Are Briggs and Straton Still good?

[jakewells]

Yes they are still good the biggest problem is people not giving them regular maintenance and this gasoline these days does not help i just overhauled the engine on my mtd and it is performing reliably. check you fluids before use and repair any broken or missing parts and you should have no problems. :thumbsup:

 

[TnHusky]

Yes they are still good the biggest problem is people not giving them regular maintenance and this gasoline these days does not help i just overhauled the engine on my mtd and it is performing reliably. check you fluids before use and repair any broken or missing parts and you should have no problems. :thumbsup:

I Think you hit the nail on the head over maintenance. I used a briggs motor on my last mower for 12 years and it still ran like a new one when I sold it. I changed the oil every year if not twice and used Pennzoil 30wt oil, Put in a new air filter and prefilter every spring. I never blew a filter out, if needed wash the prefilter and replace the air filter. A good friend of mine owns a Lawn Mower Shop and he showed me a short block that he had replaced from a guy who mows yards for a living. Well the block was eat up. He said, you know what happened to that engine? I said no oil, he say's the guy blew out his filters and would not buy new. All the littler particles he loosened up but didn't get out got sucked right back into the engine on start up and eat up the cylinders. He laughed and said a $20 filter cost him $700 or more.
I know this is long winded but a engine needs maintenance to stay at the top of there game. I'm just say'n.

 

[fry]

So.....the ZTR mower Im looking at right now has a B&S engine in it.....but no matter which one i buy (gas) what gas should i put in it?
I know it's a stupid question, but people have told me it doesn't matter and even told me not to put the "best" gas in my little push mower.
And should I buy a gas additive in to put in every time I put gas in?

I know they have instructions that come with the mower......but who knows better than you all who deal with it all the time.
Thanks a million!

 

[ILENGINE]

I use 93 octane in everything that I own, and anything that I have to add gas to in the repair shop. Most of the time is also has star-tron added to the fuel, both as a stabilizer, and as a cleaner. Where I purchase my gas, the 93 doesn't have ethanol added either.

 

[djdicetn]

I use 93 octane in everything that I own, and anything that I have to add gas to in the repair shop. Most of the time is also has star-tron added to the fuel, both as a stabilizer, and as a cleaner. Where I purchase my gas, the 93 doesn't have ethanol added either.

ILENGINE,
I'm breaking in my new Gravely(as well as using in all my small engine applications including my boat's 125hp outboard) with non-ethanol mid-grade with Stabil added. I used to run the premium, just like you, but the price(especially the non-ethanol) has gotten so ridiculous that I figure the mid-grade will prevent any pinging with being a step up from all of the manufacturer's recommended 87 Octane. Also, the last lawn mower I had(54" 2006 Craftsman YS4500 with a 24hp Briggs & Stratton Intek) would not run right with anything above 87 Octane. I don't know whether it had to do with all of this CARB emissions compliance, but mid-grade & premium would make it surge/drop/surge, miss and backfire. If I put Regular in that Intek(really didn't care for that particular B & S) it ran fine. The mower before that one(46" 1993 True Value Lawn Chief with a 16hp B & S Vanguard) ran fine on premium and that was twice the engine(power included) of that piece-of-junk Intek even after the Lawn Chief was 19 years old and the Craftsman was 7 years old!!!!