Leaf Blower engine seized

[J]

So, this is due to my own stupidity, but I believe I've seized (or mostly seized) the engine on my leaf blower. This group seems about 90% off topic these days, but maybe some of y'all are still answering repair questions, so I've come to find out if it's possibly salvageable.

Because of back problems, I hadn't used my leaf blower in a couple of years, but was feeling up to it this year. Due to a fit of stupidity and just not thinking, for some reason I believed it took straight gas instead of a mixture of gas/oil. And for some even dumber reason, I didn't bother to confirm this suspicion.

After a couple of (small) tankfuls of gas, it conked out. I left it to cool down for a while and came back to it and the pull-cord would not pull at all. I took it partially apart and was able to spin the engine by hand, which loosened up the pull-cord. Now I can pull the cord and it will spin, but not start. The spinning is not smooth, it catches a little at one point in the rotation.

It was at about this point that it dawned on me what I had done (not too quick on the uptake). My question is, is it junk at this point and should I list this in the column of lessons learned the hard way, or since it will rotate and slightly catch at one place, is there a way to lubricate the engine and get it going again (and fill it with the proper mixture of gas/oil this time)?

It''s a green Hitachi (RB24EAP I think), maybe about 3 years old. Thanks

-J

[Dean Hoffman]

It's the chicken and the egg as far as off topic posts. The group is getting more like a bunch of people at the local coffee shop and discuss what ever comes to mind. The normal denizens have a wide range of backgrounds. One was a mechanic and another an electrical inspector. Do you have spark? Pull the plug and find a way to hold it against metal of the blower. Your local hardware store should have some sort of jumper wire with clips at each end if you can't hold the plug against steel. It should spark when you pull the cord with the switch on. Does the blower spin freely with the plug removed? I'm wondering if the slight catch is the top of the compression stroke.

[Dan Espen]

Most likely, the piston and cylinder bore are beyond repair. That's a fairly low powered blower, I'd replace it with an Ego battery powered blower.

For my own use, I need something more serious and use a higher end

2 cycle back pack blower.

[trader_4]

+1

I'd remove the spark plug, see if it spins freely. If not, spray some lube or light oil in there and see if it will free up. If it does, see if it will start. Nothing to lose. IDK exactly what happens though when it's run without oil like that, like does the cylinder typically get scored so it's shot? If so, even if it's free now it could be toast. Testing for compression would be a key factor, but OP probably doesn't have a tester.

[J]

I'll remove the spark plug and see what happens. I'd love to replace with an electric blower, but I fear my yard is too large and leafy for that.

-J

[Snag]

That hard spot in the rotation might be where the piston ring seized ... if it was me (and I love to resurrect lost causes) and I couldn't get it to fire after putting some gas in the spark plug hole I'd toss it and get another . Especially if original cost was less than a hundred bucks . My new line trimmer is a Stihl , entry level commercial unit . A little over 300 bucks but it's probably going to be the last one I buy . I was buying cheap every other year so if this lasts 8 years I come out even .

[Dan Espen]

Here's some additional info:

You may be able to remove the exhaust to look at the piston and get an idea how bad it is.

That Hitachi is 441 CFM, 170 MPH. An Ego battery powered is 530 CFM, 110 MPH.

So, not nearly the oomph from the electric, but it moves a lot of air. They both weigh about the same. The electric is way easier to operate and is quiet.

[invalid unparseable]

I got one of these B&D that I am looking forward to trying when leaves come down this fall:

I had considered a battery operated leaf blower but this seems more powerful. Don't know how good the mulching part is but have heard that these type mulchers are not that great which is not important to me.

[rbowman]

If the plug and gas flow look okay it might be salvageable by lightly honing the cylinder and replacing the rings. Depends on what the piston and cylinder look like.

With 2 stroke dirt bikes it's easier to replace the whole mess but I don't think that would be cost effective for a leaf blower.

[trader_4]

Why not>? A leaf blower costs a lot less than a dirt bike, stupid.

[gfretwell]

I think he was talking about swapping the engine.

I bet that if this thing has any compression at all it will come back. Put some 2 stroke oil in the plug hole. Pour an ounce or so in the carb hole and pull it over until gas oil mix is well distributed. Then put the plug back, open the throttle and pull it until it starts.

[Clare Snyder]

He siezed it due to lack of lubrication - so the rings have most likely scuffed the cyl - and it is both not building proper compression in the combustion camber and not building crankcase pressure/vacuum which is required for a 2 stroke engine to run. Call it an expensive lesson and pitch it.

[Clare Snyder]

I just bought a Toro electric. Works great - but I DO have 100 ft of

12 gauge extention cord.

[TimR]

Me too, I'm happy with it.

If I could just find a decent string trimmner ............. nah, not gonna happen.

[Dean Hoffman]

There was one that had plastic blades that swung out when the trimmer ran. Maybe is was an aftermarket thing. Is string the issue?

[Snag]

I really like my (pretty new) Stihl FS91R . It wasn't cheap ... but I expect it to outlast at least 5 of the cheap ones I've been buying .

[Vic Smith]

I've been using this BD battery trimmer for 2 1/2 years. It's good for about 200' of lawn edging and misc weed cleanup before you need to recharge the batteries.

[Clare Snyder]

It hasn't been designed yet - - -

[HusTler]

To: jcl541 Re: Leaf Blower engine seized By: jcl541 to alt.home.repair on Sun Oct 18 2020 07:32 am

HusTler

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[J]

I love the idea of electric - I'm a big proponent. The issue I have is not the power so much as the amount of time you get on a charge. My yard is not a half-hour job ;-). But maybe things will get better. We had a Nissan Leaf a few years back - it got a theoretical 100 miles on a charge, but less in reality (more like 75), and much less in the winter (you'd be risking it if you had to go 50 miles). Now we have a Chevy Bolt and it theoretically gets over 250 miles on a charge (and not much less in the winter) - and that number seems more accurate (based on estimated mileage and charge remaining - I've never run it out of charge or below about 1/4 charge). Right now it seems a lot more expensive for an electric leaf blower that would require several charges to do our yard - and unlike a gas blower that you can refill in a minute, recharging the electric will take a while. But I look forward to the near future where electric is the standard for this tool. It's tough (and expensive) to be an early-adopter - you often pay a lot of money for something that doesn't live up to the hype. For most of us, waiting a few years is the way to go. For electric cars, we definitely were on the early side, but we leased instead of bought, knowing that major improvements were likely coming. The electric car still has some limitations, but for most driving applications, I think it's there. :-)