Hercules/Economy 4hp XK engine

Greetings, I have a 4hp XK Hercules/Economy engine.The engine started and ran great until the Wico EK mag. Took a poop. Not being very savvy about these engines I had the mag. rebuilt and it sparks well again. My problem is that I can’t make the engine run. I believe the timing is way off and I don’t know how to adjust it or where to start looking. I would also appreciate knowing where to set the adjustment on the carb. jets. I spoke with “Starbolt” and they could not help saying that they don’t offer support for that engine. Apparently that model isn’t very common according to Starbolt. Any help or guidance would be greatly appreciated. Thanks Cork

The hercules XK is a throttle governed engine so it has a different firing system than a "hit & miss" type engine.

remove your sparkplug and let it hang from the EK.

SLOWLY turn your engine over until it comes up on Top Dead Center (TDC) under compression by watching the connecting rod big end on the crankshaft. If your EK tripped before it got to TDC, loosen and slide the trip mechanism located on the pushrod below it towards the flywheels and try again. If it tripped after TDC, slide the mechanism toward the head, tighten the bolt that holds it tight and see where it sparks now.
You are trying to get the magneto to trip at TDC, or ever-so-slightly before. It may take a few tries, it may take more than a few!

Carburetor settings can be tricky- start at one full turn open and see what the exhaust looks like- if its black, your getting too much fuel and need to screw the needle in until it starts to miss, then back off a bit until it runs smooth with little smoke. You'll need to play with it. A hot engine needs less fuel than a cold one, an engine with an drip oiler that is set too fast will smoke no matter where your carburetor is set as will an engine in poor condition, which will also need a richer mixture to run.

As somebody on this site always says "Get the manual!"

GOOD LUCK!

Thanks warbaby, I’m pretty new to this,but what you shared all made sense to me. I’ll see if I can find that manual on eBay. Thanks again! Cork

Having been shamed...rightfully, I purchased the manual. With the manual and advice from “warbaby” the motor runs great! Thanks
Can anybody tell me what year this motor might be? Engine number is 17805

Hercules and Economy engines are notoriously hard to date exactly for some reason- loss of records or just sloppy bookkeeping I guess- but several collectors have came up with some >approximate< serial number lists. The exception to even that rule seems to be the "X" Hercules engines!

I couldnt find a list that differentiated the XK from other Hercules engines, BUT the X line, according to research by the late Hercules expert Glenn Karch, was only offered from mid-1928 through mid-1930 and their total production was around 18,000 engines. Assuming(?) the serial numbers started around zero (there probably were a few pre-production prototypes that may or may not have gotten serial numbers) its a pretty safe bet that your engine was built in early to mid 1930 as its number is only 195 engines from the end of production-

Approximately!