[sledman8002002]

I looked at the carb. It has a flat, square base. There appears to be no easy way to access it and no apparent means to manually drain the bowl, like with the larger inverters. That was a bit of bummer. I'll have to Google to see if there's some way to drop the bowl that isn't too difficult. I like to drain the carb completely and spray a bit of carb cleaner before buttoning everything up. I find that really helps prevent the carbs from gumming up when not used for a while.

Well that's different for a gen. I looked at Whimsey's pics, zoomed in and sure enough not what one would call a typical generator carb. From what I can tell, it comes across to me like a weedeater style carb (for lack of a better term). Those carbs work fine IMO, but yeah draining is/will be more of a hassle.
I looked to what the manual offers and found this...

 

[sledman8002002]

Your call here LaSwamp, speaking for myself, I'd keep the tank relativelly full (treated fuel), close the petcock, put a large rag underneath the carb to catch any fuel, then remove the line(s) from the carb.
While the fuel line(s) are off, pump the primer bulb a few times as well.

 

[LaSwamp]

Your call here LaSwamp, speaking for myself, I'd keep the tank relativelly full (treated fuel), close the petcock, put a large rag underneath the carb to catch any fuel, then remove the line(s) from the carb.
While the fuel line(s) are off, pump the primer bulb a few times as well.

That looks like the best way to clear out the bowl. I will shoot some carb cleaner up in there and it should be good to go. That's one odd looking carb for a 4-stroke inverter. It seems to work fine, though, for what it is.

 

[whimsey29]

I'm about to do the initial break in oil change. It'll have 4+ hours of varying loads. I'll see how much glitter is in the oil. I'll do another ~4 hour run on conventional oil again and see how the glitter is, then go to Pennzoil Platinum 10W-30. 1 quart of oil will give you 4 oil changes unless you have an oil burner. Hopefully my breaking in method will minimize oil usage between changes. Other than the one 839W heater load that caused a shut down, it has run fine with <800W loads for 45 minutes and more. I guess when they say running watts are 800, they mean not 1 watt more . I'm most likely to exercise it once a month when I do my 5500W gen and snowblower. The E10 fuel, no E0 here, is now stabilized with Marine 360 Stabil. It's worked out a lot better than non stabilized fuel. The other option is to run it dry then run some canned gas till that runs dry, then store it. LaSwamp, did you swap out the Torch plug for the NGK before you ran it?

 

[LaSwamp]

As part of my prepping procedure, I replace the stock plug with an NGK. All of the inverters I've bought all came with Torch plugs, as well as the Firman generator I bought in 2018. I don't even run new inverters with the Torch plugs. I also remove the spark arrestor. The climate here is very wet and humid, so I don't need one and the things look restrictive as all get-out. Since it's going to be warmer today, I'm considering pulling out one of my other scopes and taking a reading from the Sportsman. I used the Rigol yesterday but that scope seems to have issues with the floating neutrals on the inverters. Except for the GN-400i, which is supposed to have a floating neutral but I suspect it might actually be bonded. I had read a review on the model that indicated that when the guy pulled off the front panel, he saw the neutral was bonded. That would explain why I've never had any problems taking scope readings on it with the Rigol, whereas with the other inverters, it's been difficult to get a stable reading. It's not a big deal, but it would be nice to know for sure if that's the case.

A friend of mine has asked to borrow one of my inverters for the F1 races in Alabama this upcoming Spring. They picnic in some place overlooking the track from what I can gather. He plans to power a flatscreen TV and some phone chargers. I told him he should just use the Sportsman since he should be well under 400 watts and it's a lot easier to haul around, but he seemed skeptical about it. The Pulsar is going to be overkill for what he needs an inverter for. We'll see. I'll let him use the Pulsar if he really wants to, but I don't know why he would be so adamant about it.

 

[iowagold]

I finished preparing the Sportsman inverter. It started right up. It's not loud, but it's a tiny little engine. The meter showed it was outputting 125 VAC at 59.9 Hz with no load. I put the scope on it. I have a Rigol scope, but it's a little weird. For some reason, inverters with floating neutrals really seem to confuse it somewhat. I think it's a grounding issue of some kind. It's finicky about probes. Next time I take a reading, I will use the Hanmatek. It seems the least fussy of the scopes I have. I was able to stabilize the signal and this is what I got:

View attachment 13573

That was what I was expecting. It's a typical inverter signal. With modest loads, it should do fine.

I looked at the carb. It has a flat, square base. There appears to be no easy way to access it and no apparent means to manually drain the bowl, like with the larger inverters. That was a bit of bummer. I'll have to Google to see if there's some way to drop the bowl that isn't too difficult. I like to drain the carb completely and spray a bit of carb cleaner before buttoning everything up. I find that really helps prevent the carbs from gumming up when not used for a while.

well the wave looks ok
watch the carb cleaner that has a primer that may not stand the carb cleaner?

depends on the material used for the primer.

yea looks like a 4 stroke weed wacker engine carby.

for charging phones that might be the ticket!
and just running LED lights at a remote location might be cool for bug out.

 

[LaSwamp]

well the wave looks ok
watch the carb cleaner that has a primer that may not stand the carb cleaner?

depends on the material used for the primer.

yea looks like a 4 stroke weed wacker engine carby.

for charging phones that might be the ticket!
and just running LED lights at a remote location might be cool for bug out.

The bulb looks pretty high up, so I'm not sure the carb cleaner could get up in there. But I'll look out for it just in case. I didn't think about that. I didn't want fuel sitting in the bowl since there's always still fuel in the bowl even when the engine won't run. I want to take some scope readings with my other scope since the Rigol is giving me trouble.

One of the posters here had mentioned using something like the Sportsman to run lighting while he's setting up the main generator. For that, I think it would be ideal.

 

[sledman8002002]

watch the carb cleaner

I agree. I only use brake clean myself, but it is NON-chlorinated as chlorinated brake clean will attack some plastics/o-rings IME. I'm not aware if carb cleaner sprays offer the same in regards to chlorinated and non. Paul?

I didn't want fuel sitting in the bowl since there's always still fuel in the bowl even when the engine won't run.

I cant be sure, but judging from what I have seen in a pic you wont find a typical fuel bowl like you would with a standard gen carb. I imagine what you will find tho is a diaphram/fuel pump in the carb base.
This makes a good case for adding just a wee bit of 2 stroke oil to a low amount of fuel right before storage to aid in keeping the diaphram pliable for long term.

 

[Dutchy491]

A friend of mine has asked to borrow one of my inverters for the F1 races in Alabama this upcoming Spring. They picnic in some place overlooking the track from what I can gather. He plans to power a flatscreen TV and some phone chargers. I told him he should just use the Sportsman since he should be well under 400 watts and it's a lot easier to haul around, but he seemed skeptical about it. The Pulsar is going to be overkill for what he needs an inverter for. We'll see. I'll let him use the Pulsar if he really wants to, but I don't know why he would be so adamant about it.

Because he wants to make coffee …and keep his beers cold too 😬

 

[LaSwamp]

A friend of mine has asked to borrow one of my inverters for the F1 races in Alabama this upcoming Spring. They picnic in some place overlooking the track from what I can gather. He plans to power a flatscreen TV and some phone chargers. I told him he should just use the Sportsman since he should be well under 400 watts and it's a lot easier to haul around, but he seemed skeptical about it. The Pulsar is going to be overkill for what he needs an inverter for. We'll see. I'll let him use the Pulsar if he really wants to, but I don't know why he would be so adamant about it.

Because he wants to make coffee …and keep his beers cold too 😬

Lol, I don't think they are packing that much equipment and appliances out there. Not just to watch races for a few hours.

 

[iowagold]

Lol, I don't think they are packing that much equipment and appliances out there. Not just to watch races for a few hours.

race day is a BIG thing in some areas.
a few large corporate folks here in Iowa cater and more for the events here a newton "Iowa speedway".
and all day event for sure.
kinda like the football games and the tailgating.
it is a thing in most areas.
a BIG mixer before the main event.
food drinks and more.
last race event i went to back in 2008 they had a live band as well.
party and food before the race and BIG party after till 3 am.

yup gens are handy for that for sure.
they had a LARGE cat trailer gen set, placed in the parking lot
for no noise at the event area.
BIG lights..
some where i have pix from that event.

 

[OrlyP]

As Paul put it, I think tailgating best encapsulates that type of activity. We do that from time to time but it's more of an overland camping setup than an actual event. We make do with the car's 12V aux output and an DC-to-AC inverter to run the essentials (like a laptop when I had to do remote work). But we do so only sparingly because the only way to charge the car battery is to start the engine. You can't do that when tailgating for obvious reasons.... or the smoked chicken breast will taste like BBQ spice with a hint of Diesel.

 

[sledman8002002]

race day is a BIG thing in some areas

You bet. I dont live near it now, but up until a few short years ago I was always living within a 10 to 20 mile radius of Mosport. Pretty much every long weekend from May thru Sept was a race weekend of some sort. The infield was a constant 2, 3 and 4 day party. Good times, great memories LOL.
A little gen like this 20 lb Sportsman would be a handy dandy item to power a TV to watch those many areas of the track you couldnt see.

He plans to power a flatscreen TV and some phone chargers.

Ask him to bring the TV over one day and show him. It might even impress him enough to purchase one too the next time they're on sale.

 

[iowagold]

You bet. I dont live near it now, but up until a few short years ago I was always living within a 10 to 20 mile radius of Mosport. Pretty much every long weekend from May thru Sept was a race weekend of some sort. The infield was a constant 2, 3 and 4 day party. Good times, great memories LOL.
A little gen like this 20 lb Sportsman would be a handy dandy item to power a TV to watch those many areas of the track you couldnt see.

Ask him to bring the TV over one day and show him. It might even impress him enough to purchase one too the next time they're on sale.

better yet have him buy the extra tickets and swamp will supply the gen set!
🤣
some of those tickets to the events are up there!
they also make those battery units the size of a small cooler you could use in the stands.

 

[sledman8002002]

better yet have him buy the extra tickets and swamp will supply the gen set!

Of course! I wasnt thinking

some of those tickets to the events are up there!

I know eh! A bunch of us used to go to Montreal for F1 years ago, even tho we camped, once the weekend cost crossed the $300 threshold that was it for most of us.
I was told the following year that I didnt go, there were pop machines scattered throughout the park that were instead filled with cans of beer
One of my buddies wives went ballistic on him as I guess the machine also had a credit card swipe...LOL

 

[Bluwolf]

You bet. I dont live near it now, but up until a few short years ago I was always living within a 10 to 20 mile radius of Mosport. Pretty much every long weekend from May thru Sept was a race weekend of some sort. The infield was a constant 2, 3 and 4 day party. Good times, great memories LOL.

I spent a LOT of time at Mosport (it's called Canadian Tire Motorsport Park now, isn't it?) when I lived in Canada and running a race team. Started out up there working at the Bridgestone Racing School in Shannonville. Met my wife up there when we hired her to work timing and scoring for a 24 hour endurance race. Yes, lots of good memories...

 

[Dutchy491]

Very cool. I’m midway between both parks and have been to both over the years…😉

 

[sledman8002002]

I spent a LOT of time at Mosport (it's called Canadian Tire Motorsport Park now, isn't it?) when I lived in Canada and running a race team. Started out up there working at the Bridgestone Racing School in Shannonville. Met my wife up there when we hired her to work timing and scoring for a 24 hour endurance race. Yes, lots of good memories...

Oh wow, it really is a small world
Yeah, that name rings a bell, I'm not sure when the name change took place, I recall it being around the time Ron Fellows became a part owner? To any of us that grew up in the area it's still known as Mosport.
Dutchy, when we had that vicious storm in May ('22), I was told it reeked havoc during that race weekend. I'm glad I wasnt there, it was bad enough here!
Shonnonville! More memories indeed! A member of our little group back in the mid '80s spent a few years contesting in the Super Bike class. Great track for viewing, lots of excitement provided with McMurter, Robbins and Mercier!
The racing school was for open wheel yes? I run down to the Shannonville region every few months, I hear the track is/has expanded. I'll try to remember to drive by and maybe snap a pic or two.

 

[Bluwolf]

Oh wow, it really is a small world
Yeah, that name rings a bell, I'm not sure when the name change took place, I recall it being around the time Ron Fellows became a part owner? To any of us that grew up in the area it's still known as Mosport.
Dutchy, when we had that vicious storm in May ('22), I was told it reeked havoc during that race weekend. I'm glad I wasnt there, it was bad enough here!
Shonnonville! More memories indeed! A member of our little group back in the mid '80s spent a few years contesting in the Super Bike class. Great track for viewing, lots of excitement provided with McMurter, Robbins and Mercier!
The racing school was for open wheel yes? I run down to the Shannonville region every few months, I hear the track is/has expanded. I'll try to remember to drive by and maybe snap a pic or two.

Yes, when my wife and I talk about it, we call it Mosport. I took my wife (at the time girlfriend) for a few laps around Mosport once. After we were back in the pits I asked her what she thought. She said, how is that any different than you drive on the street Although she did almost lose her lunch the first time we crested turn 2. If you've never been through turn 2 in a car it feels like you're driving off a cliff. Watching it from the infield or on TV does not do it justice.

The racing school was Camaros, Formula 2000s, and race bikes. There was also a high performance driving school that used Nissan 280Zs. Don't know if you knew it, but Ron Fellows used to be a ringer the Nascar guys would bring in for road courses.

 

[sledman8002002]

@LaSwamp, my bad for continually steering your post away from the Sportsman 1000.

Yes, when my wife and I talk about it, we call it Mosport.

Just curious, as in Mos(s)port or? That usually creates a good discussion LOL

If you've never been through turn 2 in a car it feels like you're driving off a cliff. Watching it from the infield or on TV does not do it justice.

LOL! I could tell a story or 2... Good stuff!

Ron Fellows used to be a ringer the Nascar guys would bring in for road courses.

Yes, with him being an Ont native we knew it. Always rooting for him. Cant forget Boris and Tag either! A whack of us were (and still are) hoping to see Mosport getting the elite Cup cars. Last I heard it was not looking good.
IMSA always provided excitement, sadly I never did witness F1 while it was there.