KAL the Extended Journey.

Mostly the flywheel.  Being the all cast one vs the one with plastic fins.  And strangely enough, the intake manifold.  It is much larger than the other one as well.

Decided to go out and measure those intakes.

15hp 1.25" diameter.  (unrelated note, I think that fuel filter is backwards and the wrong one for fuel pump  )


18hp 1.5" diameter.


Finished project.

So I got a bathroom scale and measure them.  The 15hp Craftsman is 94.6LBS with oil.  The black 18HP was 95.8 with oil.  I would have thought it was much more than that.  I just struggle with the black engine.  I can manhandle the red one?  1.2 lbs seems so much more. Who knows.

Oppys are weird about intake manifolds, they went through several iterations. They were split like onan ones up until the mid 80s, where they went to a solid cast iron one, then it seems somewhere in the mid 90s they went to a solid cast aluminium one. I've had all three, they're functionally identical.

Actually I'm not sure if they ever went to cast aluminum manifolds on horizontal oppys. I've seen some of the late year horizontal oppys and don't recall them having aluminum intakes. They had split and solid cast iron ones for sure though, as i had both of those.

Yeah, this is the original intake for the points oppy that was originally on Kal. It's a split, I ended up using it on the hotrod craftsman phase.



Then the cast iron one from the 85-86 murray engine.  Original to this engine.



Not sure if Red is aluminum or not,  I think it may be cast iron too.

Yeah Red has a cast iron one. The rally has an aluminum and it is much shinier. You would definitely know if it was aluminum.

Yeah...

Installed...




And running...

Something to chew on until the next update.

From the spot I saved it from!



Updated pond spot.

Sure has come a long way huh

Simple little ride.  First part of the video, you can sear how well that 18HP runs.  Very happy with the engine.

Few things to work on post ride:
- Tie-rod ends need tightened back up.. Need some locktite.
- Bracing plate on the side dash came loose.
- The transaxle appears to have started leaking.  Need to figure where.  May have to pull it.  Not bad yet, but is there.

I’ve come to a hard decision after a few months. I think I am going to retire Kal after Haspin this year. I know it is a cool build and has served me well.

Sad to see him go.

What caused that decision to be made? I thought it was the most capable off-roader you had, and seemed to do very well at haspin for its height

CraftsmanQuad19 wrote:

What caused that decision to be made? I thought it was the most capable off-roader you had, and seemed to do very well at haspin for its height

I have Red just as capable I think now.  Lots can change between now and Haspin.  Right now, With my back issues as of late, I been toying with a new build idea, but will need some parts to make it more budget friendly.  I would rather scrap Kal over Red for parts.  But like I said, lots can change between now and Haspin.

Good news... I have had enough parts fall in my lap for my next build that I think Kal will be spared.  Never hurts to have another rig on standby!

(Sigh of relief here ) Glad he’s coming back!

Same. I really like Kal!

Per @Rustbucket Garage comment in the Haspin thread. Kal isn't going anywhere. The only one with any issue is Red... Still has a stupid oil leak.

Haspin 2021!

That’s my youngest daughter on Red.

Kal did great at Haspin. I won’t be able to get a full evaluation until we get home later this week.

Well guys, Kal has had a good run.  2 successful trips to Haspin and more.  This will be the end of the line for a good rig.  Don't worry, the tractor will be back under a new name in the future.  Just not sure how soon, but you will like it.



So long Kal, for now....

Skimmed over this and the build-off thread. Really like how this looks, all stretched out the front, looks tough. Even though its retired, I enjoyed watching the build

Thanks man!  It was a fun build, and lots learned from it.  While I have robbed a few parts from it, I haven't scrapped it yet.

Oh, and glad to see ya in the forum again @redlinemotorsportts

not to thread jack but @redlinemotorsportts is the old mtd still kicking around?

MN mudder wrote:

not to thread jack but @redlinemotorsportts is the old mtd still kicking around?

Yea I still have it but 4 states away. Hopefully I can update yall around summer with it. PM me or move over to my thread for any other questions