My faithful, cheap-***, 12 year old, Bolens MTD with a Briggs and Stratton has, to my cursory inspection, died. I was pushing it harder than I should have, and it knocked hard twice and died. It will not restart, and will turn over, but feels like it is grinding on something.

I will take the engine down to see what happened, but more for analysis than any serious intention to fix it, being as how it was a 175 dollar mower to begin with years ago. I am thinking it wrecked a ring.

 

yep...sounds like ya blow'd it up...

 

I went with honda power and I'm not looking back. My friend works for one of their service centers and I got a rebuilt unit at less than half the price of a new one. Beats my old craftsman and snapper.

 

I had a Bolens ride-on from about 1970 that I used for a number of years.

It was a wreck, threw belts all the time, had cracks and rust through on the deck, wheel bearings had disintegrated, but it moved, steered, and cut grass.

One day it stopped. I'd forgotten to check the oil for a couple of years. Seized up solid.

Left it where it sat as a lawn ornament.

- Eric

 

I have had a Craftsman with a B&S for over 10 years without issues. Also my Snapper 18.5 B&S rider was purchased new from Walmart (hehe) a few years ago and I've beat that thing like crazy. Still runs great. I know Briggs gets some bad reviews, but I've sure had some good luck with them.

 

Went 17 years with a 54" cut MTD... Just replaced with a 50" Cub Cadet... The Cadet is okay, but it doesn't feel as well built as the old MTD, which I guess is expected with today's quality standards...

 

I have a 25 year old 21" Honda self propelled that still starts on the second pull every time. I don't use it much anymore. Two acres is better suited to this:


61" cut, 26 HP Kawasaki

 

Weird as the Cub Cadet is one of MTD's top brands...The Cub cadet and Toro riders (what I have) are built on the same assembly line.

 

I did check the oil in it after it seized and it did have oil. I've been wanting a side chute mower for a while. Time to upgrade. This old one will get torn apart, looked at, and if the block is still ok and the part is cheap, maybe fixed.

 

Those tow-behinds are interesting. Ever fall off?

 

Well, ****.

Turns out it did NOT have oil and the stick was lying.

Got bored tonight and took the fuel tank and carb assembly off, the pull cord unit off, then took the head off. Decent scrape on the cylinder wall, and this little Briggs is a flathead, I don't know if they all are, and the spark plug is on the way to the cylinder from the valve. Scrape was on that side.

I got it loose and noticed how easy it spun, so I dumped oil in it and turned it over a bunch by the blade and got it happy, so I figured I'd button it back up and see if that did it before getting into the crankcase or tossing it. After reassembly, damn thing fired right up, so I mowed the front yard.

Seems to have the same amount of rpm and power, and has a small tick now, but no knocks, so the 175 dollar mower lives on. I'll check the oil each time I use it now, used to just do the beginning of the season.

 

I'm guessing it got stopped by the ring/piston interface without oil at that spot, which is a pretty good spot to jam an engine if you have to, I guess.

 

Ive got a masey Ferguson roto tiller from the early 70s with a b&s engine still going . Every fall I swear I'm going to rebuild it over winter but never do. I paid $100 for it about 10 years ago.

 

YES! The B&S mows on!

 

I recently bought a used Toro self propelled with electric start,that I found on Craigslist and it was only a mile from my house.Gave $125 for it and I Love it ,so far. Larry