cub cadet kohler kt 17 questions

[hunter19999]

I recently purchased a 782 my first project the series 2 kt 17 has a broken rod also took out the cam shaft and blew a hole in the side of the block my question is the engine is a series 2 but does not have a oil filter where some series 2 engines made with out the oil filter? also i purchased a 682 the engine runs but has a series 1 engine whould it be worth buying a oil fliter oil pump kit thats availble as for my 782 i see a honda engine in it future but still was wonder about the oil filter

 

[Fordlords]

Although the series II KT17's switched to a full pressure lube system, none of them came with oil filters. The oil filter for it is an external option and you mount it remotely. There will be two threaded plugs in the SII where the filter adapter hoses screw in to the engine. There is no way to mount the external filter option to the series 1 KT17. A filter would do it no good as its oil pressure only runs at 5 PSI, and it's crankshaft is not drilled to pressure lube the rod bearings. Dirty oil was not the cause of the S1's problems, it's low oil pressure and use on slopes are what would kill it. Putting any sort of money in to a KT17 series 1 is IMHO a waste of money. As you have found out, even with full pressure lube the KT17 series II, although longer lasting, sometimes fails in the exact manner the series 1 did, Kohler Magnum twins sometimes throw rods too. Really the only horizontally opposed engines used in garden tractors that were excellent were the Onan Performer engines.

Save up for a Honda kit. They now have a 24 HP kit out for the '82's along with the 18 HP twin. These engines really make the 682/782 tractors even better than they were brand new.

-Fordlords-

 

[JTKub]

Good points. I'd try this route: NEW ELEC START 16 HP SIDE SHAFT GAS ENGINE TILLER MOWER - (eBay item 270168911380 end time Sep-23-07 20:55:00 PDT) before I spent time & resources on repowering witha KT- series or horizontally opposed twin.

Joel

 

[PUMA454]

I have four 782's. One series II has 1795 hours on it without a rebuild, although it should have had one some time ago. One series I was run on a 45degree slope for years and when rebuilt, it wasn't in that bad of shape. Oil usually works it way up and gets a film of oil on the airfilter. I've had several series I's rebuild with just a valve grind and new rings which wasn't that expensive and they keep running.

If the block is wasted, a new engine upgrade may be the way to go. For that kind of money though, you can part it out on e-bay and purchase a newer Cadet. I like the 1860 series with power steering and oil filters, but dislike the plastic hoods.

 

[hunter19999]

jt cub I like your idea thats a great price for that engine I don't know how it would work as this engine probally has a aluminun flywheel it would be hard to add a pto and the shaft is 1" and would have to be 1 1/8" any ideas on how to go about this would be great

 

[2manyrocks]

It's a such a waste that otherwise still good machines get parted out because of economics. If you spend $1200 on a replacement Honda kit, what's the machine worth? On the other hand, you could spend a lot of time trying to figure out how to replace the engine yourself and work out the PTO hookup, the engine mounts, .... So unless you really like the tractor and want to spend either the time or money, they get parted out.

And then the factory makes new ones with plastic hoods...even when their own product engineering history plainly demonstrates that they know how to build a better tractor.

I keep hoping somebody will explain how to drop in a replacement single cylinder Yanmar diesel that might last as long as the rest of these 70's and 80's tractors.

 

[JTKub]

jt cub I like your idea thats a great price for that engine I don't know how it would work as this engine probally has a aluminun flywheel it would be hard to add a pto and the shaft is 1" and would have to be 1 1/8" any ideas on how to go about this would be great

I wish I knew. It's one of those deals where you really need to test fit it to your application. You could possibly get by with a mock-up based on a schematic. You'd have to do some rigging with the throttle and ignition as well. To really do it up right, the only way to go is like FordLords did. Get a direct fit Honda twin. A lot of cash upfront, but who knows how much you'd spend in the long run on your own retrofit.

Joel

 

[hunter19999]

got my honda engine from small engine warehouse ordered it on friday had the engine on monday can't beat that for service can't wait to get started

 

[JTKub]

Nice! that will be one sweet machine. Does the Honda kit bolt right up? No mods needed for cabling, etc? Does it come with an exhaust system?

Joel

 

[magicalj]

Here is a link to the 18hp Honda engine on e-bay. It should answer your questions.
18hp Honda Engine ES New Cub Cadet 682-782 - (eBay item 140165413634 end time Oct-15-07 10:24:02 PDT)