You didn't mention whether you were idling with the clutch engaged or in the
neutral position. If the problem appears only when the clutch is engaged,
could it be something as simple as a badly fouled prop? That would explain
the sluggish ramp-up to speed.
"Jay Mott" wrote in message
...
11hp, 2 cyl. Runs fine at speed and idles smoothly but it dies when
reversed at low speeds; and when speeding up from an idle it's very
sluggish. What could be wrong?

TIA,
Tom