Newbie gas lawnmower questions:

lord lucan

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Hi all,

I've got a petrol/gas lawnmower which is refusing to start and I wanted to know the best part of the forum to post my questions please?

It's not a brand that's listed in the sub-forums so I'm not sure where to post. It's a B&Q Try 3.5 PMLA...the brand B&Q is an english hardware store so I assume it's actually made in China. I don't have the user manual to refer to but the symptoms are as follows:

It has fresh gas, the correct amount of oil, I've removed and cleaned/sanded the spark plug (F6RTC), I've stripped down and cleaned the carb with carb cleaner (apart from the emulsion tube) and have checked the throttle cable and micro switch for movement. I've tried easy start and it's try to turn over and stop after a second followed by a small puff of smoke. When pulling the pull cord I noticed there is some resistance part of the way around the revolution if that makes sense....does that suggest a partially seized engine to you?

Any help would be appreciated. Thanks
 

lord lucan

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Update: I've taken the carburettor apart again and noticed there is some rust in the bowl as I'm there were bits floating about in the last of the gas. Does that mean the carb is dead?
 

BlazNT

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If I was you I would replace it.
 

lord lucan

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Cleaned all the ports of the carburettor with the wire from a twisty tie after watching a few videos on YouTube and hey presto it works again!
 

BlazNT

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I meant the carb. Did you remove the rust from the carb?
 

lord lucan

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Yep removed it as best I could then cleaned out the jets, removed the float and got into all the tiny crevices with carb cleaner. Also gave the air filter a brush out too. After reassembling it started first time.
 

Mick Oz

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The resistance to turning that you felt was compression and that is good. Im very glad you got it running again. Many mowers suffer corrosion in the fuel system because of the ethanol content in modern fuel, which attracts water.
 

lord lucan

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Ah I see. Thanks for the info.

I noticed the two right hand side wheels weren't rotating so I removed them, cleaned with a wire brush and regreased & assembled them and it now glides brilliantly. Good times!
 
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