@#$%&* B&S. Hard Starting....

[RandyT]

Yes it has compression release.... Funny thing is after sitting for 24 hours from last run time, it started ok just fine today.... Still think its a fuel draw issue when carb fuel bowl is dry....

The fuel bowl should be full when shutoff. So if empty after sitting then need to find the leak. If this mower is several years old meaning getting close to 10 may need the line replaced from the tank. If this has the top draw tank could even be developing a leak were the fuel pickup tube connects to the elbow at the top of the tank.

If you disconnect the line at the fuel pump and put the hose in a container below the level of the tank it should siphon the fuel from the tank.

 

[MossRoad]

This has separate manual choke cable an its verified working..... Still think a small (pinhole) in fuel line and it has trouble drawing fuel becasue the pinhole reduces the amoun of vacuum fuel pump creates... Its those silly bubble showing up in fuel filter that keeps telling me this....

If you give it a quick shot of starting fluid before you try starting it, does it pop right off then run fine?

 

[WranglerX]

If you give it a quick shot of starting fluid before you try starting it, does it pop right off then run fine?

Generally..... Been pretty quirkey lately though.... But its winter have not needed to mow for several months.... Need to get it sorted out because wife will want to mow come spring....

 

[WranglerX]

The fuel bowl should be full when shutoff. So if empty after sitting then need to find the leak. If this mower is several years old meaning getting close to 10 may need the line replaced from the tank. If this has the top draw tank could even be developing a leak were the fuel pickup tube connects to the elbow at the top of the tank.

If you disconnect the line at the fuel pump and put the hose in a container below the level of the tank it should siphon the fuel from the tank.

Its a 2004 model, yes its a a top draw tank ( access is pretty limited) .... I keep patching mower up as long as repairs are minor (new blades and belts) really subscribing to fact it need new line from tank to pump (pump and pulse tube are new)...

 

[2manyrocks]

Cost of complete fuel line parts much less than new mower.

 

[jaxs]

really subscribing to fact it need new line from tank to pump (pump and pulse tube are new)...

Did you not say it still doesn't start after putting starting fluid in carb ? If lack of fuel delivery was the problem, starting fluid would momentarily cure it.

 

[WranglerX]

Did you not say it still doesn't start after putting starting fluid in carb ? If lack of fuel delivery was the problem, starting fluid would momentarily cure it.

Yes BUT... it just the one incident and latest one that spawned this message thread.....

 

[WranglerX]

OK here's my story..... The L120 which has given me so many headaches and that spawned this thread started and ran just fine Saturday morning after all Fridays headaches.... IT is assumed (bad word) it is because fuel bowl is full of fuel from all the cranking in previous episodes of all the miss attempts to get it to start..... Yes it has new fuel pump and pulse tube, yes the fuel cutoff solenoid is working... Everything electrical including spark is as it should be so it is probably back to a fuel draw issue..... Really nothing more to do but replace line between tank and fuel pump....

Next thing Saturday morning was to go out and stat the John Deere E180 mower... This mower was given to me by neighbor after a tree fell on it about a year ago and it destroyed the operators station and bent steering column.... A little heat and anvil & hammer work straightened steering column and about $300 worth of parts for operators console and such put it back to appearances as origionally designed,... And after sitting a year and not being run it started right up when I got things together well enough to attempt to start, yes it sat for a yearr and battery was good, and fuel was good (just carb dry) and while working with it it started and ran fine several time while repairs being done...
So it has sat for maybe 2 months not being started, decide maybe I better start it to exercise it .... Jumped on turn key..... NOTHING...
Check all the gear lever and brakes and everything in correct position to start... Nothing amiss..
So check brake interlock switch, remove it test it with ohm meter, tests good... Hmmmm...
Try to start.... Nothing...
Next remove seat and check seat safety switch... Test with OHM meter, working good.... Hmm...
Try to start.... Nothing...
Next is main relay (there is only one controlled by ign. switch) volt meter say its working!... But remove it any and replace with spare from inventory...
Try to start ... Nothing...
Start trying to tracing wiring (with out a wiring diagram but loom is loose enough I can pull wires to identify) looking for loose or rodent eaten problem .... Nothing seems loose or amiss..
Try to start it...YES IT STARTS... Monkey with it for a while trying to get it to fail, does not fail...

Time to move on..

Pulled chain saw off shelf and went to cut some wood, starts and runs good!.... But will not idle, let off throttle and it just dies... Funny because it was able to idle just fine when it was put away last... Several more start and several attempted cuts and idle problem has not cleared itself...
OK back to work bench pull carb off and take it apart and clean all passages and such, re assemble, set high speed and low speed mixtures jets (screws) per manual and try to start, it starts and runs but wont idle, just dies... A hah, did not set idle speed screw correctly... One or two turns in on idle speed screw and start it and let off throttle, it idles down and just sits there idling for about 10 minutes just happy as can be... Shut it off and put it away in tool shed....

NO don't think idle speed screw setting had anything to do with it not idling before carb cleaning .......And it is spring loaded and stiff enough it did not adjust its self....And I did play with it to see how adjusting it effected throttle settings So it was probably off a bit because of my fiddling with it....

I don't even want to think about anything with gas engines today........

 

[jaxs]

Yes BUT... it just the one incident and latest one that spawned this message thread.....

That explains a lot and I think I'm beginning to see the problem now. I feared you weren't going about it systematically but now I see that you are using psychology. I once owned a horse that ran away when he thought I was trying to catch him. I learned that if I went about doing something else his curiosity got the best of him and he would walk right up and nudge me in the back. It just never occurred to me trying it on a mower.

 

[2manyrocks]

Small gas engines have their own special way of either being very useful or really really aggravating.