10323 hit a pipe, now it’s LOUD

Elkins45

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I hit a metal pipe that I (obviously) didn’t know was there with my beloved 10323. That’s the silver series 6.5 Duraforce two stroke. When it hit it didn’t kill the engine, but the sound of the engine changed instantly. I was wearing earplugs so I didn’t realize quite how much, but when I got it home and started it up again without plugs I was surprised at how loud the engine is now. I thought the sound difference might have somehow been caused by bending the blade but I’m happy that the blade doesn’t appear to be damaged.

Could a sudden hard jolt like that cause the internals of the muffler to shake loose? I’m perplexed as to why the noise level went up so much. The good news is that it still starts and runs, but now it will blow your eardrums out.

Thoughts? Could I have damaged something under the deck?
 

AnthemBassMan

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You may not have bent the blade, but take the spark plug out, tie the safety bail back, then flip it on its side. Could be that you bent the crank enough to cause a heavy vibration.

L8R,
Matt
 

Elkins45

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You may not have bent the blade, but take the spark plug out, tie the safety bail back, then flip it on its side. Could be that you bent the crank enough to cause a heavy vibration.

L8R,
Matt

OK, I will check that, but it doesn’t feel like it’s shaking any more than normal. I would think you could feel a bent crank.
 

jp1961

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I'm guessing you damaged the engine plate (the part that goes from the deck to the crankcase), exhaust gasket or tube that goes from the engine plate to the muffler. The muffler isn't bolted directly to the cylinder as normally the case.

Regards

Jeff
 

Elkins45

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I couldn't see any visible wobble in the crankshaft so I decided to take off the cover of the "exhaust box" or whatever the proper name is. Much to my surprise I found this:

lawnboy - 1.jpg

These bolts have probably been backing themselves out for years and I guess the impact of the blade was the last straw that jolted everything loose. It was loud because the exhaust was unseated from the deck plate and was just blasting out into the air. I reinstalled the bolts and everything is back to normal. I guess every few years I need to pull the access panel and give them a couple of turns with a socket as part of routine maintenance.

I destroyed the cover gasket removing it and just bolted it back to bare metal. I can make one if I have to, but I don't suppose the gasket serves any real purpose other than spark suppression?

Anyway, all's well that ends well. I love a $0.00 repair!
 

1pep

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I'm guessing you damaged the engine plate (the part that goes from the deck to the crankcase), exhaust gasket or tube that goes from the engine plate to the muffler. The muffler isn't bolted directly to the cylinder as normally the case.

Regards

Jeff

That makes the most cense, op would be smart to follow the lead.


pep
 

nitehawk55

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May have also sheared the flywheel key and the flywheel has only moved a bit changing the ignition timing . Just a thought .
 
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