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One thing to understand about Craftsman engines. They are not Briggs ripoffs or Honda Clones. These winterized engines are designed and manufactured to specific standards for Craftsman and the North American Snowblower market. They are made by one of the world’s largest engine manufactures, not some fly-by-night garage and tent operation. Parts are readily available through This engine manufacturer also works with other brands you know and trust like Harley Davidson, Cub Cadet, and MTD to deliver high-quality engines and components.
Just like the Bosch starter in your car these motors are licensed from the manufacturer so that Sears can put the Craftsman name on it.
I hate to tell you this but all the 2013 snow blower motors are made overseas. The Ariens AX, Husqvarna Snow King, Briggs & Stratton Polar Force, Craftsman, Cub Cadet, and Troy-Bilt are all made in China. That doesn’t mean the engines are junk. It just means that you (85% of the people who buy snow blowers) are not willing to pay the higher cost for a U.S. made engine and to be competitive all the manufactures had to move their production over there. The only engine I’m not sure about is the Honda but I know they have a factory on the same street in China where the Briggs & Stratton snow engines are made. Sorry, it’s an economic decision.
Yes, I am patriotic just like you. I would rather buy “Made in the USA” than made in China. And I do whenever possible. But I am also practical. I know if my favorite snow blower (a Gravely 16 hp Convertible with a 30-inch snow thrower) was still made in the USA I would have to pay over $4ooo for it. Today, I can get a 30 inch Craftsman that will blow my snow just as well for around $1000. As a semi-retired person, I don’t want to spend the high dollars it would cost for me to own the Gravely.
So What makes a Craftsman Snow Blower Engine one of the best on the market today?
OHV (overhead valve) design for lower emissions, more power, and reduced fuel consumption. Shielded spark plug boot reduces unwanted electrical interference.
OHV Design with Cross-Flow Cylinder Head: More efficient, cleaner burning engine than conventional side valve engines. Results in lower emissions, more power and reduces your fuel consumption.
Cast Iron Cylinder Sleeve: Automotive style piston and rings riding in a cast iron sleeve cylinder provides longer life while reducing bore wear and oil consumption. Superior to aluminum.
Forged Steel Crankshaft: Better strength/weight ratio than cast iron which means stronger and more durable.
Cast Iron Cam Shaft: Commercial grade cast iron camshaft provides better durability and longer life than nylon composites. Heavy Duty Crankshaft Ball Bearings Can withstand higher loads and reduces wear caused by oil contamination or low oil conditions.
Induction Discharge Ignition: These solid state ignitions deliver a longer spark duration. This makes the engine easier to start and much more dependable in frigid, sub-zero temperatures.
Simple-to-use controls designed for easy access and mitten operation.
Ergonomic Operator Controls with Oversized Mitten Grip: Oversize and readily accessible controls for convenient operation. Ergonomic oversize mitten-grip starter handle for easy starting and accommodates the largest of gloves.
Designed to Run On Today’s Fuel: These motors are designed from the ground up to run on fuels containing up to 10% ethanol. Remember, fuel can go bad and separate in as little as a month if left untreated. If any of your small engines won’t start because of stale fuel the problem is not the engine, it’s how you are storing your fuel (Please, always use a fuel stabilizer like Sea Foam)
Push button 110V electric starter eliminates pull starting. Mitten-grip manual pull is provided as a backup.
Electric Starter with Alternator: Push button 110V electric starter UL/CSA 28 inch and larger models have a 20W AC / 20W DC alternator for lights and optional heated hand grips.
Mechanical Compression Release: Minimizes pulling effort for smooth and easy starts.Manual Choke with Primer for fast, easy, reliable starting on those frigid sub-zero days.
Mechanical Governor: Mechanical governors are still the best way to get precise, immediate control of engine speed. This gives you faster engine response and less lugging of the motor when you reach that heavy snowdrift.
Electronic Ignition with RFI-EMI: Shielded Plug Boot Induction Discharge Ignition delivers longer spark duration which is required for easy, dependable starting in frigid sub-zero temperatures.
110-Volt Push-Button Electric Starter: Besides the large mitten grip handle on the recoil starter all 2013 Craftsman engines have a push button electric start. Just plug a 3-prong extension cord into the connector on the side of the engine and push the little red button.
Low-Tone Muffler: The muffler has a heat shield to protect you and channel warm air to the carb and significantly reduces exhaust noise. This engine is much quieter than your old snow blower.
Ratchet-style gas cap and removable fuel filter prevents unwanted contaminants. Up to a 5.0 litre fuel tank means less fillings and longer run time.
Fuel Capacity: Up to 5.0 litres (nearly twice industry standard) for fewer fillings and longer run times.
Automotive-style, oil dipstick allows for easy oil checks both at the start and throughout the season.
Extended Oil Fill and Dipstick: Allows for easy maintenance when filling and checking oil levels.
Extended oil drain for quick and easy oil changes makes ongoing maintenance simple and clean.
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John Danbury
Hi Paul,
Perhaps you can help in pursuing a way of starting my Craftsman snow thrower with a 12 volt starter.I would like to do is determine a part number for a 12 volt starter that I can acquire to replace the 110 starter. I can figure out the starting, charging, battery and regulating circuits necessary, I just want to be sure the starter I buy is going to fit the 277 cc engine I have, Can you help?
Paul
Hi John, I’m not aware that MTD has ever made a 12-volt starter for the Craftsman/Powermore engines.
Chris
Thanks, Paul! I appreciate your help.
Chris
Hi there. I have the Craftsman 26″ Quiet 208cc Dual-Stage Zero Turn. What kind of spark plug do I need? Thanks!
Paul
Hi Chris, You have a Powermore oHV engine. Here is the right plug: Spark Plug for Powermore OHV Engine. Here is an Amazon link if you are a Prime member (free shipping) Spark Plug for Powermore OHV Engine
David Mowry
Hi sir. I have a Craftsman 88972 26″ Quiet 208cc Dual-Stage Snowblower, and it is approx. four seasons old. Last season I had to run the choke on half or it would hesitate at full-off. I took it in, paid a good chunk, and now it’s doing it again.
In fact, this morning, not only did the pull rope snap, but when I electrically started it died after 20 minutes. The I went to start it again and a loud spark came out the exhaust side. Looked like an arc, but I suspect it was just a spark. So, I left it alone. Also, mixed color exhaust is coming out the exhaust.
Don;t want to pay an arm and a leg to fix. Have loved this machine.
Thoughts? And Happy Holidays!
Paul
Hi David, It sounds like your engine committed suicide. A repair to your engine or replacement engine can add up over $400. I suggest taking it to a local repair shop, let them inspect it and go from there…
Jay
Paul, can you tell me if there is an easy motor swap for a Sears/Craftsman model 536885921 snowblower? I need to replace mine and I’m having trouble finding info on which replacement motors would be compatible.
Paul
Hi Jay, That old 8 hp L-head Briggs was put on 100,000 or so Noma and Murry Snowblowers. You can keep your eye out for one on Craigslist, eBay or a neighbor’s back yard (I’m not joking 🙂 Another place to try for making a new snow blower engine work is snowblowerforum.com
Stuart Alderson
I wish I had done my home work before buying the single stage snow thrower. The cheap wheels act like a magnet and actually pick up and pack the snow to the wheels. Pretty soon you are pushing the entire machine weight, because the wheels are packed with snow. A real engineering flaw. I look for a new set of wheels to be issued on the newer models. They need to have a recall on the current model.
Paul
Hi Stuart, Larger, 6-inch wheels and leaving the snowblower out in the cold garage does make a difference in snow sticking to the single-stage wheels.
Jeff Wilson
I have a newer Craftsman 208cc snow blower, and I have a question about the choke. The manual shows that a separate know for the choke, however my throttle has the choke setting built in. My question then, what is this round knob that the manual told me was the choke? thanks!
Paul
Hi Jeff, If you bought the Craftsman through Sears then the back of the engine will look like the one in this video:
. Your snow blower engine may not have the sloped side but the controls will be the same.
Stop the video at the three or four second mark and let’s go through the controls.
There are four controls. 1. The top left is the choke. 2. The round one is the primer. Hold your finger over the hole and push 3-4 times before you start the engine. 3. The key is a safety switch that you can remove so the kids won’t play with it. 4 The bottom lever is the throttle. It has a stop position (Looks like a stop sign) then a turtle for idle and finally a rabbit symbol for wide open. You should keep the engine throttle at rabbit when you are blowing snow.
Please watch the first 3 minutes of the video to see how to use each control.
Dennis Sherlock
Snowblower model 247.889571, won’t idle unless half chock position, runs ok under load conditions, but will surge at high speed when no load is on engine. I have been told no adjustment for high or low speeds, can you buy/clean carb jets, or try cleaning carb
Paul
Hi Dennis, Just a fact: Most 179cc and 208cc snow blower engines won’t run smoothly a lot of the time with the choke fully open. That’s why there are notches on the choke control. And they are even worse if you try to idle them. That and the fact that the EPA has all but regulated these small engines out of existence is the main reason why many of these small snow blower engines don’t even have a throttle – let alone carb jet adjustments. They run at full throttle all the time. That said,
If you feel you have to run your snow blower at idle and/or want to reduce the surging go get a can of SeaFoam fuel treatment (WalMart or any auto store carries it) Put a quarter cup of it in your snow blower fuel tank and then fill the tank. Go out and clear your driveway. (It may blow a small amount of pure white smoke) It may take 30 minutes or more of run time but that usually cleans the carb so it won’t surge as much and may idle better.
Sam
Who makes the Craftsman single stage snow thrower sold by Lowes in Canada?
Paul
Hi Sam, MTD. Stanley, Black & Decker who now owns Craftsman just bought a stake in MTD. They have the option to buy the entire company in a few years.
Cary
Hi Paul, do all craftsman snowblowers today have the quiet muffler even though it does not indicate it on every model?
Paul
Hi Cary, The snow blowers from the major manufacturers are all a little quieter than they were 15 years ago but three Sears Craftsman and one Troy-Bilt have much larger mufflers that are 45% quieter.
Joseph Grado
I’m trying to find an engine repair manual for a Craftsman 26″ Snowblower, 208cc, 4 cycle. OHV can you help??
Paul
Hi Joseph. There are no repair manuals but you can get parts. Take the part number of the engine off the engine itself. Search google using that part number and parts listing should show up. You can also try searspartsdirect.com.
Alex Tarani
Hi Paul. I left some old gas in my Craftsman 208cc blower that evaporated during the summer. I put fresh gas in this winter but the machine will not run smoothly. Do I need to replace the carb?
Paul
Hi Alex, Since it’s running first try putting 2-4 tablespoons of SeaFoam engine treatment in the fuel in the tank and run it for 15 minutes or more. You can get SeaFoam at any hardware, auto parts store or WalMart.
Here it is on Amazon: Sea Foam sf-16 Motor Treatment, 16 oz.
Bob
Paul, I purchased my Craftsman 30″ snowblower (357cc model 247.888300) around six or more years ago. I change the oil once a season and use ONLY quality non-ethanol fuel and I do not add fuel stabilizer durning the off season. I haven’t even changed the spark plug. I have not had a single problem with this machine, it starts up very easily every year and I have never used starting fluid. I use it to clear multiple driveways and the sidewalks in our subdivision. I believe my good luck is with the fuel I use because I use it in all my small engine and toys (ATV’s, motorcycles, chainsaws and lawnmower) and have no trouble with them starting.
I would like your advice on going to full synthetic oil for my snowblower and lawnmower. I use
5-30 Mobil1 for my car and was wondering if it meets the requirements for small engines? My lawnmower is a 17.5 hp B&S. If not I am going to use B&S 5-30 synthetic oil.
Thanks in advance for your help, Bob.
Paul
Hi Bob, 5W30 is right for winter. I use 10W30 or 10W40 in my summer engines. As far as I know Mobil One won’t break down and is good for much higher temperatures than air cooled engines run at. A lot of the manufactures even use it in the hydraulic pumps and motors on the big commercial mowers because of it’s toughness.
Personally, I’ve run nothing but Mobil One in all my engines for almost 30 years now and have never had an internal engine failure – or even a little smoking from piston wear.
Ryan
Hi Paul,
Tried the starter fluid and warming the engine. Still doesn’t work. After digging the driveway and my truck out, by hand, I took the thing back to Sears, who were actually pretty nasty about the return. When I told them it didn’t work the manager actually asked me if I tried it?!? No, I assumed it would just jump out of the back of my truck and start clearing the driveway on its own. What a moron. They offered to fix it but I’m done with Craftsman, I think the quality that they were known for just isn’t there these days. And the customer service at Sears just flat out sucks. I will be looking for a new snow blower and definitely a new place to but it from. Does anyone have any suggestions?
Paul
Hi Ryan, I’ll get to alternatives in a minute.
The part of this exchange that really bothers me is that “Sears” expects you to be treated the same way every time you go into a Sears Full-Line Store or online but for some reason they can’t get all of the shift managers to follow the written procedures and just take care of you.
What is really sad about customer stories like this is it’s not the equipment, or the Craftsman division of Sears that is the problem. It’s the retail store personnel. For some reason beyond me, certain managers think they don’t need to follow the Sears written procedures. These procedures are very specific about returns, exchanges and/or repairs. These procedures are actually very simple and have changed very little in the last 10 years. There is no excuse for any shift manager at a Sears Full-Line store not to know them.
A manager belittling a customer is just not called for – for any reason. I know Sears has thousands of employees and managers and this is just one manager – but I’m not going to make excuses for Sears. There is no excuse for any manager not to understand the return/exchange policy and not to treat a customer with empathy and respect.
FYI: Don’t confuse Sears with the Independently Owned Sears Outlet store, Independently Owned Sears Hometown store or Independently Owned Sears Hardware Store. These stores sell Craftsman and Kenmore products but are no longer owned by Sears.
Mark K
Hello Paul
After purchasing the brand new CRAFTSMAN®/MD 24″ 305cc Dual Stage Snow Thrower with Briggs and Stratton engine from Sears , after 1.5 month the engine is went down and its not longer repairable, I need to pick another snowblower.
My question is : After you tried the new Toro Snowmaster 824 QXE do you think it will do the job well in Winnipeg?
My drive way is 2 cars wide and 4 cars long.
Thanks
Mark
Paul
Hi Mark, The Briggs blowing up is interesting. I’m keeping a list of engine failures so thank you.
If you get a lot of snows in the 2-12 inch range and very few in the 14-20 inch range then I feel the SnowMaster is a good choice. I average about the same amount of snow as you do and I am going to use it all winter to see if it’s the best choice for me instead of a 2-stage. In other words, I want to tell you yes but I really don’t have enough experience with it to give it a resounding YES!
Ryan
Hi Paul, don’t have any starter fluid but I’ll pick some up as soon as I can get out. Where is the carb cover? There is a line coming out of the right side of the OHV I assume this leads to the carb located under the fuel tank. Do I need to remove anything or just spray it up in there?
Paul
Hi Ryan, Basically the black metal piece the choke control is attached to is the carb cover. Get a flashlight and look under that cover – you can see the carb under it. Basically you are trying to get some of the carb spray up to the top of the carb. You don’t need much because the vapor is usually enough to start your engine enough to verify it’s a fuel issue.
BE CAREFUL. Starting fluid is explosively potent. If you get too much in the carb you can clean the cylinder walls of any lubrication which can score the piston/engine. That’s why I say only a 1 second blast at a time.
Ryan
Not sure I agree with this. Just bought a brand new Craftsman 26″ with zero turn and all the bells and whistles. Put it together and it fired right up. Went out yesterday morning and started clearing snow. Worked great for a few hours. Left it in the garage and came back out a few hours later and the thing wouldn’t start up. Changed the oil, checked the plug, drained and refilled the tank, the thing will just not start. The engine is just a piece of crap. Luckily I paid $150 for the extended warranty so now two weeks after the snow melts I may have a working blower. Thanks Craftsman for making such a quality product.
Paul
Hi Ryan, Moisture freezing in the carb may be the problem.
Do you know what starting fluid is? Get a can at WalMart or an Auto parts store. Make sure the ignition key is pushed all the way in. Set the throttle on rabbit. Open the choke and spray a 2 second blast under the carb cover. NO MORE THAN A 2 SECOND Blast.
Pull the starter rope slowly for one engine revolution. Then pull it normally. Did it fire? If it did you have a fuel problem.
After that first 2 second blast never spray more than a one second blast. If it fired the first time, do it another time or two and that should be enough to get it running.
If there was no life at all give it a one second blast one more time. Pull the starter rope. If there is still no fire there is an electrical/ignition problem.
One last thing, If you can get it where its warm (kitchen?) bring it in and let it sit for one hour. Take it back outside and then try to start it. Sometimes moisture in the carb freezes and just warming the engine up will get it running again. I have an old baby chick infared heat lamp that I use and shine that on the engine for a couple of hours.