To Stens or not to Stens

[MaineDad 87]

Guys: I can buy a complete K301 rebuild kit for around 103 dollars if I go the Stens route. It would be about 150 more to go all Kohler. What have you all experienced regarding Stens?

[smoreau 658]

Guys: I can buy a complete K301 rebuild kit for around 103 dollars if I go the Stens route. It would be about 150 more to go all Kohler. What have you all experienced regarding Stens?

I used that $100 kit from flebay on my brothers k301 and it looked and worked just fine. The piston and rod looked very close to the original. He has been using it to cut his 2.7 acars. and it runs great. The points that came in the kit were not worth the box they come in though. they got pitched and a kohler set went in. I would buy another set for a cheep rebuild again with out a second thought, Just remember you are getting what you pay for though.

[rmaynard 16,333]

I used an after-market kit in my K241S rebuild and it was fine. I did get a few things like points and an intake valve from Kohler, and they were made in Mexico. The quality of the after-market stuff, which came from Taiwan, seemed to be fine. I had an issue with ring gaps, but I don't think that was the manufacturers problem. The distributor sent a mislabeled box.

I guess it's all up to what your budget will allow, but I wouldn't hesitate to use the after-market kit again.

[mavfreak 11]

I agree with them,

If you do go the cheap rout and don't like something in that kit you can replace with Kholer or something else. Inspect items carefully before they go in and if you do the rebuild right then I would think a long life should be had. good luck!

[Jim_M 179]

I've used a ton of Stens parts and never had a problem.