Posted: 8/15/2015 4:27:17 AM EDT
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My $300.00 Champion generator that sat for over a year just started with almost NO pull.
I turned the fuel on, waited a minute, put the choke to the first position, and when I went to pull the T-handle gently to prime it it FUCKING started! It wasn't even a full pull. I estimate that it was about six inches of starter and it just came to life. I've always had faith in that little genny but tonight it amazed me. I'm loaning it to a good friend (ARFcom member) tomorrow because his power is still out due to the storms we've had here in the Valley. I'm so glad that little genny is ready to help a Brother out. 
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I love my champion generator. It's seriously a tough little bastard that is very reasonable on gas consumption. I'd recommend them to anybody who doesn't want to spend the money on a honda. Glad you could help a friend out.
That being said, I would try not to make a habit of leaving it sitting for longer than a year. Personally I like to run it every 90 days(if unused in that time period) for 30 or so minutes under load. |
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bought a 7k Champion last month, Duel fuel, electric starter, 469 HP motor..
almost stole it from Costco.. 
got it out of the box and set up Thursday. oil, fuel, choke, hit the switch and turned over immediately. ran for an hour and put it in it's storage spot..ready for the next storm or Obama presidency.. |
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Snagged a 3500/4000 last year on sale at TS for $250. 110 or 220 output. Started on the first pull out of the box too. Ran it for 5 hours for break in then drained the fuel, changed the oil then pulled the plug and lightly oiled the top end. Prolly never need it now that it's ready to go.
I did not like the 10 volt fluctuation as tested on a meter with a moderate load. 113-124 volts every second (60 cycles ?). Will use it for running my 11 amp well pump, water heater, fans and lights only. I'll use my Honda 2000 inverter for the fridge, window shaker and more delicate stuff. PSA edit; Snag a Kill a Watt meter for around $20. Invaluable for configuring your load when running a genny. 
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Quoted:
I love my champion generator. It's seriously a tough little bastard that is very reasonable on gas consumption. I'd recommend them to anybody who doesn't want to spend the money on a honda. Glad you could help a friend out. That being said, I would try not to make a habit of leaving it sitting for longer than a year. Personally I like to run it every 90 days(if unused in that time period) for 30 or so minutes under load. This. Part of my quarterly preventive maintenance plan. |
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Quoted:
bought a 7k Champion last month, Duel fuel, electric starter, 469 HP motor.. almost stole it from Costco..
got it out of the box and set up Thursday. oil, fuel, choke, hit the switch and turned over immediately. ran for an hour and put it in it's storage spot..ready for the next storm or Obama presidency.. 469 HP? Wow! Sounds more like a race car
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Quoted:
469 HP? Wow! Sounds more like a race car Quoted:
Quoted:
bought a 7k Champion last month, Duel fuel, electric starter, 469 HP motor.. almost stole it from Costco..
got it out of the box and set up Thursday. oil, fuel, choke, hit the switch and turned over immediately. ran for an hour and put it in it's storage spot..ready for the next storm or Obama presidency.. 469 HP? Wow! Sounds more like a race car You could run a whole city block on that kind of power
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Quoted:
I love my champion generator. It's seriously a tough little bastard that is very reasonable on gas consumption. I'd recommend them to anybody who doesn't want to spend the money on a honda. Glad you could help a friend out. That being said, I would try not to make a habit of leaving it sitting for longer than a year. Personally I like to run it every 90 days(if unused in that time period) for 30 or so minutes under load. It winds up that he didn't need it. The power came on early yesterday morning. No big deal. I dug the genny out and now I have an excuse to run it under load for a while.
Do you think a 1000w portable heater for about 30 minutes will be good enough? Thanks. |
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Quoted:
It winds up that he didn't need it. The power came on early yesterday morning. No big deal. I dug the genny out and now I have an excuse to run it under load for a while.
Do you think a 1000w portable heater for about 30 minutes will be good enough? Thanks. Quoted:
Quoted:
I love my champion generator. It's seriously a tough little bastard that is very reasonable on gas consumption. I'd recommend them to anybody who doesn't want to spend the money on a honda. Glad you could help a friend out. That being said, I would try not to make a habit of leaving it sitting for longer than a year. Personally I like to run it every 90 days(if unused in that time period) for 30 or so minutes under load. It winds up that he didn't need it. The power came on early yesterday morning. No big deal. I dug the genny out and now I have an excuse to run it under load for a while.
Do you think a 1000w portable heater for about 30 minutes will be good enough? Thanks. I think that's easily enough. I usually just plug in a drill and zip tie it on for a half hour, or full up my compressed air tank. It really just needs to run under a load, I don't think you need to have it running under a max load. |
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Quoted:
I did not like the 10 volt fluctuation as tested on a meter with a moderate load. 113-124 volts every second That's not normal. A couple of suggestions: 1. Make sure you've got fresh, top-quality gas in it. 2. When it surges, try loosening the gas cap to see if the surge goes away. Gas caps that don't vent properly are pretty common. 3. Check to see that you've got plenty of oil in the crankcase. If the oil level is marginal, the low oil sensor can make the engine surge. |
