GardenKit

The trouble is that the machine is just 3months out of warranty. 24 months warranty is just that, not 27 months. Its obviously a manufacturing issue, but the customer should pay, but I expect I will not charge even though I can't claim it back. Its not just the repair cost but also the transport in and back.

On the bench today was the first of the new Tanaka TCH22ECP hedge cutters for PDI The old THT210 was fantastic, but this is even better, It has a sturdier feel to it and very low vibration levels. Looking forward to selling some.

One of the Deere mowers in the previous picture had slowly lost power over 10 minutes use, eventually dying completely. The engine is a Briggs 3100 series 19.5hp single pot. It then would not turn over more than half a turn on the starter before coming to what seemed like a compression stop. Turning the engine by hand could achieve a full revolution, but with effort. A swift removal of the rocker cover revealed the problem. The rocker arm post of the inlet valve had come undone by about 3 threads, so the inlet valve was not opening. What I had thought was a 'compression lock' was in fact a 'vacuum lock'. No air could get into the cylinder so the piston could not be drawn down. Simply tightening the post, refitting the valve stem cap and adjusting the valves had the engine going again in no time.

This season is crazy!!! These have all come in in the last few days, we would normally only have 2 or 3 on site at this time of year. Also loads of brushcutters and hedgetrimmers, but not many saws. I had best get off the computer and start work.

This thread has been a bit quiet of late, so time for a 'bump' We are usually a bit quiet on repair work at this time of year, but this season has gone crazy, so not much free time for posting. Most of the work is pretty boring though and unworthy of sharing on this thread anyway. However this one made us chuckle. A guy brings in his 6 month old ALKO 42cm push mower with 3.5hp Briggs engine. Him " its not very old but it has started smoking big style, fills the garden with smoke, not very impressed" Me "when did this start?" Him "after I topped up the oil" Me "Oh, I am surprised it needed topping up, how low was it?" Him " I have no idea, just thought it may need some so I put half a (litre) bottle in." So I dipped it. The level is usually about 12mm up the stick, this was 45mm!! I drained it down and ran it for 20 minutes to 'burn out' and its fine now. Some folk are just programmed differently I guess.:lol::lol:

I'm feeling pedantic, so "skip it, and buy a Tanaka!"

If the cable has sprung out then its probably only a cable problem, so easily fixable. Its worth checking the external selector arm that the cable fits to on the gearbox. They have been known to fracture. Easily replaced (although a bit of a fiddle) The gearboxes seldom completely fail as they are extremely well built, they do however suffer from wear on the engagement dogs which makes them click when taking up drive and leads to eventual loss of engagement.

Yes, all of the above but the main issue as I stated earlier in the thread is that many of these machines suffered from the same problem and many were being returned to Mitox in Wincanton by dealers unable to cure them. They investigated. Cleaned carbs and replaced carbs, but still the problems came back. Eventually someone noticed very fine debris moving up the pickup tube between the filter and the carb. This debris was getting stuck in the carb jets. The debris was coming from the felt material of the filter which, it was found out, was not ethanol proof. The felt was breaking down under the influence of the evil ethanol in pump petrol. A simple change of the material used in the filters produced in China cured the problem.

But did you change the tank filter?

I agree, from an engineering point of view I think the Etesia is pretty poor. I take no pleasure in servicing them as I like to send mowers out clean and "tight". Can never get them to look good, and can never get the wheels, adjusters, and controls to feel good. But apparently they work quite well.

Sure, the Kaaz transmissions to fail,but only after they have outlasted every other transmission on the market.

The odd accidental filling wont hurt at all, as others have said, it will just be a bit smokey. But its certainly no treat for the upper cylinder, which does just fine on the standard lube past the rings. Frequent use of 50:1 will not only foul the plug, but also build up a thick layer of soft, black oil deposit on the piston crown and around the swirl chamber. This will raise the compression and lower the combustion efficiency. The exhaust muffler will also clag up in time.

It will not be the governor at fault, its a carb issue. Its running a little weak, but if its Ok after 10 minutes then just put up with it.

You dont need to remove the roller, just take the belt off at the engine pulley, refit the spring with long nose pliers and then refit the belt to tension the spring.

A Quantum has no diaphragms in the carb, its the smaller Classic/Sprint engine that has the diaphragms. The issue is a lack of fuel, or excess of air,causing a weak mix. A good ultrasonic clean may clear the jets. The idle mixture screw could also make a difference, even to top end mixture. But it is not unusual to need a new carb if its a bit worn. As for the screeching noise, first check the drive support bearing (bush) outside the engine, and the roll pins on the drive shaft tube. If they are OK then the internal PTO drive gears are suspect, but not a common problem

No supply problem. The UK distributor has plenty of stock.

Not so, nothing wrong with Tanaka. I have sold many marques over the years and I have found Tanaka to have been consistantly the best in terms of build quality, reliability and after sales support. Not that there is anything wrong with the Echo, but it is let down by spares support.

It is just possible you may need to replace fuel lines and carb diaphragms on the old still, but it will be well worth the effort. The carbon deposits will clear very slowly and cause no issues. There is absolutely no need to add any extra oil. The 50:1 Aspen mix contains a very high grade oil and all your machines can be run with it without any risk. Adding extra oil will however cause problems.

The Cobra 53SPH is a Kaaz mower, so you can't go wrong. The Kaaz is, in my opinion, the best mower you can buy.

You need a D20-WYJ kit. Very easily available, any good dealership will carry them. Mitox RRP £7.14 plus vat Barrie

There have been issues with fuel starvation on these machines. The original fuel filters were found to be being degraded by the ethanol in petrol. The degraded material passes along the fuel lines into the carb where it gets trapped in the main jet orifice. The cure is to clean and rekit the carb and fit a new, ethanol proof, filter.

Good idea, but I wonder if I would want to stop it when the victim was half way through?

The current model (new) is the PP265ES telescopes between 2.72m closed (overall length) to 3.72m extended. An optional 1200mm extension is available taking the max length to 4.92m (specs from the current catalogue)

You cannot spend your money more wisely than on the Kaaz machine Dean. In 3 decades of mending mowers it has always been consistently the best quality, nothing else come near, except JD, but my money will still be on the Kaaz.