K181 woes

[hoppy 0]

:D this has me stumped.

engine sat idle for like 12 years or maybe even more but it was inside a trailer all that time. all i had to do to get it running was clean the carb and tank. some new fuel lines and filter and a battery. she ran great! well after a two weks or so i started to notice abit of oil under the machine. after further investigation it looked to me like it was coming from the valve covers. so i got some new gaskets through Napa. had to remove the carb to get to the covers. put the two nw gaskets in and put the covers back on. while i had the carb off i figured id clean the bowl one last time. why not right? put it back on and fire up the motor. notice gas dripping from the carb. gaskets were beat anyway so i wasnt suprised. got a new gasket kit today and installed the two new gaskets. easy enough right? crank the key and get the fuel pumping. she fires up, and i set the choke back down and she dies. start it up put the choke in she dies. i have been messing with the adjustmants for the last hour+ and cant get this thing to run with out the choke in the on position. if i can keep it at idle with the choke off then i can start readjusting the idle and high screws but 1st i need to figure out the choke issue. any ideas on that? did something in the carb get clogged? should i tear it down again?

2nd issue.............i now have more oil then before i did the gaskets on the valve covers but now it seems to be blowing out the vent hole that the filter inside "covers". getting a good stream from that breather hole? whats up with that? before i did the gaskets it wasnt doing that. or at least to the extent it is now.

is this blow back or something? not sure what causes this or how to go about fixing it but i cant have the machine leaking oil all over the floor.

would it be wise of me to maybe consider tearing the motor down with all new gaskets. i know gaskets can dry out and not seal correctly. the kicker is this thing ran awesome before i started to "fix things". hadnt i taken the bowl off again i wouldnt have carb issued right now i think. same with the valve covers. more oil now then before.

opinions? dont say take it a dealer. i will not let this thing beat me. i fix lifts for a living and hate being "beat" by a machine.

[WH nut 553]

As far as the oil leak you need to make sure you got the cover and vent assembled right, Reed valve open towards the cover with the drain hole on bottom. The carb issue is eithe dirt still in the high speed jet, or a vaccum leak, was the gasket good to block when you put it together. I will try and post a picture of the valev cover.

[mflowers 86]

Sounds like the carb needs a good soaking in Chem-Dip and blown out with compressed air. Do you have any smoke when it does run?

[hoppy 0]

funny you ask..........i am getting abit of smoke when she sputs and spats.

[sorekiwi 761]

I agree with what the others have written.

It sounds like the carb is dirty. Buy a gallon can of Berrymans carb cleaner and give ot a good soaking overnight, followed by blowing through the passages with compressed air or (aerosol) carb cleaner (I've successfully blown through all the passages with the little red tube and WD40 in a pinch).

With regards to the breather puking oil, are you absolutely sure you got the inner plate the right way up? There is a tiny hole to allow oil to drain back into the crankcase. This should be on the bottom. If you put the plate on upside down it'll puke oil really bad.

[WH nut 553]

Go here, and page 134 is the valve cover

http://www.mytractorforum.com/showthread.php?t=61904

[hoppy 0]

am is sure?..................nope. my guess is i did not and thats why its "puking oil".

never heard of barrymans.........can it be bought through local supply places like NAPA? i know i can another brand from them.

[sorekiwi 761]

There are other brands, I've only used the Berrymans (my can is probably 5 years old now). I think I got it at Autozone, and at the time it was half the price of the Napa product.

http://www.berrymanproducts.com/Default.aspx?tabid=146

(I'd avoid the California rated cleaner, any cleaner thats approved for use in California sucks!! )

[linen beige 15]

I agree with the other guys about the breather probably being upside down, and the idle ports clogged in the carb. Berryman's is available from most auto parts stores. It looks like this.... http://www.berrymanproducts.com/Default.aspx?tabid=146

I've used it for years. Tip: When this stuff starts to loose it's potency, don't toss out the old can when you buy a new one. Use the old stuff for presoaking and the new one for final cleaning. That makes the new can last much longer.

[joebob 45]

I may be way off base but what fuel pump is on this ,if that gasket leaks there will be oil all over that side and if its a vac operated there no gas that's pushed to the carb , but with the choke closed it will pull gas up to start , just a guess?

[WH nut 553]

Joe you are correct, but if the tank sits higher than the motor it willl gravity feed

[hoppy 0]

:D

pulled the carb off and tore it down and let it soak for a solid hour. while that was happening i removed the valve cover and found i had the plate in backwards. put that back together and put a new seat and needle in just because i was there anyway. came with the carb kit so why not. put it all back together. made some initial adjustmants to the carb and fired her up. yahoo.........shes running right again.

got my high and idle set and thats is a wrap. she isnt puking oil anymore also. she is running like the queen she is!

thanks for all the help fellas.

[cleb 0]

crank the key and get the fuel pumping. she fires up, and i set the choke back down and she dies. start it up put the choke in she dies. i have been messing with the adjustmants for the last hour+ and cant get this thing to run with out the choke in the on position. if i can keep it at idle with the choke off then i can start readjusting the idle and high screws but 1st i need to figure out the choke issue. any ideas on that? did something in the carb get clogged? should i tear it down again?

I just had a similar problem on my international 240... Took the carb off to clean put it back on tighten everything back down and it fires up with the choke but died with out it...

What is was was an air leak between the carb and the manifold... the gasket there was kinda OK so I put some oil on it and re-used it... but the bolts holding the carb to the manifold that seemed tight at first were not tight after the engine was warming up... got another turn or two and everything ran great...

Hope this helps.

[hoppy 0]

well if it was just an air leak in my machine im content knowing my carb is now as clean as it ever will be! new gaskets, seat, needle. im good to go!

when i took everything off again the 2nd time everything was tight however. makes me think i had a clogged needle or something. dont care what it was! shes a running good right now! :D

[rickv1957 75]

Glad you got her going! Rick

[MaineDad 87]

That's great news! Another RS success story :D

[dscott2000 1]

I am working on the same problem here!! I was told that it is the filter element thingy just behind the carb bowl. That being clogged, that pushes oil out the govenor shaft and causes oil to get past the valve seals. I dunno.. Im just as stumped as you were!

[hoppy 0]

my oil issue was caused by me not paying attention when i put the valve cover and gaskets back together. lesson learned. by chance did you take anything apart or did it just start doing this?

[dscott2000 1]

my oil issue was caused by me not paying attention when i put the valve cover and gaskets back together. lesson learned. by chance did you take anything apart or did it just start doing this?

I havent had the engine pulled apart. For the exception of the head. It looked like someone did at one time.. I am sure they may have put it back together wrong. I dunno.... (BTW, sorry for hijacking the thread.)

[yankee495 0]

Hey hoppy,

I got an 8 4 speed...It was going to the trash metel crusher....no joke....got it free. that is the name of it because it don't have one. I think the 8 4 speed was the test model of the B-80. Not sure but my dad had a late 60's or 70 something 4 speed that looked like an 8 4 speed or a B80 sized tractor. And I know it was a 4 speed. I drove it, tried to run over my sisters and stuff....I was only 4 or so! I was born in 64 so it must have been 68 or 9.

Anyway, they told me the crank was broke. I turned it by hand, didn't feel broke to me. I took the plug out and put some oil in it and rolled it over by hand several times.

Put gas in it and it leaked. Replaced a fuel line and started it. Wouldn't idle without the choke on.

It will idle now but I still have not torn it apart. Sometimes it throws a fit with it's idle thing....I clean the fuel filter....Only twice (since 2003). I think it's crud I didn't put in it.

For the valve thing...I been luckey...

But I bought a c160 and it has a knock. Didn't have it when I bought it. I hope it ain't my fault. I bought it from someone who got it out of a barn after years of setting.

I bought it because I seen a yard half mowed....and a WH. I drove it 6 blocks home. No knock.

It was flooded out. Just a little carb adjustment can help. But it has to idle for you to get it.

I got it idleing just fine....no knock....purred like a kitten....

Then a knock...

These guys here know more then me I am sure...

But that is my experience with old horses that have been sitting for a long time...

I wish I'd have been the first one to start that c160.

By the way. I know where there is a nice C161 with 2 blades, grader and front...a snow blower and a deck for $500. I just can't afford it.

Almost one owner...Grandpa bought it new...Died like two years later and his grandson has it(for years). Don't know why he wants to sell it. Should ask that before you buy.

It is in southwest Missouri...Joplin.

[yankee495 0]

Didn't aim to place a for sale ad. Just gabbing about what little I do know.

Passing on the word.

[854WH 0]

i dont know if you fixed this already but i know in the gasket kit for the carb there are two gaskets a flat one and an o-ring one try running it without the flat one,because i used to have a kohler k181s and i was having problems with the carb,and after i took that one out it ran good.

[hoppy 0]

i used both gaskets and havent had a problem since. she is actually running very well.

best running machine on the farm right now. :thumbs: