Starting issue

[Altonx]

AC2W 2cyl engine with electric start, always a pain to start and pushes a fully charged battery to the edge, i always squirt oil into each cylinder and obvs prime the engine and give the glow plugs a good 10 seconds and also use the reset lever.
i have read that some people lift the decompression lever on 1 cylinder to allow a faster cranking and close the decompression lever as soon as it fires up. is this a good idea, could anything be damaged by doing this?

[ajaffa1]

Hi Altonx, do you have the maintenance manual? If not, it is available for free download here https://www.winget.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/PETTER-A-RANGE-WORKSHOP-MANUAL.pdf

The manual recommends heating the glow plugs for 20 seconds. If you do try starting on just one cylinder with the other decompressed please check that the decompressors are correctly adjusted or you may crash the piston into a valve.

How old is the battery? Perhaps it does not have enough voltage or cranking amps for this application. Check the electrical system, battery terminals, solenoid connections and any earthing wires. Check the glow plugs are actually getting hot.

Let us know how you get on.

Bob

[Altonx]

Hi Bob, thanks for the reply.
Yes I have the manual but obviously these are very old engines now and I understand fine tolerances have probably slightly shifted but it runs OK and I dont want to dive in too deep, I am a mechanic by trade but not familiar with these engines, I have  a decent battery I use  that I know is good, starter had been stripped and cleaned and engine has been rewired with a new alternator, glow plugs have also been checked and confirmed working, I did not see in the manual about 20 seconds of heat from the glow plugs, I will give that a go thank you.
I presumed the decompression lever just opens a port to allow the compressed fuel/air mixture to escape? How could this cause the piston to hit a valve?
Thanks again Bob

[ajaffa1]

Hi Altonx, the decompressor lever works by opening one of the exhaust valves. If it is badly adjusted it might open it far enough to kiss the piston crown, especially if you have a heavy build up of carbon in the cylinder.

Bob