Kohler Courage 21hp Twin Cam. Bad Cam? (Video Inside)
- Thread starter JonnyBlaze
- Start date
bertsmobile1
Lawn Royalty
Not an uncommon failure.
Pull the shafts out, wash the cases.
If the bottom bushes are not flogged out get a new top plate, replace all the seals and put it back together.
A dead simple job about 2 hours work.
Don't forget to put some Blue loctite on the 4 bolts near the cylinder base and tension it in stages in a criss cross fashion like a head.
Thanks for the pickies very few take the time & effort to both take photos and then upload them.
You are probably a touched on the urinated off side at the moment but it is an easy repair.
Courages were built down to the price that the mower factories would pay.
It is a sign of the down side of the free market system and as long as people keep buying on price and not quality it will only get worse.
Pull the shafts out, wash the cases.
If the bottom bushes are not flogged out get a new top plate, replace all the seals and put it back together.
A dead simple job about 2 hours work.
Don't forget to put some Blue loctite on the 4 bolts near the cylinder base and tension it in stages in a criss cross fashion like a head.
Thanks for the pickies very few take the time & effort to both take photos and then upload them.
You are probably a touched on the urinated off side at the moment but it is an easy repair.
Courages were built down to the price that the mower factories would pay.
It is a sign of the down side of the free market system and as long as people keep buying on price and not quality it will only get worse.
JonnyBlaze
Well-Known Member
I was expecting it. I wasn't expecting that it could be fixed. Can you walk me through it? What exactly do I need to check? Not sure what bushes are or what shafts.... What's wrong with my top plate?
JonnyBlaze
Well-Known Member
JonnyBlaze
Well-Known Member
How do I replace whatever is broken down below the piston connecting rod?
bertsmobile1
Lawn Royalty
You will not know if it is worth repairing till it is apart & clean.
Whenever the cam shaft goes it usually damages the hole ( bush ) in the top plate.
It looks like the little con rod on the counter weight gave way or the cam broke , dropped into the engine, jambed the crank and that broke the counter weight con rod.
In any case tip out all of the crud in the bottom and get yourself a big ( 5 gal ) drum of kerro and give it a quick rinse out with the kerro.
The cams just lift strait out.
Roll it over and clean the shaft,they are generally a bit rusty so wire brush, then wet & dry to lightly polish.
Flip it back over
Undo the con rod bolts and push each one deep into the bores ( not as easy as it sounds ) the crankshaft will then lift strait out complete with the counter weightbut better to roll over again and lift the case off the crank .
Number the piston con rods and then slide the pistons out of the bores.
Clean & dry everything then post photos of all of the bits.
We will let you know what needs to be replaced and the locals will usually let you know where they can be obtained at a good rate.
Then it is a matter for the minister for finance to decide if it is a viable repair.
Kohler have the service manual for your engine on their web site as a free download.
They also put out a nice book called "A guide to engine rebuilding" while not for your engine, good general explanations desiged for people who have never done it before.
Parts books are all on line as interactives but can be printed off for refference.
Really important is to photograph everything.
Big view before you remove a part, big view after you remove the part then a close up of the part.
Thus when you go to rebuild it you have a step by step photo guide as to how to do it.
Best done with a digital camera on a stand
( pinch the kids Go-pro )
Before you start, if you are not confident around engine rebuilds do some You tube research.
I recommend
Taryl Fixes All ( a lot of clowning at the start to make you stay for the 15 seconds minimum payment period )
Donyboy73 ( A Canadian with clear & concise methods )
Whenever the cam shaft goes it usually damages the hole ( bush ) in the top plate.
It looks like the little con rod on the counter weight gave way or the cam broke , dropped into the engine, jambed the crank and that broke the counter weight con rod.
In any case tip out all of the crud in the bottom and get yourself a big ( 5 gal ) drum of kerro and give it a quick rinse out with the kerro.
The cams just lift strait out.
Roll it over and clean the shaft,they are generally a bit rusty so wire brush, then wet & dry to lightly polish.
Flip it back over
Undo the con rod bolts and push each one deep into the bores ( not as easy as it sounds ) the crankshaft will then lift strait out complete with the counter weightbut better to roll over again and lift the case off the crank .
Number the piston con rods and then slide the pistons out of the bores.
Clean & dry everything then post photos of all of the bits.
We will let you know what needs to be replaced and the locals will usually let you know where they can be obtained at a good rate.
Then it is a matter for the minister for finance to decide if it is a viable repair.
Kohler have the service manual for your engine on their web site as a free download.
They also put out a nice book called "A guide to engine rebuilding" while not for your engine, good general explanations desiged for people who have never done it before.
Parts books are all on line as interactives but can be printed off for refference.
Really important is to photograph everything.
Big view before you remove a part, big view after you remove the part then a close up of the part.
Thus when you go to rebuild it you have a step by step photo guide as to how to do it.
Best done with a digital camera on a stand
( pinch the kids Go-pro )
Before you start, if you are not confident around engine rebuilds do some You tube research.
I recommend
Taryl Fixes All ( a lot of clowning at the start to make you stay for the 15 seconds minimum payment period )
Donyboy73 ( A Canadian with clear & concise methods )
JonnyBlaze
Well-Known Member
Thanks again for the reply! Most of the con rod bolts were laying in the bottom. What do you mean by this "Undo the con rod bolts and push each one deep into the bores"? I removed the cams. I also removed the two bolts on the con rod for the piston but don't see how it comes undone.
Tomorrow I will remove the engine from the tractor and get it on the bench and try and figure it all out.
Tomorrow I will remove the engine from the tractor and get it on the bench and try and figure it all out.
bertsmobile1
Lawn Royalty
The thing with 2306 on the side of it is the PISTON con rod.
You will have to rotate the crank a bit to get to the 2 bolts.
It will help if you remove the spark plug first
When the 2 bolts are undone the cap will pull off and you will be able to push the rod up the bore out of the way
That big chunk of steel is the counterweight.
It's job is to set up vibrations that oppose those of the piston which then act against each other and make the engine run smoother.
It rocks back & forth on that steel shaft.
The crank has an ecentric machined into it which pushes & pulls on the bits that are missing and sitting all broken up in the bottom of the engine.
When you look at the parts diagrams you will see that there are a couple of variations to the counter weight.
The old ones were split and held together by a single bolt which used to break / undo and cause the counter weight to make a big hole in the crankcase.
Briggs engines still use that system.
Search for a parts breakdown for you engine and all will be apparent
It will help greatly if you also post your engine number.
It should look like SV610-???? ??
Those in the trade will also like to know the serial number as they can use it to check up for known problems & recalls.
You will have to rotate the crank a bit to get to the 2 bolts.
It will help if you remove the spark plug first
When the 2 bolts are undone the cap will pull off and you will be able to push the rod up the bore out of the way
That big chunk of steel is the counterweight.
It's job is to set up vibrations that oppose those of the piston which then act against each other and make the engine run smoother.
It rocks back & forth on that steel shaft.
The crank has an ecentric machined into it which pushes & pulls on the bits that are missing and sitting all broken up in the bottom of the engine.
When you look at the parts diagrams you will see that there are a couple of variations to the counter weight.
The old ones were split and held together by a single bolt which used to break / undo and cause the counter weight to make a big hole in the crankcase.
Briggs engines still use that system.
Search for a parts breakdown for you engine and all will be apparent
It will help greatly if you also post your engine number.
It should look like SV610-???? ??
Those in the trade will also like to know the serial number as they can use it to check up for known problems & recalls.
JonnyBlaze
Well-Known Member
SV610-3213 Year 2012. Serial #: 4207916023
bertsmobile1
Lawn Royalty
This is one diagram showing what the crank looked like before the counterweight let go.
I think your one is the one on the right
https://www.partstree.com/parts/kohler-engines/engines-vertical/sv610-3213-kohler-sv610-engine-courage-hop-21hp-15-7kw/crankshaft-1-20-4/
Judging by the limited number of parts available it is starting to look more like a sell the engine on Craigs List & buy a replacement.
But get it apart & clean first .
I think your one is the one on the right
https://www.partstree.com/parts/kohler-engines/engines-vertical/sv610-3213-kohler-sv610-engine-courage-hop-21hp-15-7kw/crankshaft-1-20-4/
Judging by the limited number of parts available it is starting to look more like a sell the engine on Craigs List & buy a replacement.
But get it apart & clean first .