OT - lawnmower engine mounting points

Apr 04, 2005 6 Replies

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AAG 21 years ago

I've just bought (online) a new Castel lawnmower with a 5.5 hp Honda engine and notice that the engine is bolted to the aluminium deck using only three of the four mounting holes. (The deck of the mower is an aluminium casting with four evenly spaced strengthened mounting points for the engine)

The engine has four evenly spaced mounting holes but one of them does not emotely line up with a hole in the deck therefore the three in use make an "L" shape.

I am assured by the vendor that this is normal practice - that most lawnmower engines are only fastened by three of the four possible mounting points. The reasons he gave do not make sense to me but is he right?? Is this normal practice? and if so can anyone explain the reason?

(I'd be happy enough if the three mounting points were evenly spaced, but there is 180° of the mounting plane with no fixings)

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Guy King 21 years ago

The message from "AAG" contains these words:

Drill another.

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AAG 21 years ago

This would mean drilling through the tube of the strengthened mounting point. I don't know what it would do for the two year guarantee either.

I am being told that three is better than four though and that even if the holes lined up, there would not be a bolt in it.

I'd be grateful if anyone with a lawnmower could put on their head torch, track down the mower down, tilt it up, remove any dried mulched grass and tell me if they have one unoccupied mounting hole.

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Moray Cuthill 21 years ago

The mounting holes on the engine are not evenly spaced (I did have the mounting diagrams some where).

3 is more than enough to secure the engine, but if you are concerned, drill another hole in the deck and put a bolt in.

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Adrian 21 years ago

AAG ( snipped-for-privacy@ntlworld.com) gurgled happily, sounding much like they were saying :

You'll probably find that the holes in the deck are to allow a variety of different engines to be fitted to the same basic casting.

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AAG 21 years ago

The mounting holes of the engine form a square or rectangle. Only three of them are in use. Is this normal??

My concern is not so much securing the engine as avoiding cracking of the aluminium deck over time. Drilling another hole is not as simple as it sounds as it would mean drilling through the collar which surrounds the hole - the moulding is not flat and the unflat bits are clearly there to strengthen the hole area.

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AAG 21 years ago

Yes it looks like that, and it looks like this particular Honda engine is not one of them as it doesn't match the holes. I am assured that attaching by only three bolts is normal though. Can anyone confirm this??

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