OutdoorKing Repair Forum Forums Repairs and Maintenance Questions on Engines Questions On Briggs & Stratton Engines Masport 4-stroke: Am I a dinosaur?

Hi all, new to the forums and given what most people are here for this may not be the right place to be asking...

I have a Masport 4 stroke which I bought 18 years ago when I bought a house with lawns. It has given sterling service and in return I've tried to maintain it well. Over the years I've grown fond of it because it's just worked beautifully every time, regardless of what it's mowed through.

A couple of years ago it stopped working and I took it to a mower shop who charged me >$200 for the repair. I found out when I picked it up that the problem was gungy fuel left in the carby over winter. They had simply cleaned it and the problem was fixed. Expensive (and probably a rip-off) I thought, but wth it was working again.

Since then the mower has been kept at my mum's as I do her lawns for her (and I bought myself a new monster mower for home, but that's another story). And now it's stopped running and I'm 99% sure it's gunged up again. I have a dilemma: I don't have another $200 to get it fixed, I suspect it's an easy job, but I don't have the space/time/confidence to do it myself. And the grass is growing...

So now I'm tossing up whether to (1) chuck it out and buy a cheapie with a warranty? (2) have a go at fixing it and chuck it out if it doesn't work out?, or (3) I don't know what else to try.

It's been an awesome mower, and although it may be silly I'm kind of attached to it and think it deserves better than being dumped. I also don't think a sub-$200 mower, while perfectly adequate for the job, is going to be as satisfying to use.

Is this emotional attachment strange? Am I old-fashioned for believing that our throw-away way of life is wrong?

I'd appreciate any thoughts and ideas people here have.

Spray a bit of aerostart into the carby and if it fires up, you are probably right about gung in the carby. A pressure pack of carby cleaner and a few simple tools will probably clean it okay. If it doesn't fire, take the plug out and with the lead reattached to it, hold it against the cylinder head and see if there is spark when you pull it over. Don't forget to move the throttle off the stop position. If there isn't, check if it is the plug by either changing it, or put a screwdriver in the end of the lead and see if a spark jumps then.
Try these couple of simple things and if no luck, get back to us with details. You will find a heap of knowledgeable and very helpful people here.

Ah, OK, I should probably say what I've tried:

Replaced fuel with fresh
Spark is happening
Plug looked ok, but I changed it anyway
Air filter reasonable
Oil recently changed (it's a 4-stroke B&S, from memory it says "Quantum" on top, but don't quote me on that)
Throttle on about halfway

What I get is:
1. Prime, pull rope, engine fires and runs for a few seconds, then dies as if starved for fuel.
2. Prime, pull rope, engine fires and runs for a few seconds, then dies as if starved for fuel.
3. Rinse, repeat.

I don't have Aerostart, but I do have have carby cleaner and tools. The carby is unknown territory for me, so I'll check youtube to see if anyone's done a vid of how to pull it apart when I get home.

Hi Bender, welcome to Outdoorking.

Please have a close look at the pressed steel cooling air cowl (the starter is in the center of it). It should have a long series of stamped numbers on it, divided into 3 groups: Model, Type, and Code. If you tell us those numbers we can identify the engine, including the carburetor type. Then we can talk about how to clean it properly. With luck we might even be able to take a guess as to what caused the problem, so you can keep it from happening again.

g'day bender . we do need the code it tells its age , what type of engine and where made and options .
take a 1/2" ring and take of the float bowl depending on the model i think you can get at it without taking anything else off , the main jet is in the nut you remove , see holes in it close to the bottom . carb cleaner and if you have air ? give it a good blow out too , or if not just blow hard . one of those bread ties will do if it wont clear .
make sure the bowl is clean , jet is cleared and the seal is still on the float bowl and they do need a clean airfilter too , give it a TAP and see what comes out if ok then refit it
hope it helps ..
, Dave

Hi Bender, and welcome to ODK. The numbers are important to identify your engine, but by what you've told us(15 yo, and it's a quantum, with a primer carby) i can tell you it most probably has a Walbro carby with a fixed jet and no mixture setting. I would also guess that it is a 12 cubic inch, 190cc quantum engine. Your symptoms are consistent with a blocked/gummed up carby and if you follow vccomm's simple instructions it should come good. There are a lot of vids on Youtube that show the thorough cleaning process, if you want to take a look at a few for a bit of confidence/familiarisation and then have a go and come back here for any help/assistance.
Personally, there is nothing wrong or abnormal about having an attachment to a machine which you enjoy using and is of decent quality, like your masport.
As an alternative, there are a few private sellers of 2nd hand mowers in and arouund the ACT area, most of which can be found on Gumtree, who also do repairs and servicing who could get the job done for you for around $50.

Actually, i think ODK member Jaffa J is in Canberra and could possibly do the job for you if you don't want to tackle it yourself.

Thanks all for your help and encouragement so far. I'll pick the mower up by the weekend and have a go at it then.

Not the end of the world if it doesn't run for a while coz I've got a second mower at home, except that one is bl**dy heavy and awkward to get into the car (can't do it by myself), so I really don't want to have to cart it around much.

thanks to all who left tips here, some I can use for my mowers, no dinosaurs here, just classics

It's aliiive!!!



Lessons learnt:
1. Things are sometimes much quicker and easier than expected
2. On top of a wheelie bin is a good spot to plonk a mower when you don't have another workspace
3. Draining the fuel before taking the bowl off the carby is advisable
4. People on this forum know their stuff

Thanks everyone!

Oh, and I didn't take the top cover off the engine so didn't get the numbers, but it is a "Made in USA" B&S Quantum 60 and there's another sticker at the front that says "XRS". I was able to get the bowl off without taking anything else off and the main jet was in the nut, just as vccomm said.

I've been looking around the forums, and there's some great stuff here. Having seen some pictures, I'm strangely attracted to a Victa Vortex, just for the look of it.

I have:
The resurrected Masport, a Rover ProCut 560, Masport Home Gardener, Shindaiwa T230XR and a Stihl SH86CE. I'm on the lookout for an edger next, probably an Atom.

thats great to hear you got it up n running again easy when you try huh .
hehehe sorry though , i forgot to mention clamp the fuel line before you take off the bowl but now ya know next time .

on a job well done mate
wheelie bins make a good paint stand too

Hello Bender and Contributors,

Congratulations!
You're obviously excited about giving life...
That is a great list of lessons learnt - point 2 is classic AUS ingenuity!
I'm glad the ODK forums have been helpful. Yep, folks know their stuff here.

p.s. Nice that you have a Home Gardener - a half century old design still going strong!

All very Futurama.
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JACK