# Toro 521 no start, just backfire



## MacaveliMC (Dec 14, 2017)

Hi Everyone,

This summer I picked up a Toro 521, from 1987 I believe? Anyway, the guy said it ran, just leaked fuel, and was letting it go for $25. So I took it home, checked the fuel tank, replaced all the fuel lines, and replaced the carb with a brand new bolt on carb. I also replaced the spark plug and oil because you never know. I got the thing to start up, and figured out how to keep her running. I snowblowed the driveway once with it after a light snow. Then on Monday I went to snowblow the driveway again, and after one pass it stalled out and shut off. I couldn't get it to start again, glanced in the gas tank and thought maybe it was out of fuel. I didn't put much in the first time I started it. So I poured some 93 I had in the garage, and tried again. Not only no luck, but I saw some sparks on the carb side of the motor, so I quit and put it in the garage.

I thought the sparks were from my poor adjusting of the coil cap, assuming it came loose and fell down, contacting the flywheel. I was wrong. Instead a bolt came loose that holds a bracket to the engine, behind the bottom of the flywheel. It had worked it's way out and started contacting the flywheel. So I tightened everything up, adjusted the coil gap correctly, and put her all back together.

Then I tried starting her up. No luck. In fact, almost every time I pulled the cord, there was a puff of smoke either from the exhaust or carb, and the pull cord would feel like it hit a stop point, almost yanking my arm out of it's socket. Almost as if the motor locked up for a split second while I was trying to turn it over.

I take the spark plug out, it's wet. So I clean it off, drain the gas and put in fresh 87. I pull the cord a bunch to hopefully get out any extra gas. I take the carb off and drain it. I put it all back together and pull the cord. Almost every time I pull the cord, it back fires out the exhaust, sometimes with a flame. Also, it almost yanks my arm off still, with every pull. I just hit a hard stop at some point in the start pull stroke.

I'm not sure what else to do at this point, maybe change the spark plug? If the engine keeps flooding, I don't know how? Choke is on, throttle is at 3/4.

If anyone has any suggestions I'm open. The thing won't even fire, just a poof of smoke or back fire.

Thanks for the help!!!

- Mike


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