2 Stroke Victa Mower Help Please

Ford351 on 14/08/2021 - 12:34

Calling all the lawn mower experts for help please.

So I’ve had this mower for a very long time. I really don’t know much about mowers. I recently discovered that it is a 2 stroke mower and I should have been mixing oil with the petrol which I never did before. It has always worked well and would generally start after 1 or 2 pulls.

I was mowing 2 weeks ago and all of a sudden the mower made a strange noise and then just conked out. I tried to start the mower again but the cord had seized so I could not pull it. After a while I removed the bottom plate where blades are and I sprayed some WD 40 and it slowly started to move again freely. The cord also started to pull but would not start.

Today I drained the petrol, replaced the spark plug, added oil to the petrol and filled it back up again. I cleaned the filter and primed the carby. I tried again to start it but no luck. It just doesn’t sound right when I pull the cord.

I have pulled a few of the parts off to inspect the engine however I have no idea what could be the issue.
I have added photos to help diagnose the issue. I have not been able to find what model it is but believe it is a 1987 year.

Please help as I want to revive this old girl.

Thanks

Photos

Home & Garden Lawn Mower

Comments

pegaxs on 14/08/2021 - 12:37

+12

No oil in a 2 stroke and pull started cord is seized… better sit down, I got some bad news for you…
holdenmg on 14/08/2021 - 12:41

+1

Go Electric Mower.
Muzeeb on 14/08/2021 - 12:42

+4

She dead.

I really don’t know much about mowers.

Confirmed.
elgrande on 14/08/2021 - 12:51

+6

From this:

I really don’t know much about mowers. I recently discovered that it is a 2 stroke mower and I should have been mixing oil with the petrol which I never did before.

To this:

Today I drained the petrol, replaced the spark plug, added oil to the petrol and filled it back up again. I cleaned the filter and primed the carby.

Impressive, the powers of you tube.

Note: my lawn mower also needs repairs.
- Ford351 on 14/08/2021 - 12:54
  
  Correct - I have been looking at this https://pushmowerrepair.com.au/category/victa-tutorials/ but since I don't know where the issue is it's difficult to do anything more. Thanks
  - pegaxs on 14/08/2021 - 13:31
    
    +4
    
    Lack of oil has most probably burnt the rings out and damaged the bore due to lack of lubrication. The reason it won’t start is probably from a lack of compression caused by the damage to the piston, ring and/or bore.
    
    You are not going to get parts off the shelf for a 34yo mower…
    - HelpMeiCantSee on 15/08/2021 - 08:59
      
      Actually, I’d be surprised if you couldn’t get parts off the shelf for a 34yo victa. 2 banger mower parts are everywhere
    - HeWhoKnows on 15/08/2021 - 21:46
      
      Or overheated and warped engine
  - c64 on 15/08/2021 - 09:33
    
    you could probably buy another 2nd hand one for $50 or less on gumtree if you are really attached to the victa 2 strokes. spending money repairing this one seem like a bad investment
forged on 14/08/2021 - 13:06

+2

I'm no 2 stroke expert, but your cylinder wall doesn't look so good…

At a guess, the lack of lubrication has caused some metal parts to wear, and the piston isn't sealing well enough against the cylinder. You could use a compression tester to find out.

Maybe you could fix by replacing the piston ring, but no guarantees.
c64 on 14/08/2021 - 13:10

+2

i've always wondered what would happen if i didn't bother mixing 2 stroke oil in the petrol

i've collected heaps of the victa 2 strokes over the years and thought they were pretty much indestructible
- HelpMeiCantSee on 15/08/2021 - 09:01
  
  They are. A sniff of oil once in a while and she would have survived.
BOGOF on 14/08/2021 - 13:14

+7

Please help as I want to revive this old girl.

Just let her go. All girls need a bit of lubrication, and you just didn't.
- tonyjzx on 14/08/2021 - 13:17
  
  +2
  
  this time he went in dry but it was he who came out screaming
AndyC1 on 14/08/2021 - 13:44

Youtube on how to clean a 2 stroke motor and go from there. It looks very very dirty and as such you cannot see what the real issue is.
p1 ama on 14/08/2021 - 14:58

+1

I have not been able to find what model it is but believe it is a 1987 year.

It's had a good life - time to get a new mower it seems…
Daniel Plainview on 14/08/2021 - 15:35

@Fordboy351 , I have several working (live on a small acreage) Victa 2 strokes - what oil:fuel mix were you using? Were you using proper air cooled 2 stroke oil?

It sounds, as others have stated - exactly like you were running incorrect mix - one of the very few ways you can kill a Victa 2 stroke - you've gone very quite from your original post - but seems odd you'd run incorrect fuel as you seem to know a tiny bit about mowers.

Please state honest info as can't help if you insist fuel was xx:xx mix , when you did a sketchy mix etc or just topped up with straight fuel as you were in a rush etc.
- Muzeeb on 14/08/2021 - 15:43
  
  +4
  
  1:0
  
  I recently discovered that it is a 2 stroke mower and I should have been mixing oil with the petrol which I never did
  - Daniel Plainview on 14/08/2021 - 17:11
    
    Ah, well spotted (rather badly NOT spotted by me) - much thanks
- Ford351 on 14/08/2021 - 16:01
  
  Thanks - yes unfortunately was running straight petrol in the mower for ages. Only really started learning a bit about the mower in the last week since the mower stopped. If only I knew before. Cheers
  - RockyRaccoon on 14/08/2021 - 16:20
    
    +1
    
    Fortunately you learnt with the Victa not the Cleveland. That would have been very painful.
  - Daniel Plainview on 14/08/2021 - 17:14
    
    Ages? Well thats amazing if so - as they usually die pretty quick on straight fuel.
    
    Anyway, as I am sure you know - the mower is unrepairable, its a daft mistake - but the upside is you can buy one of the same quality from Gumtree etc as they're a dime a dozen as folks don't like 2 stroke.
franco cozzo on 14/08/2021 - 17:12

-1

just whatever you do dont buy a new victa…theyre cheap plastic junk designed to fail
- franco cozzo on 15/08/2021 - 07:38
  
  for eg.
  https://www.productreview.com.au/listings/victa-power-mulche…
brendanm on 14/08/2021 - 17:50

If you really really wanted to save it, you could probably give it a hone and a set of rings, clean up the piston, and it would carry on, you'd have to check that the bearings aren't gone in the bottom end from lack of lube as well though. You'd also have to remove the grass and dirt that is now in the crankcase.
- Ford351 on 14/08/2021 - 18:55
  
  Thanks, I tried to remove the crank pin but could not get it off. It has 4 slots and I tried hitting it with a screw driver and also a lock set pliers and plenty of WD 40 but wouldn’t budge.
  - Series4Episode10 on 15/08/2021 - 07:39
    
    Take to mower shop
Catullus on 14/08/2021 - 18:55

Look, we can't see properly with those pics. We need to see right through the
bore, the
cylinder, the thing with fins on it to see what damage is there. it needs to be perfect and shiny and drag your fingernail up over the top to see how much ridge. similarly we need to see what piston looks like.It can be machined maybe. Forget the mowerman, find a machine shop with a kindly old gent and ask him to measure it.but before you go there clean every bit of black stuff off.
So then youll find out if the bore can be cleaned up enough to fit new rings or a new piston and rings.
By the way, oil to petrol ratio would be somewhere of the order 1 : 16 or 1 : 24
you can use special two stroke oil or any plain SAE 30 oil, but petrol should be plain standard, no additives or ethanol etc.
- HelpMeiCantSee on 15/08/2021 - 09:03
  
  Old victa, 25:1
Series4Episode10 on 15/08/2021 - 07:31

+1

Take covers off, undo 4 head bolts, remove head, barrel and piston, look at crank, if ok (likely to be shot, in which case new motor or another mower cheapest option) take the entire mower so the mechanic at mower shop can asses the bottom end as well as the removed barrel and piston to mower, if the crank/bottom end is ok they will either hone the barrel or replace with second hand one and supply new piston and rings, if the shop supplies parts for your current mower, go home and reassemble and run on appropriate oil/fuel mix, if you buy a new mower, buy 4 stroke.

Have no idea of the cost of Victa parts now they no longer make 2 stroke units here … or at all, it cost not much more than $25 for a hone, new piston and rings and seals back in the late 80's when I used to fix a fair amount of mowers.
Oldbugga on 15/08/2021 - 08:26

You have just practised involuntary euthanasia. The principal of two strokes is always to have oil in petrol to lubricate at ratio of 25:1 or my preference 50:1 to stop oiling up and making easy starting. Have not known any two stroke to run without oil for more than several minutes without seizing up. Don't waste time of going to mower shop your mower is stuffed and head to the crematorium with it. Worth about $3 at scrap metal yard. Plenty of mowers on street waiting for hard rubbish collection that would be in better condition than yours is now. RIP Victa.
mlbrooke on 15/08/2021 - 08:50

Mate, are you trolling? the black carbon on the head and the "gunk" on the cylinder fins looks like unburnt oil and the crank looks lubricated too from the photos?
saltypete on 15/08/2021 - 09:28

It’s dead. Your efforts to reuse are great, but in this case recycle is probably better.
Buy a good quality battery powered mower, Read The Manual, and it will give you many trouble free years.
Ford351 on 15/08/2021 - 10:07

+1

Thanks to everyone for their help on this. I wanted to just check a few more things out this morning and tested that I was getting a spark and this was working. I also opened up the front of the carby where the primer bulb was and this seemed ok to me. I dropped some petrol into the spark plug cylinder to see if I would get any ignition but it did not. I suspect that there is no compression and this is why it does not sound normal when pulling the cord. As others have suggested it is likely that the piston, rings and the bore have had it. At this stage I don't believe it would be worth bringing it to the mower shop given the parts and labour costs involved for an old mower. Even if I could source the parts there still would be no guarantee that I could fix it. I think it's time for a new mower. Leaning towards battery operated mowers. If anyone has any recommendations and experience with battery mowers under $400 that would be appreciated. I only have a small patch of grass at the back then a medium front year and nature strip. Thanks again!
- c64 on 15/08/2021 - 15:18
  
  nah, just get another second hand 2 stroke. don't worry about oil, just flog it until it dies. sounds more economical than a cordless mower
- HeWhoKnows on 15/08/2021 - 21:50
  
  You are looking in the wrong places
  Pull the engine apart, remove the piston and inspect
  Be prepared to change the rings and pray the engine isn't cooked
  That is if the piston hasnt become lodged in the cylinder
  
  Easier fix..
  Buy another lawn mower
HeWhoKnows on 15/08/2021 - 21:48

OP should try driving the car without any oil and see what happens.
There should be a remarkable resemblance.
Then consult Youtube on how to fix it (not)
[Deactivated] on 15/08/2021 - 22:38

M… surprise it lasted so long…

I would pick up a used Victa 2 stroke on gumtree for 50-80… will go on for some time.
tunzafun001 on 17/08/2021 - 16:40

+1

Now you are looking, you will see heaps of mowers out for hard rubbish. We moved house and it took me all of 2 weeks to grab a mower on the way home. Air filter was completely blocked…that's all that was wrong with it.
- HelpMeiCantSee on 18/08/2021 - 09:04
  
  I scored a near new 2 banger. It was flooded, that’s it.
  - tunzafun001 on 18/08/2021 - 10:18
    
    Yeah, the other common issue is the carby diaphragm / fuel pickup going hard and cracking. Costs all of $2 on ebay and takes 10 mins to fit. What state are you in OP. I'm sure someone will see one sitting on the side of the road somewhere.

2 Stroke Victa Mower Help Please

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