[99flhr]

1. Received parts order from Brian, THANKS !
2. Swapped the 4020 P/S hoses. PITA X 4
3. Replaced engine mount cushions, can`t really fathom their purpose. The oil pan sits directly on the frame, surely having rubber dougnuts on the bottom has very little vibration damping. On the other hand, they do harden/degrade with age and allow your engine to move around.
4 Not sure of the best way to align the engine when perforning item #3, I went with the "clears the hood and looks straight method" (?)
5. Will retrieve my RM deck from storage and install my new Meg-Mo blades. Will be very unhappy if this turns out to be a retrograde step. The Gator blades did a fine job last year feeding the Agri-Fab. ( Think poor man`s Hydra-Vac) Hoping all the beta testing has been completed on the R.H. Meg-Mo set-up.
6. My yard is v-hilly and not golf course smooth so I mow in Low. The stock blades on the 446 leave at least as nice of finish as my Honda push mower and it has a 4 edge double blade. ( Looks like an X)
7. 2 ply turfs with Rimguard & weights ride better than empty 6 ply ags with weights. (Go figure) Of course the steel seat on the 446 may enter into this. ( Go figure X 2)
8. Onan twins use more fuel than the Exxon Valdez
9. I really enjoy this site
10. I really enjoy these tractors. EXCEPTION, see item # 2
11. With Seafoam in the oil and actually "working" it, my 2K hr 446 oil consumption has dropped considerably. With the 4020 back in service I can now swap in the short block provided by Boomer. ( THANK YOU !) Although, the darned thing runs so well, I may concentrate on other projects.
12. We now return to our regularly scheduled programming.

 

[Hydriv]

Your observations are not pointless.

1. Brian is the best person to order parts from. He is endorsed by all of the popular Case/Ingersoll forums on the internet.

2. Nowhere in any Ingersoll manual does it say that changing out power steering hoses was a simple task. On the bright side, you are good for another 20 years of use. Get over it and move on.

3. The oil pan is supposed to sit directly on the frame because an ONAN is a boxer-style engine that mostly cancels out it's vibrations. The rubber pucks are there to protect the engine mounting tabs from snapping off due to the frame flexing that takes place when the tractor is traversing really uneven terrain. The are NOT there to reduce vibration transfer.

4. The bolts that secure the engine to the frame will provide most of the alignment but your eye will tell you whether tweaking is needed.

5. We look forward to your report on the Meg-Mo blades after you have used them a few times on various levels of grass.

6. A properly set up Ingersoll or Case deck will give an excellent cut. Many owners have reported this in the past.

7. The ride of a tractor is related to the plies of the tire. A 4 ply tire will ride twice as rough as a 2 ply but a 6 ply tire will ride three times as rough because it is designed to support a lot more weight and since the total weight of the tractor has not been increased significantly, the sidewalls will not flex as they should.

8. That is true but they also have more power where it counts than some of the modern twins. If you are going to whine about the fuel, then a Rolls-Royce isn't a good choice for your next automobile.

9. Thank you.... but is that a pointless observation?

10. Item 2 only comes along every 20 plus years or so and you could have pulled the engine to make life easier.

11. Seafoam is one of the few additives that actually makes a noticeable difference.

12. We do not have a Program Director as of yet. Are you lobbying for the position?

 

[Bob MacGregor]

99flhr and group,
Some pointless responces to your pointless observations!!!!
1. Brian, great guy!!
2. Hydraulic systems usually need hoses and not many of them are easy to replace.
3. On Onan powered tractors the rubber cushions go on the engine mount bolts under the frame. This is to prevent stress on the oil base ears when the tractor frame twists during use.
4. Again, engine sits directly on frame, rubber cushions under the frame. No problem unless the engine grew taller from use of 100LL AV Gas!!!
5. Meg-Mo blade system, wait for more user feedback, RM deck with stock blades and collection system is hard to beat.
6. My 448/N46 deck did a nicer job than my 4018/RM48, not sure why, but I did install a smaller drive pulley on my N46 which increased blade speed and set the engine high idle speed to 3,600 RPM under load.
7. No argument there, my 6 ply Titan Ag Lugs may go away!
8. Onan twins have never been known for fuel economy. Those with adjustable high speed jets tend to make the mixture richer as time goes on possibly due to vibration or tinkeritus!!!
9. Great site!!
10. Great tractors no doubt!! I don't know of any others that have done or can do what these do in the overall spectrum of garden tractors. Try wrenching on some Onan powered "green" tractors!!!
11. Interesting comment about Seafoam, I wasn't pleased with it when it first came out but I will play with it more.
12. Back to the "Worlds Deadliest Catch" and "Pawn Stars" reruns!!!! "Pawn", not "Porn", naughty, naughty thoughts!!!!! :lol: :lol:
Have fun with your tractors
Mad Mackie in CT :mrgreen: :mowlawn:

 

[99flhr]

99flhr and group,

11. Interesting comment about Seafoam, I wasn't pleased with it when it first came out but I will play with it more.

They`ve been selling it for over 60 years, were you using it in your first tricycle ? No wonder it didn`t work! :wave:

 

[Bob MacGregor]

Well I will be 68 this fall!!!
Seafoam (as a fuel additive) has only been around this area for about 6-8 years along with PB Blaster. I have my own mix that I call "Dr. John" that I have been using since the 60s. Generally I'm not interested in reviving old engines, not much service dept revenue generated and way too much liability.
But if Seafoam works this is a good thing, it didn't perform as claimed as a fuel stabilizer in a dozen of small engines that I use in my lawncare business.
Mad Mackie in CT :mowlawn:

 

[Snotrocket]

8. Onan twins use more fuel than the Exxon Valdez
.

Haha isn't that the truth. I don't even take my daughter for a ride in the trailer without checking the gas level.

 

[Bob MacGregor]

No doubt about Onan fuel consumption, but their displacement is a bit bigger that other brands of L head engines with like horsepower and this could be the reason. I service and use an Excel 260 Compact zeroturn that has a Kohler Command V20 engine and it's hourly fuel burn is about the same as my 1985 448/P218 repower was, about 1.5 GPH at full throttle. My repowered 4018/Vanguard 18 is at about 2/3 GPH doing the same job. My Scag Tiger Cub/B&S 26 ELS is more thrifty on fuel than I expected. It's 6 gallon capacity lets me mow for long periods. It would be nice if Case/Ingersolls had 4-5 gallon tanks.
Fuel consumption of equipment is one thing, fuel to get the equipment to the job now is a serious cost factor!!! :facepalm:
Mad Mackie in CT :mrgreen: :mowlawn: