I have a Craftsman Lawn Tractor (917.273022) with a Kohler 20HP CV20S-65551. My left cylinder (when sitting on the tractor) has a issue. The tractor was running very roughly and I discovered that I could pull the spark plug off and the tractor ran the same. I thought it was the ignition coil, so I bought and installed a new one. It made no difference. I swapped out the ignition coils and the new coil worked flawlessly on the right side. The left side, which I have confirmed is getting good spark, still is not functioning. I did removed the kill switch grounding wire and it made no difference. The carb is recently rebuilt...plus it's running the right cylinder so I don't think that's the problem. It seems that, on the left side, the carb, the coil, and the spark plug (and I used multiple NEW plugs, BTW) are working to spec. I pull the plug and it is wet with gas. So.....is it a problem in the cylinder like a stuck intake or exhaust valve? I'm scratching my head on this one. Anyone have a theory? TIA, Thom
There is no compression on the problem side. It could be the head gasket, but there is no oil leaks, hissing sounds, gas/oil contamination. I'm going to pull the valve cover to see if the problem is there. Any other suggestions or theories?
Before I removed the valve cover, I put a smooth metal rod into the spark plug opening and turned the engine by hand to see if the piston was moving. It is not. I think I'm in trouble.