@#$*?! Small engines

Take the air cleaner off. Cover the intake of the carb with your hand (manually choking it completely) and pull the rope. 7/10 times of the main jet is partially clogged it'll pull the trash through. I've started many items that wouldn't crank with that trick. That and once it's running, add injector cleaner to the fuel. Works great on lawn mowers that rev up and down below WOT. That is my .02$, adjusted for inflation, it's $1.25.
 
I've got a mid 90s Homelite generator with an 8hp B&S on it. Never touched it until right before Florence. It would sit for years without getting cranked, but the one thing I always did was cut the gas off and let it run until it died.

Fast forward to last year, it would crank and run, but it would go wide open, almost die, wide open...and over and over. Instead of opening the carb, I dumped some Mechanic in a Bottle in that rig and after 15 minutes, it was like a new one. Some of those fuel additives really do work.
 
I started stopping by a used tool shop locally. He showed me some small passages that needed cleaning with wire in my 8hp briggs generator after he cleaned it for me. Ran like a top after. He also told me to crack the fuel bowl bolt to let the leftover gas drain out after running till it dies. Been doing that ever since.
 
Ok, update. Worked on it again. I pulled the cord about 15 times and got nothing. Pulled the plug and it was dry. Obviously, I'm not getting fuel. I pulled the carb AGAIN and cleaned it. Took small pieces of wire, carb cleaner and a little compressed air. I put it all back together AGAIN and did the trick @a_kelley mentioned. It worked!! After the third pull I got gas on my hand. I took that as a good sign. Put the choke back to run and it fired right up.

Spent all day yesterday trying to get the most of the run time. Washed the entire back patio area, finished the front porch, washed the brick on one side of the house where moss had grown and pressure washed my transfer case, trans and axles. Thanks for all the help.
 
braxton357 said:
Briggs and Stratton engines are the absolute worst with ethanol gas. Throw the piece of shit in the trash and buy a predator to replace it. .
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For the win. I dicked with a B&S motor on my kids gocart. Gave up ,put a predator motor on it for about $125 .....that was 3 years ago. It can sit for months with crap gas in it and start the first or second pull.
 
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I have a Honda pressure washer that I have to clean the carb on the beginning of every season despite always using non ethanol and stabilizer. This year I said screw it and paid $25 bucks for a new carb on Amazon. Sucker started up first pull every time yesterday. We’ll see how this one does long term.
 
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