I hope that you didn't leave any residue inside from the Q-tip. Usually a
toothbrush and some compressed air is all you should need.

There are several brands of carburetor cleaner available. One is CYCLO, but
go into an auto parts supply store and buy a can that has a nozzle extension
with it. After removing the carb, you can carefully drain all the gasoline
out of it and begin disassembly. Clean each part as you remove it. Use a
little bit of compressed air into each passage, in each direction, to make
sure things aren't clogged. There may be one or two ports with check-valves
in them to only allow fuel flow in one direction. Don't bend anything. Take
care to orient things back the way they were when you started, including the
mixture screws. All metal parts should be clean, shiny, and either aluminum
or brass colored. A rebuilding kit should show you how all the parts fit
together.

If you're really not mechanically inclined, you may be better off having a
reliable mower shop work on it. A new carb could cost $100.

Bob
====
"Buck Wheat" wrote in message
om...
Well, I did see a hole up in the center above the float and put a
cue-tip up it, I have not seen as of yet a hole at 45 degrees...but I
am working with a mirror, so I guess I'll just remove the carb, which
looks like it was put on with liquid gasket (crap) so I guess I'll
have to cut one or buy a new one, I'll take a digital picture of the
linkage before removing.

What do I clean the removed carb with? Should I just get a "rebuilt"
equivalent carb or just clean the thing with carb cleaner (already
done while mounted?) I'm just a little afraid of ****ing the whole
thing up by messing with the jets/screws...maybe I just use the "1.5
turn from tight" rule...funny I just heard my neighbor crank up his
mower...does the exact same thing.

I'm learning ASAP, thanks.

(Chip Stein) wrote in message
. com...
here's the answer again. i used to work on a couple hundred of these a
year.
a spring won't fix it. you have junk in the carb. the idle
feed
passage is clogged causing it to try and run off the main fuel
circuit. pull the bowl and clean thoroughly. up in the center of the
carb tube is a asmall passage running at a 45 degree angle towards the
top. this is where the restriction is. there are also 3 holes in the
lower bowl jet, one small one in between the 2 threaded areas. make
sure to get that one.
good luck
Chip