I have a question about the connecting rod on my B&S motor. My engine died last week while mowing the lawn and when i cracked open the engine today, I found that my connecting rod was shredded. Is there any reason why this would happen? It seemed to run fine then out of nowhere stalled and then completely locked up.

Also, this seems like it's a pretty simple part to replace, but is there anything I should know when I go to replace it?

The crank journal will most probably be scored. Did it run out of oil?

No, it was a little low, but it didn't seem low enough to cause this...

What is the crank journal? Is this engine worth fixing?

90% of the time when a rod breaks it's because of no oil, or not doing regular oil changes. I'm sure you have more damage to this engine than you have seen, (scored crank, cracked block, and bent or broken parts on counter balance)

I have a B&S 284707 on the bench right now with a broken rod, because of no oil. There is considerable damage inside this engine. The rod, crank, and complete counter weight system, and oil slinger are completely destroyed. Probably not worth fixing for the cost of parts and labor.

Okay, thanks for the help.

Looks like I'm getting a lawn service...

deleted, apparently I'm just a troll.