On 4/9/15, 8:46 PM, Ralph Mowery wrote:
wrote in message
...
I have a troy bilt horse xp with a kohler 22hp engine sv620 it will only
start if i use starter fluid. i left old gas on the tank so i drained the
tank and sprayed it out with ether and bleed the fuel lines to the carb i
also removed the diaphram and sprayed it out with ether.

I am not sure about that engine,but if there is a brass 'bolt' holding the
bowl on the carborator, take it out and look at the holes in it. There is
probably one in the top and a very small one on the side. That one on the
side is very hard to see.It is probably stopped up. Take a piece of copper
wire or something soft and punch out the dirt. Be very careful and do not
enlarge the holes in the soft brass.


That's what I guessed: a bit of watery goo from sitting without fuel
stabilizer in the carb. Now I have doubts. If it runs properly once
started, it seems to me that the passages must be clear.

Maybe the choke plate isn't closing, but I have another idea.

My Kohler Command takes a lot of cranking to start if it's been sitting
24 hours or longer. I guess that means fuel seeps out of the float bowl,
and the mechanical pump doesn't work very well at cranking speed. I
haven't seen anything wrong with the washer at the bottom of the bowl,
but I guess I should replace it.

If that's the OP's problem, he could prove it with a foot of clear
tubing that will fit the inlet nipple on the carburetor. Remove the gas
line. Put the clear tube on and use a syringe to add gas until the bowl
won't take any more. Remove the clear tube and replace the gas line.
Rinse away any spilled gas to prevent a fire, and see if it cranks right up.