k301 info needed

[olds45512]

i recently acquired a 129 that runs fantastic but was leaking oil out the front seal onto the starter pulley which in turn was throwing it everywhere including onto the muffler, it was nice and smokey while i was mowing my grass. i just got done removing the engine to put the new seal in it and found a few things id like some info on.

1. it appears to have balance gears which ive never dealt with on any of my other engines, from what i here i should remove them and i assume they come out much like the cam? if so i think im just gonna let it ride cause im not into pulling the engine down that far at this time.

2. the block is gray and appears to be a factory short block, the serial number sticker that was added when the block was replaced reads 2107109061 and i was wondering if there's a way to tell the year of the engine by that number?

[IHinIN]

The balance gears can be easily removed without tearing the engine apart. I removed the gears from both of my K301 engines with a hammer and a punch. The lower gear can be slid off its shaft after the snap ring is removed. The upper gear with crumble with a well placed strike with a punch and hammer. You need to hit the gear where it is thinnest. The first time I did it I was surprised how light of a hit it takes to bust the gear. Just be sure to get all of the fragments out before you bolt the oil pan back on.

[IHinIN]

According to the Kohler service manual, your engine was built in 1991.

[olds45512]

Originally Posted by IHinIN

According to the Kohler service manual, your engine was built in 1991.

thanks for the info

[bocephus1991]

Be carefull if you decide to bust up your balance gear to remove it. Small pieces of metal are not a good thing to have floating around in your engine. Also the balance gears have small needle like bearings that like to fall out so be carefull!

[J-Mech]

Yeah, it looks like the pins are on the block. But that doesn't mean there are any gears inside. Listen, the gears get a bad wrap. Yes, they can fail, but seldom without warning. They usually start knocking around before they go. Anyone who pays attention to the motor will hear the noise if the bearings on them go. Governor gears and rods break and cause all kinds of destruction too, more often than the balance gears do, but you don't see guys tearing engines down and replacing rods and governors till it's too late. I say leave them. I have running engines with them in there. I'm not worried. If I take it apart, I'll pull them. If they start knocking around, I'll pull them, but I ain't tearing any of mine down just because I'm scared they're gonna grenade. Your choice, but I wouldn't mess with it.

[olds45512]

Originally Posted by J-Mech

Yeah, it looks like the pins are on the block. But that doesn't mean there are any gears inside. Listen, the gears get a bad wrap. Yes, they can fail, but seldom without warning. They usually start knocking around before they go. Anyone who pays attention to the motor will hear the noise if the bearings on them go. Governor gears and rods break and cause all kinds of destruction too, more often than the balance gears do, but you don't see guys tearing engines down and replacing rods and governors till it's too late. I say leave them. I have running engines with them in there. I'm not worried. If I take it apart, I'll pull them. If they start knocking around, I'll pull them, but I ain't tearing any of mine down just because I'm scared they're gonna grenade. Your choice, but I wouldn't mess with it.

Thanks for the info, I removed the cam cover to check out the acr and can see the gears in there. I planned to leave them in anyway as the engine runs to good and smooth to start messing with it, I agree that if I ever need to do a rebuild they will come out then.