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I "inherited" a lawn mower when I moved to a new house. It's a kubota walk-behind one. Unfortunately I have no idea how to stop the engine. There's no usual lever for stopping the fuel on the handle. There's only a choke/fast/slow/stop switch, which regulates the speed of the wheels/engine, but "stop" doesn't seem to stop it.

There's some marketing paper for the mower, but I couldn't find any manual.

Any ideas what should I look for?

Edit: As requested - handle (The left-most, unreadable position is "choke") (click for a slightly larger version): enter image description here

Mower: enter image description here

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It's probably a problem with throttle cable adjustment. If the cable has rusted so it won't move properly, it needs to be replaced. Otherwise, over time, reefing on it may have pulled the lower end through the bracket so it isn't pulling all the way past Idle to the Stop position. There also should be a Magneto/Electronic Ignition Kill Switch that cuts the ignition when the throttle is put all the way to the stop position.

If this is the Honda GVX160 engine, here's a representative of instructions on how to properly adjust the cable and possible location of the kill switch (yours may vary by serial number range or if it's the Kohler engine, a whole different mechanism). If the cable is misadjusted, the kill switch doesn't operate, also if dirt got in there or the wire fell off, the switch won't operate.

(The engine manuals are readily available online, look up by Engine Make, Model and Serial Number,)

enter image description here

Ignition circuit on the Honda GVX160 shows that there is a kill switch.

enter image description here

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The throttle on the handlebar should cut the gas when pulled back to the 'off' position. It looks just like I thought it would, standard for a walk-behind mower. If it's not doing that, there's a problem, and you should get it looked at by a professional.

As you stated, 'stop' doesn't seem to stop it. Are you sure you pulled it back the whole way? As I said, that 'stop' position is the part of the mower designed for cutting the fuel, and if it doesn't work, you should get that checked out.

Also, as a side note, I knew someone who had trouble shutting off his equipment, and it was because he was using 93 octane gas for everything. I always use 89, and have no problems. Likely not your problem, just stickin' it in here for future readers.

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  • always use the octane that your engine was designed for. I would be very surprised that 93 octane would keep running when 89 wouldn't. 93 octane has greater "ignition control", meaning it has less chance of igniting from heat alone, it needs a spark. 89 octane would theoretically have a greater chance of continuous running than 93 octane would.
    – Escoce
    Commented Feb 23, 2015 at 18:46
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There is a crude but simple solution ; I pulled the ignition wire from the plug for a season. The mower was older and obviously the controls were messed up , and it was soon to be junked. I used a heavy leather glove or rubber handle pliers to avoid shocks. Properly correcting the control was a problem.

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