Craftsman 17hp Kohler Pro... Intermittent smoking

[SuperDave4x4]

Well I picked up a free Craftsman LT2000 yesterday with a 17hp Kohler Pro. The owner said it smokes sometimes and needs a little work and burns a lot of gas.... And he was right! So with that said I got it running but it does smoke a bluish color a bit but not all the time, just like he said. My initial thought was the rings were bad, but if that was true would't it smoke all the time?

I pulled the plug and it was in bad shape. Real bad shape. So I cleaned it and checked the spark to see how strong it was and it checked out great.

I also was thinking about pulling the carb off and cleaning it because when I set the idle to "turtle" it shuts off. So that leads me to think I've got something goin on in the carb, but could that be where I'm getting my smoke from as well or would lean mixture produce a darker blacker smoke?

Any help is greatly appreciated!

 

[ILENGINE]

Running rich will cause black smoke. the other thing is if it is running slightly rich it may not create a lot of black smoke, but can wash the the oil off the cylinder walls, which can cause a blue grey smoke mixed with the blackish smoke.

 

[motoman]

In the days of the manual choke on cars you were urged to push the choke in as soon as possible to avoid the cylinder wall washing Mr. Il Eng spoke of. Do not run your tractor hot with the choke out and be sure it is closing fully.

 

[SuperDave4x4]

Thanks for the reply.

I'm guessing my first step should be clean the carb and change the air filter?

 

[Fish]

Thanks for the reply.

I'm guessing my first step should be clean the carb and change the air filter?

If the air filter is clogged, definitely change it, as this would explain the running rich and using fuel. But for test purposes, remove it and clean the intake area real good. Then start and run the engine with the air filter off and see if it performs better.

The intermittent smoking could be caused by a head gasket that is starting to go bad, post your engine's model and spec numbers so we know what you have.

Fish

 

[SuperDave4x4]

If the air filter is clogged, definitely change it, as this would explain the running rich and using fuel. But for test purposes, remove it and clean the intake area real good. Then start and run the engine with the air filter off and see if it performs better.

The intermittent smoking could be caused by a head gasket that is starting to go bad, post your engine's model and spec numbers so we know what you have.

Fish

Well of course the sticker is extremely faded but this is what I could pull off. Not sure if all the numbers are there or exactly right though.

Spec: 27505 ????
Serial: 3322401 ??

That's all I could get.

Craftsman model: 917.273130
Craftsman serial: 081503A028254

Pulled the air filter and it seem to run ok. Anything under 3/4 throttle and its starts to sputter and back fire now. And this sucker burning oil for sure. Pulled the plug and its running a hair lean. But the plug was soot black with the filter on.

 

[Fish]

A bad head gasket could definitely be your problem, as compression leaks from the combustion chamber and pressurizes the pushrod area, thus pressurizing the crankcase, forcing oil into the breather.

You could remove the valve cover, and the start it and run a second or two and look at the head, if the gasket is blown, you'll know it rightoff,
as it will spray oil etc. If the gasket is ok, you may see a drop or two of oil drip out. Don't run it too long like this, but this is a good way to check

Fish

 

[SuperDave4x4]

A bad head gasket could definitely be your problem, as compression leaks from the combustion chamber and pressurizes the pushrod area, thus pressurizing the crankcase, forcing oil into the breather.

You could remove the valve cover, and the start it and run a second or two and look at the head, if the gasket is blown, you'll know it rightoff,
as it will spray oil etc. If the gasket is ok, you may see a drop or two of oil drip out. Don't run it too long like this, but this is a good way to check

Fish

Ill give that a shot.

Pulled the carb off this morning and cleaned it out the best I could, but did find some trash in the bowl. It will actually idle below half throttle now but skips and misses. When the throttle is set to rabbit it misses but not near as bad when set at half.

EDIT!! Where's the compression supposed to be at????

 

[Fish]

Almost all small engines employ some sort of compression release, so compression readings are not very useful.

 

[Fish]

I realize that we need to backtrack a bit, and check this first:

Check your oil level and ensure that it is not over full, also, feel the oil with your finger, make sure it is thick, and all oil, and not half gas,
as a flooding carb can seep excess fuel into your crankcase, thus overfilling and smoking, and will eventually destroy the engine as the gas in the oil doesn't lube very well.

If you find oil in the gas, rebuild the carb, and change the oil, and put in an in-line fuel shutoff, to shut off when not using the mower.