OutdoorKing Repair Forum Forums Repairs and Maintenance Questions on Engines Questions On Briggs & Stratton Engines How do you run this?

Picked up a Masport 460 but it's not one I'm used to. There's no throttle or primer that I can see on it. There's a dial that regardless of where you turn it, still produces spark. I got it started by putting petrol in the spark plug hole, it then kept running as there was some petrol in the tank. Turned it off by pulling the spark plug cover off. Possibly there's a part or two missing, anyone help?

It may be a vertical pull Briggs. If it is, please post the Model, Type and Code, which will be stamped on the cowl. Hopefully that will get us the IPL for the engine. If it isn't a Briggs, we still need to know what it is.

Thanks Grumpy, couldn't see anything on the cowl when I looked previously but will have another look tonight.

If you tell us what the words are in the center of the cooling air intake grille, that might help confirm that it is or isn't a Briggs, but we need the Model, Type and Code to get a specific answer to your question.

Meanwhile Joe Carroll or someone else with a shedful of Briggs engines of every conceivable type, might just cut to the chase and tell us what is broken and how to fix it, but that is less fun than tracing it all through the IPL.

Will give you that info tonight but have done a bit of research, the dial next to the air filter is the throttle control, kill switch etc. but I didn't notice it doing much. It is connected to the governor linkage but doesn't seem to do a great deal no matter how you turn it, also notice that the dial has a split in it. No matter how I turned the dial it still produced a spark so looking for a way to stop the machine. Can get a manual throttle for it and may go down that track if don't get any joy out of the dial set up, I think these are automatic throttle/priming machines.

I think I've seen the set-up before tiger, but haven't seen what is under the cowl. I think that knob is supposed to connect to the speed control lever on the governor. As on most similar Briggs engines, the speed control lever operates the kill switch as well as setting the amount of tension on the governor spring. It sounds as if that plastic knob is broken and now it isn't operating the speed control lever, which it should slide down onto as the cowl is fitted. However rather than taking the thing to pieces blindly, it will be better to do it already knowing for sure what fits on where. The IPL should tell us that, once we have the Model and Type.

It's definitely a Briggs, the little decal in the middle should say 'EASY-SPIN STARTING BRIGGS & STRATTON' which should make it pre-magnetron. I've seen a couple with this setup and I agree with grumpy that it should connect to the speed control lever.

That sounds right rolla, definitely remember the easy-spin bit.

Can anyone tell me how to work out which position the dial should be so that I know what is off and what is on? Obviously there were markings on the cowl at some stage but long on now. The dial acts like a throttle cable and I can see that it pulls on the governor cable (?). Is there an easy way to tell when the cable is at full throttle or at the stop position?

Easy-Spin is a Briggs trademark, so that clears up the brand, but we need the model and type to access the IPL. We will also need the code, to identify the date of manufacture.

The direction of rotation that stretches the governor spring, is increasing the speed. The kill switch operates in the opposite direction to that, at the end of the movement.

I won't know how the choke works until we see the manual - it may be automatic at the extreme high speed position (Choke-A-Matic), or it may have a thermally-coupled automatic choke (found only on third design generation, apart from some current engines) or it may be manually operated. I think it is much too old for a primer.

Have a look at the governor spring, it should have the most amount of tension in the full throttle position (and the least amount at the stop position).

Thanks will try that.

Grumpy, number is 8221732.

Educated guess by looking at the photos says its a 10 cubic inch series 4hp briggs.

Hi Tiger, Grumpy has asked for all the numbers that are stamped into the metal air-cowling....there should be 3 groups...8221732 is the serial, we now need the other 3, the Model, Type and Code. The latter will give us the manufacturing date and where (the engine plant) was made.

No worries DJ, my wife gave me the first set of numbers, the ones here i had to remove the brown plastic bracket as the numbers are behind that, not sure what the bracket is supposed to do, anyway the correct information is 110908 0538-01 82051902
By the way this mower runs great but it's the heftiest and most solid mower i've had. No primer, no manual choke but starts almost first start, still have to work out the best setting for cold start. Just needs a catcher and we're complete.

Grumpy will give you the model and type plus hopefully the engine plant where it was made...I can give you the date of manufacture...19th May 1982.

I have some catchers to suit these, If you want a pic, let me know.

That would be useful Rusty, thanks.

First, that is an 11 cubic inch, first design generation, vertical crankshaft engine with a Pulsa-Jet carburetor, plain main bearings, and a vertical pull rewind starter. You probably knew most of that, but that is what the model number tells us. As Deejay said, it was made on 19 May 1982. It was produced in Briggs' Statesboro, Georgia engine plant - one of the few Briggs US plants that still survive, presumably now making one of the OHV engines since side valve engines are no longer made in the US.

Here is the Operator's Manual:
http://bsintek.basco.com/BriggsDocumentDisplay/msowGK-K_ny7tH217FzoPu.pdf

Here is the Illustrated Parts List:
http://bsintek.basco.com/BriggsDocumentDisplay/Z6lnsHVJ1DajI.pdf

As you will see from Page 2 of the IPL, the plastic control knob (Item 467) pushes over a metal shaft, or "control dial" (Item 409) which incorporates a crank which operates a metal link (Item 410). The link seems to connect to the speed control lever on the carburetor control plate (Item 620).

Your Pulsa-Jet is the later type that was used on the third design generation engines - that was interesting, I'd never heard previously of it being used on a first design generation engine, but it seems the 11 cubic inch series may have been introduced at the time the 8 and 9 cubic inch engines were approaching the third generation. This carburetor has an automatic choke, which works very well indeed when correctly assembled, but not at all if it has been assembled by an amateur who didn't read the instructions. You can check whether it is working by removing the air cleaner and looking down the the carburetor's air intake. If the choke is closed, see if it will open and close again under light finger pressure on the choke butterfly plate. If it is already open, the carburetor has been got at and you'll have to assemble it properly. Tell us, with a photograph, if that is the case and we can go through the process for sorting it out.

Cold start procedure consists of setting the speed control to maximum (fully clockwise) and pulling the starter. If the speed control and choke are working properly, it will start first or second pull any time of the year. Stopping procedure consists of rotating the speed control to the stop position (fully anticlockwise) and holding it there while the engine stops. It is a pity the decal which showed these positions is missing from your engine - see Page 6 of the Operator's Manual for details of how to operate the speed control.

Although your engine was made in the middle of 1982, the year Briggs changed over to Magnetron electronic ignition, according to the IPL you are out of luck: your engine has breaker points.

Please come back with some pictures, and a report on exactly what, if anything, doesn't work at present.