Tractors, Mowers, Chippers, Trailers, Chainsaws, Generators, Driveway Erosion Control, ETC.

ahhhhhh this all makes sense now if you were over on the lawnsite..... The Kawasaki motor debate has went on for years there.

back when i put the HOnda motor on the Gravely & the Kawasaki motors on the Hustlers.... They were having this huge fight about the industry & everyone replacing Kawi motors with the big block Briggs.

for years the Kawi motors were the best thing going for the price. Then the quality fell off & they started having durability issues & so on.

then the Briggs 40hp big block came out & thats all the rage now. i have had all of them.

my quick take:

Hondas are really hard to beat in price or durability for smaller motors. if its 20hp or less? i buy the honda every time.

Kawasakis are super easy to find & still the biggest bulk of the mid size mowers. they dont do well on fuel at all. mine always used 2+ gals per hour on the Hustlers.

Briggs big block are right now the real thing..... these 40hp EFI motors are incredible. just sip the fuel & gobs of power. long term? we'll see!

like every site== there are super knowledgeable people over there that helped me with lots of mowers & rebuilds along the way.....

but there is always an asshat ior 3 n the mix.

 

Added a box blade to the arsenal for driveway maintenance and dirt work that needs done as I add parking around the shop.

Only a little sketchy getting it out!



Went straight to work on the lane that hadn’t been touched in at least 5-6 years according to the neighbor. It was all fines on top that turned to slime immediately in the rain. I turned up a fair amount of bigger stone but it probably needs a load or so for touch up

 

Gotta be one of the worst blown head gaskets I've done.

 

Picked up this Kohler Command. It will replace the engine that I washed my hands of.




Why do people do this!!!? The engine is in such great shape and they grab the cutters jut to piss me off!

 

Another pic if anyone cares. Hope to get everything swapped out tomorrow.

 

Stuff like that torques me too, 0 to furious in 5 seconds flat...
-- --

 

I like seeing these pics! I wish I had more time/space/know-how to do more like this.

 

The new engine was a victim of magnet delamination from the inside of the flywheel.

Previous owner did a quick search to find new magnet only to discover that they are unobtainable. Up for sale the motor went.

I probably should have told him you can rob the magnets from a Kawasaki flywheel and transplant them into a Kohler flywheel. They work just fine.

 

quick moves cutting wires can be easy until reassembly.

 

Dammit!

Another set back!

I tested the charging on this engine when it was running on one cylinder and I had 13+/- volts. Figured the magnets were fine.

Took off the flywheel to find this.

Better to remove the rest and epoxy them in proper.

Take the flywheel up to 350* and the double sided tape releases pretty easy with very light taps with a putty knife. The magnets are a ceramic and can shatter pretty easy.

 

Let the thing cool for a couple hours then I can wire wheel the inside of FW and the back of the magnets.

Degrease, mix up some epoxy and glue them back in.

I like to maintain the orientation, so I will number the magnets when it cools.

 

A subsoiled would be faster, cheaper, and easier than a backhoe.

 

Yeah, that might be true. But they dig very narrow trenches. I needed to fit a 4" pipe and a dig 3' hole at the end of the trench, with the least amount of physical digging on my part.

 

All polished up and degreased.

 

Epoxied up. Now to stick them into their home.

 

Now the waiting until it sets up

 

What brand/kind of epoxy?

 

I've used it a few times, but it takes a full day before it is cured to my satisfaction. It's been 4 hours and I can still dent it with my fingernail. Better to wait.

 

i am around epoxy products often. very allergic though. two types. 24hr and some that kick in 20min. 24hr glue is much stronger. the wait is imperetive/valuable if thats what is required.
acetone on surfaces to clean is the way. at least when glueing stone.

 

I figure starting fluid is a close second for degreasing.

I know that the epoxy is world better than the craptastic double sided tape that was used originally.