Balance Gears Removal

[Marv 845]

I decided to remove the balance gears from the K321 I am working on. I used the procedure AL used and it worked very well. I now have 2 intact gears laying on the work bench.

Marvin

Here is AL's procedure (thanks AL) : i wanted to take out the Balance Gears so I took the closest one out first by removing the spring clip. But the back one is a different story-after looking at it from several angles- I placed the crank in a position so the gear or the pin its on would not hit it-then I drove the pin holding the rear Gear on inward into the crankcase until it came out completely-Gear & all- it just took a minute or two to find a place to put the crank in that would let the gear come out- Then I drove the pin back into its hole from the out side of the block to seal up the hole- It worked like a charm! Has anyone ever tried this before? I didn't feel comfortable trying to break the rear gear with a Hammer & chisel- Thanks- Al

[illinilefttackle 399]

Glad it worked for you too Marv- you won't regret taking the gears out-Thanks- Al

[AMC RULES 36,945]

So, why did the factory install them...  

and, what do you gain by removing them?

[953 nut 51,674]

This is the post from @TT about splitting the inner gear.

If you haven't already conquered this.......

 

These engines are "zero balanced" and do not rely on the DCB gears to keep them from shaking themselves apart.

Although they do help with the "thump" typical of a large single-cylinder engine as the crankshaft counterweights swing and the piston assembly changes direction rapidly, they are not necessary for operation.

 

You can pull the bottom gear off by removing the snap ring.

 

As for the top gear...... split it with a cold chisel and it will come right off. 

 

Throw all the pieces in the trash and don't look back.

[KC9KAS 4,741]

I took mine out while the engine was total tore down for rebuild.

I would be afraid of breaking something else trying to split the rear gear while still on the shaft in the block. That is the way my luck (or lack of) runs!

[obone 142]

Sorry, but I still do not understand. Does it increase hp? Does removing them decrease engine life? Not having the opposite force will it hurt the crankshaft? 

[Elkskin's mower junkyard 1,117]

3 hours ago, obone said:

Sorry, but I still do not understand. Does it increase hp? Does removing them decrease engine life? Not having the opposite force will it hurt the crankshaft? 

from what i heard they like to grenade from age and use.

[illinilefttackle 399]

2 hours ago, craftsmanmowerfreak said:

from what i heard they like to grenade from age and use.

That about sums it up- a way to avoid exploding gears thru the block etc- also saving expense of replacing them along with their bearings- Thanks- Al

[smoreau 658]

Rebuilt a magnum 16 for a friend of mine last spring and he payed the expense of new gears, bearings and new pins with shims to do it right. Turned out great! And ran smooth and strong afterwards. It hat 1200 hours on it and was running rough. the gears were knocking badly. He ran it for the last 15 years with a broken govener weight and that was the reason for the tare down. All new kohler parts and he was very pleased with the end result. Reason for putting the gears back in is he has one that they were removed by someone else and he hated the way it shook the tractor under load with the tiller in the garden. With both tractors side by side you could really notice the difference between the two.  My c160 has around 450 hours and is all original and I have no intention of pulling them. It all comes down to how much maintenance the tractor had before you got it and how much maintenance your willing to do. Most shops around me recommend putting them back in, only one said its ok to remove them and leave them out, but it will feel different. They did make some that had them removed from the factory for compressors and generators that ran long run times between oil changes according to this shop. So if you want a cheep fix for noisy gears, remove them and keep on going. But if your doing a rebuild and spending money on quality parts, do it right and make it like new.  But that's just my opinion. Take the balance shaft out of a car engine like a Buick 3800 or a Chevy 4.3 Vortech and I guaranty you will want it put back in from the vibration you will feel. Just my 

Edited February 5, 2017 by smoreau

[illinilefttackle 399]

Just my 2 cents- but like TT said these engines are zero balanced without the gears. I did a complete rebuild on my K -301 in my C-125 (left the gears out after reading about them exploding-Article by the Kohler guy-can't think of his name -Brian?" There is no discernible difference in the way the engine runs, both at idle & full throttle- Also just finished another K-301 in a friends tractor leaving them out- no problem there either. C-125 was rubber mount- friends tractor was solid mount- I guess it comes down to the size of your Billfold- Al

[953 nut 51,674]

This is from Brian Miller's site.

http://gardentractorpullingtips.com/engine.htm

 

 Counterbalance gears does no good to install them. Most Kohler engines don't come with them and they do very little to help reduce engine vibration. When left out, the engine will not vibrate more than usual. Besides, being balance gears are made of cast iron and operate out of balance on a single needle bearing, they've been known to break and destroy the crankshaft, cam and engine block. I've seen this happen a few times. Therefore, I highly recommend leaving them out.