ometimes stall. tried oil change, spark plug, emptied all fuel and replaced with fresh gas, removed carb and cleaned, also tried replacing prime bulb. still surges up and down, valve on carb opens and closes. any ideas what else i can try/
Garden

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Hi
Sounds like you have dirt/debris in your carburetor jets,fuel passages or a diaphgram that is becoming non-flexible.Be sure to check your fuel tank for water and dirt/debris, if there is water/debris then you need to clean your tank.Also check you fuel line condition after a while they will degrade and need replacment.Check/Clean/Replace your fuel filter if you have one.Also make sure you are using fresh fuel.If the mower/weedeater is over a couple of years old, then I recommend that you buy and install a new carburetor repair kit,because the diaphragm will get hard and that will cause it to be hard to crank.Sounds like you will need to clean the carburetor or replace your carburetor internal rubber parts like the diaphgram and O rings.I recommend that you use a laquer thinner type cleaner to clean and dissolve the laquer build-up in the float and needle jet passages.Be sure to remove all plastic and rubber parts before using the laquer thinner because it can dissolve the plastic parts and render them unuseable.Be sure to use compressed air to blow out all the fuel and air passages.Be careful when blowing out the passages, because there are sometimes small rubber type seats in the bottom of some of the passages.Sometimes you can get by with priming the carburetor or using starting fluid and letting it run a few times like that and it will flush the gunk out of the jets,but most of the time you will need to rebuild the carburetor.Keep in mind that the float (if you have one) for the carburetor must be level when you go to reassemble the carburetor or follow the instructions you get with the carburetor kit.When you clean your carburetor and remove the jet screws, you will first need to lightly seat the jet screws.But before you lightly seat the jet screws count the number of turns it takes to seat the jet screws from their original position.Be sure to mark the turns down on a piece of paper.That way when you put the jets back in, you know to lightly seat them first and then turn them back out to their orginal position before you started.Once you have your carburetor rebuilt that should solve your problem.
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How to Identify and Fix Common Gardening Problems ?

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The most common reason for a surging lawn mower engine is a blockage in the fuel supply, but there are other possibilities: Bad gas. Bad spark plug. Dirty/faulty carburetor.
If your lawnmower`s engine is surging it could be a problem with the carburetor. The carburetor mixes air and fuel to the perfect ratio for combustion. There are passages and nozzles (called jets) that route the fuel through the carburetor. The jets meter the precise amount of fuel that is needed for combustion.
The mower surges when the carburetor sucks air through an unsealed gap in the air intake manifold instead of through the air filter. Dirty carburetor. Clogged fuel jets inside the carburetor commonly cause the lawn mower engine to surge. Clogged jets can`t provide the right mix of air and fuel to the engine.
Small engine muffler type and manufacture. Carburetor adjustment may not be properly set for correct engine performance. Anti-afterfire solenoid may not be working properly.
A full gas tank and oil reservoir are the essential first steps when checking why the lawn mower won`t stay running, but the problem could also be a dirty filter, clogged carburetor, improper fuel mixture, or a dirty spark plug.
The problem may involve an annoying change (up/down) of engine speed while cruising at a steady pace, a low drop (or even cut-out) at idle or when approaching a stop, a wild high engine speed of several thousand rpm followed by a drop to near zero, etc.
Among the potential underlying causes are vacuum leaks, EGR system malfunctions, malfunctioning oxygen sensors, dirty fuel injectors, fuel pump malfunction, faulty spark plugs, a faulty mass airflow sensor, or a faulty throttle position sensor.
Most often, over-revving occurs not because of a deliberate attempt to push a vehicle, but rather as a result of missing a gear while shifting. When a manual car accidentally downshifts, a rev limiter will not be able to react quickly enough to prevent the engine from over-revving.

Discover Relevant Questions and Answers for Your Specific Issue

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Have a poulan pro 6.5 hp i tilted it up to take off blade some gas ran out of the front now when i start it it just sputters and coughs and then goes off and won’t start back. i replaced spark plug but still does it what have i done to it. help!!
ANSWER : You have a clogged airfilter, All Paper elements are not usable once they have gotten wet, with either water or oil or gasoline. Remove the ait filter, start the mower and let it clear out, then install a new paper element, It should work fine.

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MY POULAN PRO 6.5 WONT START….nEED TO REPLACE SPARL PLUG BUT DO NOT KNOW ‘right one”..
ANSWER : Take the old plug out, any auto store should be able to match it up.

Gary

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550 Had difficulty starting. Once started it ran very sluggish and then stopped. Checked plug, wired brushed it, cleaned filter, still nothing.
ANSWER : TRY MY SELF PROCLAIMED TRICK: THE ON THE MOWER CARB REBUILD.1. GAIN ACCESS TO CARB THROAT2.FILL ENTIRE FLOAT BOWL WITH SPRAY CARG CLEANER3.LET SIT4. DO THIS A FEW TIMES….MAKE SURE PLUGS ARE “NEW”…OR ABSOLOLUTELY CLEAN…DRIP A FEW DROPS OFF GAS INTO SPARK PLUG HOLE…RETHREAD PLUG…FIRE IT UP UNTIL IT RUNS AND PULL THRU AND BLOWS OUT ALL IN CARB

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Have a craftsman 16″ chain saw 358.360260. Could not initially get it started after it had sat for a couple years with fuel stabilizer in it. When I went to use it the fuel had all evaporated and the fuel pick line was rotted. I replaced that with some difficulty but finally got it on. Saw still wouldn’t start. Replaced the fuel filter. Still wouldn’t start. Pulled the carb apart and cleaned and recleaned everything. Diaphragms were good and I didn’t adjust any of the mixture screws because as I said it ran fine before storage. Non of the carb passages were clogged. Fresh gas 40:1, good spark plug and good spark. Airfilter is good. Engine has maybe about 4 hours of total run time on it. It’s a ZAMA (?) carb. It will run for about 30 seconds when I manually prime it by pouring a small amount of fuel directly though the carb. When I was disassembling the carb the vent hose that goes back into the fuel tank seemed to have a small out of ?substance? in it which I cleaned out. It was right at the end the of the hose that goes back into the fuel tank and not up by the carb. It didn’t appear to be like your typical gummy deposits/varnish though. I hope it wasn?t some type of spongy check valve stuff that is supposed to be in there. That might explain some of my problems. Anyway, I also can not seem to get the primer bulb to fill. When I open the fuel tank, look in side and depress the primer bulb, air bubbles come out of the fuel filter. But when I let the bulb reexpand there’s no fuel that gets sucked up the hose. I can however seem to fill the primer bulb when the fuel tank is full and the chainsaw is laying on it?s pull cord side and the bulb is depressed a bunch of times. The saw will also start and run again for about 15 seconds then die. It’s definitely not getting/fuel and probably running out . Thanks.
ANSWER :

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I have had a poulan pro 550 series push mower for almost 1 year at the end of the season last year the mower would start briefly and then stop. i have cleaned out the air filter and that did not help.the mower started, i made one revolution around the yard 3/4th of the way the mower quit. I then primed the mower it started then quit and now it will not start at all. Does anyone have any suggestions of what to do. Thanks
ANSWER : There is a little spring that works the carburetor arm. If that popped off then the mower will not run.

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My toro 6.5 hp push mower (2010), has no fire to the plug. I have not abused it. i have a small yard and it just gets normal use. Now it won’t fire. I first changed the fuel and cleaned the carb thinking it was that crappy ethanol again. but i grounded out the spark plug and cranked it…no spark. I think it has to do with the lever you pull back to start it . they have some stupid complicated safety contraption that rides along the fly wheel when you pull back on the handle for starting and shutting off the engine. …it looks worn out already…like a mini brake pad. any ideas?…do i really have to replace this garbage every year or am i on the wrong path here?
ANSWER : Unhook your wire from the coil that goes to shut off mechanism, and see if you have spark then. the wire may be grounded out, or your coil might have took a ****

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Chainsaw stalls Chainsaw is 4 years old and has a history of moderate use. After I ran the saw about 1 minute on plain gas (grabbed the wrong gas can – ouch) the chainsaw sputtered and stopped.

It didn't seize, and the pull starter never became more or less difficult than normal. The engine would continue to start if I pressed the prime bulb and engaging the choke, but stall again after 10-20 seconds. The temperature that day was about 50 degrees F and I was running the saw with the “cold plug” installed (per warm weather running).

When it refused to keep running I did the following:
Flushed the fuel tank (that's when I saw the gas had no oil in it).
Ran hardware wire through all of the fuel lines.
Replaced the fuel filter and spark plug.
Cleaned the air filter with a nylon brush and compressed air.

Same behavior (start then stall in less than 20 seconds). I made at least 20+ attempts to start it.

I removed the carburetor and, though it looked perfectly clean, I took off the top and bottom covers then sprayed everything with automotive carb cleaner and blew out the passages with compressed air. The gasket and diaphragm looked new. No pinholes in the diaphragm when held against a bright light. I reinstalled the carb but got the same behavior (start then stall in less than 20 seconds). I again made at least 20+ attempts to start it.

I disassembled the short block and saw that the piston has some slight scoring on it. The ring is clean and I verified that the piston ring has .001 clearance between it and the piston ring groove all the way around with the ring held tightly in place (I was thinking that the piston might have become deformed if it did indeed get too hot when run without any oil premix).

The cylinder wall has no scoring and there isn't any signs of melted aluminum anywhere. The crank is clean as was the inside of the crank cover.

I reinstalled the crank cover using permatex non-hardening gasket goop and torqued the cover bolts to 10 inch pounds. I reassembled everything else per the exploded diagrams in Echo's “parts manual” for the CS400.

During assembly I took note that both the carb gasket and intake boot look like new.

Still the same result: press prime bulb once, engage choke, pull a few times and it starts but stalls after 10-20 seconds.

I'm stumped.

ANSWER : Not sure what to say other than its fuel starvation, if not already done replace the fuel filter in the tank, if no better i would suspect a massive air leak, so replace the crank seals, if there is no primary compression in the crankcsae fuel will not pull through the engine, good luck.

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Poulan 21” self propelled mower – new spark plug but still won’t start. Receiving no spark nor any kind of indication mower wants to start. Fresh gas and oil. All filters clean. Sworn at multiple x still won’t start. Mower is 2 years old. No previous problems of any type with this mower.
ANSWER : Try putting a SMALL amount of gas in the carb and see if it will start, if it does, it is a fuel problem, if it does not it is probably an electrical one

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