[wristpin]

I’ve successfully repaired many tanks over the years using a heavy duty Rawlplug electric iron – no naked flame. Alternatively a large old style iron that can be heated with a blow torch well away from site.
I think that your main issue may be other areas that have not broken through yet but are lurking waiting to do so. Anyway, assuming that the rest of the tank is reasonably sound and you are satisfied that you have purged it of any fuel fumes, I would solder individual patches . Bright metal around the holes, Bakers Fluid flux and stick solder. ( not cored solder) .
That tank looks quite familiar – Ransomes? So, perhaps not too difficult to find a better one.

[wristpin]

Only ever seen Beta in canal boats but we could add Poulan (spelling ?)

• This reply was modified 1 week, 6 days ago by wristpin.

[wristpin]

Re David Bliss’s post regarding Homelite two stroke generators. There’s a James Condon with a YouTube channel where he repairs and restores generators. He recently tackled a Homelite two stroke, possibly of WW2 vintage, with the same style of fuel lift pump that David shows in his post. The lift pump was in rather a sorry state but James managed to repair it, resulting in a running motor making power.

[wristpin]

We seem to have forgotten Lister and Petter !

[wristpin]

https://centralspares.co.uk/Admin/Public/GetImage.ashx?width=800&height=800&crop=5&FillCanvas=True&DoNotUpscale=true&Compression=75&image=/Files/Images/Ecom/Products/22167.jpg

[wristpin]

Without too much head scratching. Loncin, Olsen and Rice, Lauson ,Subaru. In the USA there are several of what are loosely referred to as Honda Clones – several basic engines with different brand names and different colours, such as Predator which is the house brand of the Harbor Freight chain of stores similar to Machine Mart over here.
The shame is that as far as I know we no longer have a home grown mower / industrial engine manufacture such as Villiers, Norman or Sturmy Archer. Unless we count Perkins or Cummins.
Angus

PS Ruggerini !!

[wristpin]

I can remember the “ good tool “ story as well !
While on the JLO theme I can remember seeing at a show a Hayter 21 or Osprey fitted with a big vertical shaft JLO. Not sure whether it was an aftermarket conversion or a Hayter option for bank work.

[wristpin]

Yes they were Bosch magnetos. There was a special tool that screwed into the centre of the flywheel to pull it off the crank. Annoyingly the points gap had to be set with the flywheel in place as the cam was part of it. The “ windows” in the flywheel provided to give access fot feeler gauge and screwdriver, never seemed to be in just the right place.
Back in the 80s we were servicing lots of contractor and golf course machines so to make the job easier I cut the centre from a scrap flywheel to provide a dummy cam before refitting the flywheel – still got the puller and my dummy cam.

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[wristpin]

Amazing, thank you.
I remember seeing one in a customer’s shed but no recollection of seeing it in action or being exhibited at any annual show such as Motspur Park or Windsor.

[wristpin]

Just to add to the jig saw, JLO were eventually acquired by Tecumseh! Quite a lot of their larger engines were to be found on generator / welder sets and at full chat really sang.
The Bing carbs on the GT2s were rather prone to throttle spindle / governor wear and I only used my last rebuild kit two or three years ago – might still have a spare spindle.

[wristpin]

That one is Definitely a GT2 ( some badged Contractor) with a JLO engine which was available with or without the wheeled undercarriage . The original Flymo Domestic had an Aspera TA633 engine a metal fuel tank, fibre glass hood and an alloy impeller. Next came a similar machine , Aspera VA633, plastic tank and impeller and plastic (ABS?) hood. Then there was a similar machine with badged Professional with an Aspera VA633 and a blue hood , optional handle bar mounted snorkel air cleaner and optional undercarriage.
Then there were two yellow decked, Kirby Lauson engined machines 19” and 21” called Contractors ( I’ve got one of each!). Then there were various different variants with Tecumseh engines including the little 12” TL with the sweet running Kawasaki KT12 engine . I lost track of the variants after that and the days of the petrol hovers were fading away until the re-emergence of machines with Honda four-strokes – not true hovers needing undercarriages to float.
Flymo were masters of the mix and match so the above doesn’t claim to be exhaustive ,but is roughly what was available . One thing for sure is that when Flymo’s patents expired and several others, Atco, Allen, Templar etc, had a go at the hover market, no one else did it as well as Flymo.

[wristpin]

16 thou is correct but it was always important to make sure that the the points faces were flat and square to each other for a setting that would “last the season”. I remember having to go out to Mastiffs that had lost their spark mid season .
Bad news that the carb is in a mess. Hope that it’s not too worn and drawing air around the spindle.
A problem with old Mag engined Mastiffs was to get them to idle ( tick over) low enough to disengage the centrifugal clutch to allow clean engagement of the gears. The original Mastiffs had a slow revving JAP engine and a MAG in good condition was just about slow enough but needed to be “ about spot on” to disengage the clutch and then not bog down when the throttle was called on to move off. A Kohler conversion sold by the then UK Kohler distributor was never happy – just would not idle slow enough. So let’s hope that you can sort the carb; may be worth giving the lump a valve job while you’re about it.
I can’t vouch for it, but something tells me that Ransomes offered a set of stronger springs for the clutch – but it was a while ago !
Let us know how you get on!

[wristpin]

You don’t identify the engine – SRL xxx ? However back in the day many of the MAGs fitted to Mastiffs etc were equipped for electric start or lighting even though that wasn’t fitted. So, as you say coils – in the plural, you probably have a surplus charging coil.
Identify the ignition coil with the HT plug lead and probably a single primary coil wire going to the points where it will probably share a common terminal with the condenser / capacitor and maybe a kill wire going to an on/off switch on the handle bar. Memory says that the internal wires are often taken to a terminal block on the outside of the engine cowling.
If it will help, I can possibly find a wiring diagram but it will assist if you can supply the SRL number.

[wristpin]

Poultry singer . May be for removing the stubs of the feathers after plucking.

[wristpin]

With all the info that you’ve been given you should be ok but if not take your existing belt to a local bearing and power transmission part ( belt) dealer and get them to match it on their measuring gauge.

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