Thank you for raising it, wotwozthat. Excessive end-float of the crankshaft becomes a problem if it is greater than the lateral clearance between the connecting rod and the crankpin. Typically that lateral clearance is in the vicinity of 1.1 mm for a Honda engine, but I don't know the figure for a Briggs engine. Honda does not usually specify an allowable crankshaft end-float, but it does for one of their OHC engines, and the figure is 0.1 mm to 1.0 mm. So, if you are interested in researching what you can get away with on a Briggs engine, you can use a feeler gauge between the side of the connecting rod and the side of the crankpin's bearing area, with the connecting rod pushed as far as it will go toward the opposite side of the crankpin's bearing area.
I'll close this thread.
