Snapper Pro, KAWASAKI FV580 with a serious rattle

fgsiii

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  • / Snapper Pro, KAWASAKI FV580 with a serious rattle
A few weeks ago while mowing the engine just quit without any warning, it did start back up but had a very noticeable rattle and when I engaged the PTO the engine immediately quit. I got it back to my shop by towing it and let it cool off completely. After checking the obvious things like spark and oil level I started it up and the rattle was very noticeable, again when I tried to engage the PTO it quit immediately. The engine has compression, (didn't use a gauge, just a thumb over the spark plug hole) and all the valves are opening and closing but haven't actually checked the clearance yet. Any ideas on what could be causing the rattle and what troubleshooting steps I should take? Any help is appreciated. Thanks
I just noticed that I have a typo in the engine model, it should be a FH580V-sorry about that.
 

MowLife

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  • / Snapper Pro, KAWASAKI FV580 with a serious rattle
The rattle could be numerous things. I would manually rotate the engine and try to find that rattle. Pull the plugs to turn easier. Possible it the blade clutch making your rattle since you have an issue engaging. Make sure it didn’t spin on you..it should have some type of keeper that holds it in place so it don’t spin with the crankshaft.
 

fgsiii

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  • / Snapper Pro, KAWASAKI FV580 with a serious rattle
MowLife thanks for the reply and suggestions. The PTO clutch is fine, the problem is internal to the engine. As you suggested, removing the plugs and turning the engine shows that the valves are moving and that there is at least some compression in both cylinders. The rattle does not occur when turning the engine over by hand, only when running. I did not mention in the first post that this engine has 1200 hours on it and about a year ago had one of the heads replaced. Any other suggestions on further troubleshooting? Thanks
 

Scrubcadet10

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  • / Snapper Pro, KAWASAKI FV580 with a serious rattle
Might be the connecting rod?
 

Boit4852

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  • / Snapper Pro, KAWASAKI FV580 with a serious rattle
My '07 Exmark has the FH580V engine as well with 570 hours on it. These are very good engines but as with any harsh environment usage, any engine needs very good maintenance practices. Since we don't know much about your engine, other than 1,200 hours on the clock and one cylinder head replacement, it's difficult to troubleshoot your problem. A 'rattle' sound is not enough info. Is it a metallic clanging sound? High or low sound pitch? Does the sound change when first starting the engine cold vs warming up? A cheap tool that I use very often is a mechanic's stethoscope. As a warning, the sound is very loud so I use foam ear plugs and then use the scope. Simply moving the scope's pickup around the engine, I can locate the origin of any alarming noise. It's overkill but I scope the engine after every oil change. Yep, I'm anal about my machine. At any rate, the more details you can provide will be helpful.
 

bertsmobile1

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  • / Snapper Pro, KAWASAKI FV580 with a serious rattle
Check the rocker MOUNTING bolt these have a habit of coming loose.
When you engage the blades the throttle opens up wide so to emulate that you will have to move the governor rod by hand.
Have a good look down the carb throat and make sure the butterfly retaining screws are there ( choke as well ).
These can fall out & get sucked into the cylinder.
 

draker

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  • / Snapper Pro, KAWASAKI FV580 with a serious rattle
take a video of it running and post it on youtube.. then link it here.
 

bertsmobile1

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  • / Snapper Pro, KAWASAKI FV580 with a serious rattle
And drain the oil then run the oil through some filter paper, a kitchen towel will be fine.
You are looking for metallic particles in the oil.
Tru to resist continuslly cranking the engine.
If for instance a rod has let go the short block crank & cam might all be recoverable but continuing to crank & run the engine will make it a lot worse.
The fact it dies the instant you put a load on it leans towards a broken rod with the mower running on one cylinder.
 
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