OutdoorKing Repair Forum Forums Repairs and Maintenance Questions on Engines Questions On Briggs & Stratton Engines I/C motor id

I have a John Deere self propelled and am curious as to whether or not it has a cast iron sleeve motor. I called John Deere distributors in Brissy and Briggs as well. None could assist except to say it is a 6HP unit. The motor has no stickers on the cowl or engine except a small B&S sticker on the fuel tank. The entire motor, tank and engine cowl is black. The mower is pretty much as it left the factory.

Model 12H802 Type 1769-B1 Code 00052259

Thanks

If you look at this site:
http://norwalkpower.com/briggsandstratton12h802-1767engine.aspx
it has an engine specification: aluminium bore. Why do I suspect that both manufacturers and dealers are much readier to give us good news, than bad news?

Probably will not help but if you go to http://www.briggsandstratton.com/engines/support/operators-manuals/ and put in the model and type code seperated by a - , you will get the parts listing manual for the engine.

If it was an iron bore motor it would probably have an I/C sticker on the motor somewhere.

Are you just curious or do you think it might need some attention. Some things are best left alone. A head gasket will cost you about $10 its not OHV so it wouldnt be hard to find out about the bore.


Id say its not iron lined.


Bob.

Would a reason they are aluminium be because they have no throttle adjustment? When I start it it just runs full throttle, no in between. Just thinking perhaps quicker to get to operating temp.

I'm guessing that code says it's a 2000 model? If it is it goes to show what regular maintenence can do for a motor. It still runs very nicely indeed and isn't smokey. I wish I could say the same for my ride on.

Edit Hi Bob I was typing this as you posted. It runs very nicely and starts first pull. No just curiosity due to the engine not having any ID on it at all. It is a John Deere JS63 self propelled. Not a bad mower actually.

It is unlikely that the engine has no speed adjustment if it's on a lawnmower - but it isn't impossible. I've never seen one like that, though. Can you post pictures? A self-propelled mower with no speed adjustment would be awkward to manoeuvre, I'd have thought. More likely the control is missing, or not working, or you haven't found it yet.

Seems like it was made on 22 May 2000.

Despite that site I listed above saying it is OHV, the one in their picture is side valve, and the engine they are talking about is definitely side valve - here is the cylinder:
http://www.partstree.com/parts/?lc=briggs_and_stratton&mn=12H802-2640-B1&dn=09900002

If that first site can't figure out whether it is side valve or OHV, their opinion on whether it has an aluminium bore obviously isn't worth much. However it looks to me to be just a run of the mill Chinese Briggs, with an aluminium bore. Glad yours has worked well - I don't see why it wouldn't, if they followed the Briggs drawings properly. I'm pretty sure the bad engines they've built were just a result of having to get their act together - the ones they didn't mess up were most likely just as good as a traditional American Briggs.

Thanks Grumpy. It's definitely a side valve job.

When did the manufacture of Chinese engines start?

Are there still some being produced in the US? If so how are they identified?

Thanks.

I think the Chinese Briggs factory started up in the 1990s, but there will be others on this site who are better informed on it than I am. It was at about the same time as the engines were redesigned and acquired a different series of model numbers, with a letter in the first block instead of all numbers. The Chinese ones seem to be all black.

Production of the large engines and the I/C engines continued to be in the US, but I don't know if they are still made there now, or whether that will continue. The only production I know went to China was the el cheapo aluminium bore small mower engines such as your new one. As you have already noticed, it need not mean they are bad engines. By the way, Honda make their small ones in China too.

Grumpy here are some pictures



with engine cowl removed



carby linkages do not move at all



this is the mechanism which stops the engine when you release the top bar on the handle bars. Walking speed is controlled by a 3 speed gearbox.





This is the setup I am used to on my old mower

Your first picture seems to show a normal speed control linkage, with the cable missing. The bracket that holds the cable outer is there, and the bell crank that connects the cable inner to the governor spring. The mechanism is the same as on your I/C Quantum engine. On the John Deere there is something that looks like wear marks on the paint on the bell crank where the cable would attach. Are there any signs of a screw having been in the screw-hole for the cable anchor, to the right of the speed control bell crank?

Does your John Deere dealer say it is not supposed to have a speed control?

Personally I'd be reluctant to buy a mower without an engine speed control. I only use maximum engine speed in tall/heavy grass, which I don't usually encounter except for two mows each spring. The rest of the time I'm running well under maximum speed - maybe 2,500 rpm, where maximum is 3,500.

John Deere lists no throttle cable for that model.

Just on closer look, the cable holder screw mount has no thread, just a hole. The throttle mechanism had a tab folded back preventing any movement. I grabbed a set of long nose pliers and folded it back and presto, it idles nicely.

Now to source an old cable and hand throttle mech.

That's what I'd do aldot. I think it will last longer that way, as well as being more pleasant to use. And I agree, if the cable outer anchor point has never had a thread tapped in it, it hasn't had a speed control cable fitted - JD made it without one.

aldot, there is a refinement you could make to your posts if you don't mind: please post your pictures using the icon at the top of the posting box - the fifth icon from the left. It is easier to do, and it puts the pics on Outdoorking's own server instead of an outside one. We have some orphaned pics in the archive, where for some reason the outside site has discontinued the images, and we've ended up with meaningless threads because the pics vanished from them, so now we put them all on our own server. I've converted all of your pics earlier in this thread to local.

If you want to take the next step you can lift all the covers off the top of the motor and remove the spring loaded brake strap. In its mechanisim theres the contact wire to kill the motor, there is provision for it over on top of the carb, gently remove it and move it.

Then you can remove the engine brake bar and its handle. Put all the bits in a box, its a competely reversable thing.


Bob.

Hi Bob, that set up really annoys me. I generally let the motor idle when emptying the catcher or moving something out of the way when mowing but the thing dies when you let go of the hand bar.

I might give your suggestions a go. I installed the throttle cable and lever and things are better.

Question is, why have that setup in the first place? Is it due to the self propelled setup and the mower inadvertantly taking off if the operator is not there to control it?

At the moment I just use a plastic vice grip over the handle to keep it idling.

I think one of the guys told me that its an american standard. An un-manned mower is not allowed to keep running or something.


No doubt some idiot did something stupid.


Bob.

Hi, Instead of using your vise grips you can use a cable tie. You can slide it off and on to keep the mower going or stop it.