Small Engines (Lawn Mowers, etc.): Ariens, kawaski, valve clearance

Question
I purchased a Ariens mower last summer, and it has been back to the dealer 3 times for Hard start, he says he can't fault it. It takes sometimes 20-30 pulls to start,and sometimes never.It has a Kawaski FJ180V motor. I'm at a loss what to do i contacted Kawaski, and they won't return e-mails.Any ideas thanks Paul

Answer
Is the cylinder bored straight?  Yep, we had an engine that was not manufactured correclty?  

Has the dealership performed a cylinder leakdown check and checked the valve clearance?

We had a Snapper last year that had a similar problem.  Three techs can not find anything wrong.  As a good dealer who stands behind there equipment, we gave the customer a different mower which worked perfectly.

We still have the POS mower but we will eventually get around to solving the hard-starting problem.

Have you contacted Ariens with your model, serial number, the dealership info and the date of purchase?  I would request a different mower.

Let me know.
Eric