homelite 179 cc throttle help please

[flowerdave]

i have a homelite 179 cc i would like to put in frame i have to get it up and running. i got the motor running today but there is no throttle lever. anyone got an idea on how to convert this over so that i have a place to hook up a cable thanks for any help
Dave

 

[JTSpeedDemon]

 

[itsid]

So a pressure washer engine?

fixed speed carb?

Post a pic of your carb, and the engine shaft..
I have a weird feeling your shaft might not be
usable for a cent clutch or TC at all.. (I hope I'm wrong though)

Some fixed speed carbs can be converted to a moveable butterfly easily
(by just removing a piece)
others need to be modified a bit more and yet some require a replacement carb to run a variable throttle setup.

'sid

 

[flowerdave]

got pics

here are pics of the carb and shaft. hope you can help me out sorry the carb pic is sideways

 

[950speed]

Ok so you could make your own arm, doesn’t look like it ever had one, it just was a get speed and relied on the govoner to maintain that speed. Anyway if you make your own arm, make the pivot point on the bracket that is painted towards wth the green arrow

The spring with the green arrow, it would connect to the throttle arm, but don’t stretch it to get there because they would be adding throttle, you wouldn’t have idle

But ask sid he knows probably the most about this

 

[itsid]

perfect!
thank you..

shaft is straight, keyed and appears to be well long enough for a clutch/TC
I hope it's 3/4" in diameter which is more than likely (but not given I'm afraid)


And the carb is not a fixed speed either..
see the red lever.. that actuates the black cam and thus the first butterfly?
that's the choke lever..
and behind its black cam sits a similar black cam (connected to a spring and a rod)
THAT is your throttle cam (and the second butterfly in the carb)

the rod is actuated by a governor lever that itself is connected to the governor arm
prodruding through the crankcase somewhere under the tank..

that governor lever is what you have to set with your throttle cable
it might be locked at that point since you said it's fixed speed...
but that's not a big deal to convert.

Remove the tank and post a pic of what's going on (can't find a pic online)
and we can talk you through.

In case you want to remove the governor
(cracking up the crank case, actually removing the governor!)
to gain a few rpms and thus a bit of additional speed;

the throttle cable would indeed just actuate the the throttle cam (second black thingy on the carb) directly..
but you mustn't try that with the governor in place.

your choice if you want to run with or without governor,
but that decides where you need to attach the cable to,
and consequently what the next steps would need to be.

But the good news is: your engine is easily convertable to a kart/mini bike engine as is

'sid

 

[flowerdave]

thanks

you guys rock, i search and searched yesterday on this , then i found this forum. i will take the tank off and post a pic of the govenor area later today when i can get to it. i measured the shaft and it is 3/4 any ideas on clutch? there is a large sprocket on axle that i will get pic of also
Thanks again for the help getting this project going. my grandson is 12 and he has helped me clean the frame up so its our time together.
Dave

 

[itsid]

Well, if the gearing is in order a maxtorque clutch serves you well..
but if you want you could also add a Torque Converter instead
a series 30 clone (off ebay for example ~60 bucks) is well worth the money..
better acceleration much better hill climbing abilities and even slightly higher top speed
compared to a cent clutch.

measure the chain pitch (distance between two adjacent teeth on the sprocket)
to know what size chain you should go with (likely either 3/8" or 1/2")

'sid

 

[flowerdave]

more pics

here is the top view, do i hook up to govenor lever with cable and also how hard is it to disconect the govenor

 

[JTSpeedDemon]

Your throttle cable needs to hook up to that arm, that arm is connected to the governor inside the crankcase. To disconnect the governor, drain the oil, unbolt the sidecover and slide it off. Pry off the governor inside, remove the washer behind it, cut off the governor arm, put everything back together, and that's basically it.

 

[J.S.@SMS]

It's not that hard to remove the governor. Except for the little clip that holds the gear on, those are a pain. It looks like a Honda clone engine to me, so you might be able to use a gc160 throttle control plate, if you still want the governor installed.

 

[flowerdave]

will taking the governor out produce a big difference? is it worth it?

 

[JTSpeedDemon]

Well, that depends.....
Removing the governor will allow your engine to rev significantly higher, thus giving higher top speed. But then you run the risk of blowing up the connecting rod or flywheel, and/or simply screwing up the internals.
The only real way to remedy this is to put in a billet aluminum con rod and flywheel, which will allow you to rev the engine much higher, much safer.
But I am fairly sure there are no such billet parts on the market for Homelite 179cc.
Since very few people choose an engine like that for a go kart, we don't know very much about how well the internals will hold up to high rpm(probably not very well, if at all). the connecting rod will probably go very quickly.
So I would suggest leaving the governor in.

 

[Dingocat]

Well, that depends.....
Removing the governor will allow your engine to rev significantly higher, thus giving higher top speed. But then you run the risk of blowing up the connecting rod or flywheel, and/or simply screwing up the internals.
The only real way to remedy this is to put in a billet aluminum con rod and flywheel, which will allow you to rev the engine much higher, much safer.
But I am fairly sure there are no such billet parts on the market for Homelite 179cc.
Since very few people choose an engine like that for a go kart, we don't know very much about how well the internals will hold up to high rpm(probably not very well, if at all). the connecting rod will probably go very quickly.
So I would suggest leaving the governor in.

Most engines won't even rev high enough with the stock valve springs to get to a point where they'd blow a rod. Other than tecumseh's but those are special

 

[flowerdave]

think im going to see how lame it is with the govenor on . if it is too slow i will pull it out nothing to lose then thanks

 

[itsid]

it's by far not lame with the governor still installed..
it's just a little bit easier (and quicker) with it removed

As the guys above explained, that engine is a real treat for it not offering an adjustable speed, it luckily still has everything as it needs to be to add a speed control

there are plenty of videos on youtube showing how to install a remote throttle..
one I liked particulary well I couldn't find atm (so I can't post you my favourite link I'm afraid... will look again and add it later when found)
it's nice because there wasn't any need to buy anything but the throttle cable itself and a hollow adjuster screw, the rest was home made.

IIRC it was a yellow clone... nevermind..

The governor arm btw is NOT connected to the governor..
in fact many don't even remove it at all when removing the governor;
(I'd rather remove it and plug the hole tbh)

And the reason it's easier with the governor removed is simple..
the revband on your engine is quite narrow..
1400 rpms is all you get to control your speed
since the clutch fully locks at around 2200 rpm and below that heats up and eventually
glazes over (and burns out)
you need to stay above 2200 rpm to prevent that.

With the governor removed the same thing holds true,
but your valves start floating at around 5000 or 5500 rpms
so you get another 1400 - 1900 rpm of revband to control your speed.

And that can be added both ways
(as the capability to move slower and cruise down the alley at walking paces)
or to increase top speed.. or a mix of both

The more choices you have for what speed you're going at,
the easier it is to get used to a vehicle.

(if you ask me.. I vote for removing the governor, then gearing slightly lower to be able to slow down a notch and still gain higher top speed than with the governor)

And since JT brought it up:
it's very unlikely that your conrod or flywheel will fail just because you removed the governor..
it's not impossible, just unseen so far

It's indeed the heavy valve springs (kicking the rpm to above 7000) that can make the conrod and flywheel fail in short order (well the resulting rpms to be precise)...
but since you haven't installed any.. there is very little to worry about IMHO.

'sid

 

[JTSpeedDemon]

And since JT brought it up:
it's very unlikely that your conrod or flywheel will fail just because you removed the governor..
it's not impossible, just unseen so far

Yes it is unlikely, but it is a very unproven engine. Worse than Tecumsehs for all I know.

 

[itsid]

Well tecumsehs don't mind being revved up to 5500 rpms at all..
in fact they are quality wise superior to any predator out there

They have crappy carbs and spare parts are terribly expensive, that's why some hate them
but the internals of a tecumseh are quality-wise comparable to Briggs or Subarus etc...

If I had to make a wild guess the 179cc here is about as good or bad as a Predator or Ducar or Lifan.
and they too rarely ever seen failing at 5k rpms
(frankly.. I still know not a single example of any engine failing at that rpm (not caused by the governor still in place that is))

The only manufacturer I know making a 179cc clone enigne btw is RATO
and guess what RATO is known to make as well.. (hint: horror fraud relabelled 212cc )

I can't tell if it's indeed a rato engine.. looks like it could going by the rato air shroud style..
but I frankly don't know.

Personally I'd trust it as much
as I'd trust any predator or Ducar
or other decent quality clone around

And thus, I'd feel perfectly safe removing the governor without even touching the conrod or flywheel.
(if that'd be a wise decision or not would have to be seen then )
that's why I'd still stand by
"highly unlikely.. not impossible"

'sid

 

[J.S.@SMS]

I thought that I recognized that starter cover. I have a RATO engine on my minibike, that had to be rebuilt at the 20 hour mark, and was out of warranty. Turns out that the center ring was upside down and in the top slot, and the top ring was in the middle. Personally, I'm not a fan.

 

[flowerdave]

well ,i put it back together,started it again and the float bowl overfilled and flooded the carb so now i have to take it apart to clean it all out, the fun of buying a used unseen engine thanks for your help. im sure ill be back on the forums for more help