The crankshaft end float or play on the side valve Briggs engines is set by the position of the crankcase cover. Over time, the end of the main bearing (which is pressed into that cover) can wear, particularly on vertical engines, increasing the play. Briggs made more than one thickness of gasket, and required the overhauler to select a gasket to get an allowable end float. If there is too much wear to correct by reducing the gasket thickness, a special shim must be fitted to take up the slack. Here is the procedure for aluminium engines with plain PTO bearings:
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