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Holy crud - literally (OR, how much gunk can one engine accumulate)


Snojetter

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I have a 917 with a starter motor that tends to not engage, so after several evenings where other tasks took priority (like mowing, raking, cleaning up from the last project, etc) I decided it was time to get this thing fixed.  I removed the starter on Friday and got it all cleaned up and operating smoothly.  What I found after pulling the shroud to remove the starter was 30 years of crud caked everywhere (shroud, cooling fins, every nook & cranny).  I can't believe this motor didn't burn itself up!  I decided to pull the motor out of the chassis and I spent the better part of Saturday afternoon soaking this motor with degreaser and scraping away.  There was so much junk behind the flywheel that I pulled that off, too.  I was floored to find the stator was totally caked!  Honestly, how did this motor even run?  It's 10:45 and I just walked in from the shop.  Cleaning is complete and reassembly has begun.  I only quit because I didn't have my shop manual with me and didn't know the proper torque for the flywheel bolt.  (Yeah, I know - what's a "shop" manual doing in the house?)  It was time to quit anyway.

This motor will be getting new fuel lines too while I'm at it and I think I'll replace the fuel tank with my spare as this one has a leak.  Good time to take care of those issues as well.  Gee, I hope this thing works after all the work I just put into it...

Edited by Snojetter
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Did you take any pictures? We all LOVE pictures, (I'll speak for myself here) especially of the improbable.

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Sadly, no.  My hands were already caked with grease and I just kept going.  If I were to run into the house to get the camera (yes, I still use an actual camera - no phone cam), I'd lose momentum.

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10 minutes ago, Snojetter said:

Sadly, no.  My hands were already caked with grease and I just kept going.  If I were to run into the house to get the camera (yes, I still use an actual camera - no phone cam), I'd lose momentum.

Sounds like me after a project, darn I should have taken a picture or two. I still use camera too

Ran into one or two of them myself, like they just dumped oil all over outside and ran

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I always say, the most time spent on any of these tractors when I get them, is cleaning them up. What I have found that helps to get the majority of the stuff off, with the least amount of mess, is a shop vac and a scraper.  It helps to get the stuff out of the way as you're cleaning and to see what you are doing.  Then the compressor with a blower, and then the gunk and degreaser and stuff.  Just a thought, individual results may vary.

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Did you remove the flywheel? Wait till you see what's behind it...

People wonder why I opt to remove the engine & tins when I perform that task...

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2 hours ago, ShaunE said:

Did you remove the flywheel? Wait till you see what's behind it...

Yup, I sure did.  It took some digging, but I found the stator eventually sm03 

 

On ‎5‎/‎7‎/‎2017 at 7:58 AM, Brettw said:

I always say, the most time spent on any of these tractors when I get them, is cleaning them up. What I have found that helps to get the majority of the stuff off, with the least amount of mess, is a shop vac and a scraper.  It helps to get the stuff out of the way as you're cleaning and to see what you are doing.  Then the compressor with a blower, and then the gunk and degreaser and stuff.  Just a thought, individual results may vary.

I more or less used a similar sequence.  Instead of a shop vac, I swept up the dried globs that fell on the workbench.  From there, I sent most of the rest flying across the shop with compressed air; the rest oozed down the sides with degreaser and a water bath.  Some of that soup ended up airborne as well as I was drying the engine with compressed air.  There's a mess still to clean up in my shop...

Oh, by the way.  This is a series 1 engine - I'm sure it's never been torn apart until now.  Must be one of those rare motors that hasn't had a rebuild and still runs.  Well, I assume it still runs.  I've got the whole thing back together again, but not yet installed in the tractor yet.  Sure do hope I didn't mess anything up giving it a cleaning.

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There are a series of minor modifications that were put together by Al Eden to correct engineering faults with this engine. If its still a good runner, you might consider researching and applying those. Good luck, Dave

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5 hours ago, dhoadley said:

There are a series of minor modifications that were put together by Al Eden to correct engineering faults with this engine. If its still a good runner, you might consider researching and applying those. Good luck, Dave

Since I have two KT17 S1 engines, I will certainly have to do a search on those mods.  Can you give me a quick list of what the mods are?

Before I can get this project complete, I have to replace the gas tank as the original is leaking along the entire seam.  My spare tank had no fuel fitting and the original tank had some cobbled fitting - when I tried to transfer this set-up to the "new" tank, I found that it leaked a bit.  So I called the Simplicity dealer this morning to see if he had the correct parts on hand and unfortunately he has to order one of them.  So it'll be a few days before I can get that complete.  For now, I'll get the engine installed and then wait. 

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I tried researching that recommended Triad fix, but those links weren't "available". Maybe one of the moderators will jump in and help. Good luck, Dave

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8 hours ago, dhoadley said:

I tried researching that recommended Triad fix, but those links weren't "available". Maybe one of the moderators will jump in and help. Good luck, Dave

Oh bummer.  Though since this is a KT and not a Triad, are we talking about the same thing?  I did a quick search yesterday, too but didn't come up with anything either.  If I search for Al's posts, there are only a couple thousand to go through.  Gold mine for sure, but time consuming!

A little update: I got the motor installed, bolted down, and everything hooked back up (cables, wiring, driveshaft).  Thankfully when I hooked up the battery, it spun over as it should AND I still have spark. So once I get this gas tank figured out, I should be able to fire it back up.  'Bout time...I need to get the garden tilled up.  And who wants to take off the tiller and put it on another tractor - that sounds like work (though probably not as much work as horsing a KT17 in and out of the tractor...)

Edited by Snojetter
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The "trick" to the KT engines is keeping them clean so they run cool.  sm00   And keeping them filled with clean oil,  and keep the side hill running to a minimum.

I did not know you only need 2 of the 3.  :)

 

Edited by MikeES
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Oil? Check.  Hills?  I try to keep this tractor as flat as possible.  Clean?  Well, it is now!  Like I said earlier, with all the crud on this engine I can't believe it didn't melt right in the middle of the garden!

So the parts for the fuel pick-up came in a couple days ago.  I got them installed, tank mounted, and new fuel lines put on.  Filled 'er up...and no leaks. Phew!  It took a few cranks, but the motor fired up and ran pretty good.  What was surprising to me is that it didn't immediately smoke me out of the building.  This is an old, worn engine.  Not worn out, but she does a good job of keeping the skeeters away at full bore.  I ran it for a good minute or so until I could smell the exhaust.  That was a good time to shut it down and get me some fresh air.  Bottom line: she runs and is ready to use.  This KT isn't as smooth as my Magnums, but not as much vibration as the K301 in my 912.  I think I'm spoiled with those two Magnum motors!

KS

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I personally like the Magnums myself.  Smooth and powerfull.  Same basic engines as the KT Series II, just with electronic ignition instead of a battery and coil.  I just pulled an M20 for inspection and cleaning on a new to me 7119, and although not bad, it did need a good cleaning.  Vac, air and good bath.  Now I have to decide whether to put in a set of rings while it's out.  Runs great and strong, but I can smell that it's using a little oil.  And although oil is life blood to every engine, I think these can be more susceptible to failure when running low.

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