# Are you a Pull Start or Electric Start Guy?



## barney (Nov 21, 2017)

I used the electric start once just to see if it works. I'm not sure why they put electric starts on them. I'm sure there's a good reason.


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## malisha1 (Nov 16, 2018)

Electric. I have an old ariens that's hard to start by hand. Plus I broke the timing a few times using the pull cord. I stick to electric


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## UNDERTAKER (Dec 30, 2013)

* What ever Trips my Trigger at said Present moment in Time. mg::emoticon-south-park*


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## nwcove (Mar 2, 2015)

i find the rope more convenient than an extension cord.
a 12v onboard battery start.....would use that every time!


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## Grunt (Nov 11, 2013)

I use the rope and only used the electric when I had the key off and it wouldn't start pulling, and then wouldn't start with the electric because of my error. 
:icon-deadhorse:


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## Honda1132 (Sep 2, 2016)

Pull, no electric on my Honda


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## Miles (Sep 16, 2016)

Electric, there is a battery on the Honda. I have tried the pull start once and it worked with a light pull to start the machine.


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## cranman (Jan 23, 2016)

Pull


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## robs9 (Sep 5, 2018)

Pull, on my 2006 Toro 1028 Power Max.
Tried the electric start once just to see how much faster it would start. Didnt start any faster.

Sent from my SM-N975U using Tapatalk


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## broo (Dec 23, 2017)

Pull all the time. The only times I use the electric start is when the pull cord is frozen.


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## crazzywolfie (Jun 2, 2014)

another one for pull start. there is no plug near where i keep my machine so it is easier to just pull start it. usually it starts first pull. pulls over pretty easy so it is not a big deal.


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## leonz (Dec 12, 2014)

I use my 125,000 BTU kerosene fired salamander to heat the little pups up after 10 minutes or 
so and they roll over and barely bark when they are started and ready to work.
I also use the space heater to melt off all the ice and salt spray.
I did the same thing with the JD junk and I am not sure I will spend a mortgage payment on
replacement V belts for it this year.

I have given up any hope of seeing the JD junk stolen after 8 years.


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## ST1100A (Feb 7, 2015)

Pull start all the way !
Its more work to get out the extension cord and hook it up just to start it when it pull starts within a quarter of a pull, and with battery start, it is too much work to keep charging a battery and the expense of replacing them.
That's whats nice with a Honda engines automatic decompression, two fingers on the pull handle and away it goes, every time starts first pull for over 27 years now.
What else would you expect for an American Made Honda.


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## aldfam4 (Dec 25, 2016)

Pull start on all my snow blowers - looking for any kind of exercise I can get!


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## CarlB (Jan 2, 2011)

I have 12v on board so i use the electric start


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## tadawson (Jan 3, 2018)

120v electric almost always. The plug and cord hangs about ten inches from the blower, so that's a non issue. Mine will also start easily with the pull, but I have had enough pull starters break over the years that I only use them if I need to restart out on the drive . . . never had an electric starter fail . . .


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## Kielbasa (Dec 21, 2013)

Ever since my dad bought the 1971 Ariens brand new, the Tecumseh was always a royal pain to pull start. And where the rope pulled off of the engine and being on the short side, it was always hard to do. When I took over using the machine back in 1985 and I found out how hard it was to start, I said...S _ _ _ W this. I bought my dad the electric start for Christmas in 1986.  He knew it was for my benefit... After it went on, I never pull started the tecumseh for the next 25 years or so. One day I thought of trying to start it by pulling and when I felt how ackward and annoying it was, that was the last time I ever tried pull starting. 

When I repowered the machine in 2011 with the Briggs And Stratton 342CC and found out how easy it was to pull start, pull starting is all I ever do.


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## Steve70 (Nov 12, 2018)

Always had been a pull guy...even when the machine had electric start. ...Mainly because it never took more than one pull to get it going. ..But I've gotten soft in my old age. Due to where I park this new machine...close to the truck, I mounted a cord reel right above the where the start receptacle is on the blower. Piece of cake. I should have put a cord reel there before as I was remiss in not putting a 120V plug between the garage doors. This works slick for a few different chores.

Part of the reason I didn't use the electric start before was that to drag a cord over there when one pull started the machine made no sense.


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## Frankenblower (Aug 19, 2019)

Pull cord until it breaks, then electric for the rest of its use until time for new blower lol


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## rslifkin (Mar 5, 2018)

120v electric start is annoying and not worth using IMO. Pull start is fine, but I converted my blower to 12v battery start, so I use that every time. Just turn the key, set the choke, hit the primer and then hit the start button. It'll typically start on the first pull if I do use the pull start, but the pull force is pretty high compared to most other pull start engines and the pull distance is long. So it's a bit rough on the shoulder and could be hard to do if I had to start it while standing on slippery ground. It's nothing like pull starting my lawnmower, where a short, half-hearted pull is typically enough to get it running.


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## dr bob (Dec 12, 2015)

Pull start for me.

Keeping everything "just right" for easy starting and running is a casual goal. OK, it's an addiction. But I can quit whenever I want to, and use the electric starter. Meanwhile, if it doesn't start by the second pull it means something isn't right. If I just pushed the button with the cord connected, I might not know.

Bless me father, I have to confess that I did use the electric starter once, that was the time I forgot to turn the fuel valve on. Darn thing just wouldn't start, and everything was just right, and.... until I found that I'd missed the "open the fuel valve" step. Let's call that a demonstration to make sure the electric starter really works. It spun the engine fine, but couldn't start it. Apparently, you need to have the fuel valve open even when using the electric starter.

----

Mine starts pretty effortlessly with the pull cord. A gentle pull gets it up on compression, then a firmer pull starts it right up. It's less work to pull the cord like that than to get out the extension cord for the starter motor. I'm lazy.


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## tabora (Mar 1, 2017)

On the old Honda HS80, I always pull started unless the pull cord got wet and frozen, and then used the plug-in electric start. With the HSS1332ATD, I am now an electric start convert, and would only use the pull start if the battery were dead.


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## Town (Jan 31, 2015)

I use the 120 volt electric starter (with ign and fuel turned off) to splash the oil through the engine at the beginning of the season or if the machine has been left unused for a while. Dry starts are never good for the engine. For normal starting I use the re-coil starter. I would like a 12 volt electric starter with a battery more and more as I get older.


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## Dauntae (Nov 10, 2016)

So far I’ve only used electric to make sure they work lol I make sure all my machines are ready for the season and start easily before it gets too cold, machines ready to sell and mine ready to use.


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## WVguy (Nov 24, 2018)

dr bob said:


> Bless me father, I have to confess that I did use the electric starter once, that was the time I forgot to turn the fuel valve on. Darn thing just wouldn't start, and everything was just right, and.... until I found that I'd missed the "open the fuel valve" step. Let's call that a demonstration to make sure the electric starter really works. It spun the engine fine, but couldn't start it. Apparently, you need to have the fuel valve open even when using the electric starter.


Yup, I did the same thing once, dang thing cranked and cranked and just plain wouldn't start. Then the light dawned over Marblehead....

Like most everyone else, I just prime well and it starts in one or two pulls, not worth the bother of unwinding the extension cord. I can see why the manufacturers put the electric start on it though, given the low temperatures involved and an engine that is being just a little bit cantankerous is a recipe for a high level of frustration that can be easily solved with electric start.

Also, around here we rarely see zero F. In places where -20° F or lower is routine I can imagine electric start might be more of a necessity.


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## Landngroove (Oct 12, 2015)

Back when my Ariens 10000 series had a Tec 8HP I used the electric start. I have since replaced the Tec with a 212 Predator, and have to use the pull, as it has no electric starter. Very easy to pull over, and starts on first, or second pull.


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## Clutch Cargo (Dec 27, 2015)

LOL. Great thread. When I bought that old MTD 8/26, the guy who sold it to me said that he never used it. It didn't matter to me because I always used the pull start. On day about 5 years ago, I said to myself, "I really should see if it works." Plugged it in, hit the button and BOOM!! Unplugged it and never bothered with it again.


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## micah68kj (Oct 8, 2011)

I make sure the electric start works if I should need it but pull start 99% of the time. Usually 1-2 pulls.


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## enigma-2 (Feb 11, 2014)

120 volt electric. Always when it's cold, but will cord pull after its warm. The starter cord hangs about 5 ft away and I have a Craftsman pull down recoil light with an outlet that I use. Fast and saves time. Even with electric there are time (esp start if season) when it still takes the starter a while to get it going.


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## Mountain Man (Oct 14, 2018)

Ariens 1128 PRO with the 12V key start. I use the key start mostly, but pull the rope just to keep it operating occasionally.


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## orangputeh (Nov 24, 2016)

I've worked on so many machines that i use the electric start on my machines.

my shoulder hurts.

and the people who said if the machine does not start on the 1st and second pull are right. you need to investigate.


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## mfrit028 (Nov 27, 2018)

120V electric most always now. My back is not the greatest and when it gets below zero I just want to press a button. I have the cord in the garage ready next to the blower so it helps a lot.


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## detdrbuzzard (Jan 20, 2012)

all my machines have electric start. I have an issue with my neck and sometimes can't get them started when the engine is cold


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## stevedore (Nov 22, 2018)

I'm 73 with arthritic shoulders, knees, etc. Electric start is becoming a requirement. My Honda with battery start suits me fine. 

Last year I bought a Mighty Mac chipper/shredder with battery electric start for the same reason.


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## dooitorbust (Aug 15, 2018)

8hp Briggs on my old Snapper. Pull start only but it’s stored indoors and always starts first or second pull. If I could find a 120v starter for it, I’d probably use it.


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## Golfergordy (Oct 29, 2014)

Pull with my Honda HS621 and 120v with my Craftsman 2-stage which is hard starting when cold if pulling.


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## bearman49709 (Apr 27, 2015)

My 24" Ariens starts on the first pull 99% of the time, I used the electric start one time when new to make sure it worked. My friends 28" Ariens is a pain in the butt, even when new it wouldn't start with the pull cord until it had wormed up, even the electric starter takes a full 1-2 minuets cranking to start.

After three operations on both my right shoulder and my back I see a day when I'll need to start using the electric starter.


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## RIT333 (Feb 6, 2014)

bearman49709;1675033 My friends 28" Ariens is a pain in the butt said:


> You may want to point out to your friend that the starter motor should not be continuously run for that long. It will burn out the starter motor. I'm surprised that it hasn't already.


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## crazzywolfie (Jun 2, 2014)

bearman49709 said:


> My friends 28" Ariens is a pain in the butt, even when new it wouldn't start with the pull cord until it had wormed up, even the electric starter takes a full 1-2 minuets cranking to start.


almost sounds like it needs a tuneup or he needs to prime it a lot more before trying to start it. shouldn't be that hard to start. if it is hard to pull over when cold it may need an oil change.


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## tadawson (Jan 3, 2018)

I've never needed to prime an Ariens with elextric, no matter what the temp. Throttle to full, choke *off*, hit the starter and then bump the choke closed until it fires (typically sub 1 second), let go of the button, and back the choke off so it keeps running done. Worked on our '74 10000 series, a mid 80's ??? model, a 70's Toro 724 I inherited, and my 2018 Plat 24 . . . . If it ain't broke, don't fix it! Cranking speed with the starter pretty much makes the primer unneccessary . . .


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## crazzywolfie (Jun 2, 2014)

full throttle and full choke usually works good for pull start on machines without primer or electric start also. that is how i would usually start my ariens with 196cc engine swap. usually always started first or 2nd pull with no primer.


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## topher5150 (Nov 5, 2014)

The electric start on my Simplicity 860 has barely enough power to turn, so I have to use the cord. The starter on the John Deere 260 is starting to act up too hopefully that doesn't leave me stranded.


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## WVguy (Nov 24, 2018)

stevedore said:


> I'm 73 with arthritic shoulders, knees, etc. Electric start is becoming a requirement. My Honda with battery start suits me fine.
> 
> Last year I bought a Mighty Mac chipper/shredder with battery electric start for the same reason.


I can relate - I'm starting to have arthritis issues in my right elbow, shoulder, and hand so the day when I rely on electric start is coming.

I just bought a Milwaukee electric caulking gun for that same reason. A few weeks ago doing some caulking around a door brought an involuntary "Yeow!" That's a marketing segment that Milwaukee seems to ignore in their advertising, but I suppose the pool of 70-year-old-guys-with-arthritic-hands-who-don't-want-to-give-up-DIY-projects is pretty small....


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## ahawth (Oct 12, 2019)

I have a 724 Deluxe, two years old. Used electric start only once to test. Pull start fires every time!


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## Michele (Nov 17, 2015)

I’m not a guy, but my 15 year old Ariens does have electric start but it starts on one or two pulls max. Love this 11528LE.


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## Davejb (Jan 28, 2018)

I paid good money for electric start, I always use it when cold starting.


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## Silver Hawk (Oct 12, 2019)

I just picked up my new Ariens Deluxe 30, a leftover 2015 model. The 2nd time I tried to use it, the recoil jammed then didn't work. Back to the dealer, one of the dogs dropped down in the air cover, they had to disassemble most of the covers to get to it. AX 306 engine. 
Burkes Lawn and Garden Valparaiso, IN took care of it very quickly. Anyone else have recoil problems with Chinese engines?


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## aveteam (Sep 3, 2018)

It kind of depends on how cold it is. My Ariens 724 has the 120V starter but it usually starts first or second pull. Unless I forget the fuel shutoff valve! :icon_cussing_black:


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## bendingo (Mar 19, 2018)

micah68kj said:


> I make sure the electric start works if I should need it but pull start 99% of the time. Usually 1-2 pulls.


I'm the opposite, I like my battery start a lot ... but I pull it to life a couple times a winter just to keep it honest!


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## badbmwbrad (Jul 30, 2019)

At zero degrees, my recoil starter may not get the engine running and the electric starter is pressed into service. 

To reduce potential for recoil starter rope breakage, the proper method for its use is to slowly pull the rope until the engine turns just past top-dead-center of piston's compression stroke. Allow the rope to recoil then quickly pull the rope; enabling the engine flywheel to spin up and develop sufficient momentum to carry the piston through its next compression stroke. Use of this method minimizes shock load on the recoil starter rope._past top_


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