OutdoorKing Repair Forum Forums Repairs and Maintenance Questions On Ride On Mowers Questions on Greenfield Ride On Mower Frames Greenfield Squeals Loudly on Start-up

Ok thanks Grumpy, getting a little dark now will oil it up and take some photos tomorrow

Decided to do it in the twilight. Lubed the crank shaft with 2 drops of oil and no squeal on starting up. Ran it around the yard for a couple of minutes no squeals, engaged the blades and she squealed. It also squealed at one point later on with blades disengaged at high revs, but at low revs it doesn't squeal. What should I do now? Here are some pics.. By the way it says the images will be click-able for larger but they are not?

That crankshaft extension is pretty well torn up, Figarow. You've probably also ruined the bore of the new starter.

Plain bearings at high speed can only work if they are polished smooth and lubricated. I don't know if you want to hear this, but that old clutch was destroyed by you, when you let it run in a condition where it was partly seized, had rotated the sprag inside the outer part of the clutch until it was in light contact, and had then spun all of those balls, dry, at many thousands of rpm until it ruined the sprag, the outer, and the balls. Then you fitted the new clutch without proper lubrication, and probably without having polished the crankshaft anywhere near enough. Consequently when you ran it today it was half seized again, spinning the (new this time) balls again, and has most likely cut into the sprag and the clutch outer, as well as tearing up the bearing surfaces of the crankshaft and the mating inside bore of the sprag component. The condition of the crankshaft extension, clearly visible in the first picture, tells the whole sad story.

To get this to work you have to do two things: prepare the parts to a much higher standard; and hit the kill switch the instant you hear any kind of sound from the clutch. Even then it may be too late. You are dealing with precision engine components: they do not tolerate any kind of nonsense.

Yep, what Grumpy sez.

The other thing is, if the cord isn't retracting fully, the starter rewind spring needs a few turns more preload. This can also cause issues with the starter clutch.

Afterthought: Grumpy, those balls are intended to be run completely dry. This is so that they don't stick in contact with the shaft when the engine fires, but are flung out of engagement by centripetal force quickly.
1976 Briggs Service & Repair Instructions:
The drop of oil in the end of the crankshaft lubes a felt pad in the top of the ratchet, so that it won't spin at crank speed with the engine running, but can be held stationary by the starter pulley it's meshed with. If that pad is worn out/absent, that's another potential cause of the squealing.

Ok guys sorry I really don't know what I'm doing hence asking here. I will pull it apart again today and do a better job of sanding the crank shaft. Not sure what else can be done? I mean is the crank shaft ruined? I won't be able to get those grooves out with wet and dry. Any way to know if the new starter clutch is ruined other than taking it apart? Will do as you suggested and kill as soon as I hear the squeal Grumpy sorry for my lack of understanding

No need to apologise Figarow, it's just that you and I are both grinding our teeth over the wastage of your time and materials.

First, to run successfully the crankshaft extension has to be smooth. Some narrow, perfectly circumferential remaining grooves probably won't do much harm, since the amount of bearing area is not important here - this isn't a crankpin.

Second, I think you will need to take the new clutch apart to see how much damage has been done to the balls, sprags, and outer housing. You also need to inspect the bore of the sprag housing, where the crankshaft extension runs inside it, to see how torn up that is. I don't think you can repair it if it is damaged.

hi guys when i oil these i use about 3 drops of ATF oil as it is designed to last a long time and is very thing the hole in the top of that clutch is for oiling i oil the shaft and then once assemble i chuck a couple of drops down the hole never had a issue doing it this way