2 cycle engines saga

19 years ago

Okay Â I know it is me, but 2-cycle engines hate me. I have spent way too much time in my life fighting to get them started.

It began several years ago when a friend gave me a brand new string trimmer. This sucker was fuel injected and could really do some good. After that tank of gas ran out, it never started again.

I have had two Craftman blowers. The first was decent, but it eventually got to the point where it was time to replace it. The second one worked greatÂ..for the first year. After that, it was an absolute pain! I went through an entire can of starting fluid over the course of a month to get it to start. I pulled and pulled on the cord. It tried to start, then died. Pulled, pulled, pulled. After throwing in a few curse words, I repeated this process. Nothing. That was a complete waste of money Â into the trash it went.

Yesterday, I purchase a Stihl BG 55 blower from the local Ace Hardware store. I even told the guy that I hate 2-cycle engines, but since they service it there, then if I had trouble, they can fix it. I took it home, followed the instructions to the letterÂ..nothing. Nothing at all. Brand new blower and never starts. I even tried it again this morning following the ownerÂs manual to the absolute letter Â nothing. "Close choke and pull 5 times. If engine does not start, open choke and pull 10 more times." I love that second sentence. It is almost like there is a conspiracy hereÂ.

What am I doing? Gas is fresh. IÂve got stabilizer in it. I get the small bottles of oil, so it is always mixed properly. I use high octane fuel, since these typically are high compression engines. Do these types of engines hate me?

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Comments (6)

canguy
19 years ago
Close the choke and hold the throttle open. Pull until it coughs and quits. Then open the choke and pull again. A brand new Stihl does not need five pulls with the choke closed, it will flood every time.
den69rs96
19 years ago
You most likely are flooding the engine. If you do flood it, remove the spark plug and turn the on/off switch to off. Pull a few times to clean out the cylinder. Then reinstall the spark plug and try again. As stated above, close the choke and pull until it tries to fire. This should only be a couple of pulls. On my backpack blower, I then move the choke to the half open position. If you have a half choke setting on your stihl, move the lever to the setting and pull. Should fire right up. Once its running for a few seconds move the lever to no choke.
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computeruser
19 years ago
Yup, flooding the engine. Disregard the instructions on your BG55. They're a lie. I don't know what Stihl was thinking.

Here's what ACTUALLY works:
NO priming, two or three pulls on choke until it coughs, take off the choke and then one or two pulls without choke, this should get the job done every time.

Once you get a feel for what your blower wants, you will find that it is a VERY easy starting 2-stroke. But if you follow the instructions to the letter you will have a wet spark plug and a growing hatred of what is actually an excellent handheld blower.
nevada_walrus
19 years ago
I disagree with the last one saying not to prime, I'm assuming he meant using the purge which is not a real prime, it only fill the carb body with fresh fuel. There is no throat priming done by using the purge bulb.

Other wise what everyone is saying about flooding the engine sound right on regarding your problems. Many newer units as is yours, use a multi stage igntion timing coil which actually retards the spark at cranking speeds. You do not always hear the blubble that is traditionally associated with 2 strokes telling you to get it off of choke. After 3 pulls with choke, get it off even if you don't hear the blubble. If after 3 more pulls I would then suspect the choke is sticking.

Sometimes the lever action on the choke used on the 55 doesn't click in for the final choke. If the above starting proceedure fails, remove the air filter and after moving choke lever to on, give the inside choke bar a push to see if it clicks in. If it does, repeat the starting proceedure. If this corrects your starting problem, go back to the dealer and ask for them to check the mechanism and repair or replace as needed.
snappybob
19 years ago
BW,the only thing I would add here is it is really not a good idea to use starting fluid on a two stroke engine. The engine gets it's only lubrication from the oil in the fuel. Ether has very little if any lubrication qualities. If it does start, it may be the last time. My Poulan blower is the same way. Right out of the box it was hard to start and always has been. I hate that thing. I should have bought an Echo. My Echo trimmer and chainsaw start every time.
muddbelly
19 years ago
Great advice - thanks all! I was also having problems starting my new BG 55, and thought - this thing is worse than the POS weed eater it replaced. After reading this, I did 2 pulls choke on (no prime), then it started easily on the first pull off choke (3 pulls total). I wonder why stihl has such wacked out instructions...