Author Topic: Briggs and Stratton or Tecumseh? (Read 2826 times)

Questor · « **on:** October 29, 2009, 05:45:33 AM »

I had to laugh when I heard a radio ad for Briggs & Stratton claiming how well they start up and run. It sure seems like the truth to me when I compare it to my Tecumseh vs. Briggs experience.

Both are good, but I do prefer Briggs.

In any case, it's a good idea to have a can of aerosol starting fluid available for these small engines.

ironglow · « **Reply #1 on:** October 29, 2009, 05:55:46 AM »

I have preferred B&S over the years. Tecumseh was ressurrected for a while by Sears and they used them for quite a time ..replacement parts are "gold"..pricewise.
From what I understand, Tecumseh is now moribund.

Oldshooter · « **Reply #2 on:** October 29, 2009, 06:00:39 AM »

err UHHH KAWASAKI! Seriously, tecumseh used to be a good un but thats dating me a a bit !

Sadly Ive found honda and Kawasaki , hold up better, but are pricing themselves to the point that a good B&S sounds better!

ironglow · « **Reply #3 on:** October 29, 2009, 06:19:20 AM »

I will concur with TM on his engine appraisal. One thing that gave me fits with the old Tecumsehs is the need to loosen & remove head bolts just to get to the flywheel...when all one may need to do is sandpaper the flywheel.

nw_hunter · « **Reply #4 on:** October 29, 2009, 06:34:37 AM »

Quote from: Questor on October 29, 2009, 05:45:33 AM

I had to laugh when I heard a radio ad for Briggs & Stratton claiming how well they start up and run. It sure seems like the truth to me when I compare it to my Tecumseh vs. Briggs experience.

Both are good, but I do prefer Briggs.

In any case, it's a good idea to have a can of aerosol starting fluid available for these small engines.

I'll take B&S over Tecumseh.

Redtail1949 · « **Reply #5 on:** October 29, 2009, 07:00:08 AM »

I have had several Tecumseh engines on mowers and 1 mini bike. Still have the mini bike motor and it runs great after 35 years of working through my kids and their kids. I have hooked it up to pumps and other things just for the fun of it. I guess its nostalgia but its way behind the times in design.

Briggs and Stratton has come a long way baby. Great engines if oil is changed religiously. For that matter make sure anything you buy mower wise has the changeable oil filter and change oil according to instructions. They have all been great, the Briggs engines, no troubles and I use my riding mower 2-3 times per week in season.

I have a brother that has a commercial landscape business and mowing is a great deal of his operation. He has 12 mowing teams running all the time in season. He says for the non commercial operations Briggs is just fine but they will not hold up as well as TORO Mowers with Kohler engines or Honda with Honda Engines. He say now there many are commercial grade mowers and they are real good but none that last run the Briggs Engines.He said never buy one of any make without the filter that is changeable. He has years of doing that stuff and he says if yard is big enough go with zero radius for speed and a good engine such as Kohler.

Siskiyou · « **Reply #6 on:** October 29, 2009, 11:04:10 AM »

My mother-in-law gave us a Sears’s lawn mower that had a Tecumseh engine on it when she moved into a smaller place. I did not like it at all.

I have high pressure, pressure washer with a Honda motor on it. It is a very reliable. My current lawn mower has a B&S electronic ignition motor on it, and I believe the motor will outlive the other components of the mower. Forty years ago I bought a small generator from Sears. It was powered by a B&S motor. We would lose out power during major snow storms and it proved to be reliable. When I bought a new one I passed it to my father-in-law. He cranks it up a couple times a year to make sure it will run.

I worked a lot on wildfires the first 22-years of my career. A fair share of that pumping water from a skid mounted unit on a pickup or a truck. When it came time to pump water reliability and endurance was critical. The Forest Service maintained a testing lab that identified equipment that had qualified by passing a series of test. In my career I never encountered a small engine driven pump using a Tecumseh engine. The primary engines were B&S and Wisconsin.
http://www.fs.fed.us/t-d/pubs/pdf/09511805.pdf

Pumps on large engines are normally P.T.O. driven.

The majority of skid mounted fire pumps I see now days are Honda.

slim rem 7 · « **Reply #7 on:** October 29, 2009, 11:46:49 AM »

if i had to do the repairs i wouldn t even bring a tecumseh home if you gave it to me
with the condition that i had to use it an fix it..i used briggs up to 14 an kohlar after bthey needed bigger motors.. a briggs motor will last a lifetime for a homeowner ...if he keeps maintenance up on it. clean air clean oil..then after 10 yr..replace the plastics an rubber in the motor..one year i used an homeowner briggs for 35 lawns a week..big lawns ..it took lubricating the spindles 2 times a week but that ole cheap murry is still running..
then i got a ztr exmark lazor,,an hit the easy rd.. slim tough machine

BBF · « **Reply #8 on:** October 30, 2009, 08:11:27 AM »

B&S over Tecumseh anytime however I bought a Honda powered lawnmower which is advertised as a one pull starter. I thought, yep, sure it will, more BS!!

Low and behold, that sucker did it right from the start and has been doing it since.

Kudos !!

alsaqr · « **Reply #9 on:** October 30, 2009, 03:31:43 PM »

I'd druther have a Kohler or a Honda engine. At my job site in WV an 8 hp Honda powered generator ran 24 hours a day from the 5th of May until early October. That generator was shut down only for re-fueling and an oil change once per week.

Drilling Man · « **Reply #10 on:** October 30, 2009, 05:31:52 PM »

DEPENDS! Exactly "what" B&S model are we talking about, as they make 3 or 4 different quality levels, with their Vanguard line at the top. Even Honda has more than one quality level...

Tecumesh is now belly up, and of what's left, i'd take a B&S Vanguard over the others, including Honda...

DM

LONGTOM · « **Reply #11 on:** October 30, 2009, 05:42:37 PM »

Quote from: Questor on October 29, 2009, 05:45:33 AM

I had to laugh when I heard a radio ad for Briggs & Stratton claiming how well they start up and run. It sure seems like the truth to me when I compare it to my Tecumseh vs. Briggs experience.

Both are good, but I do prefer Briggs.

In any case, it's a good idea to have a can of aerosol starting fluid available for these small engines.

I would advise against the use of starting fluid on any engine, only as a last resort.
Burnt pistons, bent rods, blown head gaskets.
If you ever do have to use it make sure that you have turned the engine over many times to get the oil up before you give it a shot.

Ever hear the term either weaned?
Mostly in older engines.
That's when a engine will not start unless it is shot with either caused by someone who used it to often and now the engine requires it.

LONGTOM

Empty Quiver · « **Reply #12 on:** October 30, 2009, 06:13:11 PM »

If you have to ether a motor it's likely because the fuel pump diaphram is hard. The side of the motor has a pipe coming out of it, under that plate is a diaphram that acts as a fuel pump, it fills a "float bowl" inside the fuel tank that the carb draws from. If that motor will only start if the tank is full that is usually why. If your fuel tank is remote from the carb then my solution won't work.

I serviced a gillion of the Briggs and Tecumpse motors in a fertilizer business over ten yrs. Get rid of point ignition and keep the tank full solves %80 of woes, keep oil changed and air filter gets another %15, last five seems to involve uh, farmer inputs, such as a wire on the governor or other high performance mods!

If something breaks it was usually cheaper to get a new motor and pump assembly than try and repair. I've found most Briggs will outlast the piece of equipment they are attached to. The better equipment gets a better grade of Briggs, so the rule holds true no matter the line generally.

ironglow · « **Reply #13 on:** October 31, 2009, 05:44:08 AM »

Empty Quiver;
I have an 8 hp Tecumseh (off a snow blower) which I installed as a replacement (got it cheap) for a K-181 Kohler in a #72 Cub Cadet. Engine starts & runs, but seems to starve out, so I must use the prime button often to keep running. I checked the fuel line at the filter and both seem OK..any suggestions? Could the line that crosses over and through the flywheel shroud be clogged?

ironglow · « **Reply #14 on:** October 31, 2009, 06:26:15 AM »

Thanks TM, I'll check those angles. It has a disc style filter...closer to the tank.

Empty Quiver · « **Reply #15 on:** October 31, 2009, 06:57:06 AM »

Unlikely but have experienced this personally. Your engine has a high altitude carb. The replacement was shipped from a dealer that originally bought it for use in Denver for instance. It didn't sell, eventually got into the pipeline and made it to a low altitude. Checking with a good parts man or mfg. can quickly sort something like this out. We spent nearly two summers mowing with the choke half pulled on a used lawn tractor. Guy moved from Co. and no longer needed a large mower and traded it off early in the spring. Everyone assumed it wasn't winterized properly, finally just ordered a new carb. That was when the parts guy at the main distribution center asked why we needed a high altitude carb in central Il.?

ironglow · « **Reply #16 on:** October 31, 2009, 07:04:00 AM »

E Q;
That could be the problem for some, but I bought this from a local shop which had used snowblowers that were used in this area.
Thanks for a prompt reply.

Empty Quiver · « **Reply #17 on:** October 31, 2009, 09:23:12 AM »

This has the float bowl with a needle in the bottom I assume? You'll want to make sure someone hasn't screwed that thing in way too tight and bent it up. Next you unscrew that rascal a bit at a time to get it running the way you want. It could be that simple but I doubt it. When you pull out that needle let fuel floww for a while to really flush things out. Shut off fuel supply then remove float bowl and get rid of any debris left in bowl. Sea foam is good stuff as well as the filter idea.

The more you deal with these little motors the harder it is to believe they ever quit. They are so stinking simple, it complicates them.

ironglow · « **Reply #18 on:** October 31, 2009, 02:57:39 PM »

I am not familiar with Seafoam..is that a localized product ?

mirage1988 · « **Reply #19 on:** October 31, 2009, 03:05:22 PM »

Ironglow-
Where is the gas tank located on your mower? If the motor is off a snowblower it probably has no fuel pump (gravity feed) If the tank on your mower is below the carb, you will need to add a fuel pump if that is the case.

Empty Quiver · « **Reply #20 on:** October 31, 2009, 04:08:59 PM »

Seafoam is a fuel system/ crankcase cleaner sorta like Marvel Mystery Oil lite. I think of it as a cleaner rather than as a lube. It also will do as a gas stabilizer. It comes in a pint steel can for about $6 white with a red logo I think, lots of writing, could be a sister of PB Blaster, but pretty sure it isn't. Here in Mn. it's as popular as Tater Tot hotdish.

ironglow · « **Reply #21 on:** November 01, 2009, 01:17:31 AM »

EQ;
I'll look for the seafoam, I have seen the Blaster products.

Mirage;
The engine is an older one but is laid out like the one pictured below; tank on the offside from the carb, with the fuel hose running through the shroud to the carburetor.
I should add, I juist recently installed this engine but it was running fine with this condition starting at a point of a fresh start up.
I must admit though, that I have not yet fashioned an air cleaner setup, because snow engines don't have them. However, I have not run it in dirty conditions and we have had virtully nothing but rain around here since the installation. Could I have made a boo-boo there?
I am now building a cleaner bracket.

Savage .250 · « **Reply #22 on:** November 01, 2009, 01:45:18 AM »

B/S motor on my riding mower. Still going strong after 11 years of use.

ironglow · « **Reply #23 on:** November 02, 2009, 09:55:56 AM »

Whoops, senior moment!
Sorry, I neglected to post a picture..here it is; Mine is a bit older but has this same layout. Up in the corner of the shroud, right beside the "F" in formula, is a "prime" button, which I often have to pump to keep running.

squirrellluck · « **Reply #24 on:** November 02, 2009, 12:49:26 PM »

Here is my 2 cents. Had 1 do similiar things to me. After many, many battles with said foe on a hunch I loosened the gas cap. Vent was plugged. Gravity feed doesnt work in vacuum. If all else fails give it a try.

gypsyman · « **Reply #25 on:** November 02, 2009, 01:19:05 PM »

Briggs on my push mowers. Usually had to give them a shot of starting fluid the first couple times in the spring, but ran good after that. On my riders, always had Kohlers. Got a 20+ year old rider with a single 14hp Kohler, starts up and runs real good. Smokes a little know, but still gets the job done. I have an 8 hp Tecumseh on a wood chipper. Lots of torque, pain to pull to start, but when it's going, seldom slows down. gypsyman

DDZ · « **Reply #26 on:** November 02, 2009, 03:33:30 PM »

I just recently had a problem with gas getting into my crankcase on my 13hp briggs riding mower. The problem was the float needle valve was not shutting off the gas flow completely . Anyway when taking the bowl off, underneath the bowl there is what appears to be a solenoid that activates a pin that pushes on the float to shut off gas flow. Does anyone know what exactly the purpose of this is? There is still the float to shut off gas flow, why the solenoid?

gypsyman · « **Reply #27 on:** November 03, 2009, 03:25:46 AM »

Extra $30-$40 on the repair bill. gypsyman

DDZ · « **Reply #28 on:** November 03, 2009, 10:02:24 AM »

You are probably right.

mirage1988 · « **Reply #29 on:** November 03, 2009, 02:30:09 PM »

DDZ-
If I was to guess, it probably is wired to an oil level sensor to shut off fuel flow if oil gets too low?