Got my 300 back together and did some miles

[EricR]

I may win the farthest south east rebuild- last year my 76 300 locked up the engine on a ride.

http://www.jdsleds.com/community/viewto ... 11&t=18318

I pulled the engine this summer when back in MN having driven there with the family. Tore it apart on my bench down in Georgia. The clutch side bearing had come apart to unknown causes. Fixed it all per the linked post. Shipped it back to myself in a big tub.



Reinstalled the engine. Had a hard time starting it, when cold it does not fire the PTO side. Now the engine was completely pressure tested so the charge is getting in there. It did this before the failure as well, I think the points on that side may be gapped a tad off.

In any case, I had this very anal retentive friend helping me put it back in. Oh how he went on and on "You only rebuilt ONE side..?" "You didn't replace the points and condensors...?" Like I did something wrong.

There was NO problem with the condition of the mag cylinder. The PTO piston was fubar'ed by bits of bearing shrapnel... I replaced the outer crank bearings, I did not send the crank out and spend untold $ to have it pressed apart. Does it likely have wear? Sure. Is it worth spending more than I could by another good running 300 for just to have it brand new? NO!!! OK if it was a Liquidator or 340S, something rare, maybe. But not a 295 Kohler.

In any case, when I tore it apart, there was a mark on the stator and case, it went right back ON that mark. When we were having starting probems, I opened it up and moved it a "hair" towards advanced, but still "on" the mark... then I had to hear how I was going to grenade this motor due to detonation and how I should have used a dial indiactor etc.... have you ever just wanted to slap someone????

The Kohler manual gives a decent range of timing, I assure all I was well within it.

Got it together, rode it a few laps of the property, got the idle speed where I wanted it (God forbid, by ear! Oh no fancy tach...?) and put the plastics back on. I did not find it too bad to work on despite the complaints of how hard the tunnel mounts are.

Rode it four and a half miles in to town, then did a local bar vintage run in 40* temps. It never missed a beat, and I ran it hard.

[big jeff]

Great post its great to see someone else who loves 300s what year is it? thanks Jeff

[EricR]

It's a 76. Had it since summer of 2008, it came from a farm estate auction near my folks in central MN for $150. Typical machine that had probably been bought new by the owners. It had not been registered since 1991 and had about an inch of pole barn dust on it.

[schavejdsnow]

Awesome glad to hear it all worked out.


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[EricR]

Yeah John, thanks for the hook up on the parts. I was able to get some recoil parts and a NOS head from GPI in Michigan, they were great to deal with too.

I still have the cold start weak spark on the PTO side to mess with, I will swap the wire and cap side to side and see if the problem moves, but she is put away for another year in MN. I did put about 50 miles on her and she idles superb now that I found and fixed the vacuum leak at the warped insulator block.

Got a lot of compliments on her as well.

Me in my 19 dollar Refrigiware one piece suit I got off Ebay just for the patches. Warm and comfy, but lacking in pockets and I can't reach my inner pants pockets with it on.