Outdoor Power Equipment (Lawn Mowers, Snow Blowers, Chain Saws and more) Discussions

I just bought a used ariens snowblower yesterday...The guy told me that it was running fine last year and that he used it once this year but that he was not able to start it twice. the motor was turning free by hands so i bought it thinking that it was a carb broblem, I cleaned it completely,replace the needle, verifyed the spark plug to see if it was doing spark and it did...But still wont start... the gas arrive without problem and the spark is there to but it does'nt start. Any suggestions??? (maybe a timing problem ???)

Thanks.

If you've verified spark and fuel then the next thing to check is compression.  There's a link to the Tecumseh service manual in this thread http://www.abbysguide.com/ope/discussions/23540-0-1.html that should have the specs for your particular engine but I think anything above 60 psi is fine.

If it's low, try squirting a little oil in the spark plug hole and repeat the test.  If the compression goes up significantly, you have a problem with the piston.  Either the rings are leaking or the cylinder bore is worn out.

If the compression stays low after adding the oil, you have a problem with the valves or head gasket.

The motor should at least start if it's one of those two things no??? Can it be the condensor or the timing???

Thanks,

The timing could be a problem as well.  Have you checked out the Tecumseh service manual yet?  It has a good fault tree for troubleshooting.  I think one of the first things it has you do is determine whether the spark plug is wet or try after trying to start the engine.  If it's dry then you need to look at the fuel situation again.  If it's wet, you need to re-examine the spark.

Ok so here's the thing...I just removed the carb again to clean it completely just in case that I forgot to clean something before...I will re-install it tomorrow. The fuel is getting to the carb without problem, the spark plug is doing spark but it still not start. Yesterday I verified if the magnet that is glued on the flywheel was there and everything look nice, the spark plug is getting wet if I try to start the snowblower....I already open the head of the motor and both cylinder and piston are nice...The valves are dirty but working fine so I cleaned the the best I could.Like I said I will re-install the carb tomorrow and give it a last shot, if it's still won't start I will bring it to a professional...

If you think about something else don't hesitate...

Thanks.

kremack wrote:
Make sure the spark plug fires with a "hot" blue spark which means that the coil is working perfectly, condenser is good, points are gapped properly and there is no insulation leakage. An old timer on another site pointed out that not all sparks are good sparks. He made a test plug by grinding off the outside grounding terminal. If the plug sparks with that ground piece missing, then you have a good spark.

Make sure flywheel key is not broken which will knock your timing way off. (My 2 cents)

Have you tried a new spark plug?  This is a rare occurrence but I've had a spark plug that would spark nicely outside of the cylinder but when put back into the head it wouldn't spark enough to enable combustion.  Try a new plug. 

Know what.....I will try that first thing tommorow.

Thanks,

for anything you want to know about thig engine go to www.smallenginesuppliers.com. they have a complete service manual for all tecumseh horizontal shaft that you can download.. does sound like timing to me, if your engine is a h60 or h70 series, find top dead centre of piston, then turn crank back counter clockwise 7 degrees(looking fron ignition end of engine )remove the wires off the points, loosen the two bolts holding the breaker plate, connect a ohmmeter. one lead to the motor frame the other to the poihts(where you previosly remover wires) slowly move the breaker plate until the meter drops to 0 ohms and tighten the breaker plate bolts. this shoud get you very close  ps. if your motor is a h70 orh60 series, can you tell me where the governor spring attaches to carb?  hope is helps good luck   colin

kremack wrote:

Just wanted to add that you can't really tell by "looking" at the piston/cylinders. You need to check compression with a tester. They aren't too expensive, or maybe you could rent one from an auto parts store. If the compression is low, it might be a bad head gasket also.

I'm in agreement with newjerseybt  "Make sure flywheel key is not broken which will knock your timing way off."

Dave Wilson