WH nut 553 #1 Posted September 4, 2014 (edited) I love my little 8hp tractors but this little C81 is about to piss me off. Great little tractor had no problem for 3 years the it developed a rattle. Opened her up and the rod had come loose. Everything looked good so I retorqued and let her fly. I knew better but did it anyway. Made it a couple hours and broke the rod. Since then I have put 3 more rods in it after cleaning crank and measuring. Measures within specs. Last time she went it I put another rod in and it made it 30 minutes and the cam broke. Parked her in the she d for a year tired of playing with it. Drug it out of the shed 3 weeks ago and put a cam in it. Rod was like new so back together it goes. made it about 15 minutes and guess what, Another rod. Pull it back down and clean the crank again measures perfect. Put another rod in, Im buying 2 at a time at this point. Run like a champ, I was able to cut the whole yard no problems, About an hour and a half. Things are looking great. A week later cut the grass, still running strong. I got this feeling pretty good at this point. Fire it up tonight to cut grass, things are going wonderful. I have about 20 minutes left and the motor starts to pull down. No noise just pulling down. Disengage PTO and head for the garage. Made it to the door and snap and free wheeling. This motor is now a parts motor. I refuse to try any more. I have a couple more 8hp that need work so Im going to focus my attention on one of those. This thing just doesn't want to live anymore. I have put a total of 6 rods in it. Time to throw in the towel. Edited September 4, 2014 by WH nut Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
slammer302 2,154 #2 Posted September 4, 2014 That's just a bummer Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
WH nut 553 #3 Posted September 4, 2014 This is the only kohler that's ever come apart on me after I fixed it, and the bastard has done it 6 times lol Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Theroundhousernr 589 #4 Posted September 4, 2014 Something is not right there.... Could be a bent crank or really out of balance? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
WH nut 553 #5 Posted September 4, 2014 Bent maybe, but the damn thing runs smooth. Either way its a boat anchor now Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
oldredrider 2,547 #6 Posted September 4, 2014 I picked up a Commando 800, brought it home went over the essentials (oil level, plug etc.) and fired it right up. Sounded great, ran smooth...for about 45 seconds and ventilated the block. Never could figure out why. Just short blocked and it never missed a beat. Loved that little guy! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Fordiesel69 210 #7 Posted September 4, 2014 The 8HP is not as good as the big blocks. I have never owned a good one, they all needed rebuilt badly. The first rod damaged the cam but did not break it. The rest is history as the crank has something wrong. It will make a good parts engine, but at this point I would bet the crank is shot. 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
slammer302 2,154 #8 Posted September 4, 2014 I have 5 k181 8hp wheel horses I have no complaints about them they are hard working little motors I'm impressed what 8hp can do. 3 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
squonk 38,916 #9 Posted September 4, 2014 I bet when that first rod got loose the crank was out of round. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
WH nut 553 #10 Posted September 4, 2014 I bet when that first rod got loose the crank was out of round. I have measured it and it doesn't appear to be. Im using digital caliper not a micrometer so there could be some accuracy difference. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
oaktown1987 82 #11 Posted September 9, 2014 I love the little 8 horses mines a tank Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Howie 882 #12 Posted September 10, 2014 Having worked in a shop where I used a mike and calipers, always ued the mike to check diameters. A caliper is not accurate enough to detect the variations in diameter. We only used them to check length of our parts. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
WH nut 553 #13 Posted September 21, 2014 Tore the motor down today and its not pretty. Really nothing left to save. So I installed a pull start 8hp magnum. Will wait until I can find a good 8 or 10hp k series for cheap. 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites