Zak

I'm still a little confused, did you service the carb?
You can check the carb primer works by attaching a short piece of fuel line to the inlet, put the open end of the fuel pipe in some fuel and see if it will pump fuel when pressing the primer button. If it doesn't pump fuel, check the ball isn't stuck to the valve seat (they can stick with dried out old oil) and that the diaphragm is in good condition (flexible with no cracks) if you haven't renewed it of coarse.
 
As for the tank, only one pipe goes to the bottom of the tank, that is the fuel pipe and has the filter, the other two pipes are bridged to prevent an airlock and are not for fuel to pass through.
You can check if they are blocked by part filling the tank and tilting it vertically (with something underneath to catch the fuel), cleaning can only really be done with fuel, try leaving some in it for a few days, or use or carb cleaner etc down the pipe.
If there is a lot of dirt in the bottom of the tank I also put some nuts in the tank with the fuel and shake it to dislodge the dirt. Pour out the contents and repeat if necessary.
 
David

Was it fitted with the base fuel tank? If so, there is a fine mesh filter inside at the bottom of the fuel pipe, the other two pipes are linked together (preventing an airlock at the opposite side to the filler). It could need cleaning or the fuel line maybe connected to the wrong pipe.
 
It should be possible to remove the screws without damage providing the screwdrivers fit properly, early engines used slotted head screws & later ones have Phillips head screws (Pozi-Driv screwdrivers are a poor fit and can damage Phillips screw-heads). They are sometimes replaced with whatever a previous owner could obtain or bodged with incorrect screws. Penetrating oil/fluid usually helps with anything tight or corroded as you mentioned.
 
David

No damage will happen to the coil or condenser from using the brass strip stop switch, it simply shorts out the primary winding of the coil to the engine casing, the primary windings consist of a small amount of turns of thick wire. Magneto coils usually fail on the secondary (high tension) windings, which consist of a lot of turns of very fine wire, failure is usually due to water ingress/insulation breakdown or corrosion of the wire (fails open circuit).
Battery coils are a different matter all together, the primary windings can burn out if energised continuously.
 
Too much oil will result in a very smoky engine and would likely need the spark-plug cleaned more often.
O&R stopped recommending Outboard oil around 1964 to reduce the amount of carbon build up over time.
The thing to worry about with modern oil is the additives in some of them, TC-W3 (NMMA trademark) is a marine certification standard (although that doesn't mean you can't use it for non-marine applications), you would probably get good advice from someone with lots of experience at a garden machinery repair shop, instead of big chain auto/car stores (where the sales staff often know nothing about the stuff they sell).
 
The small bits of the filter foam can; get stuck in the feather valve preventing it from closing and cause premature wear/damage the bearings in the same way as dirt, grit or sand can. The oil in the fuel helps it stick to everything inside.
It all depends on how much of the old foam got sucked inside and how far it got, which is difficult to tell without further examination, I don't know if anyone on here has managed to clean the old foam out without disassembly.
I usually dissemble mine anyway, to make cleaning the parts easier, identify & replace any damaged or worn parts, renew gaskets and to clean & re-grease the bearings. I've not rebuilt any O&R's with a gearbox yet though, but there is a completely dissembled Chicken Power bike engine with gearbox still to do (was bought like that).
 
David
 

Here is a picture (which I'm sure I've posted before) showing the inside of the crankcase from a Turbair engine of mine that has ingested lots of the old filter in the past (not run by me), I should really investigate it further to see what condition the cylinder is in.
 
David
 

So Jim (usedtoolman) and I got together Saturday at a local antique engine show (Straw Hollow) and displayed part of our O&R collections together. I think Jim had around 20 tools and I had about 25. Both of us have more than this but it's just way too much hassle to bring everything. Who knows, maybe one day we can do a bigger one with everything we have.
 
Jim's much nicer display! He has some really nice stuff.


 
 
And my crappy display. No pics of my ugly mug!
 

 

 
 
And kind of a shot of both
 

 
And here is some other stuff that was at the show
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
 
 

Modern two stroke oils are much better than the oils that were available when these engines were made, mixing to the ratio on the starter decal with modern oils will result in a very smoky exhaust, using too little oil will result in dry bearings & premature wear.
 
Using a 32:1 mix of good quality AIR cooled two stroke oil should be good, I have been using Stihl HP oil (for all my two stroke engines) which was recommended by someone I know that uses two stroke chainsaws regularly.
 
Both outboard oil & #30 SAE oil (the modern equivalent is NOT suitable due to the additives used) have been mentioned in instructions for these engines over the years.
 
David

For long term storage draining the tank & running till all fuel is gone was recommended in the winterising procedure.
 
There are two ways to stop the O&R engine, one is the brass stop switch on the back of the magneto plate (exhaust side) or a remote stop switch (used on some tools), both of these short-out the primary of the magneto. The second method is to close the choke (as you mentioned). On early engines there was an optional third method, a shorting strip for the top of the spark-plug, shorting the spark-plug can be used if other methods of stopping an engine have failed (usually with a well insulated screwdriver).
 
Here is a picture of the brass stop switch,

 
And the (optional) HT shorting strip on an early engine,

 
David
 

Hi Zak
 
You could start a new thread, or add to a relevant existing one and we can help with any other questions you may have.
The Compact engines were of course designed as a small industrial engine to be used for powering all sorts of portable tools, but were also used for powering (and still are) models.
 
David

You may be best using clean fuel then, as I've never tried carb cleaner I don't know what it can damage (certainly some electronic & switch cleaner sprays can damage plastics or cause other problems with vintage electronics).
 
Be careful the power output shaft doesn't slide out & let the tiny bearing rollers fall out, if you take the induction housing apart and nothing is attached to it.
 
The only adjustment for the timing is the contact breaker gap (should be listed on the starter decal along with the spark plug gap). The flywheel position is fixed with a key.
 
David

If the exhaust collector will not move, the cylinder will need to be unscrewed. But make sure the piston is free to move before trying this, as the con-rod will break if the piston is stuck.
 
The engine maintenance manual gives details on making a cylinder removal tool.
The instructions given are to make it from a piece of flat steel 3/16" thick & 1" square, with a hole drilled in the middle for using a screwdriver as a "T" handle.
 
I made one from a piece of steel & bar found in a box of offcuts & salvaged bits in the shed. I didn't bother to make it 1" square though, I only squared up the ends and drilled the hole for the bar.
If the cylinder is very tight I usually use a vice to hold the engine crankcase (use wood or similar to protect the engine from the vice jaws) and use an adjustable spanner to turn the tool. You will probably need to replace the gaskets if you remove the cylinder to prevent leaks. Also make sure that the slot in the top of the cylinder lines up with the crankshaft or is at 90 degrees to the crankshaft when reassembling.
 
Here is a picture of the cylinder removal tool I made.
 
David

See the linked post for checking the carb inlet, there is a one-way ball valve inside the diaphragm chamber.
It's best to disassemble and clean all the parts of the carb using either clean fuel or carb cleaner.
 
The air vane fits inside the shaft of the butterfly valve (left side of carb), here is a picture I took earlier. The butterfly valve will be open normally, it closes when the blade part above the flywheel moves up with increasing air flow.
 

 
There shouldn't be any need to clean the crankcase with the cylinder removed unless there are bits of the old air filter inside (these would be visible inside the carb & induction housing), I would follow the engine rebuild thread if you have this problem, which is caused by running the engine without removing the old disintegrating foam.
There is a special tool that fits the slot in the top of the cylinder for unscrewing it, you will need to replace the exhaust collector gaskets if you need to remove the cylinder for de-carbonising, they tend to leak if you don't replace them.
See the last post in the engine rebuild thread for a details of the cylinder removal tool.
 
Taking pictures as you dissemble things will help when you put it back together, I always take more than I need to and not just with engines (vintage electronics is my other hobby).
 
David

Hi Zak,
 

Both the single and double air filter have one housing that doesn't come apart.
I usually use the little pick tool (shown in the linked post) or a small screwdriver to poke as much of the old filter foam out using all the holes in the housing. Compressed air can help with the remaining bits, I usually give it a wash with petrol/gas after.
The new foam is then squeezed in through the opening at the back and again poked through the holes at the front to spread it out to fill the housing.
 
 
Your carb will probably need to be stripped and cleaned following the procedure at the start of this thread, Old fuel/oil mix tends to gum up all the parts. Take your time, nothing should fly out, but have a tray underneath to catch any small parts if you want.
A new primer diaphragm gasket is usually required for the engine to run at it's best, the old ones usually dry out & crack (Wallfish or Webhead on here have new diaphragms, as well as the check valve gasket if you need them).
 
The screw with the spring of the left of the carb is the idle stop adjustment screw, the holes underneath are used on some tools for the throttle cable.
The small quadrant control on the other side of the carb is used to adjust the governed speed. There are two types of this control, one can be set to any position and the other is moved by lifting the spring loaded washer & has five positions. Early production carbs don't have this control.
 

 

 
David