Wheel Horse Lawn Ranger Repower with Kohler K181

[MSBiker 45]

Is it possible to repower a 1968 Lawn Ranger with a Kohler K181 without too much fanfare. My yard is very hilly and the extra couple horse power would be handy. Found a K181 for a reasonable price.

[Pullstart 59,735]

Hey there, it should work just fine.  I am not positive if the LR tractors had a Tecky on them, but my 502 originally did. The front tab for the belt guard to bolt to the engine doesn’t quite line up.  I used an 1/8” plate bolted to the engine and tapped it to fit the hole on the belt guard.  Some people have removed and rebuilt the tab however.

 

*edit* my 502 has a K181 now too.

Edited December 3, 2023 by Pullstart

[dclarke 4,011]

Mine has a K181 in it, it’s not hard to do. 

[Jon Paulsen 282]

@dclarke nice looking tractor. Engine looks right at home in there. I dig it! 

[pfrederi 17,147]

14 hours ago, dclarke said:

Mine has a K181 in it, it’s not hard to do. 

 

 

How did you rig up the gas tank to align with the original hood hole.

[dclarke 4,011]

4 hours ago, pfrederi said:

 

 

How did you rig up the gas tank to align with the original hood hole.

I cut the original tank bracket as needed then welded some flat steel to it so I could bolt it to the engine. 

[MSBiker 45]

Thanks folks for the info! I might just go this route if I can get this engine fo cheap.

[Mike'sHorseBarn 2,652]

Mine has a k181 swap as well, totally doable though I bought it that way. An atv battery had to be used in place of a standard garden tractor battery though because of fitment issues.

 

 

 

[MSBiker 45]

Nice. Thanks.

[Keaton 138]

that looks awsome i have a k181 in my 856, big power, small tractor