Generac = Briggs and Stratton?

[ab9go]

I read on the board somewhere that Briggs & Stratton owns Generac. Is this true? Also I see Briggs and Stratton brand generators. Is Briggs making the generator end or are they OEMed? Are the Briggs units good?

Randy.

[K D Redd]

If I remember right, 12.5 and smaller are Briggs. Larger are Generac.

Kent

[CJBennett]

Briggs does own generac. All the parts come from my briggs distributor. Briggs tries to keep the two companies seperate though. Briggs also owns Murray,Snapper,Simplicity, and more on the way.
CJ

[ab9go]

Thank you for the info. Since Ike came through our area I have been getting a bunch of requests for what brand of generator to get. I have Onan DJE 6kw, Honda EM5000 and a Yamaha YG2800. Most are looking to spend around $800-1000. The Brigg and Stratton units look to be well built and the 2 year warranty is better than even the Hondas and Yamahas. I know what to expect from the engines, but the generator end is unknown to me other than looking at the service manual. Seems to be well constructed. Do they hold up?

Randy AB9GO

[Fred M.]

Randy-

The Generacs, Briggs & Strattons, PowerMates and Troy-Bilts are all about the same in my opinion. Keep the oil changed and exercise them, and they will work for an infrequent power outage. They are probably a better choice than the less expensive Chinese generators, especially when you need parts!

I have a 3500 Watt Craftsman/Generac as well as the Yamaha YG2800i. Either of these would meet my needs to keep a refrigerator cold and run a few lights when the power fails. They are small and light enough for me to handle.

I think the Yamaha's use of an inverter can provide the best fuel economy and it is not as loud as the Generac. The inverter seems to cause some broad-spectrum radio interference, so you would need to keep it away from your antenna system.

The Yamaha's one shortcoming is its GFCI outlet. A GFCI is good for job site safety, but bad for a refrigerator! It seems that vibration sometimes causes it to pop. I replaced mine with a plain outlet. I think the Yamaha EF2800i would be a better choice for home use. It is nearly the same as the YG, but does not have the GFCI.

Fred
K4DII

[ab9go]

I agree about the GFI. I use an adaptor off of the 30A twistlock to bybass the GFI. As long as the Yamaha does not break, it is a good unit. There are NO dealers that stock parts for the Yamaha (or Honda for that matter) in the Cincinnati area. They have been special orders taking from one to two weeks to arrive. There are many repair shops that stock Briggs engine parts in the area plus whatever I can rob off of my mowers, tiller, snowblower etc. in my garage. I would not place the powermates in the same leauge as any of the other gen sets you mentioned. Not even the Made in China units. The powermates endbell bearing support is the worst design I have ever seen! Pressed into plastic, the bearing support is doomed to fail. When it does fail the gen end is trashed by the armature hitting the field poles. Powermate is now out of business (Thank goodness!) and no more of these disposable gen sets will be produced.

Randy AB9GO

[408gt]

Briggs does in fact own Generarc and Simplicity, and other famous names we have grown up with. Between the Generac and Briggs site there is a lot of info available for units built in the last 15 years.