Seized / Unseized 20 HP Courage Engine

Greetings One and All,

I'm new to the forum and excited to be on board. I've owned a Craftsman YS4500 with a 20 HP Kohler Courage since it was new, about '01 or so. Well one hot summer day my wife was mowing along and it stopped dead in it's tracks. She said it wouldn't do anything but click when she tried to start it. We got it to the garage and looked at it more and noticed oil dripping from the lower oil seal. This led me to believe the seal went bad, leaking oil thus causing the engine to seize up.

After doing some research into this, my son-in-law and I attempted to in-seize the engine. We were successful and got it running. My concerns and questions are: By the graces of the lawn mower gods, is it ok to use after we replace the oil seal or do we need to dismantle the engine further and look for any other damage? I've never adjusted the valves so, I guess this would be a good time to do so.

In closing, I would like to say thanks advance for your input and advice.

WCBob

If had this unit i would remove the shrould and check to see if there is evidence of oil leakage or loose crankcase mounting bolts. Kohler had a problem with the bolts coming loose and the camshaft punching a hole in the side of the block. Let us know what you find and we'll advise further.

Rivets said:

If had this unit i would remove the shrould and check to see if there is evidence of oil leakage or loose crankcase mounting bolts. Kohler had a problem with the bolts coming loose and the camshaft punching a hole in the side of the block. Let us know what you find and we'll advise further.

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Rivets, Thanks for the timely response. We will check for loose crankcase bolts and cracks after we clean it up a bit. Note: I can turn the flywheel by hand and it feels pretty good. It will be a few days before I respond. Again, many thanks. wcbob17