another 'it wont start anymore' thread

gotta rip apart that carb and figure it out

Well you get a screwdriver and a wrench and...

If you have not installed an in-line fuel filter, it may well be the cause of your problem. A little of what ever can get in and stop fuel flow.

A can of carb cleaner is a great investment! Is really easy to clean em out and is a good idea to do once in a while. Great rainy day thing.

cleaning a carberator - Google Search

Even if on backwards, (like a coffee filter and not correctly like a Christmas tree, top up to the tank) Should keep it free flowing. Is not a given but is less likely to be the problem.

Why do you think it is fuel starved?

A backwards fuel filter is not a big deal. Just ends up filling up with junk and needs replacing sooner. Unless so clogged it is causing the problem.

How many miles do you have on her?

Is the bowl filling?

Was the jet clear? (The tube that sprays the gas in)

get a clip and run it....or carb...they are cheap

hrmmmm.....well, i can tell you from personal experience that the C clip isnt all that much of a piece of metal. if it did slip into your motor, and you've run around and tried to turn it on you would probably have scratched the crap out of the cylinder wall...so if you dont see any gouges count yourself lucky at the moment....now as far as that being the problem, what fuel to oil mixture did you use in that gas? because that was pretty brown looking goo around the inside and on the piston head.....by the way, easiest way to find out if that c-clip got into the motor housing is to take the jug off, shake upside down a couple of times and see if anything falls out......just take the piston off the crank arm first. so as you dont damage it while shaking....also you said you put a different spark plug in? is it a higher quality spark plug or the alternate one that came in the kit?
if its either of those then you should really invest in a NGKB6HS spark plug. they work a lot better than the kit spark plugs. (just be sure to unscrew the little top part of the plug)......also i wouldnt listen to a whole lot of my advice as im not a mechanic and should not be held liable for any directions followed which could lead to catastrophic failure of your $200.00 powerhouse chinese motor......seriously though, find that c-clip....45 minutes worth of taking the jug off and having a look around is a lot easier than throwing a piston ring and scrapping a whole project....believe me i know....ive scarred my piston and the cylinder sleeve with aluminum shavings half the size of a grain of sand....for some decent tear down instructions i would look a little further into the troubleshooting part of the website.....and take lots and lots of pictures before the teardown, during each step of the teardown and while putting the motor back together as this will help you for when you need to tear the thing down again (and you will) .......some needlenose pliers would definitely come in handy if you want to get that piston off that crank arm....and also WATCH OUT FOR THE PISTON RINGS when putting the jug back on. be sure to squeeze them together properly ....i didnt do that and i think that was the ruination of my other motor.....*that was the first time i took the motor apart*.....i didnt take pictures.... anyways let us know the progress and if you find that c-clip.....(check the intake manifold, the fuel bowl of the carb, the ground around where you took the carb apart, the little slide thing for inside the carb, and especially the intake manifold before you tear the motor apart looking for the little bugger) it may save some time and you might be like Oh.....there it is....it must have fallen when i took the needle out....i really wish i hadnt torn apart my motor looking for it.........lol anyways, let us know

** Oops I did not get to the page two and posted after you figured it out **

One thing I thought of that if it was not found in the carb some where as you were able to find the clip, if it had gone through the engine and it didn't show scratches anywhere, you could look inside the muffler, or shake it out from the input side of a removed muffler.

This would be far easier than taking the engine apart. But most likely if it had gone throught the engine, as small as it is, it would probably have scored the cylinder and piston and maybe more.


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prior to see the 2nd page **info only**

If the screw that you tightened in all the way was the bowl drain screw, it is at the bottom of the bowl, that's OK then.

Please note though, I hope it was not the air fuel mixture screw. If that was the case if your carb you have has one, this screw when tightened in all the way will stop the jet from spraying fuel to the engine intake.

I’ve not actually had the chance to see any fuel leak from an airfuel mixture screw if the o-ring was bad (maybe missing), but I suppose maybe it could happen.

If you have fuel at the hose going into the carb then next you would want to know that the needle valve and seat are OK and have the right size o-ring in place. The jet behind the needle valve and so others sometimes located in a cylinder sticking down the middle of the bowl are not clogged is necessary.

On the Briggs engine it is 3.5 turns open counter-clockwise to set the airfuel mixture screw on the engine I have. Then I adjust it one way or the other depending on temperature changes if necessary and to have it running right.
You did say it ran for a while a first. The bowl did fill then. When you tightened the screw, not leak, but eventually the engine stopped. Thinking that the float allowed the float valve to open and fill the bowl with fuel, but then maybe you did shut off the air fuel mixture screw is what happened.

But in the case you did not do that and even know about what an airfuel mixture screw is, then when opening the carb did you see any fuel in the bowl? Otherwise with it dry, I would check to see if at the fuel inlet to the carb, if I can blow a breath of air and have it come though the float valve into the area where the bowl is with the float in the down position (open).

Leaking fuel once happened to a carb that I have which has a pressure overflow, but that was on an engine with a fuel pump. The float was stuck open, so this was to protect the carb from damage.

Measure Twice

alright, im glad you found the c-clip and didnt have to take apart the motor. now when you ride the thing and try to start it up, it seems like its not starting? hmmm....by the look of the stuff in the motor you seem to be getting fuel but you think its running too dry and choking off? you got some good plugs from what i understand....i guess lemme ask this then, you got it to start a few times right? i mean it ran around the block once or twice and then it died off from what i understand and now it wont start back up? i would say check the wires going to the motor from the cdi. i can remember one time when i first put my skyhawk engine on the bike i forgot to tape the wires down to my bicycle frame, they ended up touching to my exhaust, melting the plastic sheething and grounding out to each other.......lol that was a fun day......anyways, if thats not it then id reassemble the bike, wait.......you said you made your own intake manifold gasket?.....the problem may be as simple as an air leak between the jug and the manifold.........im just not sure at the moment....too many variables.....as far as the threads on the needle go, they arent really threads, they're grooves that the c-clip snaps into and the closer toward the pointy end you go the more gas you get. you may want to try moving the c-clip down to one notch up from the bottom and try running it there ...anyways keep us updated