Reviving a Simplicity 555 with Tecumseh HS50

[NO0C]

I would suggest disassembling the starter, clean the drive bore and armature shaft, lubricate both with a light lithium grease. You may even want to elongate the spring to increase the tension to return the drive to its idle position. The disengaged position of the drive gear is away from the starter armature and is pulled back toward the starter motor when engaged, different than most automotive starters.

As far as removing the starter, that would be okay by me with the exception of throwing some foreign item into the flywheel gear, which I believe would be highly improbable, but possible. But why not use it to your advantage?

Perhaps you have too long of a bolt in the top mounting hole of the starter and could use a shorter one, or simply washer it up so it doesn‘t bottom out.

That reminds me, I have at least one thread that has been compromised and I need to install some helicoils, in fact I may install some 5/16” helicoils as I have them on hand from a head bolt thread repair, replacing the 1/4” threads. I may have to bore the starter mounting holes, but so be it.

Don’t forget to wash and flush the tank of any debris.

Good luck.

An illustration of your starter:

http://www.jackssmallengines.com/Jacks- ... nQ2&ariz=1

[motorhead64]

If you decide to repair the starter...use emory cloth (fine grade) to shine up the exposed shaft. I'm a big proponent of DRY lubricants for starters and other open gear systems. I recommend powdered graphite. It doesn't attract dirt and I've never had a binding problem with any starters I've rebuilt. It is also not affected by extreme cold. When you bench test your starter again, you will see a smoothly operating Bendix. Remount your starter and put medium hold Loctite on all your mounting screws. You will be good to go!

[mjl5007]

Well, I replaced the fuel and primer lines, flushed the fuel tank, cleaned out the carb bowl, and filled it up with some fresh gas (+ 1/2oz of Mechanic in a Bottle for good measure), and she fired right up and runs great. Just in the nick of time, too -- we got around 8" of powder on Saturday here in central PA, and boy am I glad I didn't have to shovel it…

I've still got the electric starter off, and will try to tackle cleaning that up sometime this week. I think I've got some powdered graphite in the back of a drawer somewhere, and maybe some emory cloth, too, so I'll give that a go.

I'm wondering if there is any other maintenance I should look into doing while I'm in the mood on the other parts of the blower, since the engine seems to be just fine for the time being. The chute seems a little bit loose in that it rattles, but it doesn't actually turn on it's own -- probably because I tightened up the bolt in the bracket that attaches the top of the chute crank handle to the handlebars. Any way to tighten up the chute itself so it doesn't rattle? Anything I should do regarding the transmission, auger or impeller, scraper bar? The bar looks like it's set around 1/4", which seemed to work fine for my flat paved driveway. The two halves of the auger have some play in them when not spinning (I like all ten of my fingers, TYVM!), is that normal?

Thanks again for all the advice -- so glad to get this thing working sooner rather than later!

[motorhead64]

One thing overlooked by many is the condition of the inside of the chute...ideally, it will shine and be slippery. A rusted, scratched surface will slow down snow and increase the likelihood of clogging. Sand it smooth, paint it, and then spray it with furniture polish, Pam, silicone or some other coating to keep snow from sticking.

Beyond that, if your engine is running well, lubricate all controls...throttle, clutch lever, shifter linkage, etc. Make sure your transmission has 90 W oil at proper level. Tip the machine forward on its blower housing and remove the bottom access panel. Wipe down the drive (smooth) disc with alcohol or thinner to get it nice and clean. Low temp grease on the friction drive shaft to allow smooth shifting. Grease your drive gears lightly. You are into the snow season now, so don't attempt any major maintenance that will put you in a down status. MH

[NO0C]

For safety reasons, remove the shear bolt(s) and make sure the auger flightings/rakes are free on the gear drive shaft. Lubricate as needed.
If you should encounter a bolt shearing situation, you want to make sure the rakes will freely rotate on the shaft.

At the same time you are cleaning the driven friction disk, also clean the mating metal drive disk.

Adjust the friction drive clutch as per your manual.