OutdoorKing Repair Forum Forums Repairs and Maintenance Questions on Walk Behind Lawn Mower Frames Victa Lawn Mower Frames Victa Imperial 16" 4-Stroke

Hi all,

After the warm welcome in the introductions section, I figured I'd better start this thread sooner rather than later.

This is the Victa Imperial 16" reel mower that I found. (in a hard rubbish pile under a heap of old furniture and junk)







It does run.... mostly, but there some small issues. One of the front rollers is missing, but with two reasonable rollers still there, I should be able to get some new rollers turned up. The blade is somewhat blunt, but a friend of mine told me there is a guy at Griffin who sharpens them...

It's not to bad... The grass catcher is a bit beaten up, but I should be able to massage the metal back into shape, the same goes for the chain cover. There was also a heap of crud in every crevice of the motor, looks like a cat or dog must have lived where the mower was kept.

Hi Andrew, what a great looking machine, in original condition, on a great score, mate. Just as a point of interest, these machines were also manufactured in New Zealand by Morrison Industries in Hastings, painted red and badged as a Scott Bonnar.

Well I tore into the engine this afternoon. There was a heap of sludge in the bottom of the crank case, mainly cloging up the oil drain plug holes. The valves and piston had reasonable amount of carbon buildup on them. This has all been cleaned off, the rings still have a servicable gap on them, so no need to try and find new ones. The piston looks really nice now, I couldn't resist and polished to top of it...


Next up will be to lap the valves into their seats, the inlet looks fairly good already, but the exhaust does need a bit a attension.


I am now in a bit of an undecided state of mind... Do I strip the whole thing and try to restore it all to as new condition, or just service what needs to be serviced and leave the rest as is... I think I'm leaning towards the later as I do plan on using the mower, not putting it on show. And if I do a full resto, I'll end up being worried about using it in case I scratch it.

I agree the exhaust valve seat looks as if it needs lapping. Don't forget to check the tappet clearances - especially after lapping, they may need to be increased by removing a small amount of metal from the end of the valve stems.

Personally I don't see much sense in doing a full restoration on a mower you are going to use regularly, but what I do like to do, is fix any part I have to work on so it won't need to be fixed again. If you tidy up the engine mechanically, all you would have to do in a later restoration is make the outside look pretty: the inside would already be good. I also like to ensure that nothing will deteriorate while I own it. That probably means de-rusting any parts that might get pitted without attention, and doing a rudimentary paint job (zinc chromate primer and brush-applied rough colour coat) to keep it from rusting again. However we probably all have different ideas of what is a sensible job of preserving the machine. I think Deejay enjoys polishing his restored SB after each use, and generally treating it like a new car whenever he drives it.

I wish I was that dedicated, grumpy!
No, it only gets a polish once a year pre-mowing season, and in fact its in the shed filthy at present. I haven't had the inclination to clean it as yet due to more pressing issues.

HI Guys

Can somebody help me with some technical data on a Kirby HK25 I need to know the [b][/b] for it CORRECT TIMING SETTING for it.
Does anybody have a manual for that motor as it would be very handy

Many Thanks Motorman39

I just picked up a Victa 20" Imperial with a HK25 on it. I can't find any others in the forum. Are they rare?

Hello, I have a imperial 14" and I am going to give it a full restoration hopefully. My one has a 125cc 2 stroke and it was full of water when I got it. I am trying to remove the motor but am having trouble separating from the clutch? Do you have any experience with this?

I have two of these mowers but have never had to disassemble the clutch so I cant help there, but from memory there may be some kind of screws on the innner half (motor side) you may be able to separate itand remove one half of the clutch and the engine as one unit

A History Record is now available for the Victa Imperial.
https://www.outdoorking-forum.com.au/forum/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=72511


This topic is now Closed and Locked.