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NotTaR of small Gasoline Engines and Rotary Lawn Mowers : Comments on engine rebuilding           
 Copyright © 1994-2007, Samuel M. Goldwasser. All Rights Reserved. Reproduction of this document in whole or in part is permitted if both of the following conditions are satisfied: 1. This notice is included in its entirety at the beginning. 2. There is no charge except to cover the costs of copying. I may be contacted via the Sci.Electronics.Repair FAQ (www.repairfaq.org) Email Links Page.

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Comments on engine rebuilding

While the specific question dealt with a medium size snowblower engine, the comments should apply to other yard equipment as well.

"Is it economical or feasible to properly rebuild a 7 HP Tecumseh engine on a snowblower? Compression seems fine. Has been burning oil to some degree for the last 3yrs, but this year its' burning a lot - maybe 1/2 pint oil for each gal of gas. Until last year, was using 5W30. This year, switched to straight SAE30. I could get a new Tecumseh SnoKing engine for about $350 including shipping."

(From: Mother (jmg14213@earthlink.net).)

As a finalist in the All-American Engine Repair Championships formerly held at the Outdoor Power Equipment EXPO (an industry trade show) in the Tecumseh division, and as a Briggs and Stratton Master Service Technician, it has been my experience that:

  1. Yes it is POSSIBLE to rebuild one successfully, although if it is not an HH model with cast iron bore, it probably will not hold up (single H models are aluminum bore).

  2. It is not cost effective to do so.

  3. Short blocking this engine requires special tools if it is more than ten years old, as the ignition timing is not fixed, as it is on newer, solid state models.

  4. Engines from companies like Northern Hydraulics may be adaptable to your unit, but will likely not just bolt on.

If this engine is on a top of the line product, such as Ariens, Snapper, or BearCat, it is probably worth repairing, as a new comparable product is big bucks (and overpriced).

If this engine is on a mid-range product, such as Toro, Simplicity, John Deere, Husqvarna (European product, not USA built), etc., then repair is probably still a good option, due to the overpricing of similar replacement products.

If it is on a Murray, Noma, AMF, Dynamark, Ultra, Sears, MTD, YardMan, White, Husqvarna (USA built by Murray/Noma), or other discount store brand, go buy a new machine. The cost of a new unit is not much more than the cost of the engine repairs, and then you won't have a worn out piece of discount store equipment to break down again in three weeks when something else goes bad...


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