Export thread

Good Evening All! I am retired now and at age 60 I finally bought a decent lawn mower instead of $999.00 new plastic and tin. What I bought is a used Grasshopper Zero turn mower 61" deck. I mow under a half acre and this does it very fast! But it has a couple problems. First is rust, mostly on the outside of the deck. The dealer wanted about $19 for a 6 oz. spray can of touch up paint. So my first question is what spray can paint might match the brown and the tan on the mower? Or does anyone have a paint code #? Second is the engine governor doesn't work. Kohler CH20. I know how to adjust them by opening the throttle all the way and turning the gov shaft counterclockwise all the way and tighten up locking bolt. Or is this engine different than all the other engines I have worked on? Thanks in advance for your help! Steve

Hi Steve. Welcome to the forum! :welcome:

I'm going to move your thread over to the Grasshopper section to see if we can find you some help.

Paint no idea.
Governor is:
When you open throttle to full you turn the governor shaft the same direction that the throttle moved.

BlazNT said:

Paint no idea.
Governor is:
When you open throttle to full you turn the governor shaft the same direction that the throttle moved.

Click to expand...

THANKS for the response! And yes Sir that is what I did. Same thing for almost all small engines. I wonder if something broke inside the engine? Looks like a total tear down to get inside just to check it. With the linkage removed, the governor shaft turns freely.

You might try Tractor Supply Company for the paint. They do have a lot of the tractor colors. Then it also depends on how fussy you are on matching the color. Napa will custom match colors but you pay for that service and will find that 19 dollars a can isn't that bad.

user4579 said:

THANKS for the response! And yes Sir that is what I did. Same thing for almost all small engines. I wonder if something broke inside the engine? Looks like a total tear down to get inside just to check it. With the linkage removed, the governor shaft turns freely.

Click to expand...

It should only move a little then stop. Sounds like something is broke like you said.

Yeah, Looks like in the engine view that it will be a total tear down just to get to it. So I guess I'll keep using it till winter then just go for a total rebuild on the engine. Then with good care and service it should last as long as I'll be around. Really Love this machine, wish I would have bought something like this years ago instead of the cheaper riders that never lasted very long. I sure would have been money ahead by buying one of these years ago. Thanks for your help! Steve

Steve,I bought a can of that paint when I bought my mower. I think 5yrs ago.I'm saving it for emergencies...russ

Yeah, don't know what is so special about the paint that it has to be so expensive. reynoldston suggested Tractor Supply Co. I'm heading to town in the morning so I'll check them out.

The problem with the aerosol paint is that it scratches very easily. I had a new deck cover bent to replace the original one when I added a blower and had to shorten the lid, then used a spray can from Grasshopper to paint the lid, it looked good for a year or two then it started to look scratched up as the paint never seemed to get as hard as factory paint. I agree it all depends what your expecting to get from the paint? if its long term, mixing and air spraying commercial paint is the only thing that will hold up plus they have computer programs that look at your color and can then mix a very close duplicate color.

BWH said:

, mixing and air spraying commercial paint is the only thing that will hold up plus they have computer programs that look at your color and can then mix a very close duplicate color.

Click to expand...

The OP doesn't want to pay 19 dollars for a can of paint from the dealer. To have custom paint mixed it isn't cheap and will cost more then 19 dollars a can. If he isn't too fussy on color match he should find something close in a hardware store or a place like Tractor Supply. No it wouldn't hold up like the original paint. Don't forget you need a good primer for a good base to paint over which is also very important.

BWH said:

The problem with the aerosol paint is that it scratches very easily. I had a new deck cover bent to replace the original one when I added a blower and had to shorten the lid, then used a spray can from Grasshopper to paint the lid, it looked good for a year or two then it started to look scratched up as the paint never seemed to get as hard as factory paint. I agree it all depends what your expecting to get from the paint? if its long term, mixing and air spraying commercial paint is the only thing that will hold up plus they have computer programs that look at your color and can then mix a very close duplicate color.

Click to expand...

POR 15 is the only stuff that will stand up to the punishment of mowers.
Once cured bullets bounce off it.
The only thing that touches it is UV so you brush it onto bare or lightly rusted steel and it is on there for good provided you top coat it with something .
No matter what yo touch up your deck with, it will not match the original which will have started to fade.
So you colour match it today and next year it will stick out like dogs dangles because it and the base paint will be fading at different rates.
The only way to make an "invisible " touch up is to repaint the entire deck.
The mower is a tool not a work of art.
It s going to get scratched with use no matter how careful you are

when I painted the undercarriage of my JEEP I used TSC tractor paint and bought the hardner to use w/it.I live on a gravel road and after 2yrs it's held up really good...russ

Well Crap,, You guys kinda slowed me down and got me thinking. I plan on keeping this mower as long as I can. (or am able) So instead of just the rattle can paint I think I'll wait till winter when I have to do the engine governor / rebuild thing. Take the deck off and do it right. I've painted several cars and motorcycles so know about the additives, they work Great! Never used that POR 15, will have to look into that. Thanks for all your help!! I might as well do it right!