GreenMntRanger 38 #1 Posted July 1, 2017 (edited) Is there any real difference (other than price) between OEM ($100.00+) carb for an Briggs and Stratton Kohler 18M and an aftermarket carb ($35.00ish) Edited July 1, 2017 by GreenMntRanger Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
rmaynard 14,854 #2 Posted July 1, 2017 I'm sure that there will be differing opinions on the subject, and I can't speak about after-market Briggs & Stratton, but I have used several after-market Kohler carburetors over the last 5 years with no problems. I have taken them out of the box, bolted them to the engine, and fired the engine up without any problems. Adjustments have been good with only minor tweaking of the main jet necessary in one case. For the price, as compared to the OEM, you really can't go wrong. Just be sure that the carburetor that you buy is equipped with SAE (U.S.) threads so that existing fittings work without modification. Many of the Chinese carburetors have metric threads. Just my 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
GreenMntRanger 38 #3 Posted July 1, 2017 Thanks rmaynard. I meant Kohler...just got done working on a B&S push mower LOL 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
GreenMntRanger 38 #4 Posted July 11, 2017 On 7/1/2017 at 2:49 PM, rmaynard said: I'm sure that there will be differing opinions on the subject, and I can't speak about after-market Briggs & Stratton, but I have used several after-market Kohler carburetors over the last 5 years with no problems. I have taken them out of the box, bolted them to the engine, and fired the engine up without any problems. Adjustments have been good with only minor tweaking of the main jet necessary in one case. For the price, as compared to the OEM, you really can't go wrong. Just be sure that the carburetor that you buy is equipped with SAE (U.S.) threads so that existing fittings work without modification. Many of the Chinese carburetors have metric threads. Just my Maynard, Wondering if you had a particular vendor you use? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
rmaynard 14,854 #5 Posted July 11, 2017 cfamily10 on eBay Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
doc724 924 #6 Posted July 11, 2017 I used the same vendor as Bob Maynard (based on his recommendations). No problems for me either. In addition to Bob's advice to make sure they have SAE threads, look over the pictures VERY carefully to make sure the fittings on the choke and throttle are EXACTLY like the one you are replacing. There are many variants. The lower cost ones do not have all the fittings or ones that are not for WH. Yes, you can make them work. One RS member wrote that he went for the el cheapo cost and regretted it when he found he had to remove the fittings from his old carb and reattach them to the new one. His comment was "not worth the aggravation, buy the correct one even if it costs more" Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
pacer 3,159 #7 Posted July 11, 2017 Another thing to be aware of/watch for is the choke 'hook-up' Seems most of the after mkts choke cable connector point is wrong for the WH. There are a few dealers that specify how theirs connect, or even offer 2 shafts. You can - with some effort - change your old choke shaft/butterfly over to the new one. I have used 5 of these now and all worked as maynard said. I did do the choke change over myself.... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
