I cannot believe that someone suggested grinding off the rivets. If the bottom portion of the rivet falls down and gets caught by the magnet on your flywheel and you try to start it you are going to do some SERIOUS damage.
Here is the instructions DIRECT FROM BRIGGS & STRATTON:
This is a relatively simple process, but you have to be
VERY careful when doing this. The spring is long, under some tension and has sharp edges.
Anytime you are dealing with the manual rewind
starter assembly, there is risk of the spring coming out and possibly injuring yourself or others. If you do not feel comfortable performing this repair, I strongly suggest visiting one of our many authorized dealers in your area and have them do this for you.
You will have to remove the
gas tank to get at the rewind and blower housing. Remove the entire blower housing and rewind assembly and turn it upside down.
NOTE:You do not have to drill out the rivets to get to the back of the rewind assembly. This is only necessary if you are removing the
ENTIRE rewind assembly, (metal housing and all) and are separating it from the blower housing.
You'll need a pair of vise grips or a screw driver, some rewind
rope, a long thin sharp tip flexible object (the wire from a coat hanger may work) and a lighter handy.
- Take the pulley and start to turn it so that the rope becomes loose.
- Remove the rope.
- Once the pulley is all the way out, with the most tension, either use the screwdriver between the spokes of the pulley, or use the vise grips to hold the pulley in place; be careful not to place too much pressure on the vise grips, the plastic pulley may break!
- Make sure that the hole in the pulley lines up with the hole on the rewind assembly.
- Using the wire from the coat hanger, push the rope through the hole of the rewind and pulley. Pull the rope through the pulley and tie it off. Now use the lighter to burn the end of the rope to prevent the not from coming off.
- Now, remove the screwdriver or vise grips, while holding on to the pulley.
- SLOWLY let go of the pulley and the rope should feed back into the pulley as you do this.