Exactly what I meant it to be. The idea that the current Sears Repair Agreement is either an extended warranty or a waste of money is a concept held onto by those who either want the service departments to profit or are overwhemingly ignorant. It wasn't that long ago that a lady who visited my store got upset with me for offering to send a contract home with her so that she could read it and make an informed decision rather than relying on what she had heard. The basis of her anger- she claimed to have sold the same contract when she worked for Montgomery Ward. I'm sorry, but thinking that a currently offered contract has no difference from a contract offered 5 or 10 years in the past is ignorant enough, why add to it by confusing two different companies. Part of my job so far has been to research what offers are made by my competitors to "enhance" the manufacturer's warranty. I have found that, for the most part, what rcbe says is true- extended warranties are a waste of time and not worth considering. I have also found (both by reading about the differences and buying the contracts) that the Sears contracts offer enough added protection to be at least considered. Sears had a reputation in the past for service after the sale. Those of us now in the company would like to get that reputation back, but a lawsuit happy America has made it so that we have to have a written contract to override the manufacturer's warranty. The only other option is to increase all the prices to include the coverage whether you like it or not. If we did that, we may as well close our doors, because we want you to have a choice and not become like so many tire shops that advertise "free flat repair" when they should say "road hazard warranty included in price- live with it." I only advise that every person considering a purchase also consider the coverage. Read it, make yourself informed, and make your own choice. Just don't take your product back to the store five months after following ignorant advice trying to demand a refund. It's not gonna happen, because you decided to cut the retailer loose from all responsibility at the ninety day mark.

The question was posed in 2009. It's now 2019. I expect most prolly everyone solved their problem by getting a new lawmower. But since you are here.... I have a hand-me-down Craftsman with a 16.5HP Kohler engine. After I changed the fuel filter the thing started stalling out on hills, etc. Same places. Same everything. It drove me nuts so I came to places like this for a clue. IF you are having the stalling problem after changing the filter...get the right filter. Heck, I went to a local mower shop to get the right filter and the owner refused to sell me one. Said I had the BEST filter already. Jeez. So I went elsewhere and got the right filter....same as the one I replaced and today...no problems. This is not all good bekez I had a new Cub Cadet all picked out. Dang! Listen...the right filter is on Amazon. So if you messed up like I did and got the one they said would work...the larger one...then go back to the smaller one: Kohler Engines 25 050 21-S Fuel Filter If you can't find it by the number...get one that looks like it and fits the Kohler. Just that simple. Good luck! My good deed for the day.

On mine (Craftsman LT2000, 18 hp, B&S 31C707 engine) the choke was stuck closed. Raising the choke control up closes the choke, but when the lever was moved down for mowing after warm up, the choke did not open. So it died, smoked, etc. Deciding not to push it open every time, and deciding adding a string control was silly, I added a 25 cent spring from Ace Hardware; there was already a hole in the top part of the choke butterfly shaft, so I drilled a small hole in the reddish plastic housing, and ran the spring to that, works great now. I had read about others shaving down the shaft to make its diameter slightly smaller, but I like my fix better.

This is a long post, and I greatly appreciate any assistance, so thank you in advance for reading this! I started out building a Craftsman-style home but had to change plans. Our new home will not be Craftsman in design but I want to give it Craftsman touches as much as possible using my existing furnishings and adding to them where necessary. I am trying to determine whether to go with a ceiling height of 9’ or 10’ and, to the extent I can in advance, how best to place furnishings and wall decor we currently own. What will play a part in determining ceiling height (in addition to window light, room size, etc.) will be what is going into the room in terms of existing furnishings and the “feeling” I want to try to create. That is why I am asking for help here. Problem: What ceiling height and furniture placement are best in this great room that is 18 ft wide x 12-1/2 ft deep? (Please see photos 2 and 3 below that are the model home unfurnished and then furnished.) It is not my style (which is Craftsman) but you can see the room size and window configuration. This room does have a 10’ foot ceiling, but I could make ours 9’. (However, given the open plan, my DR and kitchen ceilings would then also have to be 9’.) It is clearly not the cozy Craftsman look that I love, but I want to make it cozier to the extent possible. I struggle with how to place my existing furniture and will likely have to purchase more furniture and accessories to fill this room in. (Please see photo 1 below of my current Craftsman furnishings and placement, which were purchased for a much smaller living area.) Also, I don't know what size rug to get, but I’m sure that my current rug is too small at 5’7” x 7’11”. I will have a Craftsman style mantle and would like the furniture grouped around this, but the room is so wide that the couch and chairs would need to be pulled away from the walls a lot and ”floated” in the room. So many questions!!! — If I float the furniture to move it toward the mantle, what do I do with all the space behind the furniture? — Is there a better room arrangement that will still keep the mantle the focal point? — Should I keep the 10 ft ceilings and higher windows in the great room, kitchen, and DR or lower them to 9’ for a more Craftsman feel but lose some of the light? — What size rug is best? Photo 1 Photo 2 Photo 3