Hi Norm,
It’s a little strange that this snipper is hard to start , even when my snipper wouldn’t rev up it started easy, makes me wonder if it’s got weak ignition ,scored in the bore ,or leaking seals.
Sometimes when I check the spark and the colour looks weak I gap the plug right down to a very small gap to see if it will start ,I had a snipper here that wouldn’t start and when I checked the spark colour it was redish yellow instead of blue white.
Might be worth connecting up a Victa module.
Cheers
Max.