craftman 11hp question

[jlsdmax]

i have an 11hp craftsman tractor i think it is an 85-87 im not sure..i was wondering how to replace the engine pully to increase speed and how to remove the govener if it has one...it seems to be a craftsman engine no other information,any input would be helpful

-John

 

[Still8nn]

Welcome to TBN!
Most likely you have a Briggs & Stratton engine. Changing the crankshaft pulley is not a big deal. Disabling the governor is more difficult and I strongly advise against it. The crankcase will have to be opened. The governor is a small plastic gear that meshes with the camshaft drive gear. Removal of this device can cause dangerous results including death to anyone near the engine if it is allowed to over-rev to the point of explosion! Pistons, connecting rods and peices of crankcase can fly like schrapnel and can be potentially lethal.
Please be safe!

 

[jlsdmax]

thanks for the response. i was entertaining the thought but if it is dangerous i will not do it. is the pully even worth the effort, as in finding a pully and finding the belt to fit?

 

[jbarker855]

What are you trying to accomplish? Mow faster or build a little racer?
You can control the speed of the engine by playing with the levers on the outside of the engine that the governor attaches to, but as Still8nn mentioned, it is not really a good idea. They are governed down for a reason.
-Jay

 

[CCWKen]

I wouldn't mess with the governor or the engine pulley(s). The governor is set at the factory to maintain the optimum blade tip speed. And the engine pulley is what drives the blade(s). If you want to increase the land speed there's a couple of things to do. One is to increase the size of the rear tires. The other is to decrease the size of the pulley on the transmission.

 

[jlsdmax]

im not using the tractor for lawn mowing...i use it in the shop yard to move trailers around and plan on using it to plow sidewalks in the winter but thank you for the input i am thinking about increasing the rear tire size

 

[Deadman]

Playing with the Governor isn't likely to hurt it if you only do it from time to time. Its not designed to be held at hi rpm, but it sure is fun making it do it a few times! lol

 

[1950T]

running off the gov isant gonna blow it if you have a throttle stop. ive seen more than a few turn 8500 on stock internals.

 

[Travelover]

The governor also serves a useful function by keeping a steady engine speed under any load. I wouldn't mess with it. If you need more ground speed, change the pulley ratio as you mentioned.

When I was a kid, my friend's grandfather died and left a little Wheelhorse tractor. We took off the mower and swapped the pulleys on the engine output and trans input shaft. That thing would do about 25 mph, but the brakes and handling made it dangerous, to our delight.