I installed a generic carb on Tecumseh go kart, and this happened...

The oem Tecumseh carburetor on my 5hp go kart was missing the bowl gasket, and the primer bulb didn't work. So I just ordered a new generic OHH50 carb for $20 rather than trying to fix the old one. After installing the generic carb, I noticed a drop off in power. It was also harder to start, and the throttle would hang a little when off the gas, then idle down after about 10 seconds. I figured I would run it for a few hours to let it break in before worrying about it too much.

About 15 total minutes into riding (over 2 days) it stalled out suddenly and started pouring out gas. When I got the carb off, I found a 1/4" metal shaving (left over from manufacturing) blocking the needle seat. I don't think that shaving was the cause of ALL the other issues, but either way, I decided to switch back to the oem Tecumseh carb, swapping over the missing gasket. It seemed to start fine without priming anyway, as did my old Eager-powered mower that I had for years.

The cart started on the first pull with the old carb back on. It idles nicely, and there is a big difference in power. (I can peel out and drift again!) It's like a totally different kart.

I've never been a huge fan of Tecumseh engines, but a 9 year old  oem carburetor seems to be far superior to the new generic (China) parts out there. It might cost you the same $15 to rebuild the oem part as it would to just grab a whole new carb, but I feel it's worth the extra effort.

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