QuestionI bought a Honda HRM215SXA that had been stored for a while. I fueled it up, and it started on the first pull. So I changed the oil and spark plug, checked the air filter, and ran it for a bit. Everything seems to work perfectly, except it seems to have low power - stalls easily under any load. When I engage the blade, it almost stalls. If I engage the blade in contact with grass, it definitely stalls. If I run it into high grass, it stalls.
I haven't rebuilt the carburetor, as I'm not seeing any clear evidence of mixture problems. It cold starts fine with the choke, hot starts fine without the choke. No surging. Throttle response is normal, and engine sound is smooth. No smoking.
What are my next steps to figure out why this thing is so weak? Thanks!
AnswerThere are two circuits in your carburetor, low speed for idle and high speed for power.
Most of the time the idle circuit feeds fuel to the engine. When you mow or load the engine, the governor opens the carburetor butterfly and the high speed circuit becomes active and feeds additional fuel to the engine.
The high speed circuit may still be clogged or the governor may not be working properly or adjusted correctly.
When the engine runs at full speed, do you know the engine's RPM? You need a tachometer to verify the engines top-no-load speed to verify the engine RPM is correct.
Does the engine sound like it is running fast enough? It can be difficult to tell on some Honda's as they run really quiet.
Eric
