POOPS AND POPS AND DIES

[bill1631]

Try unscrewing the the gas cap a little. The vent may be clogged and creating a vacuum in the tank.
Bill

 

[spring1802]

I reread the thread and I misunderstood what you were saying. Sorry. We're here to help, just that at times the original poster doesn't know who to listen to. Just like we can't see your unit, you can't see who we are. I'll say it again, you problem is fuel related, and replacing the carb should solve the problem. Don't worry about Mr. Fish, he is just an Asian Crap who has jumped out of the water a few to many times and hit his head on the gunnel more than once. Most people learn who to listen to. Good luck and let us know how it works out.

I had same problem with X300 did the same repairs,finally had fuel tank removed and cleaned ,solved the problem

 

[Danz]

I had same problem with X300 did the same repairs,finally had fuel tank removed and cleaned ,solved the problem

I have a Craftsman 26HP with the fake twin style Nikki carbs. Just behind the choke butterfly's and held by one phillips screw is a thing with 4 holes in it and maybe 3/4" square. It gets plugged with carb crud and shuts off air or fuel or a signal to the carb. I've always used non ethanol premium and Stabil gas additive, even in the summer. After 7 - 8 years it started puffing black smoke when I engage the three blade deck. Then if you throttle back and let it catch up, it does it again at the first "load" on the motor. All little stuff checks out and float looks like it's doing the job but people say the O ring seal around the fuel tube inside the Nikki carb fuel bowl has a problem with the seal and draws too much fuel. Especially if it swells while you are cleaning the parts. Battery is 12.2v but could use a new one. I keep a battery minder on it when parked. I have the carb rebuild kit waiting for me to get busy. I had to get some reverse torx sockets first, the female version, star bits or external torx to get behind the choke butterfly's and replace / clean that area.
I got a small bit of help by swapping in new plugs for the fouled ones. I also checked the electric fuel shutoff. Reset the flywheel gap on the coils. Checked compression with a leak-down tester since that's all I had to work with. Both cylinders are equal at 170 ( not real accurate for this, I know ). This appears to be common on the Nikki carbs after they get dirty.