I have a tecumseh engine on an edger. I dont have the number off hand but the carb is in the rear and there is a long governor arm situated vertically. The carb has two asjustments. The main jet i adjusted with it at WOT, and then i went to adjust the idle. However, it will not idle, no matter what the adj. screw is set at. I went from closed to falling out at half turn increments...no idle. Also, when it is running at full throttle, it surges. I just put this carb back on because i cleaned it, so all the jets are clean...but for some reason its not running. I know tecumseh engines are the worst small engines to get running, i have never owned one that didnt surge, sputter, or not run right, but i should be able to get this running right.

Any ideas?

 

A couple (o.k., four) suggestions:

1. Set the idle at 1 to 1-1/2 turns out (from lightly seated).
2. Double-check that the needle valve (inlet) is not stuck
3. The float MIGHT have a pinhole leak in it, in which case the engine will have a real hard time keeping up with the amount of gas/air mix.
4. Air filter. Dirty?

Tecumseh engines (IMO) are PITA.

 

Nah... Tecumsehs have the sweetest carb in the world if everything is right. Briggs carbs are the ones I truly get torqued off about!

You need to take off the carb, drop the float bowl, check the needle and seat, test the float by putting it in a small container of fuel to make sure it really DOES float, then set the float.

NEXT check the mixture needles. If some dipstick has twisted them in so tight that the tips are damaged, you can either replace them or get out some sand paper and an electric drill. Put the slotted end of the needles in the drill chuck, and spin them while shaping the tips to a clean point with the sand paper...

A normal needle valve comes to a smooth point of about 5 to 10 degrees, and does NOT have a groove worn around the tip. The shape is critical.
It does not meter the fuel by opening or closing like a water faucet, but by inserting it's gradually changing diameter into the orifice.

Take a hard look at the needle valve orifices to make sure nothing is stuck in them.

Put it together, mount it up, and pre-set the idle to one full turn. Dial in the idle first, then set the high speed needle. ALWAYS IDLE FIRST!

It's helpful to have the high speed needle backed in all the way once the engine is warmed up, but never bottom a needle valve tighter than to where you can just barely feel it touch.

If need be - go over the threads with a tap and die.

Because Tecumseh carbs have an honest to Pete float chamber, they run a hecka lot nicer than a Briggs with all the funky fuel pump setups they have on them. And you don't have any possibility of sucking up a whole crankcase full of gas if a ten cent diaphram fails...

You also don't have a couple of pounds of fuel in a tank pulling down on the carb in some applications - which can cause the carb-to-cylinder bolts to back out (always use lock nuts on them anyway).

1) Tec carbs were always my prime choice for mini-bikes and Go Karts.
2) Running a fuel filter in line between the tank and carb inlet is a good (if not GREAT!) idea.
3) You can make an adapter to put a Tec carb on a briggs out of quarter inch aluminum stock. The difference is the mounting holes, which are at 90 degrees to eachother from one to the other.

FACT: I had a Bonanza mini-bike with a 3.5 horse Tec on it that ran forty five miles an hour on trails...
Until the frame began to crack in so many places it wasn't funny.

I always wanted to run a five horse with a seven horse carb, just to see what would happen. I'm probably one of the few people you will ever hear of who has done a "PORT JOB" on a mini-bike engine... A Die Grinder is a beautiful thing.

 

With more then 20yrs repairing small engines Gray wolf is the only one I know to give praise to a tec carb.Its not that I hate there carbs they pay my bills LOL.sounds to me like the low speed circuit is still clogged if you strip the carb down to nothing and lightly heat the carb where the main jet goes with a propane torch it will help unclogg the passage or some guys have dipped them in boiling water and it has worked no matter witch way you do it it will need a new needle and seat because it will swell.And the low speed screw on a tec carb should be 1 turn out to start with and the high 1 1/2 turns.

 

i dont know. I followed all the tips. I tried to set the idle first, but it will not idle, period. it will fire up for a half second, then die, so it is getting fuel, at least at first. The needle and seat for the float look ok and seal well, the float has no holes, its solid. I am guessing i must have an orifice somewhere that must still be plugged or something. The needles and seats for the idle and main jet look ok as well.... ?????