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

my simplicity pro was running great last week, and now won't start. i cannot pull the starter rope unless i remove the spark plug. i took apart the carb bowl, removed the float and needle and sprayed with carb cleaner, re-assembled, no better. i squirted some gas in the cylinder, replaced the plug, no difference. it has electric start, i have popped the GFCI several times at the outlet. not sure what to do next!

The centre bolt on the rocker arm (it says 8.8 on it) remove it then you will be able to see in there better.. it is very important that u get the push rod seated properly.. here's a web site of guys that's has some really good videos on adjusting valves.. www.smalleng.com

yes, i did take the center bolt out, i also loosened the rocker enough to swivel it out of the way. i couldn't see down where the push rod probably needs to connect because there is oil in there. I'll drain it tonite and see if that helps. thanks for the videos, but i watched about 20 last night, and can't find any one that shows where the rod connects.

i've seen some pics that look like the tappet goes on the bottom of the push rod, towards the crank. Is that my problem, i didn't use it?

From what I recall on my Tecumseh, the pushrods seated onto little recesses or something, and were kept in-place by being trapped under the spring-loaded rocker arms. They didn't screw in or anything like that, I just dropped them onto their locations. If the tappet is still in there, I'd imagine you wouldn't have to do anything with it?

thank you. I did see 2 indentations and seated the push rod in one, and pulled the engine over slowly. the rod didn't move. when i place the rod lower, sitting in the oil puddle, it DOES move. I attempted to lock it down by using the adjusting torx screw and nut, but then had too much resistance when i tried to turn it over again. does no one know where the tappet goes? i sure didn't find any tappet when i originally opened the value cover, maybe it dropped down into the oil pan?

Merely speculating, that's deeper inside the engine than I went.

But I'd expect the tappet to sit on the camshaft, and to have the little recess on it. When you look down inside the engine, does what you see look like the included tappet that came with the pushrod?

Does the other pushrod move when you slowly turn the engine? If not, perhaps something went wrong with the camshaft?

ah, here's a new ominous clue. the exhaust valve is question, i can only depress about 1/2 inch and it hits deadstop. the other valve will go at least twice as far. turning the motor over doesn't seem to affect this.

penetrating oil and a whack from a small hammer and i'm back in business! however it won't continue to run over a minute. i'm sure i messed up the carb when i dissassembled that earlier.

there is no gasket between the bowl and the carb, i ripped that and didn't replace it. no leaks, tho.

Took the bowl off the carb, removed the float and needle, and for the first time I pulled the next piece out, a plastic disk like thing, blasted it good with carb cleaner, and I'm back in business. Just did 2 driveways, a foot of heavy snow, ran good. Thanks for the help! I'm a Happy boy.

mtbmike wrote:
Nice Work!!!... I would recommend u get a gasket for the carb bowl lol..