New to me tractor burning some oil

Status
Not open for further replies.
Joined
Jan 3, 2006
Messages
1,958
Location
Ohio
A friend of mine gifted me a John Deere RX75 mower, Kawasaki FC290V engine, which hadn't run in 2 years. After fixing the starter, charging the battery, cleaning some gunk from the carburetor, and draining the 2 year old gas, I got it running yesterday. When it first started it made some noticeable plumes of smoke, but after a minute or so it cleared up. Runs great, but when I started it today, there was still some noticeable smoke. It's maybe an 1/8" over the full mark on the dipstick (I plan to change the oil anyway), but could that be all it is? Maybe when it's on the full side the oil seeps past the rings?
 
Originally Posted By: Dave Sherman
John Deere RX75 mower


It's 25+ years old. If I remember correctly the RX75's were made from around 1987 to 1990 or so.

Just keep the oil changed once or twice a season and it will be fine.
 
Being a little overfilled or sitting on an incline can make those engines smoke upon startup.
 
Yep, time period's about right. Will keep an eye on the oil once I change it. Hopefully it's just a little overfull.
 
Originally Posted By: HerrStig
Originally Posted By: Warstud
Try a bit of this. Did wonders on my old mower.


"SIX cylinder formula" ROFL.


The six cylinder formula is based on the size of the can. For a lawnmower you use around 4 oz.
 
I'd drain and fill with new oil prior to adding any tin/lead slurry;

Baseline before changes.

Could be fuel diluated
 
Last edited:
Originally Posted By: Warstud
Try a bit of this. Did wonders on my old mower.




Basically snake oil. May in the short term, fill small scratches in cylinder walls but won't add to worn rings. A heavier oil is better.
 
As others have said, do an oil change with the specified quantity and quality and start from there.
If it still burns oil you can go up a viscosity grade or two.
 
If the rings are sticking, a high quality thinner oil might work them free.
5W-30 or even a 0W-30 for a few hours would clean the internals and may help
the rings to free up.

Just my 2¢
 
Dave, make sure the air cleaner element is clean and the oil level is not too high. Like said, this is nearly a 30yr old machine and was an economy rider back then. I'd run 15w40 oil in it and be happy the deck cuts well and the transaxle still goes. I believe these models used a belt and variator pulley system as a transaxle. They can be ok if you keep them clean and dry.
 
I had been planning to run Rotella 5W-40 since it seems to be popular in small engines and I use it in my generator. Does it matter that this engine just uses an oil slinger? The owner's manual calls for straight 30 for summer or 5W-20 for winter. Kinda makes me wonder how the oil slinger gets oil over to the rocker arms since it's an OHV engine, but I hope 5w-40 wouldn't be too thick to "fling" it around.
 
I've had good luck doing a piston soak with seafoam or B12 to free up sticking rings. It'll loosen up any carbon or oil sludge in the rings, made a world of difference to my 30yr old Toro mower and similar aged Ariens snowblower.
 
Yes, it could be that the oil level is high enough that oil seeps past the rings while it is off. Perhaps you can park it so that the cylinder is higher? We would recommend using Rotella T6 5W-40 here. - The Shell Rotella Team
 
Guess the overfilled oil was the source of the smoke screen. Got a quart of Castrol GTX 10W-30 and 8 ounces of MMO in it for now and it's no longer trying to be a mosquito fogger. For a basically free riding mower I can't complain; so far my only investment was for new brake pads, drive belts, the quart of oil, and a new air filter.
 
I have been reading up on this topic a bit as I have a similar issue. Consider going to a higher viscosity oil. Briggs now recommends a 15w-50 synthetic to reduce burning. I am thinking of using a 20w-50 or a Rotella 15w-40 as it has anti soot properties and more zinc to protect engine parts better. I prefer to stay away from additives. They thicken the oil but you dont know what you are ending up with. It all depends on how much you add and what is in there to start. It is a crap shoot.
 
Here is an update. I tried the 20w-50 and it smoked even more at start up. Much worse vs. the SAE 30. This is a bit counter intuitive. While it was running it was ok but running was not that big of a problem. The problematic smoking has always been at start up. May want to use the Rotella that has anti soot properties.
 
Just a wild guess, what ever sort of breather there is, is clogged. I was gonna say the valve guides/ seals are shot. What does the plug look like?
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top