It turns out that running an engine without oil really does cause it to
overheat, seize up, and stop working.
The remedy was to replace the old engine. As with all household tasks, nothing
is ever easy. The uninstall took about 3 hours ... but the good news is that
we had to borrow a large torque wrench and a jack from our neighbor. This is
good news because he was baking sourdough bread ... and gave us a loaf!
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Yum - fresh baked sourdough bread
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The build back process took about 3 hours, plus an hour fiddling with the old
fuel pump. The process involved:
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Switching the fuel pump from the old motor to the new motor. See fuel pump
challenge below.
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Undoing the tensioner for the drive belt and the mower belt. Putting the
tensioner back on was almost impossible ... fortunately I found the spring
pulling tool that was used with our trampoline.
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Attaching the engine using the existing bolts. Poor internet advice caused
me to waste 20 minutes and consider purchasing a tap and die kit. See bolt
challenge below.
- Throttle lever was an easy install.
- Replacing the muffler was easy.
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Wiring. The old wiring did not exactly match and the internet was not very
useful. See wiring challenge below.
- Added oil, connected the battery, and vroom-vroom.
Bolt Challenge
The holes in the new engine used to bolt the engine to the frame were not
threaded. Reviews said that you had to tap/thread the holes. Turns out that
all you have to do put the old bolts back in because they automatically thread
the softer aluminum.
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Turns out these bolts automatically thread the motor holes
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Wiring Challenge
Old engine wiring below. The new Briggs and Stratton engine came with 1 red
wire and a 2 wire connector with a gray and black wire. I linked red, black,
and gray manually and capped off the old orange wire.
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Old Wire Harness did not match new engine
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Fuel Pump Challenge
The new engine arrived with a broken fuel pump. So I had to remove the old
one and use it. RJ and Doug took several pieces off the old engine to try to
find the screws to unhook the pump. The added challenge was doing it with
flashlights. After 45 minutes Doug surmised that pulling the fuel pump
directly outward might work ... and it did. Using this knowledge allowed us
to take the fuel pump off the new motor in 45 seconds instead of 45 minutes.
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Plastic connector broke off during shipping
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