For the slope i have at the cottage... I need a 2-stroke for that very reason.. !One additional advantage of the 2 stroke is that, when cutting on a steep slope, you needn’t worry about lubrication starvation.
For the slope i have at the cottage... I need a 2-stroke for that very reason.. !One additional advantage of the 2 stroke is that, when cutting on a steep slope, you needn’t worry about lubrication starvation.
Your only hope is a yard saleI grew up mowing with an 80s Lawnboy-a mower my parents unfortunately just got rid of(I wish I'd grabbed it...).
I've been mowing with a Murray branded 20" with the no-oil-change B&S engine that my wife bought when she bought this house, and at 5 years old it's showing its age and I'm shopping. It's real shock to me especially considering that it was rare that I couldn't walk into the hardware store and either buy or order whatever part I needed in the past, but that's a different story.
After using that self propelled Lawn Boy for years, I'm really missing the weight and power of an old 2 stroke engine. My weedeater is 2 stroke, but I'd really like a 2 stroke mower also.
Unfortunately, it looks like 2 strokes, and the old classic Lawnboy bottom exhaust mowers too, are a thing of the past. Am I right in this?
Part of me is tempted to scour Craigslist/Facebook and try to find exactly what I want, but practically I'm also wondering if I should just give in and buy(another) 4 stroke.
I've looked at a few current production ones, and nothing really jumps out at me. I'd love a 22", but realize I may need to settle for 21". I'd also love self propelled, but lack of isn't a deal killer. It seems that Honda and B&S are the options now, and if I'm going to have to go 4 stroke as much as I'd love a Honda, the ones I like are more than I want to spend now. At the moment I'm eying a B&S powered 22" self propelled Troy-Bilt at Home Depot, but again I don't know that I even want to spend $430 on that.
And as a bigger question, since it seems as though 2 stroke mowers just don't exist anymore, should I just forget about them and recognize how much "better" it is to not have to add a little oil into my gas and tote around a heavier and less powerful engine in exchange...
Please actually read the threadYour only hope is a yard sale
OK, I actually will. Some day
Mostly, but not quite true. I used Lawnboy 2 stroke mowers on my sloped front yard and ditch up until the late 90’s. Loved the LB‘s until I bought a 1998 John Deere JX 75 with the Kawasaki 6 hp pressure lubed 160v engine, which also has an oil filter. My JX75 is nearly on it’s side in several areas of my 120 foot ditch but keeps chugging along after all these years. JD no longer makes the JX75, 14SB, 14SE, JX85 etc with the Kawasaki oil pump equipped engined mowers so I snagged a very clean JX75 off CL last winter for $150 as a back up just in case my old one ever gives out.I have 5 Lawn Boy mowers and 2 that see regular use for trimming. I have hills and slopes and no 4 strokes can do that. If these ever die I'm going battery.
Just a few minutes ago rejetted the carb on one of mine and the infamouse Duraforce Lean Surge is gone. It was a 3 minute job that didn't even require removing the carb from the mower(I just did the pilot jet).
The tach I stuck on is showing me that with the re-jetting it's running at 2900rpm pretty dead on(and steady-maybe only about a +/-20rpm). For some reason I had it in my head it should be a bit faster, but the service manual says 2900 +/-300rpm.
I guess there really is nothing to do. I hadn't looked at the spec speed in the manual before swapping the jet so I came back in to look and see where I should be targeting. Since it's where it should be, I'm guessing I should leave well enough alone with the governor.
Also, while I was checking-or actually before changing the jet-I went around with a propane torch to make sure I didn't have leaks at the carb flanges(as I've read reports of them warping) or other issues. I couldn't get any obvious vacuum leaks.
You can run that duraforce at 3300 rpms with no problem if you want a faster cut. 3000 rpms seems really slow for them IMO
which pilot jet did you go with? The #40 Suzuki or the #42 Briggs jet ?
I did the 42.5 Briggs one-I don't guess I had seen a reference to doing a #40 jet. The 42.5 made senses to me, though, since that's what they put on the snowblower(albeit paired with a smaller main jet).
I am really tempted to speed it up a bit. It seems like it still has power to go at 2900rpms, and I know that at least up to a point(IIRC when you hit the intake/exhaust resonance? Or maybe I'm talking out my rear end...) you're climbing a pretty steep power curve as you increase the speed of a two stroke.
At the same time, I don't want to put too much stress on this engine as I want it to last a LONG time, especially knowing that it's going to cost me $100 for a piston/rings if I want to get my other Duraforce going. The parts just don't seem to be out there for these engines like they are the F engines.
3300rpms doesn't sound crazy though either, so maybe I will crank it up and just see what happens. When I mow without a self propelled mower, I tend to walk faster than this one goes running at 2900rpms.
The #40 jet is used on some kind of Mikuni carb but fits lawnboys. I have owned a few duraforces and all of them reacted differently to re-jetting. I currently have a 10323 and a 22261. I use a #40 in the 10323, a #42 makes it “ 4 stroke” too much. The 22261 needed no jet changes, it has a slight “ burble “ with the stock 37.5 pilot jet.
The duraforce is also used in Toro sno commander snow throwers too. They run upwards of 4100 rpm and internally are the same as the lawnmower engine except they are piston ported vs the reed valve in the mower.
I ran an several gallons of gas through an old, tired, slightly scored up duraforce at 36-3700 rpms and nothing bad happened, so definitely don’t be afraid of 3300 rpms.