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Other Sears Craftsman Garden Tractor

Amazing. After a few hours in the rust remover with periodic removal and air blast etc. the plunger now behaves as new. Now 12V on and off causes it to retract and return reliably.
I've tried to cancel the one I ordered. No idea if I will succeed there. But given how nice and clean the carb is now I think I can try it out tomorrow. Even found the little o-ring I blew off with the garden hose after I rinsed the carb cleaning fluid off it on the concrete patio.

Feeling slightly successful...

1687246036141.webp
 
YotaBota said:
Rather than buy a new solenoid I put a ball valve in the fuel line and just try to remember to shut the fuel off after mowing the lawn.
Click to expand...

I'd love to do this with my little Honda Generator. I generally love it. It's easy to carry, and quiet as a church mouse. But it has this same problem in spades.

Truth is that it already has a valve but it's 34 miles from the carb so there is a whole fuel line of gasoline that can still drain out into the carb.

It also has no carb bowl drain.

As a result, the entire bowl plus the line can evaporate between uses and varnish the jets and float.

It would be easier if the sound reducing enclosure had a better bigger access door. I don't want to have to disassemble it to open and close a new ball valve.

I've been simply living with it but I know it's a problem waiting to bite me.
 
Susquatch said:
I'd love to do this with my little Honda Generator. I generally love it. It's easy to carry, and quiet as a church mouse. But it has this same problem in spades.

Truth is that it already has a valve but it's 34 miles from the carb so there is a whole fuel line of gasoline that can still drain out into the carb.

It also has no carb bowl drain.

As a result, the entire bowl plus the line can evaporate between uses and varnish the jets and float.

It would be easier if the sound reducing enclosure had a better bigger access door. I don't want to have to disassemble it to open and close a new ball valve.

I've been simply living with it but I know it's a problem waiting to bite me.
Click to expand...
Are you sure about the float bowl drain? All of the little Honda generators I have seen have a drain and a little hose to clear the housing with the drained fuel....
I agree though, a fuel shut-off seperate from the ignition switch would be great, better yet would be a propane conversion.....
 
140mower said:
Are you sure about the float bowl drain? All of the little Honda generators I have seen have a drain and a little hose to clear the housing with the drained fuel....
I agree though, a fuel shut-off seperate from the ignition switch would be great, better yet would be a propane conversion.....
Click to expand...

I'm not sure. I'll have to look again. Which brings us back full circle to the real issue. Access.

This is one of those little 20 amp units. Mine is a much older model but very similar. We use it to power my travel trailer when camping without power access.

Screenshot_20230620_101836_Chrome.webp
 
Probably the same one I have..... There should be a small screw on the bottom/side of the float bowl with drain tube just below it..... Aren't changing start ropes a lot of fun with those?..... Lol
 
140mower said:
I agree though, a fuel shut-off seperate from the ignition switch would be great, better yet would be a propane conversion.....
Click to expand...

I dunno about a propane conversion. This thing has a demand throttle. So you couldn't just run it off an orifice. You would need a propane vaporizer and carburetor. Cylinders have to he filled or exchanged. A Jerry can of gasoline is cheaper and more convenient.

I got my generator a few months after the big Ontario electrical blackout. Apparently Honda geared up to sell a boatload of them, but by the time they landed, the grid was operating. So they had to dump them at 25 cents on the dollar. I really needed it during the blackout but in hindsight, I'm glad I couldn't find one. I would prolly have to have paid double what they were worth and couldn't beat the post blackout price in another lifetime.

It's small for backup use, but it does work. I just run it outside or sometimes in the garage with the two big doors open. And then run a 100ft 12 gauge extension cord to run the sump pump and furnace and perhaps the fridge freezer once in a while. Nothing else really matters.
 
Although I understand that the spring in this solenoid might be weaker than new the top cap is either hardened rubber or plastic. What it goes against is also just the plastic bottom of the float holder assembly. The ones on Amazon.ca don't even show a plastic cover but metal as in the photo on message #88.

Above that in the plastic tube is the jet with an o-ring around it. It's just pressed down to the bottom of the plastic tube. The solenoid end doesn't even touch it.

So I'm not convinced that this is adequate as a complete fuel shut-off to prevent the tank from draining. However, if the tractor is in drive mode and you fall off, the switch seat is supposed to switch off the engine. I don't know if it does that by removing the ground from magneto or if it does it by restricting the fuel supply enough when the solenoid is released to shut off the engine.
I know the youtube 'experts' all claim it also prevents gas siphoning but I'm not convinced.
 
jcdammeyer said:
However, if the tractor is in drive mode and you fall off, the switch seat is supposed to switch off the engine. I don't know if it does that by removing the ground from magneto or if it does it by restricting the fuel supply enough when the solenoid is released to shut off the engine.
I know the youtube 'experts' all claim it also prevents gas siphoning but I'm not convinced.
Click to expand...

It kills the ignition.

I disabled that "feature" on all my tractors and my ATV the day after I brought them home. I HATE that feature. It's a simple jumper installed in the seat switch circuit. Same goes for killing the blades in reverse.

I don't know what those youtube experts are talking about. It's easy to make a syphon to swipe gas out of any tank.
 
Well I got a tiny bit of lawn cut after I mounted the mower deck. Then by mistake forgot to disengage the PTO. Pressed on the brake and shifted to reverse to back out of the corner I was in. And it stalled. And after that it wouldn't start anymore. It turns over fast enough. I can feel suction through the carb when I remove the air filter. Did not check for spark. The three safety switches I know of were both properly activated. Maybe it flooded.

Have to take another look tomorrow or Thursday. Got a couple of classes to teach tonight. New fuel and air filters arrive tomorrow sometime too.
 
OK. Rookie mistake except I'm not exactly a rookie. Today I first checked the REVERSE switch. It's fine. Then dug around on the network until I found a decent drawing and also some info on the reverse switch.
Next with the engine cold now I pulled the spark plug. Or to be more precise I moved the spark plug cable and boot off of the spark plug. And yet it was a bit wet inside so that implied no spark.
Seeing as the cable came off so easily I took a look inside to see if the inside of the boot was dirty or had corroded or was enlarged and therefore not grabbing. Nope.
Pushed it back onto the plug.
Hmmmmmmmmmmm. That didn't really click on very well. Took another look.
Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm.
Pushed it back onto the plug and then really pushed.
...
click....
......
Hmmmmmmmmmmm.....
Idiot!
Spark plug wire was never tightly clipped in place. That's why it slid off so easily. That's why the slightest bump moved it away from the spark plug and engine stalled. And then wouldn't start....

Time to mow lawn, first time using a tractor, 45 minutes compared to 2 hours. But... the tractor doesn't fit everywhere so the standard mower will still be required along with the weed wacker. And man is the ground bumpy and too steeply sloped in some places.
 
How about outrigers with wheels that can be lowered on the slopes?
I had a atv roll on me cracking a few ribs around 2012, I was quite impressed by how fast it rolled from a standstill.
 
Tom O said:
How about outrigers with wheels that can be lowered on the slopes?
I had a atv roll on me cracking a few ribs around 2012, I was quite impressed by how fast it rolled from a standstill.
Click to expand...
I'd always thought that if I bought a garden tractor that I'd have to remodel the yard somewhat. I'm glad I didn't by the exact clone of what I have from Lowes for $2699 (On sale for $2499 till 28JUN2023)

Now I've had a chance to see what it would be like. Where before I could get away with not using the string trimmer each time that's no longer an option now. And there are places where I have to use the regular mower. But since the existing one is on it's last legs deck wise I like the idea of buying an electric. And maybe an electric propelled mower would last the 2 or more hours during heavy spring growth.

But now I have this tractor and it cost me $259.16 in parts not including 30W oil and the various cleaners etc. And I have to now think about flattening and adding raised beds around areas that are too narrow for the tractor.

And to keep in the theme of this forum, I used my metal lathe to make a bushing that was missing and a 5/8" steel pin with retaining clip hole for the trailer hitch hole. The dual bagger assembly bracket was mounted backwards and the hole didn't line up. I flipped it around the way it was supposed to be mounted and then uses a piece of scrap steel to make a 5/8" pin. Going to either have to paint it or figure out how to treat it so it won't rust.

Or I guess I could probably find something like that already plated at Princess Auto.

Edit: corrected link to the 17.5HP tractor.
 
Last edited:
I found lowering the tire pressure smoothed the ride a bit.

Don't shoot me but I just saw this,

www.usedvictoria.com

21hp briggs and stratton

it runs good and no no time meter so l'm not sure of the hours but fires right up and holds a perfect idle and rpm up good the rest of the tractor spoken for call steve 236-638-6073 located in sooke
www.usedvictoria.com www.usedvictoria.com
 
YotaBota said:
I found lowering the tire pressure smoothed the ride a bit.

Don't shoot me but I just saw this,

www.usedvictoria.com

21hp briggs and stratton

it runs good and no no time meter so l'm not sure of the hours but fires right up and holds a perfect idle and rpm up good the rest of the tractor spoken for call steve 236-638-6073 located in sooke
www.usedvictoria.com www.usedvictoria.com
Click to expand...
The V-Twin engine. Probably does run smoother than the single. Likely wouldn't have fit on mine. Maybe the purchaser for the rest of the tractor wants to make it Electric?
 
jcdammeyer said:
Ah. That explains it. Plunger should be spring loaded against the inlet hole then. Power applied and plunger should pull in to then allow fule to fill the float bowel which I thought was there to prevent fuel from flowing if the engine isn't running.

The carb is soaking in the cleaning fluid now. I've washed the inlet and outlet pipes. The float and float assembly have all been cleaned. If all goes well when put back together should theoretically not surge...
Click to expand...
Well now. It's almost a year later and started mowing. Worked for a bit and then periodically tons of blue smoke and a faltering engine. Barely got it back to the driveway. Pulled out the old lawnmower and finished cutting the lawn.
Next step was look at Rona web site to decide what tractor to buy since I really didn't want to try and fix it again. So many projects.
I picked this message to reply to because as it turns out when I ran the mower a week ago it ran perfectly for the bit of mowing I did then.

But I never shut off the fuel valve when I parked the tractor.

A quick run outside, check oil and it was way above the oil full mark and smelled like gas.

Sigh. Drain oil. New oil up to full mark. Starts and runs perfectly!
 
jcdammeyer said:
Well now. It's almost a year later and started mowing. Worked for a bit and then periodically tons of blue smoke and a faltering engine. Barely got it back to the driveway. Pulled out the old lawnmower and finished cutting the lawn.
Next step was look at Rona web site to decide what tractor to buy since I really didn't want to try and fix it again. So many projects.
I picked this message to reply to because as it turns out when I ran the mower a week ago it ran perfectly for the bit of mowing I did then.

But I never shut off the fuel valve when I parked the tractor.

A quick run outside, check oil and it was way above the oil full mark and smelled like gas.

Sigh. Drain oil. New oil up to full mark. Starts and runs perfectly!
Click to expand...
Love a good win!
 
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