Originally Posted by RobertBrown

Yes you can get and you should have a set.... at lowes or any place that sells tools.
My generator has the same set up but it has a drain on the carb bowl.
I suggest you go to walmart and get the B12 Chemtool carb cleaner, best I've found. You know it's good when it burns the cr@pp out of your hand if it gets on it.
Take some more pics of the carb on the motor and post before you give up. This is probably no big deal. Even if you have to replace the carb you will probably spend less than what the shop will charge.

At this point I'll have to order the carb overhaul kit, since I'll probably need new gaskets after taking it off/apart. Meantime, I'll try to find the tool.

Here's a link to the carb parts schematic. Page 4. I have the Nikki.

http://bsintek.basco.com/BriggsDocum...8nqxGXBnfBhU7y

Anyone have any suggestions for retro-fitting a drain into this bowl? It seems to be some kind of cast aluminum.

Like RobertBrown said... those sockets are available at most place that sell tools... They re spline sockets, come in metric and inch sizes... They are used a lot in setting studs...
Good luck with the carb. KennyV

Originally Posted by mystreba

At this point I'll have to order the carb overhaul kit, since I'll probably need new gaskets after taking it off/apart. Meantime, I'll try to find the tool.

Here's a link to the carb parts schematic. Page 4. I have the Nikki.

http://bsintek.basco.com/BriggsDocum...8nqxGXBnfBhU7y

Anyone have any suggestions for retro-fitting a drain into this bowl? It seems to be some kind of cast aluminum.

Since you have it apart, look at the bolt that holds the carb bowl on the carb and see if it has ports through it (part#950}. Then look at the ports carefully and see if they are obstructed or partially clogged. This is one way gas gets to the carb.
If you feel like you need a gasket set by all means buy one but you can probably reuse the ones you have to see if you have the carb fixed, just to see if it will run smoothly. It's important to get to run smooth as it is a generator producing a sine wave at a specific frequency.
If you have to replace the carb then get the gaskets.

The only spring I see in the float bowl goes above the float - around the needle valve.
It would not make sense to have a spring holding the float up - the gas is supposed to raise the float to shut off the valve.

[QUOTE=mystreba;18696]
Here's a link to the carb parts schematic. Page 4. I have the Nikki.
http://bsintek.basco.com/BriggsDocum...8nqxGXBnfBhU7yQUOTE]

Originally Posted by BKBrown

The only spring I see in the float bowl goes above the float - around the needle valve.
It would not make sense to have a spring holding the float up - the gas is supposed to raise the float to shut off the valve.

Yeah, it appears that way in the diagram, but it's a poor rendering of the parts. See attached picture. The spring sits in a recess in the bottom of the float frame. Since the reservoir (bowl) doesn't contact the float frame when bolted in, there is nothing to keep the float frame tight against the carb body/gasket. The spring provides that tension to keep it tight. But I have discovered that you cannot possibly re-attach the bowl unless the carb is turned upside down so the spring stays in place in the recess while you tighten down the bowl. This is PI$$-POOR design! If they'd just bothered to install a drain, you'd never have to remove the bowl to drain it. But in the absence of a drain, if they'd just bothered to mold the recess into the BOWL rather than the float-frame, it could have been re-assembled in-place without having to remove the carburetor.

At any rate, I went to the hardware store, Home Depot and Lowes looking for "spline" sockets - no deal. I found that a regular 5/16 socket worked though. So I removed the carb, cleaned it, turned it upside down and properly re-attached the bowl. Put the carb back on and she fired right up. No leaks (so far), and all is well. Thanks everyone for the help.

Again, if anyone has a suggestion for retro-fitting a drain for this cast-aluminum bowl, that'd be fantastic. It's ridiculous that you have to take the carb off (and it is a PITA) in order to drain the old gas out of the carb.

Originally Posted by mystreba

Again, if anyone has a suggestion for retro-fitting a drain for this cast-aluminum bowl, that'd be fantastic. It's ridiculous that you have to take the carb off (and it IS a PITA) in order to drain the old gas out of the carb.

OK -- usually parts drawings are more correctly done.

I'd probably install (if there isn't one) a shut off valve on the gas tank. Get some Marine Formula blue
Sta-Bil (better for the Ethanol Gas) and the last time before putting it away -- use some of the Sta-Bil -- turn gas tank off -- run engine until it quits so that there isn't much if any gas in the carb. -- then drain the tank and put in new gas next time you use it.

link to Sta-Bil (Gold Eagle) web site http://www.goldeagle.com/products/product3CC6.aspx

Drilling and tapping a float bowl and finding a plug that isn't too deep is possible, but not the easiest solution.

Originally Posted by mystreba

Yeah, it appears that way in the diagram, but it's a poor rendering of the parts. See attached picture. The spring sits in a recess in the bottom of the float frame. Since the reservoir (bowl) doesn't contact the float frame when bolted in, there is nothing to keep the float frame tight against the carb body/gasket. The spring provides that tension to keep it tight. But I have discovered that you cannot possibly re-attach the bowl unless the carb is turned upside down so the spring stays in place in the recess while you tighten down the bowl. This is PI$$-POOR design! If they'd just bothered to install a drain, you'd never have to remove the bowl to drain it. But in the absence of a drain, if they'd just bothered to mold the recess into the BOWL rather than the float-frame, it could have been re-assembled in-place without having to remove the carburetor.

At any rate, I went to the hardware store, Home Depot and Lowes looking for "spline" sockets - no deal. I found that a regular 5/16 socket worked though. So I removed the carb, cleaned it, turned it upside down and properly re-attached the bowl. Put the carb back on and she fired right up. No leaks (so far), and all is well. Thanks everyone for the help.

Again, if anyone has a suggestion for retro-fitting a drain for this cast-aluminum bowl, that'd be fantastic. It's ridiculous that you have to take the carb off (and it is a PITA) in order to drain the old gas out of the carb.

Great! I'm glad you fixed it. Typically I run the gas out of the carb by closing the fuel shut off valve and allowing the engine to stall, won't get all of the gas but it willl get most. Retrofitting a drain is tough. I would goes as far to say it's beyond the realm of possibility. There might be a replacement bowl you could buy that already has a drain, like the one that is on my carb and just swap them out if the diameters are the same. Could be the case, rather then redesign the whole carb body same bowl that fits one will fit another.

Originally Posted by mystreba

Yeah, it appears that way in the diagram, but it's a poor rendering of the parts. See attached picture. The spring sits in a recess in the bottom of the float frame. Since the reservoir (bowl) doesn't contact the float frame when bolted in, there is nothing to keep the float frame tight against the carb body/gasket. The spring provides that tension to keep it tight. But I have discovered that you cannot possibly re-attach the bowl unless the carb is turned upside down so the spring stays in place in the recess while you tighten down the bowl. This is PI$$-POOR design! If they'd just bothered to install a drain, you'd never have to remove the bowl to drain it. But in the absence of a drain, if they'd just bothered to mold the recess into the BOWL rather than the float-frame, it could have been re-assembled in-place without having to remove the carburetor.

At any rate, I went to the hardware store, Home Depot and Lowes looking for "spline" sockets - no deal. I found that a regular 5/16 socket worked though. So I removed the carb, cleaned it, turned it upside down and properly re-attached the bowl. Put the carb back on and she fired right up. No leaks (so far), and all is well. Thanks everyone for the help.

Again, if anyone has a suggestion for retro-fitting a drain for this cast-aluminum bowl, that'd be fantastic. It's ridiculous that you have to take the carb off (and it is a PITA) in order to drain the old gas out of the carb.

Looks to me like they repalced the extension spring with a compression spring to operate the needle and seat, but it's hard to say. I have not seen one like that.

Originally Posted by RobertBrown

Looks to me like they repalced the extension spring with a compression spring to operate the needle and seat, but it's hard to say. I have not seen one like that.

The spring is not connected in any way to the float. It's sole purpose is to keep the float frame tight to the gasket. The float itself has no spring, but does have a shut-off pin (item 105a in the diagram) that operates separately from the spring.