Kohler Magnum 18 governor shaft

[Oldmedic]

New to the forum. Need help with a Cub Cadet 1860 with a Kohler Magnum 18 opposed flathead twin. Father-in-law is giving me the thing if I can fix it. The governor shaft will not stay in place. Apparently crankcase pressure blows it out and the governor gear drops into the works. Noticed the engine diagrahm shows a snap ring holding in place but there is no groove for any snap ring. Saw one example where someone cross drilled the shaft in place and tapped in a rolled pin. Any other suggestions. Starting my second rebuild to replace destroyed governor gear. Help!

 

[JTKub]

Wish I had some suggestions for you. There's not much Magnum twin activity around these parts. IMO, I'd repower the beast before I put ANY resources into a Magnum twin. Too expensive, too gas hogish and not as powerful or reliable as your typical OHV engine.

Joel

 

[Tim12659]

Go to the kohler web site and get the engine service manual....a link is provided from the cub site for manuals. This should show you what you need to know....you'll need the engine number...family serial etc. Good Luck!

 

[Oldmedic]

Thanks for the reply Tim, but my problem is the manual shows a snap ring where there is no snap ring groove. This tractor is several years old and somehow kept the governor shaft in place until just recently. What held it in place? Press fit only or just sheer luck? Oldmedic

 

[artfull dodger]

Like they were saying, time to repower the beast. Look at SEW, ie Small Engine Warehouse or Jims repowering website, one uses mainly Honda for their drop in repowers and Jims uses B&S Vanguards. When it comes time to repower my 782, it will be a hard decision. I have worked on both Honda and Vanguards while working at a small engine shop. I find the Hondas very sensitive to clean fuel and expensive to get parts for, or hard to get parts for. The Vanguards seem to run well, were smooth and powerfull and easy to get parts for. They also had a metal shroud whereas the Honda's are plastic. Kohler makes an awsome Command series V twin, but are major $$ to purchase. Repower an older cub is much smarter than buying this new stuff on the market, they were built so much better back then, just took a few years for the air cooled twins to catch up in fuel effency and durablity. Check out the ihregistry.com for cub cadet specific help, old or new models. Mike

 

[Oldmedic]

Found the fix I was looking for. Kohler service bulletin #246 dated 4/98 describes procedure for pinning governor shaft for M18, M20, MV16-20, KT17, and KT19. Cheap fix requiring one 1/8 X 3/4 inch roll pin. Will use to money I saved for tires and paint.

 

[OhioGuy]

All I can add is that I've owned 4 Cubs with the M18 and it's been one very reliable engine. Each tractor had about 1000 hours when I sold it and I never did engine work on any of them, beyond carburation.

That was an 1860, an 1862 and two 1872 Supers.

But I will agree with the poor fuel consumption.

My 5252 with a 25Hp Command gets close to twice the runtime an the same amount of fuel.

Glad you found a simple fix!

Curt