the mower starts fine but when I go to start cutting the grass it starts making some clicking/clunking noise and the stops. I can restart it find but it does the same thing. Any suggestions of whats wrong?
lawnmower not working - suggestions?
- Thread starter newtohobby
- Start date
I'll take a wild stab at it.... if it starts then it's not the starter.... if it runs fine until it hits grass it's not the gas. ( the engine doesn't see the grass) If it had bad gas it would not run right before. If the noise only occurs when the blades start cutting then it must be something wrong with the blades....... either a bad belt, loose pulley or even a loose blade.
I'm not sure where you are but there is a good repair guy at creditview and burnhamthorpe
I'm not sure where you are but there is a good repair guy at creditview and burnhamthorpe
To add to skiierman:
Belt problem or bent shaft. The lawnmowers these days aren't built to last so you hit a root or rock big enough to slow it, you risk bending the shaft that turns the blades. Once this happens your mower labours and messes with the engine until it cuts out. Idling is fine, but a load on the engine (cutting grass) causes it to fail. Been there... done that...got the t-shirt.
OP
Belt problem or bent shaft. The lawnmowers these days aren't built to last so you hit a root or rock big enough to slow it, you risk bending the shaft that turns the blades. Once this happens your mower labours and messes with the engine until it cuts out. Idling is fine, but a load on the engine (cutting grass) causes it to fail. Been there... done that...got the t-shirt.
OP
^ yep. hit a rock and bend the shaft and turn the thing into one giant vibrator with the centrifugal weight off balance!
could still be poor gas, though... the clunking and loss of power can also be signs of poor compression or excess oil going into the cylinder... does it smoke more than it should?
also, how thick and long is the grass you are cutting? could be a build up of old clippings getting loosened off the underside of the mower deck and clogging up the blade- that makes a clinking and clunking sound as well (and can stall the mower without being on uncut grass)...
could still be poor gas, though... the clunking and loss of power can also be signs of poor compression or excess oil going into the cylinder... does it smoke more than it should?
also, how thick and long is the grass you are cutting? could be a build up of old clippings getting loosened off the underside of the mower deck and clogging up the blade- that makes a clinking and clunking sound as well (and can stall the mower without being on uncut grass)...
Is it electric start or a pull start, if it is a pull start there should be resiutance when you pull it , ( getting in trouble here but it is the only way to describe this). If you do not get a significant level of resistance the compression is gone. The mower will run but any resitance ( grass for example) will stall it out.
Put it up on a bench or saw horse DISCONNECT THE SPARK PLUG turn the blade by hand you should not be able to turn it easily, at this point you will also be able to tell if you have bent the shaft or if the blade is loose, which is also possible. Check for large amounts of old grass packed up in there as well.
If you still can not find a problem take it to a repaiur shop for an estimate if you are in the east end of Toronto I can give you teh name of a reputable mechanic.
Put it up on a bench or saw horse DISCONNECT THE SPARK PLUG turn the blade by hand you should not be able to turn it easily, at this point you will also be able to tell if you have bent the shaft or if the blade is loose, which is also possible. Check for large amounts of old grass packed up in there as well.
If you still can not find a problem take it to a repaiur shop for an estimate if you are in the east end of Toronto I can give you teh name of a reputable mechanic.
Always add stabilizer to gas before storing for winter.
Bad gas could have gummed up the carburetor which is responsible for proper idling by mixing gas with oxygen.
Bad gas could have gummed up the carburetor which is responsible for proper idling by mixing gas with oxygen.
its a gas mower, fresh gas. Its a mtd 4.5hp. I check the blade and its tight. It does seem to smoke a bit now.
1) Check to see if your plug is fouled, it is starting so you are getting some gas and a weak spark. Clean out the spark plug tip with a wire brish or dremel tool. If it starts better, spend a few bucks on a new spark plug.
2) If your lawn mower is old or it has been outside all winter, spray the carb with carb cleaner to losen up all the gum. You might not be getting a good gas / air mixture.
5) Unlikely, but it could be old gas, or if it is a 2 stroke where you have to mix the oil into the gas you may have too much oil in the gas.
2) If your lawn mower is old or it has been outside all winter, spray the carb with carb cleaner to losen up all the gum. You might not be getting a good gas / air mixture.
5) Unlikely, but it could be old gas, or if it is a 2 stroke where you have to mix the oil into the gas you may have too much oil in the gas.
It's the "govenor"... All lawnmower engines use the same basic throttle management system. There is a fan on the rotating assembly that blows air across the cooling fins of the head, the air produced by this also pushes a vane that is connected to a spring attached to the throttle ( butterfly in the carb ) and the throttle control on the handle. This enables the motor to stay at a set RPM despite a variance in load ( grass ) As the rpm drops, the spring relaxes and the throttle opens further to compensate, there3by keeping the engine running. You might be able to see this aspect of throttle control from the side depending on the deseign of the motor. The spraying of the carb with cleaner is a good call and can't hurt anything anyways, as was fresh gas and a sharp blade, but the symptoms are indicitive of a govenor being stuck.. spray the carb cleaner on the mechanism and check for free movement. You should be able to hear the motor work harder but maintain set RPM as you start to cut the grass.
