Toro Timemaster getting hard to start

Donald

Donald

Joined
Mar 21, 2004
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Near the beach in Delaware
My Toro Timemaster is several years old and has the slightly less powerful B&S engine.

It's getting hard to start. I pulled the plug and it looked fine.

Today I was mowing the front lawn with blades that need sharpening and the mower ran out of gas. Filled it with gas. Did a little trimming with grass trimmer and then got back to the mower and it would not start.

Yet after it starts it runs fine.

I am thinking it's ignition related.
 
Donald said:
My Toro Timemaster is several years old and has the slightly less powerful B&S engine.

It's getting hard to start. I pulled the plug and it looked fine.

Today I was mowing the front lawn with blades that need sharpening and the mower ran out of gas. Filled it with gas. Did a little trimming with grass trimmer and then got back to the mower and it would not start.

Yet after it starts it runs fine.

I am thinking it's ignition related.
Click to expand...
Sound more like fuel. You can get a cheap spark plug tester to try though. The problem with a lot of these push mowers is they were too cheap to put a fuel filter on them. Your's may have one though. Otherwise, new fuel filter and some berryman carb cleaner in a heavy dose in the fuel tank. If that doesn't clear it up then pull the carb to spray it out. If you want to go very long in between times always use carb clean (the fuel tank stuff) & stabil. Get a new primer bulb if it has one.
 
Pull the spark plug and hold it against metal on the engine, while a helper pulls the cord to see if it's making spark.

I tend to think it more likely to be a carb problem since it runs once started. Have you tried spraying starter fluid, or even gas in a spray bottle into the carb then trying to start it? For the time being if you need to get the yard mowed, if the flywheel has an exposed nut (after you take the guard off the shroud), you can try cranking it over continuously with an impact driver/wrench/big-drill. Make sure it is spinning the right direction. Make sure that if there is a deadman's switch connected to a lever, that it is engaged, and working.
 
Last edited:
Frankrank said:
The rocker switch on mine gets stuck. I have to push it back to the run position after it shuts off or it won't start.
Click to expand...
This year I need to pull the recoil starter handle 4 or 5 times before it will start. Don't touch anything, just keep pulling the recoil starter handle.

On this engine there are no controls other than a momentary contact OFF switch.
 
Last week my sister bought a new mower and gave me one of these, because it was doing the same thing. Engine hot or engine cold. Very difficult to start, but once it does start, it runs great. Starts right up on starting fluid, takes lots of pulls without. I'm suspecting the automatic choke these have contributes something to this, but it seems to be working and adjusted properly. I have only had it a few days so I havent had too much time to mess with it, but I'd really like to figure this out. New plug, air filter, fuel cap, both connections to the kill switch redone with new connectors, and removed and flushed out the fuel tube, fuel tank, and breather.

Once it starts, its a pretty nice mower.
 
Donald said:
My Toro Timemaster is several years old and has the slightly less powerful B&S engine.

It's getting hard to start. I pulled the plug and it looked fine.

Today I was mowing the front lawn with blades that need sharpening and the mower ran out of gas. Filled it with gas. Did a little trimming with grass trimmer and then got back to the mower and it would not start.

Yet after it starts it runs fine.

I am thinking it's ignition related.
Click to expand...
I found out from the old guy down the street who does lawnmower repair to keep him busy. He showed me that many small engines but not all have a "starter jet" that is really small and can get clogged up. I'd pull the jet and spray the carburetor, float etc then use a fine needle to clean the carb jets. I added a filter and after that all was well.
 
The symptoms are similar to a failing ignition coil on a 190cc Briggs and Stratton engine. The coil temporarily breaks down due to heat after mowing for a while, but will often restart if it sits and cools for a while. I replaced the coils on a Toro and a John Deere mower last summer that was exhibiting exactly the same behavior. Once restarted, it runs great until you shut it off again.

You can perform the following tests to verify: spray starting fluid in the intake with the air filter removed and see if it fires at all, if not, check for spark with a spark tester or with a spark plug per Dave9's suggestion in Post #4 above. The spark test should be performed with the spark plug removed to facilitate easier/faster pulling of the starter cord. If no spark, let the engine cool for 30 minutes and try again.

I purchased the generic Chinese made replacement coils for ~$15/ea. on Amazon and both mowers now start with 1 - 3 pulls all the time.
 
Nukeman7 said:
The symptoms are similar to a failing ignition coil on a 190cc Briggs and Stratton engine. The coil temporarily breaks down due to heat after mowing for a while, but will often restart if it sits and cools for a while. I replaced the coils on a Toro and a John Deere mower last summer that was exhibiting exactly the same behavior. Once restarted, it runs great until you shut it off again.

You can perform the following tests to verify: spray starting fluid in the intake with the air filter removed and see if it fires at all, if not, check for spark with a spark tester or with a spark plug per Dave9's suggestion in Post #4 above. The spark test should be performed with the spark plug removed to facilitate easier/faster pulling of the starter cord. If no spark, let the engine cool for 30 minutes and try again.

I purchased the generic Chinese made replacement coils for ~$15/ea. on Amazon and both mowers now start with 1 - 3 pulls all the time.
Click to expand...
How much needs to get pulled off the engine to replace the coil?

How could I put a Chinese coil on my Toro?
 
Donald said:
How much needs to get pulled off the engine to replace the coil?

How could I put a Chinese coil on my Toro?
Click to expand...
Do the suggested tests before taking it apart. You don't need to disassemble much to expose the coil, which is simply attached the block with two 1/4" (?) bolts. I think that you have to remove four 7/16" (?) bolts and two Phillips head screws to detach the shroud/recoil starter assembly. I can change the coil in ~10 minutes. Here is a basic coil replacement video for a B&S mower engine on the Toro Timemaster. Setting the gap correctly is essential, but I use a business card instead of the feeler gauge.



Please post the model & serial number of the B&S engine and I'll try to identify the correct coil for you. Amazon sells numerous Chinese clone parts for B&S lawn mower engines for a fraction of the cost of the OEM Toro/B&S part.
 
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Donald said:
How much needs to get pulled off the engine to replace the coil?
Click to expand...
Only the top cover. Remove the 3 screws then lift off the cover and starter assembly.

It's common for mice to make nests under the top cover. That impedes the airflow and causes overheating, which also can lead to no starting when hot.
 
Nukeman7 said:
Do the suggested tests before taking it apart. You don't need to disassemble much to expose the coil, which is simply attached the block with two 1/4" (?) bolts. I think that you have to remove four 7/16" (?) bolts and two Phillips head screws to detach the shroud/recoil starter assembly. I can change the coil in ~10 minutes. Here is a basic coil replacement video for a B&S mower engine on the Toro Timemaster. Setting the gap correctly is essential, but I use a business card instead of the feeler gauge.



Please post the model & serial number of the B&S engine and I'll try to identify the correct coil for you. Amazon sells numerous Chinese clone parts for B&S lawn mower engines for a fraction of the cost of the OEM Toro/B&S part.
Click to expand...

Here is the model & serial number.

Screenshot_20240502-131518.jpg


Screenshot_20240502-131528.jpg


Screenshot_20240502-131533.jpg
 
Donald said:
My Toro Timemaster is several years old and has the slightly less powerful B&S engine.

It's getting hard to start. I pulled the plug and it looked fine.

Today I was mowing the front lawn with blades that need sharpening and the mower ran out of gas. Filled it with gas. Did a little trimming with grass trimmer and then got back to the mower and it would not start.

Yet after it starts it runs fine.

I am thinking it's ignition related.
Click to expand...
I would just use starting fluid to get it going.
 
Serial numbers do not match. Usually best to go by the one on the printed label on the block, at least for core parts that are attached to the block. There is usually also another copy of the serial number stamped into the metal of the block / crankcase on the muffler side.

Note that 130214 means date of manufacture 2/14/2013. You may need this for some parts.
 
Nukeman7 said:
The symptoms are similar to a failing ignition coil on a 190cc Briggs and Stratton engine. The coil temporarily breaks down due to heat after mowing for a while, but will often restart if it sits and cools for a while. I replaced the coils on a Toro and a John Deere mower last summer that was exhibiting exactly the same behavior. Once restarted, it runs great until you shut it off again.

You can perform the following tests to verify: spray starting fluid in the intake with the air filter removed and see if it fires at all, if not, check for spark with a spark tester or with a spark plug per Dave9's suggestion in Post #4 above. The spark test should be performed with the spark plug removed to facilitate easier/faster pulling of the starter cord. If no spark, let the engine cool for 30 minutes and try again.

I purchased the generic Chinese made replacement coils for ~$15/ea. on Amazon and both mowers now start with 1 - 3 pulls all the time.
Click to expand...
My vote as well. Have a 7 HP Briggs Intek that demonstrated this exact symptom, new coil fixed it and it starts easier than ever.
 
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