Flex Seal Tape, the Canned Flex Seal or JB Weld

Well the Generators B&S engine now has a cooling port.
Rod right out the side of the block. One large Bam!
https://youtu.be/YvdlD_b9uXo
Way louder than you would expect. Then darkness at same time, as it happened last night.

Bummer PINKster... maybe it’s time to trade that JACK HAMER in for a Honda

FWIW, home generator manufacturers usually recommend an oil change every 25 hours of operation. That time limit is easily exceeded in emergency situations so sometimes there is a catastrophic failure.

I posted kinda as a joke. I can not believe how well that Gen lasted. It has had maintenance like it should have. Plus some.
To tell the truth I have a large Gen we got 9 months ago that is Powered by Honda. I had and licenced electrician put in the transfer switch. It was used 9 10 times before breaking. Had say 40 hours on it.
It was needed for my wife's job Hospital routed calls here, due to Covid.
It broke and was brought to the place the factory said to.
6 weeks ago. They said well we are backed up front call us we will call you. They must have caller ID as they ditched my calls and the factory rep got no place.
So it was use the old B&S with almost 5000 hours of use or nothing.
No.mater how well maintained it was living on borried time.
Last 2 days it had a knock that got wosre.
I was surprised it made it that long. Even oil swaps and good oil is not going to make it new again.
If and when I get the big one back it will be hooked to NG.
Not sure who is responsible?
I dropped it off at who the manufacture said to. Their authorized repair place.
If I do not get it back. The business may be wiped out.
[B]Debating down the line sticking a new B&S on the old gen as a back up.
Since motors are like $275_$300

I have had bad luck with Tecumseh small engines many years ago with losing a rod or two but never has any issue with the B&S.

The current crop of BS engines are not the same quality as the old BS engines. I wouldn't expect that long of life from the current engines, but I suspect, a shorter life expectancy would be better then what you have now.

Are you guys seeing any gove relief yet?

Get an Onan. How many watts do you need? 120 or 240?

Sorry for your troubles down there. Do you have a gen currently working then, or are you completely without power?

220, 221 whatever it takes

I saw this old guy named Joe he said it was here.
There is one Natl. Guard set up on my side the river. East bank Jeff Parish. MRE, ICE ,WATER.
Like is about 3 plus miles long.
Same on West Bank.
I am glad I know to take care of my self.o
I have food in freezer. Over 350 cans of food. Canned, and Dry milk and foods.Had my all electric home converted in 1995 it now has, natural gas hot water heater, oven/ stove top, furnace, fireplace, and gas drier.
So as long as we have backup power we can wash/dry clothes cook, keep warm or cold depending on the season.
Have been washing clothes, cooking and feeding my family and friends neibors.
I am as of typing this fuel wise for the borrowed generator three 15 gallon VP Racing Drums, ( that used to contain 110 with lead ) with a hand pump, four, 5 gallon VP Racing Fuel Jugs, two 5 gallon Jerry cans and two normal person red lawn type gas cans. See I am normal. Well at least sometimes. And 6 in the gen I just filled. So what's that 85-90
Tuesday I already had someone try to steal from us. But ran off like he'll.yes I am armed. And my norm is sleep 2 to 3 hours a day. Have been in that pattern for a long time
Sad part is if they had asked I would have gladly helped them. Look like Wal-Mart opened with limited product's so anyone who really needs should be able to get what they need. GAS IS RATIONED though.
Might get power back end of week or the week after. If after I will just run gen to keep freezer_ fridge alive.
I got 22 cubic feet if meat in there lol
We are under boil water only thet say not safe to drink. Is contaminated due to power loss. So the ones that have all electric houses, had little to no supplies, are the ones who are totally in dire need to get it from the Fed's or stand in lines at stores as it comes in. Who has really stepped up was out of town churches! The Fed's should be ashamed of what they have done or should say not done

They are expensive but tough. I use a 2.5 kw remote start Onan AJ to run small loads overnight, and a 10 kw (pull! start) CCKA if I need hot water or to recharge the well tank.

I also have a 4 kw portable generator with an 8 hp B&S. Got it cheap with a hole in the crankcase in exactly the same spot. Same failure too.
So I used some aluminum brazing rod (the guy used to sit there at shows and braze aluminum cans together with it) and a plate to cover the hole, got a used rod, threw it all back together and it works fine (burns oil though. Should have re-ringed it too)

Cool you were able to save it. Funny mine did not smoke but used oil bad.
For the cost of a new B&S engine even though they do not make them like they used to. I think it is the smart thing to do to save it as a back up. Even though I will be getting my large that can run whole home back. That one will get a NG Carb or conversion. As a friend is a HVAC guy who is licenced to run gas.
Can't hurt to have a,spare in case, or I could loan it next time tij a family in need.
I an running one of my good friends extra now.
I was topping off oil at every gas fill and it did not like Synthetic oil. Used 1/3rd more than Dino same thickness.

I'm impressed you can maintain a sense of humor in spite of the sh!#show you're enduring.
Keep on keepin' on, I hope for the best for ya.

Kohler or Honda no BS for me. If that's the BS 3000 series single cylinder then there's a good chance the automatic decompression mechanism broke and took out the engine/rod. Just fixed a guy's Craftsman BS that broke the decomp mechanism, luckily he couldn't get it started for the broken piece to do the usual damage. After seeing how frail the decomp mechanism is I would never purchase a BS single.

So did you have a suggestion as to what I can replace the Old B&S with that would bolt right in? Other than another B&S

Try here CLICK HERE for Small Engine Warehouse I bought a Honda engine here for a for a 35 year old Troy Bilt tiller for a woman that just couldn't part with it. The Tecumseh was worn out and needed a total rebuild down to the pull starter. SEW will help you with your decision on what will work for you. From a little research the prices were competitive to the lowest price for some of their engines.

Mike

From my experience, go with the Flex Seal tape. Throw a carboard box and a blanket over it to dampen the noise, and let 'er buck! (Tip the box up slightly to allow air to move...)

So I am wondering, if Honda 390 engines are in short supply right now
what other small powered equipment - go carts, tillers, water pumps, etc
have a Honda ( or Kohler) engine that can be transplanted in place of a failed Briggs & Stratton engine?

In vast internet land
is there a forum with knowledgeable small engine users who could suggest transplants?

If the BS de-compression mechanism
is a weak link that can wreck havoc
can it be disconnected
even if it makes pull starting harder?

You need to remove the camshaft. You will see an L shaped lever with a spring. The lever swings out allowing the exhaust valve to stay open longer as the camshaft rotates to make starting easier. Question to your answer is yes. You can remove
the compression release. Remove the camshaft. Then, cut it out from the camshaft. But, you don't need to do this. Chances that it will break are very small. I had one break off years ago on a B&S 15.5 OHV , on a 1996 Murray 42" mower. .
Did not even know it. I notice it was a little harder for the engine to start. But , I ran the engine like this for many years. I did replace it when the engine threw a rod back in 2016. Was not caused by the broken compression release remains. But was caused by an oiling problem. got a new connecting rod and a another camshaft with a good compression release mechanism, rebuilt the engine and has been running fine ever since.

Well on the B&S engine I just replaced the camshaft with a new decompression mechanism the owner brought it to me because he (nor I) could get it to start (consistently) and if we were lucky once it ten attempts. Before I got to it someone sold him a new starter, new starter solenoid, new dual ac/dc alternator and a new battery. I pulled the spark plug out of it and engine spun like crazy. Put the spark plug back in and it would not go past the compression stroke. IMO sure you can remove the decomp but then you deal with the nine out of ten times it will not start. The owner was ready to give up and buy a used Craftsman riding mower just like his broken decomp B&S but a little older for $2200 and told me "Mike it has a new engine".....I said "Dave, why do you think it might have a new engine?" So I fixed his for less that $200 and he's happy mowing again.....sad thing is the new decomp cam showed no signs of any improvement so it's going forward. Personally I wouldn't remove the decomp from the B&S, you might get away removing the decomp on other brands but I know now from experience it's not good to lose it on the B&S. Do a search and you'll find the main issue that comes up when it fails is it's hard to start or won't start at all.

Did you go to the "Small Engine Warehouse" site https://www.smallenginewarehouse.com/?msclkid=b9a0439927b315b12bd822a10a2de687 or better yet call them and ask for tech support. That's what I did for the lady's Troy Bilt '70's tiller and they had a choice of three engines that worked as updates. They can help you decide what might work best for your issue.

Here's the link to over 80 Honda engines they offer, https://www.smallenginewarehouse.com/engines/brand/Honda there has to be something there you can use.

Mike

I did go to small engine warehouse.
I spent more than thirty minutes there,especially in the natural gas fuel section.
I did bookmark it.

I am still interested in “transplants” from water pumps, mini bikes, etc.

My father abused me terribly as a child,
buying me mini bikes, six wheel ATVs, motorcycles.
all of whom broke down,
and I was lured into “addict labor” repairing them with my two brothers.
Addict labor is worse than slave labor,
a slave can work at the lowest effort to avoid the whip,
but addict labor will work with a near frenzy to get back to dangerous thrills.

This “devious dad” even bought us a used 40 hp Wankel engine to transplant in place of a Wisconsin 12 hp.

It got far worse - he bought his sons airplanes after they all soled at age 15.

He drew a line only at helicopters - which he repeated called “10,000 parts all trying their best to kill you.”