replacing head on briggs & stratton

[Mike Robinson]

I have a rototiller that seized up and I took the head off. I was able to loosen it with some penetrating oil and there doesn't seem to be any scoring on the cylinder wall. Can I just throw it back together? If so, do I need new head bolts or just a gasket. Where can I find torque specs?

Thanks in advance for your help!

 

[JCF350]

Re: replacing head on briggs & stratton

Clean up the cylinder with a spray can cleaner, oil it down, replace head gasket. Torque to 15-18 Lb.feet.

 

[MrBigStuff]

Re: replacing head on briggs & stratton

Did you fix the cause of the seizure? What seized, the piston rings or some other bearing? Rings normally do not take seizing very well, they tend to develop a skewed, very sharp edge. Then they won't rock in the piston groove like they should and the hardness of them could be altered. If that's what happened, I might go so far as to replace them while you're doing work on it. It all depends on what really happened and how much this tool is worth to you. You might be right back in there if the root cause has not been addressed, or it could be a new boat anchor...

 

[studlymandingo]

Re: replacing head on briggs & stratton

I've taken apart old Briggs motors (25+ yrs old) to seat in the valves, I used some Indian Head gasket goop and reused the old gasket. As long as you have fire, fuel, and even a miniscule amount of compression the thing will run...

 

[Mike Robinson]

Re: replacing head on briggs & stratton

Did you fix the cause of the seizure? What seized, the piston rings or some other bearing? ..

It seized due to a lack of oil in the sump. so I would assume it was the rings. Maybe I should pull the piston?

 

[JCF350]

Re: replacing head on briggs & stratton

If that's the case check the crank and crankcase too. More than likely a junk engine now though.

 

[Mike722]

Re: replacing head on briggs & stratton

If it was mine, I would put the head back on with a new head gasket, old bolts and torque to proper spec. Put new oil in and run it until it locks again. Pulling the pistion is not going to tell you much more then putting new oil in. If the rod bearings are toast, most Briggs require a new rod.

The only way I would tear down the engine would be if the engine is less then 5 years old or expensive where you live. My solution does have the problem of maybe locking the engine, breaking a rod, and damaging the block. Around here a new engine would be cheaper then trying to fix a siezed engine, so putting new oil in and trying is a cheap fix if it works.

 

[Mike Robinson]

Re: replacing head on briggs & stratton

What you say makes sense Mike. I will try throwing it back together and keep my fingers crossed.

Thank you all for your advice!