OutdoorKing Repair Forum Forums Repairs and Maintenance Questions on Engines Questions On Victa Two Stroke Engines Powertorque Starter Lube?

I pulled this mower out after about two years of sitting and the cord is doing this caper again. This is the problem it had when I found the mower dumped. I pulled off the starter and moved it in and out a few times and it freed up and worked ok again.
I think this time I want to apply some sort of lube to the inner workings so I don't have this happening again after storage.
I have silicone spray, wd40, general purpose oil (3in1 -like Singer oil), a couple of other spray lubes and kerosene. I also have graphite powder dry lube. What passages should I apply it through if at all? Mower its a good goer otherwise.

Hi MF,
I have had a couple like that and I don't think it is a lube problem, something gets slightly distorted when you tighten it down, loosening the screws frees it up but you can't leave it like that, so I just replaced them with another one.

I agree with Norm, its as though the spring gets caught or bottoms out on the bottom of the housing then doesnt clear the top of the pulley and grabs it.

I use silicone spray in all pull starters as WD40 is generally a poor lubricant, and oil will attract dirt (I do use in briggs starter clutches). WD40 silicone is very good, I had problems with Permatex silicone for some reason though

Thanks guys,
I have sorted out by removal of the cover and manually winding back the black plastic pulley that's exposed on the top and pulling the starter a few times to loosen it up. I've started it a free times and it's now retracting fully, sometimes needing to be guided in. I'll leave it for now.

Loaned it to a neighbour and it was great to hear it going in the background. Happy to lend it to her as much as she wants!
It sounded really vital!

MF, did you put the top cover back on, from memory as I loosened the cover screws the cord would retract.

Do you mean the dress cowl with the fuel tank?
Yes I refitted that fully and the cord sometimes hesitates to fully retract. I heard the woman stop and start it several times and she never mentioned any issues. She commented she likes how easy it is to pull the cord to start it and I explained how the decompression valve helps in that. She also liked how simple the catcher is to remove and put back on. She wasn't impressed with the nylon bearing wheels. The mower felt heavier to push compared to her machine with ball bearing wheels. I explained this was the cheapest bare bones model and bb wheels are easy to retrofit making for a much better pushing experience lol.
I don't think she'd dig the thumb latch type but I'll give her a go of one next time!