When I cranked up my storm generator this evening I discovered that it had a high speed miss every 1/2 second or so. The Briggs engine seemed to respond perfectly to load demand but has that miss. If I close the choke a couple go clicks it smooths right out but I am afraid to run the engine that way. I got to thinking about it and was wondering if restricting the air would be better than running it lean with the choke open. I suppose I need to have the carb cleaned as I ran it for 4+ hours with sea foam in it and could notice little or no improvement.
Phil
"They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither safety nor liberty."
Depending on how old it is I suspect that it has a Caliphony EPA carb on it. Blasted things are designed to run right on the edge of starving for gas and there is usually no adjusting them. If it were mine I would take the high speed jet out and drill it .001 to .002 larger. The jets are so small that even a small amount of scale in the jet starves the engine which in turn runs the exhaust temps almost to the point of burning the valves. Hope you get a handle on it.
East Central South Dakota
The democracy will cease to exist when you take away from those who are willing to work and give to those who would not. Thomas Jefferson
Oh yes this engine was produced no more than 4 years ago. By shutting down the air a tad with the adjustable choke am I in effect richening up the fuel mixture and reducing the valve and piston temps? Doing so does not appear to reduce its power output but i was afraid to run it that way. I remember when I was a kid we had an Elgin outboard that you could adjust the fuel mixture with a calibrated dial while on the move.
Phil
"They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither safety nor liberty."
Now that you mention it our old Sea King 5hp was like that too. The knob stuck right out the front of the engine. The gas we have today is crud and these small engines run too lean. It's amazing they last half as long as they do.
East Central South Dakota
The democracy will cease to exist when you take away from those who are willing to work and give to those who would not. Thomas Jefferson
Temporarily running with partial choke will be fine. Been doing that with my Troybilt tiller 2 seasons now! lol Need to stop being lazy & just clean the carb. As Chris said, enlarging the jet is a good thing. I use torch tip cleaners to open mine up. I start with a tip cleaner that is small enough to slip right through, then go up a size until I get to one that goes in with resistance. Then I give it 2 or 3 strokes full through. Never had an issue this way & they always run better.
I know what you guys are talking about. The idiot that owns this place never puts things where they belong or thinks he's found a better place for things. I really need to talk to him.
East Central South Dakota
The democracy will cease to exist when you take away from those who are willing to work and give to those who would not. Thomas Jefferson
There are some tools I can always lay my hands on because I use them often. The torch picks I have used almost twice since I found them 25 or so years ago. However my shed has been a mess ever since I cleaned out my truck to have it repaired after the guy rear ended me two years ago. Every time I go in there and look for something I say, oh heck! , and go buy what ever I need.
Phil
"They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither safety nor liberty."