# Lots of questions about new 247.887802 Craftsman 21" 179cc 21" single stage



## djc6 (Nov 10, 2014)

*Lots of questions about new 247.887802 Craftsman 21" 179cc single stage*

I am helping my sister with her 247.887802 Craftsman 21" 179cc single stage. I have some questions:


Is surging at idle (auger not engaged) normal? It goes away when you engage the auger.
How do I adjust the auger control cable? When you let go of the control, you can hear/see the cable loudly slapping against something inside the unit just before it returns to its disengaged state.
How do you check the oil level in this thing? I can't seem to pull out the dip stick without smearing oil all over it. I wipe it with a paper towel, reinsert - same thing. The snow blower allegedly came without any oil in it; a bottle came with the unit, and there was a tag on the primer saying you had to add oil. The manual says the engine takes 20 oz of oil and I received a 20 oz bottle, so I poured the whole thing in once I gave up trying to read the dip stick. My concern is if there was a trace amount of oil in the machine from the factory and now I've overfilled it.
It smells bad running it. I can't tell if its because some parts are getting hot for the first time or what. Or maybe burning oil because too much in it?


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## djc6 (Nov 10, 2014)

Looks like the surging at idle is normal according to MTD's website. They built this Craftsman model:

Engine Surging - Snow Thrower


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## skutflut (Oct 16, 2015)

djc6 said:


> I am helping my sister with her 247.887802 Craftsman 21" 179cc 21" single stage. I have some questions:
> 
> 
> Is surging at idle (auger not engaged) normal? It goes away when you engage the auger.
> ...


New machines will smell for a while when they first get hot, its oil and residue left over from the factory. Pretty soon, all you will smell is exhaust fumes. If it's smoking a lot , then you might have overfilled the oil, but you didn't mention that it is smoking

Leave the thing for a few hours with the dip stick out and a rag covering the tube. When you dump the oil in, it gets all over the inside of the tube and takes a while to run down into the engine. Clean the stick, and check the oil. You will also find that checking oil after the engine has just been shut off will also result in oil all over the dipstick. Lots of people complain that its hard to see the oil on the stick, and it is. New oil is too clean. You should be able to determine the level by looking closely at the stick, or maybe checking the back of it and look for where the shiny gloss stops and that is where the oil level is. 

Some people on the forum recommend heating the end of a metal dip stick with a torch to kill the shine off the metal, so you can see the oil level better. I have not done that, mine is plastic, but I lightly sanded mine to take the plastic gloss off the end of the stick, so the oil shows up better. 

If all else fails, get a kid with good eyes to take a look :icon_whistling:


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## djc6 (Nov 10, 2014)

Thanks for the response. I checked the oil just now and it was much easier to read (no smearing), guess all the oil in the fill tube settled to the bottom. The level is perfectly in the middle of the high/low marks.

Thats going to be kind of a pain when it comes time to change the oil, having to wait so long to read it. My Toro 721QZE just says to fill it with oil until it spills out  

Now all I need to do is adjust this auger control cable  Its really sloppy. A dealer would have never let it leave the store like this.


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## djc6 (Nov 10, 2014)

Video on how to replace the auger cable, not clear if its adjustable or not. I would expect a bolt and nut inside the spring.


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## detdrbuzzard (Jan 20, 2012)

hello djc, welcome to *SBF!!* there probably is no adjustment for the cable. if its similar to my toro single stage snowblowers adjusting the cable will put more pressure on the belt causing it to break


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## skutflut (Oct 16, 2015)

djc6 said:


> Thanks for the response. I checked the oil just now and it was much easier to read (no smearing), guess all the oil in the fill tube settled to the bottom. The level is perfectly in the middle of the high/low marks.
> 
> Thats going to be kind of a pain when it comes time to change the oil, having to wait so long to read it. My Toro 721QZE just says to fill it with oil until it spills out
> 
> Now all I need to do is adjust this auger control cable  Its really sloppy. A dealer would have never let it leave the store like this.


You'll get used to it. It's the same with a car, lawnmower, generator, Abrams M1 battle tank. Takes a while for the oil to run down.


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## djc6 (Nov 10, 2014)

I took it back to Ace Hardware. He tried some other single stages there, they all have the same issue when you let go of the auger bail lever, the spring at the idler bracket end of the cable shakes around so much it vibrates against the belt and the snowblower plastic housing, etc..

He ended up putting a simple cable guide clamp on the handle (about halfway up) before the cable enters the machine and it seems to keep the cable off to the side so that the spring doesn't bounce around inside the snow blower.


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## djc6 (Nov 10, 2014)

Finally snowed again a month later. Crazy rattle of the spring on the auger control cable when you let go of the bail arm persists.


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## djc6 (Nov 10, 2014)

So in my original post I had some issues reading the oil level after pouring oil that came with the machine into fill tube last year.

Well I had a pleasant surprise waiting for me when I removed the back cover of the machine (held on with three bolts) to access the oil drain plug. There is another fill tube near the drain plug that is hidden by the cover! I was also able to use my LiquiVac via the hidden fill tube to suck out the oil - so happy about this because I wasn't able to do so via the dipstick fill tube on top of snowblower. So my procedure is now:



Remove rear cover of snowblower.
Suck out used oil via LiquiVac using newly discovered hidden fill tube
Pour fresh oil into engine via funnel and newly discovered hidden fill tube
Use dip stick from normal fill tube on the top of the machine to check oil level
Since I didn't pour oil in via top fill tube, I get a perfect dipstick reading - no oil smeared down the fill tube messing up reading! It shouldn't make me so happy but it does - I don't have to wait around for oil to settle down the fill tube anymore in order to get a good reading. And I'm happy to be able to use my LiquiVac - dislike dealing with oil in oil drain pan. LiquiVac much cleaner.

LiquiVac - Do It Yourself Oil Change System, Oil Change Pump/Vacuum

Attached image of hidden fill tube near oil drain plug.

Overall, happy with Craftsman 247.887802 purchased at Ace Hardware for $380 new.


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## all3939 (Dec 21, 2014)

skutflut said:


> Some people on the forum recommend heating the end of a metal dip stick with a torch to kill the shine off the metal, so you can see the oil level better. I have not done that, mine is plastic, but I lightly sanded mine to take the plastic gloss off the end of the stick, so the oil shows up better.
> 
> If all else fails, get a kid with good eyes to take a look :icon_whistling:


I found this trick worked well for me. Clean the lower portion of the dip stick (metal dip stick ONLY) with brake cleaner or good degreaser. Wipe dry very well with a clean oil free cloth. Check your oil now. It'll be clear as day where the oil reaches on the dip stick.


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## grampi (Jul 10, 2021)

I just picked up a never-been-used 22" Craftsman with the 179cc engine from the original owner, and I am finding that this engine isn't addressed in the owner's manual. The manual lists several other engines (all bigger), but not this one. It has an oil tank on top of the engine with a cap that has a dipstick on it. It also has another cap on the side of the engine crankcase that looks like an oil fill hole. My question is, when I change the oil, am I supposed to refill it by pouring oil into the tank, or through the hole in the crankcase? I'm also wondering why this engine isn't mentioned in the manual. This engine does have a drain tube with a plug in the end, so draining the oil should be pretty self explanatory, I just don't get the refilling part...


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## Oneacer (Jan 3, 2011)

@grampi,

I gave you answers on this redundant question on your other thread.


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## NOS (Dec 3, 2021)

Surging or hunting ( when the engine can not keep a constant speed ) is caused by two things.
An excessively lean fuel mixture or a governor set too sensitive ( and it hunts over correcting for load )

Both of these can be fixed pretty easy.

A governor hunt is can be cured by moving the spring on the governor arm closer to the shaft the arm pivots on
This decreases sensitivity but also response to load changes.

A lean hunt is caused by an engine that can not get enough fuel at a given RPM and load.
the engine slows and stumbles and the governor reacts by giving it more throttle.

Usually this can be cured by enriching up the low side fuel mixture 
This will require a jet change or adjustable aftermarket carb

If the OEM says its OK to hunt a little they know there is a problem but it does not really effect function.
The EPA has mandated all small engines run lean today to reduce pollution and this is one of the side effects.
If you old enough to remember how bad the cars of the 70s ran then you kind of already have an understanding if these issues on today's small engines.
Ariens already has jumped ahead by building some of the first computer controlled engines to solve this issue.
I don't think they will be the last.


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