OutdoorKing Repair Forum Forums Restoring, Customising and Modifying Tech Talk Smokey Honda GX160

That sounds like a successful engine rebuild, Ben, it should be good for a couple of decades of home use, at least. So far as the mower rebuild/replacement is concerned, people post here fairly regularly that they have bought SB 45s at good prices, though not always in overall good condition. It seems to me that having now a top-grade engine ready to go, you would be able to buy a mower that had been neglected rather than abused, so it is relatively easy to fix the frame and cutting system. In particular, there are plenty of them out there that have never had the reel or bedknife ground. Some surface rust shouldn't matter, the important thing is that you should never need to replace the reel (which costs more than a second-hand SB45). The best approach though, it seems to me, is to get one of the old neglected machines that have sat in a wet shed for several decades, aren't running, and look awful - but have hardly been used. Amateur maintenance may have done terrible things to the engine, but that won't matter.

Is lack of need to engage the choke to start it just a 'new' engine thing?

Yep...that's the plan.

I have all the gear to sandblast and wirebrush a frame and repaint it, etc. Just need to find a decent frame to move the engine to.

The frame I have doesn't have the solid engine mount, so at some point it has had angle steel welded to it to fix stress fractures. The grass deflector is made from a piece of sheet metal from an old Rheem hotwater system and doesn't alow the catcher to fill fully. The knob on the clutch is a brass door knob. There is nowhere near enough metal on the cylinder for a re-grind and a number of the blades are badly bent anyway. The front roller has a lot of slop due to the holes at each end being flogged out. That said, she still cuts surprisingly well. The rear drum and drive cogs are in good nick though, as are the handle bars.

Have missed a few good frames in the last couple of months due to not being around at the end of an auction, but they come up regularly, so patience will pay off in the end I hope.

Ben.

Ben, I don't think the lack of need to use the choke has much to do with the engine being new. Chances are it's running a bit rich. The Honda carburetor does have a mixture adjustment as I recall (they call it the "pilot screw"), but the first steps are to ensure that the air filter is really clean, and that the choke is opening completely. Then try adjusting the pilot screw until it gives you the highest idle speed.

Could just be a particular trait of that engine.

Dad has one at his place and it needs the choke to go.

I would be very interested in a copy of the manuals and parts lists.

I picked up a GX160 from the scrap yard. Had water in it, i wouldnt call it seized, it was nipped, starter wouldnt budge it but it didnt take much extra effort. Im thinking that i might pull it down and make sure its all good.

Bob, here is the short-form workshop manual for the GX160:
http://www.honda-engines-eu.com/en/images/996.pdf

Thanks Grumpy. Had a look at ive got that one already.
I wonder if there is a long form getting about.

I'm sure there is Bob, I've even found it, but I haven't found it from a no-charge source. Someone posted a source of an interactive universal manual for Honda small engines, on disk, a few days ago. As I recall it was over $30.

I sent a bunch of manuals and exploded diagrams to Outdoorking months back, but he hasn't uploaded them yet.

I also sorted out my other running issues and the 'no choke on cold start' with a new air filter - the only bit I didn't replace as part of the rebuild. The foam element looked fine and it the reason I didn't replace it. After much frustration and hair pulling, I pulled the foam element off and found the paper element underneath it was totally clogged. She now run smooth as silk and very quiet.

Ben.

Thanks for posting that update Ben. Now that we have a solution for the archive, I'll close this thread.