Older small engines....

Borrowed/given a log splitter by a neighbor. He does not burn wood and with me "in charge" of trimming the sides of our road he figured I would make use of it. I keep damn near everything but the branches of the trees and give it to a Disabled Vet friend or a woman in the 'hood, Joyce is single, lives alone and is working for Hospice. Anyhow, splitter has an old Briggs on it. At least I think it is. There is a tapered screw going thru the the float and into the body, guessing it is like a main jet. Put gas in it to start it for the first time since spring and was greeted by a stream out the carb. Took the float off, needed a screw driver to scrape the gunk off the inside of the bowl. Put it back together....forgot to count the turns. The recoil contraption is fubared....in order to keep it from screaming the shaft on the motor needs to be greased....and then the grease works it way into the area where the balls are causing them to stick out of the way....pull on the rope and it just freewheels. Need to keep a can of brake cleaner handy, lift the dust seal and give it a squirt and the rope will engage about half the time. Was up at the Joyce's house, she is the woman I mentioned....she had 2 cords of un-split wood dumped off. Splitter started on the third pull when I got there...and I left it running until I came home to get a coffee. Got back, if I had a firearm with me I would have put that sumofabeech out of my misery. Took a good 15 minutes to get it running. Between the rope not engaging and that old decrepit grease-ball of a karbanatur.....was out of breath by the time it puttered to life.....perhaps I should spend some time and fix it.....Thing leaks a good deal of hydraulic fluid as well. By the time I was done with it both of the inside of the one tire was dripping....and there was a small puddle under it....