[PA212]

My 212 has historically burned some oil. Nothing crazy, but I add a bit pretty much every time I use it. It doesn’t smoke, but I have noticed a haze if I’m running it after dark and I have my headlamp on. Additional my bride says I “smell like gas” after I’ve been out for some seat time.

So, is this something to be concerned with, or just part of running 40 year old equipment? Generally speaking the engine runs smooth and hasn’t given me any issues in the time that I’ve had it so I’m not in a big hurry to open her heart up.

 

[Kster526]

My 210 is very similar only when it really gets hot like cutting grass
you see the haze you are talking about which is oil.
As it gets hot and the metal expands the gaps increase
and a worn cylinder wall will allow this to happen.
If it runs good and does not foul out the plugs run it
It will come to a time when you’ll have to do it. It is not a hard thing to
do. Just take your time. The original JD manuals actually walk you thru it.
You’ll want to measure the bore though to see how far out the cylinder is to see if you can use a standard piston or a slightly over sized one.
Also you’ll want to measure the crank and piston rod where it rides the
crank so if you need to order an specific connecting rod by size
My brother is a machinist and always helps me do these steps.
So to answer your question run it until you notice power loss or she starts smoking and using excessive oil.
Remember it’s air cooled and all air cooled engines will lose a little
So try to keep the fins clear of debris
Sure I missed something but
Hope this answers your question Dave.

 

[PA212]

Thank you for the info Kyle! I check the level every time I use it so unless something changes and she starts burning significantly more I’ll run her as she is. Some would say it will help keep the bugs down. 🙂

 

[HD-JD110Fan]

Very good advice there from Kyle. He's very well covered all of the things that you'll want to keep in mind to check. I agree, as long as the smoke is not that bad, keep running it as is. You're keeping a good eye on the oil level so you're doing fine. And like he says, the JD service manual guides you step by step very well when you need to do a rebuild.

 

[kinghd78]

Late reply on this one. My 210 smokes all the time, enough that I can see it, but I added oil only once all summer. Of course, we had the drought, and I didn't cut for over a month. I also always smell according to the other half, but she says I smell like oil. I was thinking of running an extension off the exhaust down to the ground until I have to address the problem. Something to work on after the holidays.