First post, so thank you in advance for any info you may be able to provide.

I have a 9hp Craftsman snow blower (Tecumseh) that will not start. The first time I tried to start it this season it would not start and I noticed that everytime I pulled the starter cord it would spit some fuel out of the carb. The machine is 15 yrs old so I opted to just replace the carb and not bother trying to clean it or rebuild it. While I had it apart I also replaced the fuel line and added a filter since it did not have one. I've got it back together but it still won't start, doesn't even try to start. I pulled the spark plug out and checked for spark, it does and also seems to have compression. The wiring to the plastic 'key' and the shutoff switch on the throttle appear to be in ok condition and are hooked up.

It has fuel (maybe 4 or 5 months old), it has spark and there is no air filter so its getting plenty of air. What might I be missing??

 

When did you install the new carburetor and fuel line? Was is 4 or 5 months ago? If so it's possible your fuel has gummed up the new carburetor.

First get rid of all the old fuel and try fresh gasoline. The old gas may not have varnished but it has probably lost it's finer volatiles that make ignition easier.

After replacing the carb, fuel line and installing a filter did you check to see if fuel is making it to the carburetor? You can remove the bowl on the bottom and check for fuel. While the bowl is off you can gently raise and lower the float to see that it starts and stops the flow of fuel.

 

Try a few drops of fresh fuel in the carb see if it fires...

 

Thanks for the feedback, someone else had mentioned taking the plug out and putting a little fuel right in the cylinder, I tried that and it fired up on the second pull.

 

Did it continue to run or did it die soon after? If it died then you likely have a carburetor/fuel problem possibly caused by old fuel.