# Proper oil level in a B&S engine



## mtn man (Aug 1, 2004)

This post doesn't rank anywhere near Paul's bad day, but I just wanted to follow up on an issue I raised a while ago in an earlier post. I asked about a few problems I was having with my Rally lawn tractor, and bemoaned the fact that I had no owner's manual for guidance. Some kind member of this forum (I forget exactly which one) provided a link to the Briggs & Stratton website, where I downloaded an owner's manual for my engine. (I still need an OM for the tractor itself, but having one for the engine is a great start!)

I was surprised to see that B&S recommnds measuring the oil level by screwing down the dipstick all the way -- you do not rest the stick on top of the filler tube. That certainly explains how and why I overfilled my engine with too much oil.

Still haven't gotten a chance to disassemble the mowing deck to deal with the cracked spindle, but I thought some folks might like to know that for at least some engines, B&S recommends screwing down the dipstick all the way. 

On a completely unrelated subject, here in Vermont, we've already had a very wet summer, and today we're getting the remnants of Tropical storm Bonnie; on Sunday we're supposed to get the remnants of hurricane Charlie. Will we ever have three or four sunny days in a row? Oh well, so it goes.....


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## Chipmaker (Sep 16, 2003)

It must vary from model to model or application to application as I have three B & S all of which require oil level check with dip stick cap not screwed in. One is a 14 hp vertical and the other is a 6.5 horiz. and the other is a 5 hp vertical.


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## memmurphy (Sep 18, 2003)

Glad to hear we was able to help mtn man.  

My 1970's 4 HP B&S lawnmower with the treaded cap needs to be screwed in. My 1990's 6.0HP B&S lawnmower with the twist lock style also needs to be in and turned 1/4 turn (locked) according to the book. But the Kohler CV15 in my two year old Deere LT150 has a threaded cap and should be rested on the top threads to be measure correctly. I wish the manufacturers would make up their minds. :dazed: 

Mark


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