Murray WideBody Blown Head Gasket?

Hawk_91119 said:
I have an old Murray mower that I am repairing. It has the 14.5 hp single cylinder over head valve engine. It is very hard for the starter to turn the motor over unless the battery is fully charged. It blows a little bit of oil up the dipstick. It has a lot of compression, but it does not smoke. Do you guys think this is a head gasket failure?
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Be sure you have a high capacity battery. There are batteries that have a 200cca rating or below. I think this motor needs at least 350cca. I went through the same situation a while back until someone told me that this engine bore was about the equivalent of a 327 chevy and required about the same battery power to turn over.
 
I think the valves are way out of adjustment (loose), but I am going to borrow a valve checking device before I touch anything. And I have read that the cam cannot release the compression if the valves are way out of spec.
 
Feeler gauge and simple wrenches are all you need. There are no "special" tools required, other than occasionally some heads might require an allen wrench that many folks might not have in their tool box. You may have what you need in your tool box already. James Condon works on a lot of small motors. In his youtubes, he often checks valves. Might want to watch a half dozen or so shows on his channel first.

www.youtube.com

James Condon

I repair neglected power equipment. This channel was started because I found a lack of good content regarding portable generator repair and wanted to document some of the things I came across to help others dealing with similar issues. These videos are detailed and long, but would rather leave...
www.youtube.com www.youtube.com
 
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I’m going with Hawk. This engine does need a high CCA battery and I believe a new starter. I have two of these engines.
They are now about 30 years old? Please check the date code for the Briggs?
I’m betting you have an original starter?

I’ve been where you are.
I recommend you install a good fuel shutoff as I have the carburetors leak fuel into the crankcase and dilute the oil.
This overfilling of oil on the dipstick makes it extremely difficult to start and sometimes the cylinder can fill with oil creating a major problem.
 
Also on the starter problem, it may have a stuck brush on the commutator. For that, try streaching the spring oand flipping the bush upside down.
 
Hawk_91119 said:
I have an old Murray mower that I am repairing. It has the 14.5 hp single cylinder over head valve engine. It is very hard for the starter to turn the motor over unless the battery is fully charged. It blows a little bit of oil up the dipstick. It has a lot of compression, but it does not smoke. Do you guys think this is a head gasket failure?
Click to expand...
Bet the starter has never been renewed...ie brushes, commutator, lubricated bearings.
 
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