"Die Spammer !!!!" wrote in message
...
"Brigitte J." wrote:

I have a Murray lawn mower that is giving me problems. It has a 3.8hp
tecumseh engine. I have changed the oil and the fuel, but the darn
thing
won't run for more than a few seconds. It starts up, seems to be
running
OK, then it just stops. There is some black oily stuff coming out of
what
looks like a muffler, but I'm not sure what it is, just guessing it's a
muffler. It is unpainted metal and has some vent holes on it. There is
also a hand with a line through it. I assume this means not to touch
it.
Does this black oily stuff have anything to do with why the mower won't
keep
running? If not, what is preventing this thing from running correctly?

Can anyone please help me? Any advice/help is greatly appreciated.

Thanks,
Brigitte

sounds like the engine is seizing. does the engine smoke alot? or used to
smoke
alot?

your mower isn't made for grass taller then 4 or 5 inches tall.

how tall does the grass get sometimes before you mow it?

Thanks everyone who replied to my plea for help. I removed that unpainted
thing that I previously referred to as the muffler, sprayed some carb
cleaner inside the hole there and it started right up. It ran a little
rough for a few minutes, but it's running great now. I tried the same trick
on a Craftsman mower that I'd given up on last year and it worked on it
also. I am very happy, but I have 2 teenage boys that aren't quite as happy
as about all this.

I hope this helps anyone having the same problem.

Thanks again,
Brigitte