G'day Sapper, I think I'll invest in a 24mm spanner after reading your account. You've done the hard yards so we fellow novices don't have to go though that adventure like you did. Well done getting it working in the end. It's promising to be a very well spent blood orange!!
Ahh, if only victa had kept producing the thumblatch catcher series, they would be in better shape today!
We shall see! Just looking around the carby aaaaannddd....the decompressor pipe on the back has been snapped off....
Now I have to see from the experts here whether is can be reattached with some kind of adhesive? Or is this carby body dead in the water? I have managed to get the end out of the decompressor pipe, taken the carby apart now (the throttle cable and cam were not moving properly, but we shall get more into that after the current crisis with the decompressor attachment is sorted), and have everything lined up in a row; parts seem in ok shape. Even the diaphragm is looking ok. No cracks or anything else to report.
Sapper, I think another body is in order. Here's a shell of a G4 off a Victa twin that's been sitting in my garage for years, showing the outlet. I don't get what the metal bracket on the intake is about on this early example.
Ahh, if only victa had kept producing the thumblatch catcher series, they would be in better shape today!
Strange, that is where the vacuum hose and throttle cable go, isn't it? Maybe it had a different attachment for the vacuum hose? Maybe to stop the throttle cable coming out?
I have had a look for LM carby bodies. Good sweet jesus, they want the earth for the things. Cheapest new is $40, which kind of makes buying a sh!tter to get running a moot point. I will have to keep my eyes open to see if I can see one floating about somewhere.The price shocks me as people are selling dead mowers, with working carby bodies, for less than a tenner! What a weird economy...I will give them $10 for the bloody carby! Keep the mower!
In any case, since this one is kinda dead, I might experiment to see what might work. First attempt will be seeing if polystyrene cement will melt this stuff and make a connection. I use it for making my models, but it depends on what kind of plastic the carby is made out of.
Sapper, it would certainly be interesting to see what you can pull off ..,erm put on, since you have the plastic piece. I would carefully clean the contact areas with a wipe of acetone, as it will slightly melt the plastic and remove oil and grease residue thoroughly I have heard. I would use a new pliable piece of vacuum hose so you don't have to use as much force to get it on and a film of oil to assist further in getting it on without breaking it would be a good idea after the cement has had a good amount of hours to set.
It should work as there is no real load on it once set up. Best of luck.
Ahh, if only victa had kept producing the thumblatch catcher series, they would be in better shape today!
Sapper don't buy a carby, I just picked a PT up on hard rubbish 5 mins ago, just keep a look out they are still out there and people still chucking them out, although not like they were a few years ago.. Once a few people know you are playing with them they also look out for you, that helps. I haven't seen a pic of your broken decomp port but if it is just the white end that has broken don't worry about it . MF that is a bodge done by somebody to keep the cable in place. Pity you aren't closer I have boxes of those carbys but I will not post any thing any more
It snapped off just over halfway, so it requires surgery. Now, the polystyrene cement doesn't work. So, I got my dremel out and honed the two sides so they were nice and flat. Made sure the hole in the middle wasn't covered, and have joined them with very strong super glue. I will wait for that to dry, while also regularly pushing through some fuse wire to make sure the hole stays ungummed. I will then apply a second coat of super glue to further strengthen the area. After that, I will use some silicon or putty around it to keep the base strong. Then we will see if this bodgy job works.
Sapper , you should have just left it alone, a new piece of hose will fit fine on the stub, even clear plastic hose is fine as it is only a vacuum hose
Ok, so the fix has worked. She is all back together and starts perfectly. Bloody loud though!
Now, these are the problems;
The throttle cable seems to be too short. When putting it back in the cam, the bit that slides out needs to be around the 'start' position in order to get the head into the little bowl/slot in the cam where it operates. Having the throttle control back at 'stop' does not allow the head into the cam.
The mower can only be turned off when the throttle is in the middle of 'run' and 'start'. Putting it back to 'start' (remember, with the throttle cable problem above, 'start' is the new 'stop') puts it at full revs again. Naturally putting it to 'run' also has full revs'.
Ok, I am all ears experts, what do you reckon about the above?
Congratulations, how is throttle control and idle? Does it overrev in grasscutting mode?
Sounds (!) like the exhaust has either a rupture or it's in need of stuffing. I was fortunate to have a couple of spares last time I swapped one over. I just used needle nose pliers to pull out the mesh stuffing from the old one and put it into the other. They are fiddly to put back on for a novice but the key is the angle you do it in. There are plenty of youtube vids on the subject.
This is a good one to watch.
Ahh, if only victa had kept producing the thumblatch catcher series, they would be in better shape today!
What else would you reckon is usable for muffler stuffing? Steel wool?
And does the stuffing take up all of the muffler inside? I can see there is only a tiny bit in there, on the left hand side looking in the rear hole. None in front of the hole, nor can I see any on the right, unless is is further over.
The engine doesn't so much as over rev, it just goes to grass cutting at the top or bottom (bearin gin mind it only goes as far as start when you move it backwards due to throttle cable seeming to be too short), while cutting out about halfway on the throttle control. It is hard to find idle due to this problem.
The cables vary in length, the length from the end of the cable to the ball can vary up to 10mm. You can creep a bit on the adjuster screw plate on the air filter housing but not a lot
I have played around with it a bit more. I intend to try and mount it a bit further in, but it is pretty short of where it should be, easily a good 2-3cm. This also has an effect on the cam, where pushing it forward to run doesn't quite make the cam fully turn to full power. I am guessing all of the problems stem from that throttle cable.
For all intents and purposes, once used to its wackiness, you could now use it as a lawnmower. It starts fine, it cuts fine, it uh stops halfway between run and start...and you can can have either run or start as your preferred grass cutting setting on the throttle control!
I will have to keep my eye open for a new throttle cable. There are some online, but once again, the price of them is the price of another s-box old mower and change, so not an option.
I was lucky enough to happen on a pile of them at the tip - paid $8 for about a dozen. I would send you one, but aus post are rip off merchants unfortunately
I was having a think about this; the throttle cable. When first attaching them up at the control column, do you first have to make sure there is enough already played out to attach to the cam? I am just wondering here if I take it off entirely, first make sure there is a certain amount already played out to reach the cam slot from the 'stop' position, then attach it to the throttle control section, and job done? Is this making sense?
Perhaps this is how it happened in the first place. Someone previously had it entirely off, and reattached it up the top when the throttle control was not at the stop position.
Let me know if this doesn't make sense and I will try to explain again.
Sapper There is not a lot you can do with it up in the filter housing, you can try but I doubt you will get anywhere with it. I tried years ago without much success
Right. I am just struggling to understand how this can happen, where the cable somehow becomes 'shorter' without something happening in installment. What the hell, it won't cost me anything to take a look, and I will learn how it all works up there by fiddling. Stay tuned for the next part I stuff up haha.
Sapper, I don't think the cable becomes shorter, that is how they were made, but don't ask me why because I have no idea and there is little you can do about it. I tried drilling a new hole in the lever down lower so I could get more lever travel, I think it worked but I wasted a lot of time trying to achieve very little in the end.
I personally hate fiddling with those things. I'd rather put up with faults if I can get away with it. Wait for another snorkel and cable to come along. There are tonnes out there.
You got it going, happy mowing I say.
Ahh, if only victa had kept producing the thumblatch catcher series, they would be in better shape today!
Ok, nothing doing yet. I think with some major surgery I could get it going, but I have about the same possibility of permanently stuffing it up. I have found some old steel wool, so I will be restuffing the muffler, and also will hit it with some cheapie heat resistant paint I picked up on sale at super cheap for $5. I also picked up an o-ring set on clearance at the mower shop, one left in the bargain bin - contains head gasket, starter ring (already put a new one on so this is a spare), front carby ring and two manifold rings. There is already a washer in the carby, so I will leave it there. And a new filter and sealer I got as part of a box of 20 small filters/sealers that I picked up on clearance. Apart from that..
It is running good and strong now, not over revving. idle is just a bit down from start, full speed is run, and stop is between run and start...naturally. I will keep my eye out for donor mowers, but will not be spending a cent on new parts.
Just need to keep my eye out for the next acquisition.
Have to say, I have learned more getting this thing up and running than all the time with my perfectly good mowers I use. Well worth the few dollars
