RJ-58 Restoration begins

[MikesRJ 552]

OK, I have a few more dumb-a** questions (and pardon my French here). I received one running K90 engine from a fellow in N/W-PA, and the DB in TN sold the other K90 out from under me. We had an agreement and he sold it to someone else before he was to ship it to me. Real Nice! Gotta love folks like that.

My original intention was to combine the two engines and make a single RJ58 K90 spec. engine from the parts, plus have some critical spares. The engine from PA is a K90 w/6:1 gear reduction, but otherwise spec to the RJ. The crank shaft on a 6:1 engine is identical to the normal shaft internally, but externally it has a short shaft (about 1.5" long) with a gear on the end of it. Based on the parts list of the two K90 engine styles, all other parts are the same.

My questions:

1. Has anyone swapped a crankshaft in a K90 and is it as "easy" (relatively speaking) as I think it is.

2. Once disassembled, what do you recommend for cleaning the block of all old paint and gunk without completely disassembling (i.e. valves, etc.).

3. Does anyone have a standard K90 crank shaft lying around, or would like to trade a 6:1 model for a standard K90 model?

[VinsRJ 721]

Mike,

As with most K-series motors the PTO end of the crank is spec'd out differently based on application. Internally the motors are the same based on series K90, K91, K161... K181 you get the idea I'm sure. Some parts interchange between series but you need to make sure they do... check and recheck that part numbers cross reference. Now the issues with a K-series Kohlers, namely the K90.... 1) Parts are hard to find. Doesn

[MikesRJ 552]

Once again Vince, you're coming through for me. Thank you! I cannot thank you enough.

BTW, there's a place in Australia that says they have K90 pistons (http://www.jp.com.au/IndIJK.html).K90 Piston Supplier

If anyone has other comments (or a crank with which they'd like to part company), I'm all ears.

[VinsRJ 721]

Once again Vince, you're coming through for me. Thank you! I cannot thank you enough.

BTW, there's a place in Australia that says they have K90 pistons (http://www.jp.com.au/IndIJK.html).K90 Piston Supplier

If anyone has other comments (or a crank with which they'd like to part company), I'm all ears.

Mike, I just remembered.... that Jim Haynes at Dandy Sales (Panzer Tractor Parts) has either a NOS K90 or K91, can't remember which model.... He's located about 15 miles due east of my home. If you would like I can give him a call or you can do a Google search on Dandy Sales to get in contact with him. Jim is a super nice guy.

[MikesRJ 552]

[linen beige 14]

2. Once disassembled, what do you recommend for cleaning the block of all old paint and gunk without completely disassembling (i.e. valves, etc.).

That makes me wonder if you are considering swapping a used crank with another used crank, without changing the rod. I'm sure you know that aint a good idea. If you're gonna change out the crank and rod, Why not go all out? With the quality of work you are doing on this it deserves a fully rebuilt engine.

As for cleaning, if you soak it in any solvent that removes the oil you will need to make sure the camshaft pin is well lubricated before you start it. That CAN be done by overfilling the crankcase above the camshaft and slowly turning it a few rev.s by hand then draining the excess, but it's much better to break it down and lube the pin as it is reassembled.

[VinsRJ 721]

As for cleaning, if you soak it in any solvent that removes the oil you will need to make sure the camshaft pin is well lubricated before you start it. That CAN be done by overfilling the crankcase above the camshaft and slowly turning it a few rev.s by hand then draining the excess, but it's much better to break it down and lube the pin as it is reassembled.

This is a very good point Mike. I was "ass"-suming you were going with a complete tear down, inspection and rebuild. And I agree there is no point after all this work to not rebuild or totally overhaul the motor. With a K-90 though you may have no choice but swip and swap used parts in order to get the best motor. Plan on tearing everything down, cleaning and measuring.

The black K161 for my Panzer in the engine section was a complete rebuild, with all NOS parts. Lets just say it got pricy.

Glad to hear you contacted Jim. It may take a couple days for him to get back to you. He is very active with Habitat for Humanity and with all the rain we have gotten I'm sure he's been working for them non-stop.

[MikesRJ 552]

Well fellows, she's up on her own pretty horse shoes! All that is left to complete is the steering wheel (currently in process), hood and engine.

[VinsRJ 721]

Unreal job to say the least......

But that streering column doesn't look OEM :thumbs2:

[MikesRJ 552]

Unreal job to say the least......

But that streering column doesn't look OEM

The collar currently under the steering wheel is not staying, but the stainless shaft will probably not be painted. Haven't really decided for sure yet. I kinda like it stainless.

The steering wheel was a bear to get off. After trying everything mentioned here and elsewhere, I finally just lopped off the shaft at the hub and drilled out the shaft stub. Was finally able to drive the two pin halves out toward the center. Don't want to have to do that again. :thumbs2:

[salmon 0]

Very impressive work Mike. You are many months ahead of what I am about to undertake on the 1960 Suburban. Thanks for sharing the pictures.

Salmon

[MikesRJ 552]

Very impressive work Mike. You are many months ahead of what I am about to undertake on the 1960 Suburban. Thanks for sharing the pictures.

Salmon

Thank you, and good luck on your restore. You may also want to check out the link in my signature as there is allot of information in those pages that may be useful to your suburban restore efforts.

[MikesRJ 552]

The steering wheel has now been restored to its former glory. That leaves me with the hood to finish and to locate an engine or crank shaft to restore.

I had a second wheel which had a good hand-grip, but was otherwise unusable for a restoration due to other damages in the spoke-hub area. I used it to make a casting-rubber mold of the grip to spoke intersection, and used the mold to cast the steering wheel restoration epoxy around the prepared hand-grip and rim. A whole lot of sanding and finishing later... we arrive at a restored wheel. It's unfortunate that the mold is destroyed in the casting process (sticks to the epoxy even with a release agent applied, and must be ripped off), or this would be a good thing to have around in the future.

Also, I did a clear coat on the seat pan to see what it looks like. Came out pretty well, I think. The reflections you see in the seat pan are tree limbs which are some 35 ft. away from the seat pan.

Nice side shot of the tractor .......

[MikesRJ 552]

The hoods got some paint now.

Will wait 48 hours, wet sand to 2000 grit, and give an additional two color coats. Then wait another 48 hours, wet sand again to 2500, and apply clear coat.

[rwilson 128]

Looking good. I hope my suburban 400 turns out like that. Great job!!

[tgranthamfd 28]

Sweet, Can't wait to see how it looks completed. Great job !!! :thumbs2:

[MikesRJ 552]

Just had to do it, can't help myself! Couldn't wait to get a look see .......

[VinsRJ 721]

Mike its looking really sweet. IMO, just MO, I would paint the steering column. You have really taken the time and put in the effort to make sure that this RJ is as close to the way it rolled off the factory floor that

[MikesRJ 552]

Thanks Vince, point well taken. I'm still considering what I will do yet, but would like to hear opinions from the crowd.

Once the hood is finished and the decals are installed I guess I'll have to make a final decision. That time is rapidly approaching.

Got the final (3rd) color coat on the hood today. Almost looks as if a buffing would suffice for show quality, but I will still do a two coat clear over it just to give it the extra sparkle. Will post pictures of the completed hood next week after the final clear is sprayed and cures for a day or two.

[kpinnc 10,730]

I have followed this from the start, and I say this is one of the nicest RJ restos I have seen. Mike, you have done a great job!

And I like the SS steering shaft. I won't even think about telling you what to do, but I think it looks great! When I restore my RJ, I think I'll use the same thing.

Kevin

[MikesRJ 552]

Kohler K90 Rebuild is started ....

Initial look shows the cylinder to be good but needs a fresh hone, cam and crank all measure within spec, engine needs a valve job for both INT and EXH. Coil and points are brand new, but condenser is old and will be replaced on speculation.

Engine is out for machine shop work now and should return in a few days. Upon return, it will get a new rod, piston and rings, as well as the valves, guides and seats.

... and here is a nice shot of the completed hood. Certainly not "showroom floor original" but damn if it aint pretty! And like everything else paint related, this was done with rattle can spray bombs. No spray gun used.

[MikesRJ 552]

I received one PM asking me about the switches I chose to use for the RJ restoration and one asking for a detail shot of the Throttle Cluster area of the hood.

I have procured 16 of these switches (of which I have 10 left as of this posting) and will probably keep a few and sell the rest. I thought it would be good information to pass along to the community, as it may help other RJ restorers.

UPDATE: I may have a line on an additional 19 original switches but will not know until later this week. PM me if you are interested.

I've taken a shot of both the dash detail and switches together, along with posting some additional information I have received from several other RJ owners who provided me with information and/or pictures of their switches and configurations.

As is the apparent norm with Wheelhorse, they appear to have used several different switch configurations on the RJ production runs in 1958 and 1959. The following information pertains to the ON-OFF engine "kill" switch.

1. From the factory, ALL "kill" switch variants were single pole-single throw (SPST) toggle switches.

2. Almost all were self-grounded, single contact post, SPST switches; all with a standard chromed toggle arm (as pictured below).

3. A limited few were ball-end toggle armed, but otherwise the same as #2 above.

4. Even fewer were of the two contact post SPST switch, with the addition of a ground wire (second wire) which was grounded to the hood, via an additional hole drilled into the lower left bottom-edge of the hood. The wire had ring connectors on each end, one bolted to the hood, the other screwed to the second pole of the switch.

5. When the original switch failed, many were replaced (either by a dealership/mower-shop, or by the owners) using the method described in #4 above.

Here is a detail picture of my RJ's "dashboard", with several views of the correct factory "Single Pole, Single Throw, Self-Grounding Switch" ....... hope this helps someone.

[MikesRJ 552]

Doing a little check-fitting before the plow goes under the knife, and completed hood installation today.

NOTE: The steering shaft is red ....... I decided to stick with my original intent; the "better than new" condition restoration.

[HorseFixer 2,012]

Mike TOTALLY FANTASTIC! :scratchead:

[nylyon-(Admin) 7,120]

I think that I like the steering shaft Red better.