OutdoorKing Repair Forum Forums Repairs and Maintenance Questions on Engines Questions On Tecumseh / Kirby Engines Kirby 3 hp engine

Hi All

Just got myself a Scott Bonnar Reel Mower fitted with the Kirby 3hp engine...Managed to get it running and it seems be running fine,but there is a constant drip from the carb...Any ideas what to look for and what may need to be replaced?
Thanks

Hi Pikey. There are three possible causes of a drip from the float bowl of your Kirby Lauson. The most likely one is that the water drain button on the bottom of the float bowl is leaking. The fibre washer it uses often gives up after a number of years. The second possible cause, if it only drips when the engine is not running but the fuel is turned on, is flooding, due to a needle-and-seat leakage problem. The third possibility is that the sealing washer under the nut at the bottom center of the float bowl has deterioriated and is leaking. Note that the first and third causes would result in dripping whether the engine were running or not, while the second cause would only result in dripping when the engine was not running, but the fuel was turned on.

None of these three problems is difficult to fix, though the leaking water drain is a bit of a hassle to dismantle and reassemble.

Since you have a Kirby Lauson and are interested in getting parts for it, you may find this thread useful:
https://www.outdoorking-forum.com.au/forum/u...p;Words=Lauson&Search=true#Post37736

If it is a leaking water drain seal you may find a carb bowl from a later tecumseh mower motor will fit, By eye they look the same size and shape, but at present I have not offered one up to my kirby on my scott bonnar 45.

Thanks for your replies.

Silly question , Why does it have water drain on the carb?

probably to aid flushing out thw system if the equipment has been outside, as it could be a bit quicker than taking the carby apart....

Truth be told, if its sat long enough to have water in there most of the time it needs a full clean anyway, I use the drain on my scott bonnar to drain the stale fuel out if its been sitting a while and I forget to run it dry on its previous use, bit it takes all of 30 seconds to remove the bowl andd tip it out anyway.

Some of the newer tecumsehs even have them and they also leak, I guess in america where the tecumseh version of the kirby may be used on a snowblower or something it may come in handy if it managed to ingest some water into the fuel while you were on the run.

Thanks for your replies Joe....Very helpful.

Alan

Pikey,

You can replace the carburetor drainer which you can get from the online store HERE . I have had them leak in the past because of old fuel sitting in the carburetor for a long period of time it damages the 'O' ring.