small engine repair?
Thread Starter
|
Lead Driver
Joined: Jan 2002
Posts: 8,616
Likes: 4,698
From: Itinerant
small engine repair?
I have a craftsman 8hp snowblower which I can not get going. I have compression, changed the spark plug(it has spark), put new gas in it.But when I prime it with the primmer button no gas is get to the engine? I pulled the spark plug and it's bone dry. I have even tried cranking it with the electric start thinking the engine will draw the gas to it with no luck(spark plug still dry).. Any thoughts of what to look for? 
Posting Guru
Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 1,507
Likes: 0
From: Magrath
I assume it is gravity fed for gas (no fuel pump). Check the filter and the tank. Maybe there is something that is plugging it. Fuel hose is cheap, I would replace the fuel line. Also, maybe something is plugging up in the carb.
Good luck
Good luck
Elder User
Joined: Dec 2004
Posts: 769
Likes: 0
From: Idaho cda postfalls
get a can of carb cleaner and spray into carb and try to fire it, it should start and run on carb cleaner you can keep spraying it into there and it will stay running. it might start running on its own after you do that. pull the fuel line off the carb and see if your getting fuel to the carb first. then check your carb.
Logistics Pro
Joined: Nov 2004
Posts: 4,562
Likes: 2
From: Southern MD
Originally Posted by scraprat
I have a craftsman 8hp snowblower which I can not get going. I have compression, changed the spark plug(it has spark), put new gas in it.But when I prime it with the primmer button no gas is get to the engine? I pulled the spark plug and it's bone dry. I have even tried cranking it with the electric start thinking the engine will draw the gas to it with no luck(spark plug still dry).. Any thoughts of what to look for?
Did you put "Stabil" or another gas additive in the gas and run the engine to circulate the additive, before storing the snowblower last Spring?
If you have varnish in the carb, especially at the needle valve, it will stick 'closed' and that won't allow gas to enter the carb bowl. (Or, the main and idle jet[s] are stuck closed, because of varnish.)
I suggest squirting lighter fluid into the intake and trying to start the engine.
If the snowblower runs, chances are, it is the carb bowl.
A re-build kit runs about $10 - $15 and takes a total of about and hour to do. Maybe less.
IF the carb is a 'diaphragm' type, the diaphragm MIGHT be torn, in which case, it won't 'pump' the gas from the tank through it, to the engine.
Same test. Same price to re-build.
The reason I state the above, my old Sears snowblower (1979 model) has this problem. After re-building the carb a few times, I remember to add "Stabil"!!
That old snowblower started on the first pull, this year!Good luck with it. Let us know how it turns out.
Last edited by 00BlueOvalRanger; Jan 28, 2005 at 03:41 PM.
Junior User
Joined: May 2002
Posts: 77
Likes: 0
Trending Topics
Guest
Joined: Nov 2004
Posts: 7,988
Likes: 55
From: north west new jersey
please listen to oo. that is what i find 90% of the time a stuck needle and varinish in the jets. you might try to tap lightly on the carb housing and see if the needle drops and it runs. good luck man
FTE Stories
Ford Trucks for Ford Truck Enthusiasts
10 Best Ford Truck Engines We Miss the Most!
Joe Kucinski
2026 Shelby F-150 Off-Road: Better Than a Raptor R?
Brett Foote
2027 Super Duty Carhartt Package First Look: 12 Things You NEED to Know!
Michael S. Palmer
10 Most Surprising 2026 Ford Truck Features!
Joe Kucinski
Top 10 Ford Trucks Coming to Mecum Indy 2026
Brett Foote
5 Best / 5 Worst Ford Truck Wheels of All Time
Joe Kucinski
Ford Super Duty: 5 Things Owners LOVE, 5 Things They LOATHE!
Joe Kucinski
Every 2026 Ford Truck Engine RANKED from WORST to FIRST!
Michael S. Palmer
The Best F-150 Deal of Every Trim Level (XL through Raptor)
Joe Kucinski
Elder User
Joined: Jan 2005
Posts: 561
Likes: 2
From: Willow River B.C.
Probabally best to rebuild the carb but try getting it going with a spray bottle of gas or carb cleaner as mentioned and keep it going for a bit, the vibrations might loosen the crud in your carb and get fuel flowing again, if you do happen to get it goin put a tablespoon of ATF in the gas and let it run for 1/2 hour to an hour to clean that gunk out.
Logistics Pro
Joined: Apr 2004
Posts: 4,292
Likes: 5
From: NJ where fun comes to die
Check and see if the fuel line goes directly from the tank to the carb, or if there is a round plastic piece in the middle, with another line to it from the crankcase. Some have it and some do not. They call it a fuel pump, but I think it is nothing more than a vacuum operated valve. They get clogged as well as the carb.
Thread Starter
|
Lead Driver
Joined: Jan 2002
Posts: 8,616
Likes: 4,698
From: Itinerant
Thanks for the replies, yes the fuel is on. And no I did'nt add stabil but I will next time. Well it sound like I have something to do today.Thanks again ...let you know how it turns out. Thinking the carb, it has sat for 2yrs.
Thread
Thread Starter
Forum
Replies
Last Post
Tifford
General NON-Automotive Conversation
4
Nov 6, 2014 10:49 AM
JimmyRC86F150
General NON-Automotive Conversation
17
May 5, 2007 06:25 AM
SpyFoxx
General NON-Automotive Conversation
26
Jan 10, 2007 01:11 PM