotten deck and oil leaking from everywhere, that was the rear facing Tecumseh. So here we have a functioning mower, although still needing a primer bub, made up from three separate parts sources. I mowed half of my lawn with it today.



This is the almost new Murray that I picked up. It starts on the first pull, even without using the primer. I must admit I'm a bit disappointed that it runs so well, I wanted to try troubleshooting this new engine. I just need to pick up a new blade to replace the bent one, it got an oil change today, and it's gonna be ready to go.



My John Deere cleaned up nicely too. This one I'll do touch ups to, I'd like to keep this one for a while.




Today I picked up two more mowers, one is a low deck Craftsman with green flames painted on it, the other is a monster, a huge Craftsman with large wire spoked rear wheels, self propelled and yet another Vector. What is with all these Tecumsehs this year?? The large one is very heavy, very very heavy. And big. Big and heavy. Looks pretty decent though, I hope I can get this one running.

 

[Vervepipes]

The red Murray sold, it was listed for 2 hours. Somebody is coming to look at the Chonda YardPro after supper. I'm going to need more mowers to repair.

I took the carb apart on the Craftsman with the 6.5 Vector, put it back together, primed it and... it started, and stayed running! I then went out to get gas for the car, came back and it will only run with gas poured in the carb for a few seconds. Nuts. I'll try one more time, maybe try swapping out the primer bulb for good measure in case there is a pin hole I couldn't see, then I'll buy a new carb on Ebay. I figure for $25 shipped with all the gaskets included, if I sell the mower for $100 it's still $75 profit. It ran fine when it ran, no bearing or vibration issues. The self propel works well. It needs a new handle, but I have loads of those. Definitely worth the small investment for the profit.

 

[hanyoukimura]

I haven't run across either that OHV engine, which I think finally replaced the venerable "classic" flathead, or the newer "Professional" OHV engine by Briggs either. I really like the look of the professional engine and if I ever get one I'll likely keep it!

It's funny, last year I dealt mostly with Tecumsehs, this year its mainly Briggs. Funny how that works!

Nice thing about the John Deere is that the paint is readily available at most hardware stores.

 

[Vervepipes]

The Chonda sold as well, so now I only have the Craftsman left to sell. I listed it after supper, went out until about an hour ago and when I came back I had seven emails for it. I'm sure it'll be gone tomorrow.

Here is the heavy Craftsman, now that I know it'll run with a good carb I'l going to clean it up and replace the broken handlebar. Seriously, this thing must be near 100 Lbs, that or I'm getting weak having a desk job.



Tonight I picked up a nice looking very basic MTD, no adjusters, fixed handlebar. The deck looks good and only looks to be a few years old, but when I picked it up and tilted it to put it into the trailer water came out of the muffler. Not a good sign so I'll pill off the muffler, carb bowl and spark plug to de-water it before I try to start it. I also picked up another newer Craftsman hi-wheeled self propelled mower. Both mowers are Tecumseh again. Man what I'd give to have a Briggs to work on. I'm all out of good spare Tecumseh carbs on my shelf. I plan on buying a 10L ultrasonic cleaner this year, so I'll try to clean and rebuild a bunch of them over the winter. I've never had any luck cleaning a Tecumseh carb yet, I try not to spray any where the float valve seat it because I know they are prone to swelling like an eye in a bar fight.

 

[hanyoukimura]

Looks familiar!

 

[primerbulb120]

The Chonda sold as well, so now I only have the Craftsman left to sell. I listed it after supper, went out until about an hour ago and when I came back I had seven emails for it. I'm sure it'll be gone tomorrow.

Here is the heavy Craftsman, now that I know it'll run with a good carb I'l going to clean it up and replace the broken handlebar. Seriously, this thing must be near 100 Lbs, that or I'm getting weak having a desk job.



Tonight I picked up a nice looking very basic MTD, no adjusters, fixed handlebar. The deck looks good and only looks to be a few years old, but when I picked it up and tilted it to put it into the trailer water came out of the muffler. Not a good sign so I'll pill off the muffler, carb bowl and spark plug to de-water it before I try to start it. I also picked up another newer Craftsman hi-wheeled self propelled mower. Both mowers are Tecumseh again. Man what I'd give to have a Briggs to work on. I'm all out of good spare Tecumseh carbs on my shelf. I plan on buying a 10L ultrasonic cleaner this year, so I'll try to clean and rebuild a bunch of them over the winter. I've never had any luck cleaning a Tecumseh carb yet, I try not to spray any where the float valve seat it because I know they are prone to swelling like an eye in a bar fight.

I have an ultrasonic cleaner, but I almost never use it. Compressed air at 60 psi works fine for cleaning carbs. If you were to use an ultrasonic cleaner, you would still have to use compressed air to get all the water out of the passages.

I have never messed up a mower carb by cleaning it with compressed air - it's the two-cycle ones you have to be careful with.

 

[Vervepipes]

I'll keep that in mind, I have an air compressor I rarely use that I'll bring outside one of these days. I need to troubleshoot the GFI plug outside though, it was broken when I bought the house, replaced it, and a year later now it's not working again. Maybe because I bought the cheapest outdoor GFI at WalMart, but if there's a bigger issue at hand that needs to be sorted out.

Today I bought a self propelled mower with a Powermore, it runs on the first pull and the self propel works, but the deck has a lot of rust. I think I may transfer it onto another deck if I can remove the blade adaptor so that I can slip on the lower belt shield. I have 2 potential decks that it can go onto, if not I think the most I could get for this mower all cleaned up and the starter rope replaced to the proper length is $100, but why settle for that when I could list it for $160 on a better deck. Also ordering a Vector carb, GXV160 recoil and bulk Quantum air cleaner gaskets when I get a chance today.

 

[hanyoukimura]

I don't know how bad the carburetors are in your neck of the woods, but I've only ever had to replace a few really bad ones.

I'd highly recommend getting this handy tool. It's made specifically for removing and installing needle seats. With it, removing them for cleaning or replacing them is a snap, and that hook on the end is so useful for many other jobs.

SE Tools TEC670377 Tecumseh Carburator Float Gauge - Hand Tool Sets - Amazon.com