AboutEric A. Jones Expertise Lawnmower Repair . Certified Master Service Technician from B&S. Have 13 years experience on B&S, Lawn Chief, Weed Eater, Echo, Peerless, Wheel Horse, Snapper, Atlas, MTD, McCulloch, Homelite and many other numerous brands. Specialize in electrical repair.
Experience Born and raised in the midwest. Started tinkering with engines when I was about 14 on my Suzuki RM-80. I began lawn mower repair at a small hardware store. I knew absolutely nothing. I read lots of repair manuals and met an older fellow who taught me many lessons. I continued working on small engines through high school and paid my way through college working on mowers at the same hardware store. Decided to get away from the midwest and mower repair so I joined the Air Force. I repaired air traffic control electronic equipment and ended up in Hawaii where I got a part time job at Small Engine Clinic. I gained a lot of experience from the Small Engine Clinic and had a blast repairing small engines. I then took the Briggs and Stratton Master Service Technician test and earned my MST. I then traveled to Wisconsin where I attended the factory update training seminar and received formal training. I received a scholarship from the Air Force and am currently pursuing another degree.
Expert: Eric A. Jones Date: 8/23/2008 Subject: HONDA GX160 REVS UP AND DOWN
Question Hello,
I have a Honda GX160 bought about a year ago. It's been used for about 2 summers. I notice about a month ago there was little dirt particals in the gas tank. My working being a mechanic should have known that dirt particals in the gas would cause problems. Either way, the engine has been reving up and down, and then stalling out.
I took the gas tank off and cleaned it out along with the inline filter. Took the carb off and sprayed with cleaner. The other day my worker sprayed carb cleaner in the carborator and said it was restricted...then suddenly it opened up. Then we took it on the job to spray liquids and the machine died again. Usually at the shop it works fine, then when using the gun, the machine works fine for about 10 minutes, then turns off. My worked thought it may be overheating, or that some electrical component is shutting it down. We're quite fed up with this machine. It was well taken care of and already problems with it.
Any help on this mystery?
Answer Most engine surging is caused by a dirty carb. Did you use an air compressor and blow out each carb passage? The carb would have to be removed and dis-assembled to get to all the ports.
Let me know if cleaned the carb with an air compressor. FYI, once in a while I have to clean carbs a couple of times to get them clean..rare but happens once in a while.
