Gooserider said:
Somewhat off-topic, but while I know the Honda and Subaru-Robin OPE engines seem to be very high quality, and basically identical (I've been told most parts are interchangeable) - what about some of the Chinese "clone" engines that appear to be knockoff copies - such as the ones sold by Harbor Freight? Do you think they are any good, or are they something to be suspicious of?
Gooserider
I've got three of them (Chinese knock-offs). They'be been fine. I suspect, that when the time comes that I need parts, I'll be screwed. But, they were so cheap, I don't care.
All stuff from China can't be the same quality, and that is probably more of an issue. When you buy a Chinese engine on-sale, how do you know if it's from an old established Chinese company, or a new small company that might be gone by next year?
I was buying a lot of similar stuff during the Japanese invasion of cheap stuff in the 60s and 70s. Some was fantastic quality, and some was crap. Same thing now with Chinese.
Here's my recent experience.
I needed a small, lightweight portable generator to carry in my diesel truck. The reason being - to run my engine block heater when the truck was left parked in below zero temps with no electricity available.
I first bought a USA namebrand - from Coleman. They had a 1000 watt, inverter-based
generator that only weighs 20 lbs. which is pretty amazing. It cost near $500. I had it sitting here for a year and then finally, got to use it. It ran for 20 minutes, and then died (stopped making electricity). So, I called Coleman and explained the situation, thinking they might extend my warranty? Well, no. I then asked about repair parts - again "no", no parts available. I then asked for a wiring schematic so maybe, I could try to figure it out and fix myself- again, "no."
So, I had an almost new genset, with an American well-known namebrand - with zero support.
I sold it on Ebay for $50 and took my losses. It was a - Coleman Powermate 1000 Portable Generator and Battery Booster. The model number was PM0301010, serial # HH0360184.
Funny thing is, I still see a few around, for sale new on store-shelves and Coleman is now, out of business.
After that mess - I bought a Chinese 1000 watt genset. Four-stroke, overhead valve engine. It's heavier then the Coleman and weighs 45 lbs. I've used it a lot, and it's worked flawlessly. I paid $139 for it, brand new. When I got it, it had a few assembly flaws that I easily fixed. It appears to be a well engineered item that did not get the best assembly. It's well built, and a great buy. If it dies tomorrow, and I can't find parts, I'll either make them, or just buy another.
Since then, the local ALDI store where my wife goes grocery shopping had a sale on 3000 watt generators. Actually rated 3250 watts surge and have a 6.5 horsepower, overhead valve, four-stroke-cycle engine. $199 brand new! Considering someone made that thing in China, sold it at a profit, paid to ship it to the USA, and then, ALDI makes a profit- I find it amazing. It is very well built and I've run it maybe a total of 20 hours at full load. So far, it's been flawless.
Based on that, I bought a brand new 6.5 horsepower engine, again Chinese, just to use on something, sometime, when I get around to it. Could be a snowblower, could be a rototiller, logsplitter, who knows? It was made in the same Chinese company as my last genset, but I haven' t used it yet. I paid $139 for it, and for $10 more, I could of had electric start. It has a cast-iron cylinder liner and full, ball-bearing crankshaft support along with overhead valves and is CARB certified.
Many big namebrand engines, like Honda, Kawasaki, and Briggs & Stratton are either made in China, or have parts made in China. I suspect, since these Chinese companies already have the tooling, they are making knock-offs.
This stuff is hard to follow. Recently I bought some John Deere parts, over the counter from John Deere, and they were all made in China. I want to my Case-International tractor dealer to get some parts for my International Harvester tractor - and they were made in India and China. I bought some parts for my Tanaka gas-engine - made in China. I bought new injection nozzles for my Ford diesel truck - OEM, from Ford - and they were made in Italy (Stanadyne of Italy). I bought some new CAV injector nozzles for my 4310 Ford tractor - they came in Lucas-CAV boxes, but were made in China. Kind of hard to get away from.
