Tons of problems/questions

[TyGuy02]

Needless to say, I have been struggling this year with my equipment. Maybe some people can help me get things straightened out. Any help would be greatly appreciated! I'm having issues with my auger and my big buddy.

Let's start with the auger: (1)I can't get it to start very easily (5-10 minute job), (2) won't idle (3) starter rope just broke.

It's a strikemaster, I just put new gas in it last week and put in a 24:1 ratio like the manufacturer wants. Do I just need to clean out the carb? Will any starter rope at the hardware store work?

With my big buddy, I just bought it on monday. The burners don't want to stay lit. If I have it on high the right side will start, flicker then go out, then the left side will eventually go out. If I have it on low, the left side will work fine for a while, but then eventually start flickering and go out.

Needless to say I am quite frustrated!

[OnAFly]

For the heater: Are you holding the pilot light on? You are supposed to hold it on for 30 seconds or so to heat up the TC or it will put the flame out. I had the same problem with a regular buddy heater and this seemed to help a lot.

[MarkAlm]

I'm not sure if any ol' starter rope will work. I would add some sea-foam to the gas and let it run a while . With the buddy , hold down the button for up to a minute then release , also check how far the thermocouple is away from the screen . Good luck with it all !

[mpester]

For the heater: If you have any amount of wind on those things, the pilot light will blow out. I got one a couple of years ago and hate the thing. Every time I open the top on the Fish Trap, it goes out. I only use it now when I am in the suitcase style shack with the kid and I know I will not be moving around much. I got a Little Buddy heater and it works much better in the small house.

[desert_bulls]

For the auger, I would switch to 40:1. I ran 24:1 and gummed it up. That could be one of the reason for the auger not starting very easy. Rope - as thing happened to me, I took it to strikemaster and the fixed for me, but what I learned is don't pull to far, pull about half as far as you do now. It really doesn't make a difference if you pull half way or the distacnes, if it doesn't start by pulling half way, it probably won't start at all.

[Brian Heath]

Gummed up the auger sounds bad what oil did u have in it ???

glad to hear you got it fixed

Hey Mark U have Any Good Lakes in champlin ??

Brian

[desert_bulls]

I was running strikemaster oil. I'm on my last tank of that, switching over to amsoil.

[Brian Heath]

how much do u think u need

[desert_bulls]

how much do u think u need? I'm not sure what your talking about

[BRULEDRIFTER]

Auger problem = Spark Plug!

[KG243]

For your auger I would clean your carbs, get a new plug and as long as the pull cord is close to the same diameter of the old one it should work just fine.

With you buddy, don't listen to all this [PoorWordUsage] about them not working the new ones have the kinks worked out. I would just take it back to where you bought it and exchange it.

[TyGuy02]

I think with the big buddy, i just need to hold it down longer on those colder days. because it's not the pilot that's going out, it was the burner plates that weren't staying lit. the pilot was staying lit. I tried it indoors this afternoon and it worked like a charm. arrgh! and probably bank up the sides of the voyager a little better.

I do think with the auger I need to clean the carb out and probably change the spark plug. I don't think it's overmixed with oil. mainly because when I've seen an overmixed oil, it smokes like CRAZY! when I'm running it now it doesn't seem smokey.

Thanks for advice, I just didn't want to get knee deep into doing something and find out I was doing the totally wrong thing.

[walleyeslammer]

With the Buddy, I'd return it and get one that works, lots of guys use them and yours sounds like a lemon.

With the auger, I'd do the same thing I do every year because my carb would always seem to gum up. First change the plug, I do it every year because it's a 3 dollar way to know that isn't the problem. And then get some sea foam. Take off the plastic cap covering the air filter and remove the filter. When you get the auger started, slowly pour into the air intake and then the auger will kill. Leave it for 10 minutes to soak the gunk out of your carb, remove the spark plug to drain excess fluid and then start it up. It smokes white smoke like crazy for a bit and then hopefully it should fire right up. An old guy who worked on motors for years got me going on that deal.

[broken_line]

be carefull with dumping straight sea foam into a 2 stroke. after all there are no lubricating properties in sea foam.. if you mix even a tiny ammount of oil in the sea foam, great idea!!!

[Surface Tension]

If the heater is going out when there is no wind, OR if it is going out and your positive there is enough fresh air and your sure your not low on fuel, take it back.

Auger, start out with a new plug and fresh gas.

Full choke and pull till it fires then half choke till it warms up. If it does not fire after with full choke, pull the plug and inspect. Is it wet or is it dry? If it is dry put a tsp of mixed fuel in the cyl, replace the plug and start it. It will run and continue to run or it will quit. If it quits repeat the prime sequence. During storage the diaphragm dries out, the repeated priming eventually will pull fuel pump, once it is wet it usually will work.

If the plug is wet then pull the recoil to blow fuel out, dry the plug and replace. Try and start it without any choke.

Remember, inspecting the plug will tell you if your getting fuel or not.

Next would be carb adjustment, which SM do you have?

In the end you might end up having to clean the carb and a rebuild kit installed.

For the smaller augers, parachute cord will work for the recoil rope. Somewhere I have a post on how to install a new rope. Guess that is the first thing you'll have to fix. If you have a SM repair center close by you might

[TyGuy02]

I have the 2000 series strikemaster, 2 HP. With the cord, I'm in even more of a mess now. I had the new rope tied in and ready to start winding it, and I accidentely bumped the auger wrong and the coil popped out! Tried to rewind that for 2 hours and gave up. I'm having a guy look at this, so he'll help me out. He runs a small engine repair side-job.

[cabin]

I had a Buddy heater and hated it. Open the door and the wind blows it out. Move around in the shack and it goes out. I gave it away. I read all the good reviews and was starting to think I had a lemom. Monday I helped a friend insulate his new permanent. He has a Buddy heater. I was inside doing the measuring etc. We had the buddy heater going and the darn thing kept going out. Little breeze or movement and out she goes. I have an old Coleman Focus 3 that works great. Gives off enough heat to keep the holes clean and stays lit.

[Brad B]

strikemaster now recommends a 40 to 1 mixture for the oil. that equals 3.2 oz of oil to 1 gallon of gas.

[KyleM.]

i have an older auger not a strikemaster, every year to get it going good takes a few sprays of starter fluid in the air intake, not sure why but been that way since my dad had it when i was a kid, after that getting it started that way once, it runs all year just fine

[G.J.]

I have an older big buddy which operates fine on 1 lb disposables but was having same problem as yours when hooked up to a 20 lb tank. Leaving a 1 lb tank in opposite the side the 20 lb tank is hooked up to solved the problem with mine.

[WTN4ICE]

My first big buddy was a real lemon..after a lot of frustration and cussing I found a tool to fix the problem !!I took a chance and bought a new one last year and it works fine.

[Cliff Wagenbach]

Swiitch to an Amsoil mixture of 80:1, change your plug, use only high test gas, and you should be good to go!

Cliff

[123fish]

I have to do the very same thing as you KyleM. Pull the plug and give a couple of squirts of starting fluid and fire it up. Once started it is good for the rest of the season. Bought my auger in 1989. Strikemaster Magnum III.

[Maplebay]

switched to amsoil this year the auger works so much better runs and idles and it is mixed 80:1 , as for the buddy i hate mine and have switched back to the sunflower heater.