Fixing a Free Curb Alert Craftsman (by MTD) 21" Push Mower - Briggs & Stratton Silver Series 140cc

[@robertjospeh1097]

Good video. Whenever I get mowers like this I add a little Berryman's Chem tool to the tank to clean out the carb.

[@BackyardRepairs]

Thanks! I was always a Seafoam gas additive guy in the past. Might have to pick up some Berryman to try out on these mowers I don’t have to open the carb up on.

[@WaynesAdventure]

Awesome find 👍👍

[@Random_content53]

I always find machinery on the side of the road and fix it great video❤

[@BackyardRepairs]

thanks!

[@hairballmanor]

Nice video. I dumpster saved a mower like this about a month ago. Strange thing is that the blade on it was on upside down too, it looked like it was on like that for its entire life. The other strange things were that the control cable was on the opposite side, the bail was hung underneath the handle and the pull start was not fastened to the handle. Not sure what the previous owner was doing/thinking. It runs great.

[@BackyardRepairs]

Thanks! Always surprised what I find on these

[@mjg263]

Nice find and a great video! I love finding mowers like this and bringing them back to life, it’s very satisfying. Amazing that it didn’t also have a bent shaft, half a tank full of water or an entire quart of oil in the crankcase, but at least it had the obligatory upside-down blade!

[@BackyardRepairs]

Thanks! And I hear ya, it’s almost guaranteed water in the tank or low oil level in my area

[@MidwestOptimist]

I notice now that a lot of these "new" ohv mowers that everyone immediately flocked to to replace their old flatheads are now all junk after 2-4 years. It's designed to get everyone to go with electric powered bullshit. Personally I think the flatheads are just fine. Not getting rid of mine and looking for others. They work great and last 30yrs+.

[@BackyardRepairs]

Definitely don’t make them like they used to!

[@lukefitzwater1502]

Just want to point out that the blade was NOT installed upside down. The mower was configured in mulch mode. If you notice the side discharge shroud was not installed but the mulch cover was. You flip the blade to cut when you have the side discharge shroud installed.

[@BackyardRepairs]

Responding to explain correct blade orientation just in case you’ve been misinformed and also if someone reads this and gets mislead because this is not correct.. There is only one orientation the blade gets installed on a mower, and that’s with the cutting/sharpened edge facing the grass. Whether you’re mulching, bagging or side discharging the blade remains in the same orientation so it does just that, cuts the grass with the sharpened side. The way this blade was installed was upside down where the rear “lift” part of the blade (which is not sharpened) was on the grass side which would tear/rip the grass instead of cutting it. There is no instance where this side should be on the grass side. You are correct this was in mulch configuration, but for this mower that means nothing more than the discharge flap being down so the clippings stay under the deck longer to be mulched instead of bagged or discharged. If that was a little difficult to follow, I would recommend that you KZbin search “how to tell if your mower blade is upside down” and you’ll likely find better explanations using visuals to help with understanding

[@lukefitzwater1502]

​​@@BackyardRepairs I'm not misinformed. I'm trying to find my mower manual from the last mower I bought 4 years ago. It clearly states in the manual to flip the blade from mulch side to cut side to protect the cutting blade. I'll send you the photo of the verbage when I find it. Besides, do you think that the last owner of this mower actually installed a new blade on this mower with how bad the air filter was and probably never gave it an oil change? I think the manufacture shipped it with the blade in the correct orientation for that configuration.

[@BackyardRepairs]

I would be interested in seeing that information as I feel (no offense intended) that you'd be hard pressed to find anything out there from any manufacturer's manual that substantiates your theory of flipping the blade upside down and putting the non-sharpened lift side towards the grass to convert the mower for mulching. Either this mower you’re speaking of had a reversible blade with two sharpened sides (which I've not seen yet), or the wording is confusing and it actually stated to swap the standard blade out with a mulching style blade if mulching was desired. Even in that instance there's a right (cutting side towards grass) and wrong way (lift side towards grass) to install the mulching blade. Most blades are even stamped with "GRASS SIDE" that corresponds with the cutting edge down orientation. And yes.. based on what I've seen in my area, I do think that the owner installed a new blade wrong without doing any other maintenance. Most people bend blades around here pretty often, and if it's not bent it's usually the first thing on a mower that needs attention to get a good quality cut. I see most people opt to just buy a new blade and install it if theirs is damaged or needs sharpening vs buying the tools to sharpen their existing one, and then sometimes accidentally install it upside down

[@berardia4]

Have not found a single curb find mower this year. First year I did not.

[@BackyardRepairs]

I saw very little at the beginning of spring like I would normally and thought this year would be the first I didn't see any either (especially with prices for new equipment going up). Then late-summer for whatever reason they started popping up everywhere.

[@barthanes1]

Yeah, some people are dumb.

[@barthanes1]

Why cut the grass when you can beat it down.

[@philliphall5198]

Volume to low, sorry I can’t watch it 😂

[@BackyardRepairs]

Hey sorry, thanks for the feedback. Can I ask how you’re watching (phone, computer, tv)? I’ve noticed that when watching on a tv the volume is lower compared to some other videos but still haven’t been able to figure out the cause of that