A&Q about 350Z
Q:
i need to know how to convert a 4 stroke lawnmower engine to have the driveshaft run horisontally.
my current thought was to remove the petrol tank and the oil resivoir, and mount them so when i turn the cylinder/carby/magneto assembly on its side the tanks stay level.
although i do know that a 4 stoke wont run on its side, i dont know why, i assumed it was that it gets starved of oil and fuel but correct me if i'm wrong.
A:
There are two things that might stop it working.
The Carberator, and oil sump.
Some carbs work at any angle, some don't, it depends on the design.
I know nowthing about lawnmower carbs, but if it has a float then its relation to the rest of the carb needs to stay the same. Tipping the engine on its side will no doubt change requiring changes to the carb, or inlet to realign it.
The sump poses a much greater porblem.
Its important that that it holds oil in such a way that its able to lubricate the engine.
This of course depends on how its lubricated, it might be splash lubrication, pumped, or a combination of the two.
A:
the oil sump should be easy to fix, i will probably just mount it to have a gravity feed.
but i never knew the carby would affect the angle, i will have to look into it, thanks.
A:
Listen to Moppie. The oil sump is not easy to fix. I assume you're talking about a Briggs and Stratton, or a Kohler, but we can't know specifics unless you provide us with that info.
If you want to convert a 4-stroke engine like a B&S to horizontal, you'll easily spend 5 times as much as it would cost to just buy a horizontal B&S. If you want to truly do this, I suggest you keep the engine as-is and use a gearbox to convert the output shaft to horizontal. You'll spend far less money that way.
Trust me, if it were as easy as just laying it over and changing the carb, that is how B&S would have designed it, but they didn't. Look at a horizontal Briggs and a Vertical Briggs. Totally different critters. If it were easy to convert them, that's what Briggs would have done.
Buy a Horizontal engine.
A:
thanks curtis, and moppie.
it is a briggs and stratton, a fairly old one with 3hp.
i'll look into a gearcase to convert it.
A:
Look for a good army-navy surplus store. Sometimes in the back corner they have a military tools and equipment section. Often times there will be little PTO boxes and 90 degree drive boxes. Not sure why there used, but they seem to be common here at the store in Burbank.
Good luck
A:
thanks,
i have another question however, i'm trying to weigh up the kind of engine to use, i have both a four stroke and a two stroke and am trying to decide.
the four stroke has more torque, yet the two stroke has more power (i think)
but would the two stroke be able to convert to horisontal using the above mentioned method, since it has no oil sump i should be able to just relocate the fuel tank and go shouldn't I ?
A:
On the two stroke you may need to make a new intake manifold so that the carb stays level. Other than that it should be easy. I did one yaers ago. we just cut the old manifold and clamped in some rubber hose so we could rotate it. Worked very well.