Yep. Tried three different freshly charged batteries. I’ll take it apart and try and see if there is anything obvious. I probably won’t be able to reassemble it if my track record holds. I have the hand dexterity of a pachyderm.
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Look for something like:
They are either bimetal or sometimes a plastic that melts at a certain point. But sometimes they don’t work right after being tripped. it is safe to bypass/short/jump over it for testing.
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I think they use non detergent oil in lawn mower engines or small engines to keep air bubles down from the splash oiling system.?
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They use non detergent because of all the metal supplements they add for motor oil. All the calcium cadmium, zinc, moly would probably tear up a compressor over time.
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I just found out toro’s recycler mowers use a briggs motors that you supposedly never have to change the oil. you just have to add some. I think they mentioned something about a filter.
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Good one CodyT.
You all not needing the staged humor skip to minute 9:00 for the info meat. Skip the lead-out staged ending.
Here’s a different viewpoint on Never, Every, Need change the oil:
Each presentation bring out different details. Each has still a bit of old-ways carry over.
Lubricatiing oils and greases DO age-in-service CHANGE. The lighter components vaporize and go off, off and away. You are left with the thicker remaining long chain molecules. These do not pump or fling around as well. Do not carry away heat as well.
The Project Farm guy shows this well in his lubrication testing series.
He shows the oil analysis tests. Heat changed COLD flow races comparisons.
Anti wear additives do get changed molecularly and tied up; out vapors swept away; and then unavailable.
The pre-set away from acidic buffering gets used up too. Operating heat changes. Combustion gasses blobby are very active acidic.
O.K. you say . . . it’s just a cheap friggin’ use, and then and throw-away consumer lawn mower!
Nope.
Automotive out of Europe starting in the 2000’s it was Lifetime never change your transmission fluid. They eliminated the dipstick/fill port. “Out synthetic ATF fluids are so much better now”.
Powersteering hydraulic fluid the same-same. Never need changing. BullSH*#
Engine coolants nearly the same-same evolved then too. Double BullSH*# It DOES become metallics, loaded up and very acidic.
Brake fluids . . . the same, same.
Think of these where the reservoirs cannot be totally sealed from the air. Need air in for fluid “use” space replacing. Need to allow air venting for fluid heating expansion. Then cooling off retraction. What’s in air? Humidity moisture. Oxygen.
So why these Never-No-More changes, eh? Taryle actually does goive some of the reasons if you center presentation watched.
Engineering pride and prowess.
Someone mandating a time limit of useable life. 150 hours. 250 hours. 500 hours.
Competitive marketing competitions. Very real.
Watch engine tear down series like on I Do Cars and others. See the difference between did not change oils, and changed oils.
So engine oil in an air compressor?
Better to use the specified compressor oil. But nasty as some I’ve checked for other. Used available motor oil in matching viscosity to get old blackened stinky gone acidic compressors oil out. Better than not doing nothing.
Scotty Kilmer, “Oil is cheap. Engines are expensive”
Warren Buffet in his 12 rules to get rich, “I’ve never bought new when I could get used.” (previously owned and previously well maintained)
Ha! Ha! I do buy new. Then over-maintain to get 2x, 3x, 4x the intended service life’s. 'Cause once you are at 2x it is used. It is already yours. Takes a lot less thoughts, energy and efforts and $'s to fluids change than travel out. Decisions, decisions select again to buy new. Dispose of the old. Dispose of the got-new shipped to packaging. Eeeeh! Block foam fillers! And film plastics! Glossy printed cardboards.
Live your Life for you. Not for others.
Steve Unruh
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Hi Folks,
I just want to hear some common sense type people’s comments about this machine. I been using it since 2006. I had to repair the roller on the back, basically made a whole new roller out of 1-1/2" ABS and a 3/8" rod. This probably took me 3 hours. And thats ALL the maintenance I’ve had to do. To me this seems like a heck of a deal. Don’t get me wrong, I like engines, and I like working on them, but it just seems weird to have them and maintain them when we don’t have to.
Rindert
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Rindert, I have one of those. Very reliable piece of machinery. Like you said - easy to maintain. Never ever a flat tire or a dead battery 
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I have had one before and used it, absolutely nothing wrong with it in my opion except aesthetics. Im not a huge fan of mulching grass, it ends up with a heavy thatching over time and i just dont care for the looks of that. If i could have found the bagger attachment i would probably still have the thing. Though in my area i have to mow weekly as the grass will grow 2" per week so thats a lot of manual labor vs mechanical. Depending on the size of the yard and time investment to mow i see it as very viable, dont even need a gasifier to fuel it or dinosaur squeezins
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I had a grandpa with one. And the issue is if the grass gets too long it is to hard to cut. And the blades are expensive to sharpen but I think they have self-sharping on the new ones, and they are more popular now.
I could have grabbed one curb shopping the other day but passed.
Otherwise the cutter makes a cleaner cut and it is healthier for the grass. that style of cutter is used a lot on golf courses.
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I’ve never really sharpened mine. I adjust the shear bar a little closer to the reel every once in a while. The shear bar and the blades on the reel wear together and sharpen themselves.
Rindert
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I remember that thing well Rindert. It was called the punisher… When I was a kid we had about a hundred foot square back yard. When I did something bad I had to go cut the grass with that thing. I made me a much better boy than I would have been. I was always envious of the kids who just got an ass whupping and went on their merry way…
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For moderate sized yards I think they’re just right. Not hard to work on and there’s lots of videos for new owners.
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in my youth time my parents had the same…abner komet 15 was the brand…all heavy from cast steel …as children we like it to run with the mower on the asphalt street , upside down and bring the cutting knives to the highest speed as possible…was really exiting…
than comes a follower model from abner, what was a bit lighter, and than when comes up the motor mowers, all the nice hand mowers are throwed away…a pitty…
my parents first motor mower has a damned tecumseh engine, what never likes to start…so my elder brother began to introduce himself with mechanics…now he is engineer in a big company…
i always asked myself what chief tecumseh has done because they used his name for this motors…?
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I love to read this.
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I don’t think they asked him, he would have said no. Then he would have said “increase the quality, please, and make it better than Briggs and Stratton, and much better than Clinton engines”. Tecumseh engines ok, but not my favorite. Burn oil and break connecting rods. Sometimes start ok, other times not so much. To be fair, the overhead valve 5hp horizontal shaft Tecumseh on my rototiller works pretty good. It is still fairly new, and lightly used.
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mike, what reputation have the old briggs and stratton engines from the ´70 and ´80 ?
i have bought several used ones…they are easy to find in internet platforms and not so expensive as honda engines for example…
the modern ones i like not so much, to much plastik…
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