Tecum Snowblower Engines: Any Carb Adj. Anymore ?

[Robert11]

Hello:

Have a new Ariens snowblower that I bought this winter. Seems to work fine.

Has a Tecumseh engine.

Have heard that these engines are now built with absolutely no Carb adjustments anymore. No more fine tuning needle valves, etc.

Is this true ?

If the engine Carb. ever does require "fine-tuning," how is it done ?

Is there still a float position adjustment that the dealer can do if needed ?

If I remove the center screw on the bowl to clean it's holes/jets, can I assume that I can just put it back after cleaning without having to worry about any re-adjustments (of anything) being needed ?

Thanks, Bob

[louie]

Most small engines come this way now due to tighter emissions controls. The factory sets the carb for a combination of maximum efficiency and lowest emissions and doesn't want the end user messing with those settings. In theory, it should never need tuning. The float position shouldn't need adjusting either, unless a new float is installed at some point. I haven't owned one of these long enough to tell if it will eventually go out of adjustment or not, but since there aren't any screws to vibrate and turn by themselves, I'd guess there's no way for it to un-adjust itself.

[Jeff Wisnia]

But you prolly won't be able to clear up a partially clogged jet by diddling with the needle valve adjustment or removing the needle and giving it a blast with an air nozzle.

"Progress" always seems to make mechanical stuff harder to fix... Dammit.

Jeff