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Old 09-14-2020, 04:25 PM   #1
ericr
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Default Wisdom of Stopping Engine by Choking It Out

is this practice harmful to the engine in any way? Sure makes re-starting easier, though.....
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Old 09-14-2020, 04:43 PM   #2
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Default Re: Wisdom of Stopping Engine by Choking It Out

I can't see where filling the combustion chambers and exhaust with a fuel-rich mixture would be in the best interests of your engine.
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Old 09-14-2020, 04:55 PM   #3
Chuck Sea/Tac
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Default Re: Wisdom of Stopping Engine by Choking It Out

Sounds like an old wives tale. Wether it would actually wash the cylinders a little, I don’t know, it it makes me cringe just thinking about it.!
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Old 09-14-2020, 05:04 PM   #4
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Default Re: Wisdom of Stopping Engine by Choking It Out

I wouldn't. As mentioned it will wash the oil off of the cylinders. Any excess gas is going to end up in the oil pan, eventually diluting the oil. No not a good idea.
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Old 09-14-2020, 07:44 PM   #5
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Default Re: Wisdom of Stopping Engine by Choking It Out

My mechanic father often said only a novice would do such a foolish trick.
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Old 09-14-2020, 08:16 PM   #6
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Default Re: Wisdom of Stopping Engine by Choking It Out

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With aircraft reciprocating engines, the FAA instructs that the proper way to shut the engine down is to close off the fuel and let the engine run until it stops. There is a good reason for doing it this way.

When you 'choke the engine to death' your introducing too much fuel into the combustion chamber. It washes the oil off the cylinder walls, which increases ring/cylinder wear at the next start up. The extra fuel can also run past the rings and dilute the oil in the crankcase.
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Old 09-14-2020, 08:20 PM   #7
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Default Re: Wisdom of Stopping Engine by Choking It Out

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My mechanic father often said only a novice would do such a foolish trick.
Totally agree.
But why did he have to say this often??
Were his kids never listening to him?
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Old 09-14-2020, 09:08 PM   #8
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Default Re: Wisdom of Stopping Engine by Choking It Out

A healthy "A" engine is the easiest engine to start I have ever experienced. Someone, can't remember whow, on this forum once said, "an "A" engine wants to run". That has been my experience. The only time I choke mine is on the first start of the day.
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Old 09-14-2020, 09:19 PM   #9
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Default Re: Wisdom of Stopping Engine by Choking It Out

Choking would not be good to stop the engine. If you're going to choke, then why not when starting?
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Old 09-14-2020, 09:34 PM   #10
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Default Re: Wisdom of Stopping Engine by Choking It Out

growing up on the farm in the 1950s-60s, we had a 1938 Allis-Chalmers styled WC tractor.
sometime before my memories began, the magneto ground which stopped the engine broke or otherwise went south.
my Grandpa, a pragmatic non-mechanic, simply choked the engine to stop it every time he used it.
that tractor worked hard up into the 1970s and saw limited service into the 80's.
the engine was never taken apart and did not smoke or knock.
last time I saw it, a buyer was driving it home across the fields from Grandpa's estate auction in 1984.
I suppose it's comparing apples to oranges, but evidently choking it didn't do too much damage.
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Old 09-14-2020, 09:36 PM   #11
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Default Re: Wisdom of Stopping Engine by Choking It Out

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Originally Posted by 1930-Pickup View Post
Totally agree.
But why did he have to say this often??
Were his kids never listening to him?
He said it often to his customers, not his kids!
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Old 09-14-2020, 10:30 PM   #12
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Default Re: Wisdom of Stopping Engine by Choking It Out

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My mechanic father often said only a novice would do such a foolish trick.
hhmmm....what did he think about turning the ignition off and on while driving to make it backfire?
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Old 09-14-2020, 11:31 PM   #13
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Default Re: Wisdom of Stopping Engine by Choking It Out

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hhmmm....what did he think about turning the ignition off and on while driving to make it backfire?
He said only idiots do that!
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Old 09-15-2020, 12:06 AM   #14
Chuck Sea/Tac
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Default Re: Wisdom of Stopping Engine by Choking It Out

Yes, but those idiots were having fun. Assuming they didn’t have to buy the new muffler!
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Old 09-15-2020, 12:43 AM   #15
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Default Re: Wisdom of Stopping Engine by Choking It Out

I remember back in the day seeing folks rev up their engine real fast and shuting the ignition off. Especially in the winter time.
I remember a guy shutting is tractor off at full throttle when it was belted to a silo filler.
It kept turning over a long time with the silo filler acting as a flywheel.
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Old 09-15-2020, 08:17 AM   #16
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Default Re: Wisdom of Stopping Engine by Choking It Out

[QUOTE=Chuck Sea/Tac;1931750]Yes, but those idiots were having fun. Assuming they didn’t have to buy the new muffler![/QUOTE

They should have had to work for it.

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Old 09-15-2020, 08:31 AM   #17
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Default Re: Wisdom of Stopping Engine by Choking It Out

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Originally Posted by Chuck Sea/Tac View Post
Yes, but those idiots were having fun. Assuming they didn’t have to buy the new muffler!
The expense of a new muffler often showed how stupid they really were! Driving the family car was fun, damaging it showed a lack of common sense !
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Old 09-15-2020, 11:14 AM   #18
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Default Re: Wisdom of Stopping Engine by Choking It Out

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is this practice harmful to the engine in any way? Sure makes re-starting easier, though.....
I pull the choke and release it after 2 turn overs and it's running! IMO you might have issues that need you attention if your having problems starting. When my grandsons 1/4 midgets wouldn't start with 1 or2 cranks I would pull the plug and replace it, the old one I then would clean, file the ground flat, gap and it was ready. These engines where Honda 4 hp engined stock, race illegal they put out over 8 hp on a dyno ! Fun times!!
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Old 09-15-2020, 12:08 PM   #19
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Default Re: Wisdom of Stopping Engine by Choking It Out

when starting was with a hand crank loading the cylinders with fuel was prep for starting, hoping it would start on spark----old time lore along with "kicking the tires" which is leftover from clincher rims, kicking them to see that the bead is seated
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Old 09-15-2020, 03:46 PM   #20
BRENT in 10-uh-C
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Default Re: Wisdom of Stopping Engine by Choking It Out

Quote:
Originally Posted by Ruth View Post
I wouldn't. As mentioned it will wash the oil off of the cylinders. Any excess gas is going to end up in the oil pan, eventually diluting the oil. No not a good idea.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Chuck Sea/Tac View Post
Sounds like an old wives tale. Whether it would actually wash the cylinders a little, I don’t know, it it makes me cringe just thinking about it.!

Just to muddy up the waters here a bit. Ponder these thoughts for a bit;


.. ~ If gasoline typically evaporates when exposed to heat, what happens when a teaspoon, --or maybe two drips into a gallon of hot oil? Does it evaporate or does it dilute the oil?

.. ~ If it does dilute the oil, how much does it dilute it, -how long does the dilution last, -and what are the effects of this amount of dilution??

.. ~ If it does not evaporate before the engine cools, does it evaporate the next time the engine is at operating temperature? Did it evaporate in one or more cylinders due to a hot piston, or cylinder wall, -or a combustion chamber roof giving off heat just as the engine stopped running?

.. ~ If the gasoline finds its way past the first ring gap, and goes to the second ring gap, -is there enough liquid gasoline left to actually dilute any residual oil on the cylinder walls? If it does dilute the oil as the fuel drips, does it dilute the entire 360° circumference of the cylinder bore, or maybe one small little area?

.. ~ When an engine stops operating due to the ignition source stopping, what happens to the gasoline/air mixture left unburned in each cylinder?

.. ~ When a running engine is stopped, how long does it take before rust starts forming on the cylinder walls and piston rings. What happens to that rust when the engine is restarted?



I guess I view much of this question as we have always been told not to do this because it sounds believable that it would harm something, ...but in the grande scheme of things, I truly believe there is little, -if any, noticeable damage done using the choke to stop an engine from running.



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