Recent content by Oddjob

Was about to suggest you see if a squirt of carb cleaner would get it to start, then saw your new post. I think you have eliminated the coil or plug as the cause. Does this have an auto-choke? My guess is that once the engine cools the autochoke closes the choke and you can restart but when the...

You mentioned the fuel filter. How old is it? As a general rule if an engine requires choke to run that is an indication of too lean a mixture or fuel starvation. Fuel filters can look pristine but be internally clogged. They are so cheap and easy to replace that I’d do that first. Even if...

Wow. How did that happen? Someone replace the soft medal key with steel? Manufacturing defect? If it hit something it must have been quite a bang. Is the crankshaft bent? Short of replacing the crank, all I can think of is to put some weld on it and grind/file the excess away. I’d make a key...

I buy parts from them and never had an order over $100.

One of my all time favorites. Posters here are just like Forrest’s mom said about that box of chocolates. You never know what you’re gonna get.

We all make mistakes. Except me. Just kidding. We should all graciously accept that mistakes happen, make the necessary correction, and move on. But if you come asking for help you should not even think about cracking wise. Auto Doc is an extremely knowledgeable and generous poster who has...

Sounds like you are burning a little oil. If it quickly burns off after start-up and runs strong, I wouldn’t worry about it. It’s possible that you got a little oil in the exhaust side when you messed with the valves. If so, it’ll burn off no problem. It’s 8 years old so it’s possible there...

Yes, straight 30w oil should be fine. I googled your model number and found lots of places selling parts for it. Your belt is snapper part #701354YP. You’ll need to look for an air filter by searching with the engine model. I expect it is a 7HP Briggs but not sure. If it’s the Briggs, the...

So now swap sparkplugs and see if the good cylinder has switched sides. If so, you have a bad plug. If not, most likely a bad coil.

One way to tell if you have only one cylinder working is to start it up and spray water on the mufflers. If you have a failing coil, one side will be a lot hotter than the other and will instantly vaporize the water.

Whether covered by the recall or not, this mower is not working as it was designed to do. It is brand new so presumably still under the warranty. Take it back and make them fix it.

This is why I read this forum. Thank you, ILENGINE. I have run into this on older riding mowers and could never figure out why I couldn’t get the decks higher. I have never owned a new one, and only work on the few that are gifted to me, so didn’t know they were designed without sufficient...

I’m old (73) but still have enough strength to put my RER Snapper on its butt. It helps that the heavy part is all in the rear and you lift the front. But if I couldn’t lift it I’d use my come-along and the cleat that I screwed into a ceiling joist in my garage. The come-along is rated at...

Does your machine have a wave washer on the wheel assembly? If so, maybe it has lost some of its liveliness. You could try bending it a little or buying a new one. Or, as you have done, use thread lock. The vibration from the engine does tend to loosen bolts on mowers. BTW, congrats on...

I have a 1984 model 28” Snapper RER with the bicycle handlebars. It has its original B&S flathead 8hp engine. My yard is hilly but I have never felt the need for more power. I bought it at a yard sale for $20 about 20 years ago, and that included the grass collector. It didn’t have a battery...