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Collection, Preservation and Display of Old Lawn Mowers

Atco ensign b14

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Hello. New member here after some advice. 
have a atco b14 mower. 
the pull start keeps jamming out. 
I have taken it apart and it appears that the plate over the top is a little too loose and is allowing the two punch tabs to flick out too far. 
not sure if it's too worn or another issue, anybody got any ideas on where to buy new? Or a more reliable starter type than can be retrofitted?or anything that can be done to fix this? 
would be a shame to bin a perfectly good mower for such a minor issue, however, it's got to the point where I can't start it and need to remove the pull start every time I try. 

Forums

wristpin Sat, 08/08/2020

A combination of bad design, poor materials and iffy assembly resulting in the starter flexing .

The cure is about as hit or miss as the original assembly but a adding an additional washer to 22 and 3 or using washers of different thicknesses will often bring about a cure of sorts.

Jh8292jj Sun, 09/08/2020

Thanks wristpin. Thought that and added another washer the other day, didn't really help, may need to add a slightly thicker washer. 
 

I was secretly hoping there would be an updated starter I could buy cheep enough. 

villiers98 Fri, 21/08/2020

It is possible to fit the old Suffolk/Atco metal starter but you need the ratchet assembly that fits on the 2 flywheel bolts (  replacing the large starter cup the pawls engage with ) as well. Clearly these are 50 + years old but you do find engines  with them on. See  Mower operating manuals on right hand side panel of website  and Suffolk Colt (1967) for illustration

You can buy new plastic starters from a well known auction site but in my experience these are not very good copies of a not very good original.

As Wristpin said experimenting with different washers can help. Examine the pulley where the pawls sit  to ensure their plastic bosses are not damaged and the actual pulley is not distorted.

Somebody on here may be able to point you in the direction of supplier of better quality replacements