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shobbz

Wheel Horse 244-5 Onan E140V Question

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shobbz

Hi a new member from Australia here.

 

I have owned... dare i say it a 14-38HXL for years... the hydro has just about quit so after much searching i went finally found a 244-5!!!!! I love this thing but its had a hard life, its built to last and I can tinker with it. It has a 42" deck that needs some work but that will come with time.

 

Finally got the engine going but I have some questions re trans/Clutch and Engine:).

 

This may seem like a stupid question but should I be able to move the crankshaft vertically? The engine runs but vibrates a lot? There is some horisontal movement in the shaft as well but I figure that may just be a lower bearing as I think that a previous owner bolted the electric clutch together and was starting the mower with the blade clutch engaged.

 

I welcome any thoughts:)

 

Cheers,

 

Shobbz.

Edited by shobbz
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WHX??

:WRS:

Always like a new member fro down under!

No crime on the 14-38, I have owned one for years. Came with the Mrs when I married her and they were both built to last and worked out pretty well so I kept them both! :lol:

On the crank end play there should be some movement but not real noticeable. Could be a sign of lower bearing wear but verticals always wear more in that area. The vibration is not a good sign either.

 That's why good clean oil is a must in vertical shafted engine.

21 minutes ago, shobbz said:

previous owner bolted the electric clutch together

Doesn't surprise us we have just about seen it all! :)

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shobbz
6 minutes ago, WHX12 said:

 

No crime on the 14-38, I have owned one for years. Came with the Mrs when I married her and they were both built to last and worked out pretty well so I kept them both! :lol:

On the crank end play there should be some movement but not real noticeable. Could be a sign of lower bearing wear but verticals always wear more in that area. The vibration is not a good sign either.

 That's why good clean oil is a must in vertical shafted engine.

Doesn't surprise us we have just about seen it all! :)

 Hi WHX12,

 

Thanks for the welcome and the comment:)

 

I agree the 14-38 has been good but my block has a slight incline so the hydro has worked hard dragging me up the hill:)

 

Yeah this poor old mower is a bit of a basket case. There would be almost more than half an inch of vertical play in the shaft..... this feels ominous?

 

I may yet have to consider a re-engined monster, although I did like the idea of keeping the Onan, something a little different.

 

I will have to post a pic of the clutch... the coil appears okay but the damage may already be done.

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roadapples

:text-welcomeconfetti:mate....

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shobbz
10 minutes ago, roadapples said:

:text-welcomeconfetti:mate....

Thanks for the Welcome roadapples:)

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WHX??

1/2 inch !?!?! ....no not good at all .... crank end play is usually measured in .00X of an inch! Recheck to see if that isn't the clutch moving up and down and not the crank. An engine with that kind of end play should not run at all. If you are really interested I have a parts 244H with that Onan that is yours free... for the shipping of course... :unsure: let's see WI USA to Australia. .. ahhh I dunno....unless you want another 14-38? I have one of those in a parts tractor too  but a good running one are a dime a dozen around here on Craigslist. 

 

Others will certainly be along to welcome you and offer advice :)

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shobbz
27 minutes ago, WHX12 said:

"Recheck to see if that isn't the clutch moving up and down and not the crank.":)

 

Well..... After looking at the parts breakdown and not being able to work out it could that much play I realised how little I know. Then I saw your response  and realised that the drive pulley is a sleeve over the crank. The tractor world is a new one. Looking at the drive pulley i can see the centre hole is a little out of round at the bolt end so maybe there is some play there. 

 

There is the smallest amount (fractional at best) of play in the lower shaft and I might have to get adventurous and take the lower section of the engine off and find a lower bearing. That is for later. I will need to get the engine going again and see if the vibration was the clutch. and then work out if the clutch is repairable... I have seen new clutches for ~200 Landed in Aus, its a bit of a risk:).

 

I am not sure if clutch issues go here or in transmissions? I haven't even started on the wiring. No safety switches to speak of and I need to determine if the charging circuit is running, which may explain why the clutch looks to have been locked on.

 

I will talk about the transmission jumping out of gear later....:)

 

Thanks for the offer of parts. Maybe Santa can load up and drop them off when he passes my way. People are asking crazy money for mowers here, 600-800 USD equil for barely running 14-38's and the like here.

 

Long posts but hopefully makes for light reading:)

 

Thanks again.

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shobbz

Engine is running again. Its is not a nice steady idle as there is the occacional missing/backfire.

 

I adjusted the valve clearance but I am not sure that I got Top dead centre right. Is it the same as on a Briggs? Rotate until both intake and exhaust are not moving and piston in at its highest extension as measured by the screw drive in the spark plug hole being careful not to score the sides of the head)?

 

I am still yet to test the charging system as the wiring is a mess.

 

I took a picture of the clutch. I am guessing that the bolts are in place of rivets that were there originally? Does any one know why the bolts would extend into the lower bearing housing of the clutch?

IMG_20171130_132104316.jpg.9cad0806676219f4f0d3a7eb80843f8f.jpg

I also have a decent oil leak from the bottom crankshaft seal... Does this need to be replaced from the inside? From the look of the engine tear down it does look like it does?

 

Again thank you for following the post:)

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WHX??

 

12 hours ago, shobbz said:

occacional missing/backfire.

Check the timing and clean the carb.

12 hours ago, shobbz said:

Rotate until both intake and exhaust are not moving and piston in at its highest extension

should be close enough.

 

12 hours ago, shobbz said:

bolts are in place of rivets that were there originally

More than likely a PO had chopped it apart to replace a bearing which some are not meant to come apart. They are spot welded together on these late model clutches. From the pics it looks like it's not even close to being cobbled back together properly.  . The drive pulley is just an internally keyed sleeve that slides up on the crank end and then the clutch and a fine thread bolt should  thread up into the crank holding the drive and clutch on. That bolt must be properly set and torqued. Everything must be true with the crank end or it will vibrate like mad. Check here for a replacement clutch https://xtremeope.com/  you will need one.

12 hours ago, shobbz said:

Does this need to be replaced from the inside

Generally no but crank end play issue would need to be resolved first or you will wreck a new seal. Clean the dirt from around the crank end and you should be able to tell.

14 hours ago, shobbz said:

I will talk about the transmission jumping out of gear later

This is the really bad news. Jumping out of gear on a manual tranny is usually related to worn gears caused by shifting while the tractor is still moving which is a big no no. Here on RS you will find many threads on this subject.  The only course of action here is to split the transmission, find out what needs replacing, then look for replacement parts.  Parts may still be available but I would venture to guess you may have more in this tractor than It may be worth unless you can find a cheap donor parts tractor. Just being honest here.

:text-imsorry: for the bad news!

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shobbz

Ahhh the good news just keeps on coming.

 

I had a look at the engine manual and it appears that the crank seal is replaced internally.

 

I won't have much time over the weekend to have more of a look over. If I can confirm with testing that the charging system is working at least that will be a start.

 

The trans was only jumping in first ony but i have a gentle slope in my yard and was hoping to do a lot of mowing in first:(.

 

The PTO does look stuffed, the bearings are okay but It may be a forgone conclusion:(. Thanks for the link to extreme clutches but at ~ 200 landed in oz its a big risk atm. If i can get everything running smoothly simply and cheaply i will consider a the cost. A remote possibility is re-engine the mower with the 14hp Briggs from the 14-38 but this is likely complicated and PTO sizes are probably an issue.

 

At the moment Its a but of fun to work on but i may have bought a lemon:( I should have just waited for a manual trans for the 14-38.:)

 

cheers, 

 

shobbz.

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