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Almost missed this one entirely!

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Almost missed this one entirely!

Postby dart451 » Sat Dec 01, 2018 11:44 am

Got a Cub Cadet 22hp Kohler powered tractor, Kohler KT725-3013 that wouldn't turn over. Customer put new battery in, no change. Picked up the tractor and got it to the shop and could not turn the engine clockwise at all with a wrench on the pulley shaft. Was able to turn it a few degrees counter clockwise, heard grinding and then it wouldn't turn in either direction! Figured it dropped a rod or whatever and I called and advised customer that the engine was trashed. So, customer says he'd like the tractor back so I started putting the cowling, spark plugs back in and noticed the starter gear in the up position against the flywheel ring gear. I tried to tap the drive gear back down with a rubber hammer but it wouldn't budge. I finally disconnected the starter cable and pulled the two bolts holding the gear up and the gear fell down where it is supposed to be. And of course, the engine spins just fine! So, the ring gear and the starter gear are both made of metal and I don't see any major wear that would cause the starter gear to wedge itself against the ring gear to jam it in place!? I've never had this happen before and I feel extremely foolish I didn't catch this before telling the customer his engine was trashed! Anyone else out there have this type of trouble before with Kohler engines?
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Re: Almost missed this one entirely!

Postby bgsengine » Sat Dec 01, 2018 11:54 am

See it regularly, usually when there's a compression release issue,or a backfire,or some such - the starter shaft and the mounting both have a bit of flex to it and can "cam out" the teeth to where they jam up. Starter bendix helix can also wear excessively to where the pinion gear won't return back down (also dirt and rust build up can jam it too) If the pinion stays jammed up after engine gets to running, that can quickly mess up a starter as well.
How poor are they who have not patience. What wound did ever heal, but by degrees? - Iago (Othello Act II, Scene 3)
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Re: Almost missed this one entirely!

Postby dart451 » Sat Dec 01, 2018 4:55 pm

Thanks for the response! If the gears all look good along with the ring gear, would you just put the starter back on and call it good as long as it didn't happen again?
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Re: Almost missed this one entirely!

Postby StarTech » Sat Dec 01, 2018 5:16 pm

Make sure the starter armature shaft is not bent and that the gear mesh isn't too tight. I have seen a few where the gear mesh was overly tight causing binding as the ring gear might be slightly out round.
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Re: Almost missed this one entirely!

Postby 38racing » Sat Dec 01, 2018 7:41 pm

I seem to recall a kohler twin I worked on had a spacer on the starter mounting. I assume dit was to ensure correct mesh.
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Re: Almost missed this one entirely!

Postby hanz63 » Sat Dec 01, 2018 9:19 pm

I think that this is one that they updated the starter on - delivering more torque /different pinion gear like on the Courage twin. They would break the starter shafts fairly regularly for what they were.
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