Small Engines (Lawn Mowers, etc.): B&S 17.5 HP OHV Governor Issue, throttle assembly, check oil

Question
Eric: I have a B&S 17.5 HP OHV engine 31c707-0005-G1 and the engine starts great but when I bring it up to cutting RPM/Full Throttle, the engine sputters and backfires and the governor arm tends to sway back and forth. The motor has only 5 hours on it and the whole tractor is less than a year old. Could the internal governor linkage or the slinger be the issue? The outside governor spring and the whole throttle assembly look great. This just mysteriously happened for no known cause on my part. I just put in gas and check oil. Very weird. I am very handy but before I go inside the oil pan and start dissassembling the engine I thought I would ask.

Answer
I'd clean the carb before cracking the engine case.  Briggs governors are very relialble.  Most "governor" problems can be tracked to a malfunctioning carb.

A dirty high speed fuel jet may not be allowing fuel to enter the engine when the throttle plate is opened by the governor.

Carb cleaning with compressed air from an air compressor before checking the governor.

Eric