My neighbour asked me to see if I could get his Sears snow blower
going. Had a good mild day so I went at it in two feet of snow in his
back yard. First, there is plenty of gas but no spark to speak of just
a tingle when I complete the cct between the plug wire and ground.
Seems as if there might be a short to ground or magneto problems.

Are there any really common faults to look for?

On Fri, 14 Jan 2005 09:44:30 -0500, "Bill Darby"
wrote:

My neighbour asked me to see if I could get his Sears snow blower
going. Had a good mild day so I went at it in two feet of snow in his
back yard. First, there is plenty of gas but no spark to speak of just
a tingle when I complete the cct between the plug wire and ground.
Seems as if there might be a short to ground or magneto problems.

Are there any really common faults to look for?

Water in the mag. My old cement mixer was always a pain after it
rained. WD-40

On Fri, 14 Jan 2005 09:44:30 -0500, "Bill Darby"
wrote:

My neighbour asked me to see if I could get his Sears snow blower
going. Had a good mild day so I went at it in two feet of snow in his
back yard. First, there is plenty of gas but no spark to speak of just
a tingle when I complete the cct between the plug wire and ground.
Seems as if there might be a short to ground or magneto problems.

Are there any really common faults to look for?

Check the points first. As long as you are checking them you might as
well clean them even if they look clean. Even a very thin coat of oil
can lead to weak spark. Check the clearance between the magneto and
flywheel if the magneto is on the outside. If it's a briggs make sure
the little rod that pushes on the points moves freely. If all these
check out then the magneto coil may have moisture in it. Bake in the
oven at about 200 degrees for a couple hours. Then just turn off the
oven and let the coil cool in the oven. It sounds crazy but after I
was told about this I rescued several magneto coils.
ERS

On Fri, 14 Jan 2005 09:44:30 -0500, "Bill Darby"
wrote:

My neighbour asked me to see if I could get his Sears snow blower
going. Had a good mild day so I went at it in two feet of snow in his
back yard. First, there is plenty of gas but no spark to speak of just
a tingle when I complete the cct between the plug wire and ground.
Seems as if there might be a short to ground or magneto problems.

Are there any really common faults to look for?

Remove the big nut (or starter clutch) that holds the flywheel on. Look at
the Woodruff Key (that positions the flywheel to the crankshaft) See if it is
sheared or even partially sheared. If it is, the timing will be off. The key
is a soft Zinc alloy and functions as a shear pin in case of sudden stoppage.
DO NOT replace it with a hard metal key. Note: it is not necessary to remove
the flywheel to do this check although it will to replace the key.

Hope this helps

Roger in Vegas.

On Fri, 14 Jan 2005 09:44:30 -0500, Bill Darby
wrote:

I've had problems with mice eating the spark plug wire on my
Sears snowblower. Are there any nut shells around the snowblower?

Wayne

My neighbour asked me to see if I could get his Sears snow blower
going. Had a good mild day so I went at it in two feet of snow in his
back yard. First, there is plenty of gas but no spark to speak of just
a tingle when I complete the cct between the plug wire and ground.
Seems as if there might be a short to ground or magneto problems.

Are there any really common faults to look for?

"Wayne" wrote in message
news
On Fri, 14 Jan 2005 09:44:30 -0500, Bill Darby
wrote:

I've had problems with mice eating the spark plug wire on my
Sears snowblower. Are there any nut shells around the snowblower?

Hi Wayne!!!!

Ha ha I don't know about nutshells the damned thing was in a field
in two feet of snow for a month or so.

I just wanted to say I enjoy the "how to" pictures of your tail stock
build.

Great lathe hand as well. (Gotta teach em young) I was about 50
when I learned to do what that dear young gal is doing.

Thanks
Bill



Wayne

My neighbour asked me to see if I could get his Sears snow blower
going. Had a good mild day so I went at it in two feet of snow in
his
back yard. First, there is plenty of gas but no spark to speak of
just
a tingle when I complete the cct between the plug wire and ground.
Seems as if there might be a short to ground or magneto problems.

Are there any really common faults to look for?

On Sat, 15 Jan 2005 11:43:54 -0500, Bill Darby
wrote:


Bill,

Sorry, but you've got the wrong Wayne. There seems to be
quite a few of us around this newsgroup.

Wayne D.


"Wayne" wrote in message
news
On Fri, 14 Jan 2005 09:44:30 -0500, Bill Darby
wrote:

I've had problems with mice eating the spark plug wire on my
Sears snowblower. Are there any nut shells around the snowblower?

Hi Wayne!!!!

Ha ha I don't know about nutshells the damned thing was in a field
in two feet of snow for a month or so.

I just wanted to say I enjoy the "how to" pictures of your tail stock
build.

Great lathe hand as well. (Gotta teach em young) I was about 50
when I learned to do what that dear young gal is doing.

Thanks
Bill



Wayne

My neighbour asked me to see if I could get his Sears snow blower
going. Had a good mild day so I went at it in two feet of snow in
his
back yard. First, there is plenty of gas but no spark to speak of
just
a tingle when I complete the cct between the plug wire and ground.
Seems as if there might be a short to ground or magneto problems.

Are there any really common faults to look for?