Engine RPMs...

[sawdustdad]

I was starting to get frustrated with my 1450 with a 50A mower deck not cutting the grass very well. Leaving uncut grass, having to slow way down to get a clean cut. Just seemed like it wasn't cuttin' the mustard any more, so to speak.

Got out the optical tach to check engine RPMs, and discovered that with the deck engaged, it was only running 2850RPM at full throttle! No wonder it was lacking in the grass eradication category.

Upon further inspection, the throttle cable has slipped through the cable clamp on the side of the engine and it wasn't opening up the throttle all the way. After a few minutes of tinkering, got it back up to 3600RPM, tweaked the carb a bit to settle out some hunting, and voila! Grass killer back in action.

Cut the front yard, very pleased now. All of this is just to show that without a tach (about $12 shipped on ebay) it's hard to know what your engine is doing. Should really use one every time you work on the engine to confirm that it's running at spec.

[CubDieselFan]

Thanks for the tip. That is one thing that I do not have yet(tach).

[RedHawCadet]

Very helpful info!

[Leadslingingdaddy]

I'm going to invest in a Tiny Tach for my zero turn...Seem to be a viable piece of equipment...

[Darrell]

Originally Posted by sawdustdad

I was starting to get frustrated with my 1450 with a 50A mower deck not cutting the grass very well. Leaving uncut grass, having to slow way down to get a clean cut. Just seemed like it wasn't cuttin' the mustard any more, so to speak.

Got out the optical tach to check engine RPMs, and discovered that with the deck engaged, it was only running 2850RPM at full throttle! No wonder it was lacking in the grass eradication category.

Upon further inspection, the throttle cable has slipped through the cable clamp on the side of the engine and it wasn't opening up the throttle all the way. After a few minutes of tinkering, got it back up to 3600RPM, tweaked the carb a bit to settle out some hunting, and voila! Grass killer back in action.

Cut the front yard, very pleased now. All of this is just to show that without a tach (about $12 shipped on ebay) it's hard to know what your engine is doing. Should really use one every time you work on the engine to confirm that it's running at spec.

Would you have a link to the tach you bought ??? I did a search for Optical Tachometer on Ebay and the cheaper tach's shipped from China.

[j4c11]

Here's one on Amazon that I use:
http://www.amazon.com/CyberTech-Digi...rds=photo+tach

[Darrell]

Originally Posted by j4c11

Here's one on Amazon that I use:
http://www.amazon.com/CyberTech-Digi...rds=photo+tach

Thanks for the link !!!

[bocephus1991]

That'd be handy! Thanks for sharing!

[sawdustdad]

Here's the one I bought on ebay.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/111663312765...%3AMEBIDX%3AIT

$12.39 & free shipping from CA.

The one on Amazon is probably identical.

[Roy Najecki]

I prefer the $12 optical tach as found on eBay vs the Tiny Tach. I've got both, and also the B&S vibration tach. While the $40 Tiny Tach is nice because you always see the hours and RPM, the internal battery lasts only about five years and is not replaceable.