snowblower burning oil

Lots of good replies. Thanks. I am surprised no one suggested the High Milage oil. Would it solve one problem and cause another? I thought it may be an overall benefit.

This machine has been a work horse and I suspect it still will be. The carb is a fixed jet. The high speed is set to 3600 RPM. I believe that is the spec. I just cleaned the carb and we will see if it fixed a lean condition which may be contributing to the red muffler. I checked the valve clearances and they are in the .004 to .010 spec. A few years ago the ex valve was too tight , at zero. I opened it up and lapped the valve by hand. As best I could. That is when I noticed the worn guide. I believe they are machined into the block. I do not think they are a pressed in steel instert. To install a guide I would have to get it reamed oversize to press in the guide. I never found any when I looked. I did see over sized valves. But they were discontinuted.

I assume this machine will last a lot longer with some love. I always thought these burn a bit of oil. The plug is always a bit dark. i.e. oil burning and you smell like you ran a 2 cycle. Work hourse engines and will start in very cold weather. I am not overly concerned about the oil burning. As long as it does not foul the plugs. I will have to keep an eye on that. I am more concerned aobut the red muffler which may have been mostly from a lean condition. If the valve is not always seating well it may cause the red muffler as well and throw some sparks. I am not sure any kind of oil may help with that, but I am asking because you guys know more than I.
 
Exhaustgases said:
Yeah very simple, never use full synthetic in a small engine.
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A lot of people will use full syn in a snow blower to help with starting on very cold days. I have been using it for years on all of the snow blowers I have had. From Tecumsehs to Preditors and they have started much easier on those fridgid days. All with the pulll starter.

What is the down side that would make you say that?
 
jeepman3071 said:
For small engines it was 100% about emissions, many of them run very lean.

Honestly even if valve guides are $30 for an old Tecumseh it just isn't worth it. I rarely work on Tecumsehs anymore, most of the machines that have them are 40 years old now, and swapping on a 6.5hp Predator that starts easier and has more power is a better option for most people. If the valve guides are worn, you can bet the piston rings are worn, rod journal is worn, etc.
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I agree. Keep in mind, Most Tecumseh snow blower applications are two shafts. I have done a Preditor swap but it gets complicated when you go from a two shaft to a one shaft engine. Remember the cam shaft runs in the opposite direction. I did it once for the experience but I would not do it again. Too much work and expense. You can still find lots of used machines out there with a two shaft tecumseh and Briggs for short money. You just hope the engine is basically sound.
 
nbpt100 said:
I have a snow king Tecumseh with a slightly worn Ex valve guide. The engine runs good and has plenty of power. The muffler get red when I run it on fast. I can only see this when it is dark out. I have been using 5w-30 full synthetic. I do not want to get into a repair the engine correctly discussion right now. I am just looking for thoughts on my question. Thanks.

It burns oil but in my experience all Snow Kings burn some oil. If I go to a high mileage or a higher viscosity would it be at all beneficial.? Thinking a syn
HM 5w-30 or if not available a 5w-40 syn. Any thoughts?
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I had a Tecumseh snow king for 18 years before I got rid of it for my tractor blower... FWIW, mine never used any oil (5w30 FS) and my muffler was never red. I think your carb sounds lean and lean is mean on engines. I'd pull the spark plug to see if it has any signs of a melted piston on it. There will be little flecks of aluminum if it does. One option could be to run the choke slightly on if you don't want to adjust the carb.

that said I would run a 5w40 HDEO and keep going if you don't want to fix the issue.

Just my $0.02
 
dadto2 said:
I would guess that this machine doesn't really see a lot of hours? I also have a snow king, and I smell like 2 stroke when I'm done with the driveway. Been this way for 20 years, doesn't get any better or worse over time. Just make sure it's full before you start it, I'm sure it will last a long life.
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Yeh, I hate that too. I always had to change cloths and take shower in some cases. Solved the problem 40 years ago by only buying Honda powered machines. :)
 
I had a rototiller powered by a nearly dead BS 3 1/2 hp. It wouldn't stay running because the hole for the points cam was wallowed out and there was no way to set the points. So it sat for a yr or so outside. Then I got the idea to use a magnetron ignition from a later vertical BS. Worked great. Let it warm up for 10 minutes or so. Decided to change the oil. Nothing but water with the barest slick of oil on top. I got at least another summer out of it. :cool:
 
My Tecumseh hm80 had the red muffler glow but did not burn oil. I was running 0w40 m1 fs. Not sure if it was lean or a valve issue but it seemed to have plenty of power. The auger gearbox blew up and now I have a newer Ariens.
 
nbpt100 said:
I agree. Keep in mind, Most Tecumseh snow blower applications are two shafts. I have done a Preditor swap but it gets complicated when you go from a two shaft to a one shaft engine. Remember the cam shaft runs in the opposite direction. I did it once for the experience but I would not do it again. Too much work and expense. You can still find lots of used machines out there with a two shaft tecumseh and Briggs for short money. You just hope the engine is basically sound.
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Most of the Tecumseh engines on snowblowers are single shaft, but MTD did make a lot of snowblowers using the dual-shaft setup. The dual shafts are rarer and harder to find parts for, or replacement engines for.
 
nate379 said:
Worked on lots of 70s-90s engines that people wanted fixed vs putting a $300 Honda clone.
(predictor not a thing here, just Power Easay)
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Yeah it depends on the machine for me, but most people opt to repower over repair. I rarely rebuild small engines now, unless it is something vintage/rare and worth putting the money into. For something like a snowblower or lawn tractor you will spend more money rebuilding them than replacing after you factor in the cost of GOOD replacement parts (not the China parts), machine work, and labor. I do a ton of Predator swaps (they used to be $99 with a coupon), and Briggs repowers. I also do a lot of work with some local landscaping companies, and they always want to repower because it means less down time and they also get a 1 or 2 year warranty from the engine manufacturer. 2-strokes are a different story, if someone wants to rebuild a 2-stroke that is many times an option since the cylinder/piston kits can be had for a decent price and don't take long to rebuild.
 
Here is my update. After cleaning the carb and changing out the gas I found the red muffler went away. At least 98% of it. I kept the oil the same as what I have been using. A 5w-30 FS. Starts right up now with one or two pulls. The issues must have been a carb that was not fully clean and old the gas may have also contributed.

To the guy who says using full synthetic in a small engine is problem I have been using it for years in snow blowers and i think it is a plus not a negative. I see no reason it would be an issue in warm weather engines either. I just dont use it because of the cost and the dyno oil is good enough.
 
nbpt100 said:
Here is my update. After cleaning the carb and changing out the gas I found the red muffler went away. At least 98% of it. I kept the oil the same as what I have been using. A 5w-30 FS. Starts right up now with one or two pulls. The issues must have been a carb that was not fully clean and old the gas may have also contributed.

To the guy who says using full synthetic in a small engine is problem I have been using it for years in snow blowers and i think it is a plus not a negative. I see no reason it would be an issue in warm weather engines either. I just dont use it because of the cost and the dyno oil is good enough.
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I suspected mine was running lean causing the red muffler. I was going to rebuild the car. It plugged up on me a couple times and I got it going again by pulling the bowl off and sprayed cleaner up inside.
This likely won't affect the oil usage, just something that happens with some old engines. But it will definitely start easier with synthetic which is why most modern snowblowers recommend it.
 
nbpt100 said:
Here is my update. After cleaning the carb and changing out the gas I found the red muffler went away. At least 98% of it. I kept the oil the same as what I have been using. A 5w-30 FS. Starts right up now with one or two pulls. The issues must have been a carb that was not fully clean and old the gas may have also contributed.

To the guy who says using full synthetic in a small engine is problem I have been using it for years in snow blowers and i think it is a plus not a negative. I see no reason it would be an issue in warm weather engines either. I just dont use it because of the cost and the dyno oil is good enough.
Click to expand...
Glad you fixed the problem before burning a piston! Good for you keeping your machine running.

Just my $0.02
 
Exhaustgases said:
Yeah very simple, never use full synthetic in a small engine.
Click to expand...
Okay, your post gave me reason to inventory the OPE and consider the oil recommendations. Here's what I found:
  • Four Chonda engines, including two Predators
  • Three Honda engines
  • Two Briggs engines
So in total I have nine pieces of 4-cycle OPE with engines from five manufacturers. All of these manufacturers recommend synthetic oil. Which manufactures are you referring to that recommend against synthetics?
 
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