Election day and starting them young.

Thank you for making my day! Great post!

God forbid when he's seven and cuts his finger starting that Baby Bee and DSS opens a child abuse case against you.

He thought you guys were only going to get a little greasy.  He doesn't know it yet, but you just gave that boy a memory that will last a lifetime. Make sure you keep that engine safe for him.

I did the same for my two boys when they were young. I had a handfull of enough parts to make two Babe Bees, sat them both down at the table and went about instructing on assembly. Certainly worth teaching practical skills early.

Dave P. wrote:He thought you guys were only going to get a little greasy.  He doesn't know it yet, but you just gave that boy a memory that will last a lifetime.  Make sure you keep that engine safe for him.

I will. I told him the next time he's over to my house we will start it, then when he's ready mount it on a plane and fly it.

And Victor, right of passage. My son had his at an early age while starting a Cox helicopter. Mine was at a later age while reaching across the prop to adjust the NV, right across the wrist. Cam is no baby, races BMX (Bicycle Motocross) and has had his share of spills and bruises. I don't think a prop bite would slow him down.

Thanks all for your responses.

Bob

Good Stuff!!! Lucky Boy !!!!

Way to Grampie !!

Find a running but junk Briggs 2.5 HP 4 stroke flat head engine
and the older Chilton's manual with pictures and torque specs and clearances....

Lay out the tools including some that are wrong sized

I was some what self taught on the model airplane engines and way back then dad helped but really did not know any more about them than I did...I think we concurrently learned a lot about reed valved 2 stroke engines.....back then there were no internet searches and on most Army bases not any real library....many of the RTF plastic airplanes actually had an exploded view of the engine and the part numbers for the individual repair parts

Our lawn mower became hard to start and I think Dad knew why ---but decided to use it to teach me every thing you need to know about 4 stroke engines

Could have saved me a lot of busted knuckles if he had hinted about the shaft key on the fly wheel
Any way  I dutifully drained the oil, and disassembled the engine...no Virginia I did not mark TDC or scribe the cam position ( Thankfully there are dots )

The Woodruf Key on the fly wheel was half sheared... but young and ignorant me did not know this was not right and of course like many exploded view pictures in manuals very small parts are not well described....or drawn...

Took two* disassembly and two reassembles before dear old dad...watching the second assy bopped my head as I inserted the split woodruf key to set the fly wheel.....and this is where I learned ignition timing and that little bit of split key lag made for a hard to start engine

I went on from those child hood experiences to be a profession mechanic and later teacher and supervisor of professional mechanics all my life

* first reassy I did not get cam timed correctly and starting was a lot of barking and back firing and flames out carb...

When I was in middle school (back in the stone age) we had a class called shop. It was a large room with tools and saws.
I remember we made a small pine double shelf, took apart lawn mower engines ( and learned you can put a battery on the coil and shock someone, the first stunt guns).
We made our own simple electric motors powered by batteries. I had my son build one for his science fair years ago and took 1st ribbon home.

This link has many good projects inside. I still have the PDF and can email it.

https://diyhomeschooler.com/2015/03/20/4-useful-science-projects-from-edison-free-downloads/

I love it when my threads take right turns.  Subjects that spark my memory.

Me too CB.  Learned about that when a childhood friend asked me to hold a spark plug lead, then he cranked the engine and laughed when I left my feet.  I pummeled him for awhile and learned two things, never hold a spark plug lead without insulation and never completely trust your friends.  

And Fred, our first power lawn mower had a 2 1/2 hp Briggs and Stratton, I know because I still have the manual.  Ya, OCD I know but I have always kept my manuals.  But this one goes back some 58 years.





Bought it new when we didn't have two dimes to rub together.  A beautiful shade of mocha paint, I would clean it after each use and keep it in the living room.  No way that pretty thing was staying outside.  But the new wore off fast.    We used to laugh about it.  

Bob

Well look right there on page (10) ten!... soft metal key..DO NOT USE A STEEL key!!!!!!!!


and from 50 years ago I know why.... the fly wheel is deliberately heavy to offset the torsional vibrations
when ever the cutting blade hit something like a big rock or tree stump...there was a sudden stoppage...the soft metal (aluminum woodruf key ) was designed to shear and NOT BEND the crank shaft


cool hint..WD 40 is good for a lot of things and bad for many also... one good..... new mower deck...spray WD 40 all over it (Inside) same on you truck or jeep wheel wells going mudding.......wet ragas or wet mud just sloughs off and cleaning is very easy

I'm happy to provide validation Fred.  

"Save this book for future reference".......

Bob

OBTW I cleaned the SBJr. pictured dirty above. Not AF boil clean but clean enough to earn a spot in my display case.

By the time I was 12 y/o I tied up the wind wane governor spring on a B&S 3 HP powered mini bike and was putting mothballs in the gas tank.