Engine work Eastern Iowa

[Brad McGowan]

Can anyone recommend a good Kohler engine mechanic in Eastern Iowa or Western Illinois that I can take my 7hp engine to for a thorough rehab? I can tear things apart and put them back together but when it comes to rebuilding a motor I am worthless.

 

[Neil Mullins]

Might check with kustomlawnandgarden.com
They have reman Kohler & I think will rebuild & return your original
Think they are in Ohio

 

[dfrisk]

You don't give any info about where in Iowa you live but Lohse Automotive in Rock Island did ALL the boring, honing, knurled the thrust faces of the pistons, planed the head, ground the valves on a K241 10 hp Kohler, and had ALL the new parts boxed up when my wife picked it up for me. You'd have to call them and see if they still do small engine work. That was almost 40 years ago. That engine ran over 1400 hours, some of them REALLY hard hours. I rebuilt a 14 hp engine I bought from Don Vogt and then rebuilt the 10 hp a second time.
If you don't mind a nice road trip Fond Du Lac Automotive Machine and Parts in Fond Du Lac, WI. Is a great Machine shop, they did my 14 hp and the 10 hp the last time. DAVE KIRK and I both highly recommend them. I think TIM is still in charge. And I have about a dozen places I'd recommend NOT using!

 

[Brad McGowan]

You don't give any info about where in Iowa you live but Lohse Automotive in Rock Island did ALL the boring, honing, knurled the thrust faces of the pistons, planed the head, ground the valves on a K241 10 hp Kohler, and had ALL the new parts boxed up when my wife picked it up for me. You'd have to call them and see if they still do small engine work. That was almost 40 years ago. That engine ran over 1400 hours, some of them REALLY hard hours. I rebuilt a 14 hp engine I bought from Don Vogt and then rebuilt the 10 hp a second time.
If you don't mind a nice road trip Fond Du Lac Automotive Machine and Parts in Fond Du Lac, WI. Is a great Machine shop, they did my 14 hp and the 10 hp the last time. DAVE KIRK and I both highly recommend them. I think TIM is still in charge. And I have about a dozen places I'd recommend NOT using!

I live just South of Iowa City Iowa. I have come to the conclusion with the help of some of the folks on this board that I probably do not have to do a full blown overhaul. The bore looks pretty good. Thanks for posting your reply.

 

[mschmidt]

there is no good part overhaul

 

[mschmidt]

L&J machine in Allison Ia

 

[dschwandt]

Brad, Get Sperry to do the machine work and I'll help you put it together.
You are not that far away you know!
Heck of a lot closer than Allison for sure
Dave

 

[Brad McGowan]

Brad, Get Sperry to do the machine work and I'll help you put it together.
You are not that far away you know!
Heck of a lot closer than Allison for sure
Dave

I appreciate the offer and will certainly keep it in mind!

 

[Neil Mullins]

There is a lot to deal with in a full rebuild. With that said all the information you need is available on this site. A couple of the time consuming things is getting end play set on the crankshaft. Kohler uses ball bearings for “Main” bearings. You have to shim the aluminum side plate when you change the ball bearings. NOT hard to do just a matter of adding or subtracting thin gasket material underneath the aluminum side cover till the bearings are in a “free” state , no preload or no excessive end play. Once you have that figured out, it’s just a matter of installing camshaft, Be sure it is in time with crank gear. Valves have to be adjusted to proper clearance. Button everything else up using proper torque. Should be good to go for years

 

[Gabe]

I use MAS Auto & Machine in iowa city

 

[dschwandt]

Don't forget end play on the cam as well