New member with a lx188 question

johnnylabguy · Dec 4, 2016

Hello all! I've gleaned a lot of info from this site numerous times over the years but it is finally time to join the conversation! I have a '96 lx188 mower that has been pretty much bulletproof for me other than belts and little stuff for 16 years. I love that mower cuz it just keeps getting it done! Until this fall...
It started stalling after mowing for 20-30 minutes at first so I thought it was ignition. That tested ok so I popped a new fuel filter and cleaned the carb. That fixed the problem except it surges badly unless it's full throttle mowing so I lived with it for a month. Now that the weather has gotten colder it's much worse. To the point it was only running choked until warm ten minutes. Very lean. In the meantime I found another lx188 on CL with a busted hood that I bought for $250. It runs pretty well and has a nicer deck so I was happy to get it. I was able to get my old one running better by comparing the governor position but it's still surging a bit and won't low idle without stalling yet. Anyone have any tips? I really need a service manual but for over $100 I can't pull the trigger yet. Thanks for any help!

joecdeere · Dec 4, 2016

shoot me your email, I have a PDF of the tech manual you're welcome to

Joe

johnnylabguy · Dec 5, 2016

That would be amazing! I can't figure out how to PM you yet but maybe I'm too new to the forum to have access too. My email is the same as my member name with yahoo.com added if that works? Thanks Joe. You're a lifesaver! I'm excited to get the old girl running right again and am hoping it's just a governor adjustment. At least I have a backup machine in the meantime but it was less loved than mine and needs attention too. The manual will do wonders! And give me something to do this winter! Thanks again!

johnnylabguy · Dec 5, 2016

And I'll be sure to post follow up and pics of the outcome too. These forums are the best thing about the internet!

mcj115 · Dec 5, 2016

Not sure if it is similar but my bother in law has a lx188 and it became hard(er) to start and low on power. Long story short it turned out to be a bent pushrod. You may want to check otu the pushrods only after you have the the carb setting worked out. A long shot I know but it was a failure point an on lx188.

joecdeere · Dec 5, 2016

link sent for manual, what model gator do you have? I may have one for it too

Joe

Richard001 · Dec 5, 2016

I doubt very much that the problem is in the governor system. That would not cause you to have the choke on when running.

You may have missed something in the carb that you did not see when cleaning the first time. Did you completely disassemble the carb? Use carb cleaner and compressed air to blow out passageways?

Also check on your fuel pump operation. This is a mechanical pump located under the carb. With the engine cold, remove the hose from the pump and attached a short hose in it's place. Put the open end of the hose in a small container. Have someone crank the engine while you watch the end of the hose. There should be a good flow of fuel coming out of the hose. If not, you my need a new pump.

Richard

johnnylabguy · Dec 5, 2016

Thanks for the manual Joe! My gator is an 04 TS 4x2. It's my firewood hauler and does a great job at it.
I actually replaced the fuel pump with a new one when I initially had the stalling after 30 minutes problem thinking it was an electronic pump. It's not and it wasn't the problem then either. My bad for not doing more research first. It ran without surging before and after new pump install. It would just die and not restart after a few minutes. It would run with the choke for a second or two then die. After cleaning the carb it runs fine other than the surging at less than full throttle now that I've adjusted the throttle/governor plate piece(by eyeball only) to match the "new" mower. The manual should be a great help. I need to replace a valve cover gasket on the new one and plan to adjust valves on both. I know my original mowers' haven't been touched in 16 years at least! Thanks for the help guys!

johnnylabguy · Dec 5, 2016

It may be that the carb isn't totally clean. I didn't soak it. Just sprayed all the orifices and cleaned jets with carb cleaner. With work and 3 busy kids to run around time is always at a premium...I had to mow! Lol