OutdoorKing Repair Forum Forums Repairs and Maintenance Questions on Walk Behind Lawn Mower Frames Victa Lawn Mower Frames Victa 18 Project

Hi there! I've been a long term lurker, this is my first post.

I've been into mowers since I was a teenager, I'm now 38 and still obsessed! My passion is for Victa's, mainly because my grandfather had a green Victa VC Mustang, which he gave to me, and I still have running to this day. I've since owned countless Victa and other branded mowers as part of my business and as a general hobby.

Yesterday I picked up a Victa 18 that had been used as a showroom display for I'd guess at least 30-years. This is easily the oldest mower in my collection and my first interaction with these OG Victa's.











As you can see, she needs a little work. I would love to restore it to showroom fresh, but.........................then I wouldn't be inclined to use it. My goal is to just get it running so that I can use it as an occasional novelty.

The engine hadn't run in decades, and with fuel leaking from the fuel tap and carb bowl, it won't be for a little while longer yet. My first step was the remove the carb and assess what I needed. With it removed, out of curiosity I gave it a shot of starting fluid to see if it had spark, to my surprise she came to life.



So, the plan is to clean and rebuild the carb, rebuild the fuel tap, clean the fuel tank, then sort out the intake side of things. The choke lever on the dome-type air filter housing has broken, the rubber tube completely perished. I've since started ordering parts and I look forward to seeing where this project goes. For context, I have never rebuilt a carb before, let alone working on a machine this old. So, I'm learning new things.

Would love to hear what you think and what I should look out for.

Cheers!