Briggs & Scrap Iron

[WHX?? 48,703]

Maybe we should call it Big Scrap Plastic..

So a customer brings in a 3 year old Troy Built labeled push mower. 

Motor over revs so I give the guy an estimate on repairs. He was surprised I knew what was wrong with it without looking. I school him about plastic cams. 

So I get it off and open ... yep plastic guv gear go figure. 

 

 

Question is should a guy put a drain plug in it and skool the customer on oil changes? Looks like a boss for it. I know if it were mine I would. 

Edited May 12 by WHX??

[Pullstart 62,698]

Oil change opportunity?  Not a question 

[Handy Don 12,088]

The vertical B&S engines I’ve had (3 or 4?) all wanted you to first drain the gas and then turn the mower on its side to drain the oil through the filler tube.

To empty it from the bottom would be easier, but requires an Allen wrench. Does your install and skoolin’ include a complimentary wrench and how to use it properly?

Edited May 12 by Handy Don

[WHX?? 48,703]

31 minutes ago, Handy Don said:

turn the mower on its side to drain the oil through the filler tube.

Yep had this discussion before. Honda on a pressure washer says don't bother changing. Just keep full??? 

And people wonder why we like our vintage. 

[Handy Don 12,088]

1 hour ago, WHX?? said:

Honda on a pressure washer says don't bother changing. Just keep full???

Many engines now spec this. 

1. With Honda I’d believe you can do this and it’ll last a LONG time

2. With lesser brands, I’d believe you can do this an it’ll last until something not-oil-related breaks and repairs are uneconomical!

[ri702bill 8,242]

9 hours ago, WHX?? said:

So I get it off and open ... yep plastic guv gear go figure. 

Yup, another "cost reduced" product feature. Back in my Actuator days, I was surprised about the preferred "mix" of gear-on-gear choices. Steel on steel was NOT a good idea, but steel on brass, plactic, or powdered metal was, Life cycle testing prooved this to be true. Plastic on plastic not good either....

[953 nut 54,946]

Nothing new there!                  I hate to think of the number of GM engines had to have bent valves replaced because the plastic timing chain sprocket started jumping teeth end valve/piston collisions were the result.            

[squonk 40,973]

54 minutes ago, 953 nut said:

Nothing new there!                  I hate to think of the number of GM engines had to have bent valves replaced because the plastic timing chain sprocket started jumping teeth end valve/piston collisions were the result.            

Actually Richard those gears usually stripped out when starting the engine. No damage done except the gear some trash in the pan and one's pride when it happed on a date in the malt shop parking lot! 

 

Taryl calls them   

[WHX?? 48,703]

30 minutes ago, squonk said:

Taryl calls them 

Watched his u tube on replacing the gov and his brand of humor is starting to grow on me. 

 

11 hours ago, Handy Don said:

but requires an Allen wrench. 

Thinkin a regular NPT pipe plug Don and offer it to the customer as a $$ option? 

Might be BSing the customer on it making it last longer tho. 

On the other hand is it just me or does a motor seem to purr nicer with fresh oil? 

[Sailman 1,291]

Back in the day Troy Bilt made great products. I have a 70's Horse tiller that is a beast. Stuff in the last ten years has been junk and many stores will not carry Troy Bilt any more. Apparently a company bought it out years ago and jobbed the manufacture out to any and all Chinese companies with little quality control. I have 2 weed eaters that I have had to re-engineer just to keep them running. Makes us appreciate our vintage stuff even more.

[OoPEZoO 504]

1 hour ago, Sailman said:

Back in the day Troy Bilt made great products. I have a 70's Horse tiller that is a beast. Stuff in the last ten years has been junk and many stores will not carry Troy Bilt any more. Apparently a company bought it out years ago and jobbed the manufacture out to any and all Chinese companies with little quality control. I have 2 weed eaters that I have had to re-engineer just to keep them running. Makes us appreciate our vintage stuff even more.

The Troy Bilt brand was bought by MTD back in 2001 when they acquired Garden Way.  They also got the Bolens brand at the same time. Then in 2021, MTD got acquired by Stanley Black & Decker. Around the same time, SB&D also purchased Excel Industries who owns Hustler and Big Dog mower brands. So now SB&D is sitting on Dewalt, Cub Cadet, Troy Bilt, Craftsman, and Hustler……among many others.  I have lots of opinions on all of this, but not on a public forum. Find the guy at the big show wearing the Hustler hat and I’ll talk your ear off about it all.  

[WHX?? 48,703]

3 hours ago, Sailman said:

Back in the day Troy Bilt made great products.

No doubt... you guys remember those b hind tillers that were beasts.

 

2 hours ago, OoPEZoO said:

. So now SB&D is sitting on Dewalt, Cub Cadet, Troy Bilt, Craftsman, and Hustler……among many others.  

Got a CC in for a oil change and I was not surprised to see it labeled MTD. Nice running 23 hp 7000 Kohler in it but noticed other big box cheesyness. 

Makes me glad to see there aren't  out there with plastic cams. 

[squonk 40,973]

I think the replacement cams are steel. Go figure

[bds1984 1,428]

19 hours ago, squonk said:

I think the replacement cams are steel. Go figure

 

They are.  I've replaced many over the years.  Kawasaki went through this issue too in many of the nicer John Deere 300-up series.  It is all about planned obsolescence and trying to wring out every last fraction of a cent.  Many people wont want to repair it so they get rid of it and replace.  In a way, we all here benefit from it because we'll repair and keep, or repair and sell, but either way, what a waste of resources.   

[WHX?? 48,703]

50 minutes ago, bds1984 said:

 they get rid of it and replace.   

What your saying is manufacturers want to sell boxes.

I had always guessed that a bean counter figured he could save a penny on a plastic gear on a million gears you do the math. He gets a gold watch, the manufacturer gets a $#&t product but makes even more moving boxes & we get a crappy lawn mower. 

[bds1984 1,428]

2 hours ago, WHX?? said:

What your saying is manufacturers want to sell boxes.

I had always guessed that a bean counter figured he could save a penny on a plastic gear on a million gears you do the math. He gets a gold watch, the manufacturer gets a $#&t product but makes even more moving boxes & we get a crappy lawn mower. 

 

Absolutely that. 
One of my uncles worked for "Pontiac Motors" (as he would say) in the 70s-90s, and he used to complain how certain GM radios could not tune into many FM stations very well because of a 3-cent cost reduction in a resistor, transistor, or capacitor (I cannot remember the exact part).  Across a few million cars per year, that was a substantial reduction in cost to GM, but a detriment to the driver through frustration and then replacing with a Pioneer Super-Tuner that cost big bucks.  This whole part of our culture is disgusting.  We used to make some of the finest products here (albeit with a lot of junk mixed in), but do not any longer, because it can always be done cheaper and at much higher bottom line.  The Briggs above, and many Kohlers (I'm looking at you, Courage and Triad engines) are perfect examples of it in the OPE world.  .