Garden machines that work and last.
Posted: Wed Jun 15, 2022 9:02 am
Touchy subject this, but hay those that know me think I am mad.
My take on sustainability......
Lets make something simple, robust, that will last and easy to repair.
Here is anpother of my recent stories......
For those of you interested......
My 46 year old USA built Roper16hp, 48inch wide cut, mower gets a new cylinder valve update.
Why do i have such an old mower, i here you ask. Well its simple, very well built with loads of real steel and a chassis and a very well made and heavy cutting deck, and folks still no rust. The US really did make stuff properly then. And we have about 2 acres that need cutting, but only uses about 5 litres of petrol for about 2 hours of gentle running.
The no 1 cylinder lost its exhaust valve seat from its aluminium barrels. Been loose for years, but being a side valve simple engine, it carried on until last month the valve seat dropped out and jammed the valve open so no compression and the mower limped home to its shed/store on just no 2, cylinder.
The engine is a Briggs and Stratton horizontally opposed low revving side valve. Most parts on these engines are interchangeable with other engines that Briggs and Stratton made at the time.
Ordered parts from the US, 10 days later all here. Not expensive but import charges etc seem to double the cost. I always double order elsewhere as the parts are not expensive, but so far only the gasket set purchased in Europe has arrived.
It seems talking to folk in the US that valve seats have always been an issue, and seats falling out are not rare. And as there is plenty of very nice cast aluminium on the engine design, peening and swaging the original aluminium over and up to the new valve seat is a very do-able long-lasting repair.
No 1, cylinder 400cc, showed the fault on a compression test. No 1 is front facing so easy to get at without dismantling and getting the engine off the mower.
So here are a few pics of the repair, got to keep stuff going and working and importantly in my opinion its very good for sustainability.
And yes now running sweetly, still some issues with the normally aspirated carburettor, but the carb jets do not like the modern petrol that engines use today but a bit of tweaking finds a happy medium. But even so, having 16 horses fully running is nice and the engine just ticks over while cutting a field of very high grass.
Swaging tools.
My take on sustainability......
Lets make something simple, robust, that will last and easy to repair.
Here is anpother of my recent stories......
For those of you interested......
My 46 year old USA built Roper16hp, 48inch wide cut, mower gets a new cylinder valve update.
Why do i have such an old mower, i here you ask. Well its simple, very well built with loads of real steel and a chassis and a very well made and heavy cutting deck, and folks still no rust. The US really did make stuff properly then. And we have about 2 acres that need cutting, but only uses about 5 litres of petrol for about 2 hours of gentle running.
The no 1 cylinder lost its exhaust valve seat from its aluminium barrels. Been loose for years, but being a side valve simple engine, it carried on until last month the valve seat dropped out and jammed the valve open so no compression and the mower limped home to its shed/store on just no 2, cylinder.
The engine is a Briggs and Stratton horizontally opposed low revving side valve. Most parts on these engines are interchangeable with other engines that Briggs and Stratton made at the time.
Ordered parts from the US, 10 days later all here. Not expensive but import charges etc seem to double the cost. I always double order elsewhere as the parts are not expensive, but so far only the gasket set purchased in Europe has arrived.
It seems talking to folk in the US that valve seats have always been an issue, and seats falling out are not rare. And as there is plenty of very nice cast aluminium on the engine design, peening and swaging the original aluminium over and up to the new valve seat is a very do-able long-lasting repair.
No 1, cylinder 400cc, showed the fault on a compression test. No 1 is front facing so easy to get at without dismantling and getting the engine off the mower.
So here are a few pics of the repair, got to keep stuff going and working and importantly in my opinion its very good for sustainability.
And yes now running sweetly, still some issues with the normally aspirated carburettor, but the carb jets do not like the modern petrol that engines use today but a bit of tweaking finds a happy medium. But even so, having 16 horses fully running is nice and the engine just ticks over while cutting a field of very high grass.
Swaging tools.
