[cjet69]

Dad got this freebie today. It has a broken crank and supposedly came off of a small wood chipper. Just wondering if anyone knows anything about them and if they are any good?

 

[cjet69]

We clamped the engine down, added some oil and gas, and it fired right up. Now, what to do with it?

 

[dave_r]

It's a chinese knockoff. Use it till it dies.

Course, I guess you need a low-profile pulley to put on that busted crankshaft...

 

[steddy]

Modify the recoil and add an output shaft of some type to the flywheel? But still then what would you use it for.... Pribably still wouldn't be worth the effort. Looks like a $99 Predator clone.

 

[Tractor-Holic]

What a shame !...it might be able to be used by fling a tang into the remaining stub to drive a hydraulic pump ,but other than that trying to repair or add onto the crank would likely be a difficult task and most likely fail again too easy to be worth it..
Edit--maybe the stub is long enough to weld a sprocket to it ?..

 

[Father Deerest]

Yup, go to Go Power Sports .com and find a crankshaft from a predator 301cc. I've been building those engines for mini bikes, go carts and anything else. My fastest mini bike right now is a Baja Warrior with a stroked 212 pushing around 17-18hp and rev's around 9k. The only thing stock is the block and that's not really stock with all the bracing. The gearing keeps it so I can ride trails and still hit 60mph.

 

[sidecar4866]

I think a v-belt pulley welded to the broken shaft would have
more possibilities, just my opinion,,,,

Jimmy

 

[cjet69]

Replacing the crank would be best, but we might be able to machine the crank to accept a stub shaft with a key way and held in place with a bolt. I did a quick search, but didn't find a new or used crank.

 

[dave_r]

that's basically the thing with those engines. they are relatively cheap, but parts availability is "who knows".

Earlier clones were near exact copies of Honda's, and you could swap in honda parts, but supposedly Honda got the Chinese gov't to crack down a bit, so now they are slightly different, and honda parts don't work so well (I have no personal knowledge of this, just internet lore)...

 

[Dave Wells]

What a shame. That engine isn't even a year old yet.

 

[cjet69]

This engine came from a mower shop just down the road from us who does warranty work for one of the big store chains. Might be home Depot. He pulled this off and put a new warranty replacement engine on the chipper. Hopefully we can figure out how to make use of it.

 

[Tractor-Holic]

A crankshaft isn't easy to source even for a common engine like a Briggs really,there are so many variations,and it wont be cheap if one was available..

That is one drawback to these low cost engines--though many parts are now becoming available,they seem to be spotty--this website below is for a place not far from my town that sells similar engines,they have added a lot more parts for them than they ever had--even things like complete cylinder heads and many other things--but I noticed since the last time I looked at their parts listings,things like pistons & rings they had previously are not showing up now..don't recall seeing connecting rods listed either..but perhaps a phone call may lead to more luck,they may have a lot more available,but it just isn't listed on their website..

https://www.vpowerequipment.com/

 

[cjet69]

A crankshaft isn't easy to source even for a common engine like a Briggs really,there are so many variations,and it wont be cheap if one was available..

That is one drawback to these low cost engines--though many parts are now becoming available,they seem to be spotty--this website below is for a place not far from my town that sells similar engines,they have added a lot more parts for them than they ever had--even things like complete cylinder heads and many other things--but I noticed since the last time I looked at their parts listings,things like pistons & rings they had previously are not showing up now..don't recall seeing connecting rods listed either..but perhaps a phone call may lead to more luck,they may have a lot more available,but it just isn't listed on their website..

https://www.vpowerequipment.com/

Thanks, Tractor-Holic. I have found quite a few parts for the 212cc engine, but hardly anything for the 301cc. The 212cc looks like the popular engine for go karts and mini bikes.

 

[Father Deerest]

Sorry this is where to find the crankshaft. It will be a Predator 301 or honda clone GX240
Crankshafts

 

[cjet69]

Sorry this is where to find the crankshaft. It will be a Predator 301 or honda clone GX240
Crankshafts

Thanks for the link, Father Deerest. Since the engine was free it might be worth the $82.99 + $12.91 shipping. Since it came off a chipper there can't be much time on this engine.

 

[Bnz]

Thanks for the link, Father Deerest. Since the engine was free it might be worth the $82.99 + $12.91 shipping. Since it came off a chipper there can't be much time on this engine.

I know I'm late but I was wondering if it worked for you. I have the exact same issue on the same engine and was thinking of buying the crankshaft.

 

[Mike Milburn]

I realize this is an old thread but it brought to mind a question I've always wondered in a situation like this. Think a person could make a mount for a tool bit and use the engine itself as the lathe power and turn the stub shaft down?...........Mike

 

[dave_r]

I realize this is an old thread but it brought to mind a question I've always wondered in a situation like this. Think a person could make a mount for a tool bit and use the engine itself as the lathe power and turn the stub shaft down?...........Mike

Yes, doing the actual machining would be pretty straightforward and go relatively quickly. The engine just needs to spin, you go slower if the engine starts bogging down.

The difficult part is making the jig holding the piece of HSS so that it can move precisely parallel to the crankshaft. The amount it travels off-parallel, is the amount of taper the crankshaft will have...

 

[cjet69]

I know I'm late but I was wondering if it worked for you. I have the exact same issue on the same engine and was thinking of buying the crankshaft.

Other projects and priorities have put this on the way back burner. At this time its still waiting to be worked on.