Got to Love An Old B&S

chieffan

chieffan

Tractorologist
Senior Member
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Have a 10 hp cast iron, rope wrap pull start on a wood spliter. Hasen't run in over a year but been sitting under a roof. Cut down a 10" dead tree this morning and loaded it up and brought it home. Of course the main trunk and one big limb needed splitting and the whole time I was loading it up I was dreading of splitting that dude with a splitting maul. Pulled the splitter out of the shed, checked the oil, put about 2 quarts of fresh gas in the tank, opened the gas shut off, wrapped the rope turned the choke on and braced for a hard pull (19° F). Started to give it a good pull and it fired so quick it scared me and almost fell down. Shut the choke half off for a bit then clear off and it ran like a million bucks. That old girl has only let me down one time and that was due to a "Technician" put the mag on backwards.
 
Cvans said:
Almost but not quite. I've got one of those big old cast iron Briggs out here in the shop that has the spark plug mounted horizontal in the head. Was used on a grain elevator many years ago. Been in the family more years than I'm aware of.
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Yours is a little older than mine as mine has the vertical spark plug. Came off a grain augur for loading truck/wagons out of a grain bin. About a 5" if I remember right.
 
I had to pull start my Sears SS 15 a few weeks ago. I was out cutting wood about 45 minutes by tractor or 25 minute walk to the house. I had a battery die. I took a piece of an old tee shirt I had for a grease rag, twisted it tight like a rope, wrapped it around the take off pulley & gave it a yank! Darn thing like you mentioned scared me starting the first tee shirt pull. I felt like Mcgiver. Love them old B&S too.
 
I had to pull start my Sears SS 15 a few weeks ago. I was out cutting wood about 45 minutes by tractor or 25 minute walk to the house. I had a battery die. I took a piece of an old tee shirt I had for a grease rag, twisted it tight like a rope, wrapped it around the take off pulley & gave it a yank! Darn thing like you mentioned scared me starting the first tee shirt pull. I felt like Mcgiver. Love them old B&S too.
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Good story. Enjoyed the read.
 
I've had a love/hate relationship with Briggs and Stratton engines for years. When they work, they work great, but when they don't, they have you pulling your hair out. I swore off Briggs for years in favor of a Tecumseh push mower that my wife bought me not long after we were first married, and I've had it for just over 30 years now. Still running strong too.
But now I'm working on a 15 hp cast iron Briggs for my tractor. Got it in another old tractor that had sat out for years. The guy told me that it ran when he parked it but didn't know if it would when I got it.
Well I left it sitting out for another 5 or more years before I got around to looking at it one day for something to do that day. I removed it from the tractor and put it on the bench to inspect it. After changing the oil and putting some gas in it, I hooked up a battery and it fired right up. Surprised the heck out of me!
Well now that the Onan on my other tractor has been just about worn out, I've been busy checking out this Briggs. I tore it down to make sure it's as good as I hoped, and to reseal it and paint it before installing it on the tractor. I should have taken some pictures before I started, but I didn't think about it.
I'm very impressed by this engine though. It's very well built. All American made, no Chinese junk here.

I hope it's ok to resurrect an old thread here.

Rick
 
poncho62 said:
I have a couple of B&S cast irons, 14 and 16hp. When I got the tractors, hadn't been running in years, so I was told. Took very little to get them going....and no smoke when they ran.
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I had a tractor like your yellow one, it did not smoke tell I rolled it....
 
I have an 8 hp version on a Binks air compressor from about 1972. After I cleaned up the carb and the points it too came to life after sitting who knows how long..... Took it out to the storage barn just to have some source of compressed air out there, and the 1st few times that I needed it (anywhere from a week to a month between uses) it fired right up but the last time it wouldn't. Spark died. Think that it's time for new points and condenser.
I need to find out if they still have the points for the old magnamatic ignition?
 
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