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Main Oil Seal in 20HP Kohler Magnum M20S


TimH

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I have a DA 1920 and I think the front main seal is leaking pretty badly. The front of the engine around and behind the electric clutch gets pretty oily, and when I park it in the garage at the end of mowing is drips oil from there pretty well, and uses about 3/4 of a quart for 2 hours of mowing. I manage to do a little bit of engine work, but I am by no means a pro. Is this a job that I could tackle in a weekend, or is it best left to the pros? Is this a "remove the engine" first project? If so, and if I should take it to a shop to do, would you recommend that I pull the engine and take it to them - just looking to save some money so that I can put some $2.80 gas into it to mow this summer. I have the DA Repair guide that has the step-by-step process to remove and then to reinstall the engine. Thanks in advance for your advice.
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Download the service manual from Kohler. I believe you can do it after removing clutch.
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I just looked at the kohler.com web site, and they don't have manuals listed for download from the Magnum family. Any ideas where to look next? Or am I searching on their site wrong?
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quote:
Originally posted by TimH
I just looked at the kohler.com web site, and they don't have manuals listed for download from the Magnum family. Any ideas where to look next? Or am I searching on their site wrong?
Use this link: http://www.kohlerplus.com/login.asp Click on "Enter as a guest"
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Don't forget to check the crankcase breather well for signs of being stopped up or inoperable. This condition would cause the engine to become an air pump building abnormal pressure inside the crankcase whitch could easily push the main seal out of the block or roll the seal where it leaks badly.
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I have a D/A 1920 using oil aslo and have read here to check the breather. Where exatly is this breather? Steve
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Also check that bearing, there could be other issues at work. Pulling the engine is a piece of cake. Unplug a couple of harnesses, pull four bolts, and slide it forward. the drive shaft will come with it.
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Steve, Take off your air cleaner cover and filter. You will see a tube sticking into the bottom of the lower air filter housing. If you follow that tube down, (You'll need to remove the lower housing) it will end at a cover that probably has 1 nut holding it down. This is the breather. Take the cover and lower plate off and clean them out well. Make sure the valve, which is either a round rubber piece or a flat metal strip, is there and working.
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I had to replace the front main seal on my 1920, I took the hood off, took the electric PTO off, then you can get to the seal, I think I did it in about an hour, so you could easily get this done over the weekend, save some $ and do it your self, if anything its good experience!
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Michael: That does not sound too intimidating. I did a front seal on an AC B tractor several years ago - I think I drilled a small hole in the seal and inserted a screw so that I could use a pair of pliers to remove the old seal, then slid the new one over the shaft and tapped it into place using a piece of pipe. Does that sound basically correct? If the crank is scored, do I need a sleeve over the shaft (a "speed seal")? Any advice there?
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Thats basicly what I did. Most of the time the shaft isn't worn, its mainly just the rubber on the seal, after 15+ years, they tend to leak, if it is worn, This is my opinion, I would find a different crank, and go over the whole engine if it has alot of hours on it. I'm not to big on the aftermarket "easy fixes" Sometimes they work, and other times they just cause more problems. I would rather fix it right the first time so you don't have to worry about it again. Then your good to go for another 15+ years. Make sure you put some grease on the seal, and I even put some silicone around the outside of the seal just to make sure it wouldn't leak again. Hope this helps!
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