i got a used statesman riding mower with a 12hp briggs I/C egine, i got it for $800 at a briggs dealer, it came with a bag, and gator mulching blades :)
its a 38" cut deck, i used it for leaf bagging today and it works great!
there was not a single thing wrong with it when another dude traded it in for a ztr mower.

the blades were sharp, the engine had fresh oil and a new plug, and a new pre filter on the airfilter, adn a full tank of gas
the engine alone would cost about 600 buckz to buy new at the dealer :eek:
the bagger kit is 200 new

i wanted to get a new lawnboy, but when i came home, there was a guy from the dealer dropping off a riding mower
i was like what the????
why is there a riding mower being taken off a dodge ram dualie

im happy with it, i would just like to know where i ca download a manual for the mower, i got an engine manual for it from the briggs website.



btw, my name is jon, im 13 years old and i fix mowers and mow lawns for a little extra spending money, which goes to the dogs, and my fish :)

first off briggs 12hp i/c good one. i on the other hand have a noma rider with the same engine its about 6 years old with a 39inch deck. used and kept pretty well. got it from the man i know free. been sitting outside for a couple years with a bad solenoid. got that off a old mower. new deck and jackshafts, the hole nine yards. he got tired of working on it. the carb butterfly sticks every time but ok. now like me i searched the web on everything and pretty know all of the nuts and bolts that hold it together. but you could try there website if they have one.

first off briggs 12hp i/c good one. i on the other hand have a noma rider with the same engine its about 6 years old with a 39inch deck. used and kept pretty well. got it from the man i know free. been sitting outside for a couple years with a bad solenoid. got that off a old mower. new deck and jackshafts, the hole nine yards. he got tired of working on it. the carb butterfly sticks every time but ok. now like me i searched the web on everything and pretty know all of the nuts and bolts that hold it together. but you could try there website if they have one.

i couldnt find a statesman website :mad:

well the only thing that i can say is look it over yourself and learn off of it. they are generally simple. mostly the belts can be popped off with no tools and the deck can be popped off by a couple pins. they are simple pully driven machines. and one thing always check your belts and pullys after each long use because you want to make sure they aren't getting to hot. always make sure the engine mount bolts are tight, sometimes they shake loose on single cylinder engines. and one thing on the engine, never remove the covers off thinking it will help with cooling, the covers help with cooling. i had one idiot that i know that took them off, the engine overheated and blew the head off. but just get down and look it over good and learn from it if something don't look right to you check it out.

well the only thing that i can say is look it over yourself and learn off of it. they are generally simple. mostly the belts can be popped off with no tools and the deck can be popped off by a couple pins. they are simple pully driven machines. and one thing always check your belts and pullys after each long use because you want to make sure they aren't getting to hot. always make sure the engine mount bolts are tight, sometimes they shake loose on single cylinder engines. and one thing on the engine, never remove the covers off thinking it will help with cooling, the covers help with cooling. i had one idiot that i know that took them off, the engine overheated and blew the head off. but just get down and look it over good and learn from it if something don't look right to you check it out.


bugman, i have figured it out now, i havent checked the oil and do not know what kind or visc. the oi in it is, it came with a jug of briggs sae30 oil, but its only getting about 50 degrees max here this tim of year usually

im thinking i should convince my grandfather to let me change it to 5w30 before it gets colder, does that sound right or will it be ok with the 30 weight i thnk it has in it

its gonna be in use for the better part of this month, and its just getting colder :(

i dont like cold

also i have a murray yardking with a honda engine, an idoint about my age put sugar, dirt and a peice of a twig in the oil, he didnt know i was awake righ tby the window watching him do it, i ran out and tackled him, he also put oil into the gastank, then pulled it over with the throttle all the way down

i have no 10w30 for it, let alone anything but sae30 oil, i am going to use sae 30 oil, and drain the oil out of the carb and gastank, it wont start with carbcleaner though :confused:

how should i go about fixing that?
im not an expert but i know how to maintain my equipment pretty good, last week i fixed a late 70's craftsman weedeater, it runs like new now, it was in peices, and i figured it out without any diagrams or anything :)

yes 5w-30 in the cold no multi-viscosity, it burns at high temps. 30 weight in the summer. now all that crap in the oil the idiot put in there should be removed not drained out with fresh oil. get some white kerosene, maby a gallons worth and drain the oil and get the stick out. if the engine ran which it hope for not to long the stick is in chunks. if it ain't you have to get it out by taking the oil sump off. but the kero will clean and dissolve the sugar in the oil. fill it up shake it around then repeat until it comes out clear. then put fresh oil in it after fixing the carb, start it, let it run for a minute cut it off, drain the oil then put fresh in there to make sure theres none left. carb cleaner doesn't start an engine starting fluid or ether will. kerosene mixes with the oil and won't hurt it. if there was to much crap in there i would take the engine to a repair shop it might've got messed up. the boy your age should be reported. if the engine is messed up you can make his parents pay for repairs or a replacement. if it ain't you can still make him pay. :lol: :D

Piranah, What do you cut with your rider?

Piranah, What do you cut with your rider?

i cut my yard lol 1 acre of thick grass and weeds :freak:

btw, im not able to use it right now, it made a weird noise, i went to parks it and it stopped, the engine runs, the thing just dont go foward or backwards

the guy told my grandfather that all he did was change the oil, fil with gas and work on the differential, i think, by the fact that the rear wheels are locked, he didnt do somthing right, isnt it supossed to have like some kind of oil in it?
like on cars?

the trans might need some lube. basic axle grease

Maybe you should go for a new mower.

Maybe you should go for a new mower.
with what money?
im broke now, and i cant return it cuz it was used

you can pop the trans off, take the bottom off, fill it with new grease.

you can pop the trans off, take the bottom off, fill it with new grease.

too late, its in the shop :dude: no tranny work for me :rolleyes:

well i wouldv'e been cheaper but you will get it fixed either way

lol yeah

Good free advice. Don't buy anything old that doesn't have a warranty unless it's a snapper or lawn-boy or a mower that's trusted to work. How many mowers do you have Jonathon?

how many?
more than you lol
lets see,
honda
statesman
murray
murray
murray
lawnboy/murray (murray deck with an old lb f series engine that wont run)
roper
crapsman

featherlite leafblower
sv30 barracuda super blower mulching/vac with custom mulching blades in fan

yardman ym400 trimmer
blaack and decker hedge trimmer
and an old elecctric weedeater trimmer

craftsman 18" chainsaw
and umm
oh yeah the troy bilt mulching mower

WHOOOOOAAAAAA. How many of them actually work? Do any of your murrays work or cut good? Do you have a commercial lawn care business with all that stuff????????

WHOOOOOAAAAAA. How many of them actually work? Do any of your murrays work or cut good? Do you have a commercial lawn care business with all that stuff????????

lol all but 1 murray work
and its an engine problem, they are all old murrays junkyard specials
commercial i dunno a majority of the yards in my neighborhood, yes
and yes they cut good with new sharp blades :tongue:
they are trim mowers, usualy
i would use my uncles riding mower, and take one of my mowers for trimming, my yardman ym400, and my leaflbowerS during the fall season
i am half of my crew