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Onan 24 hp toasted. Next motor? WMLT40hd 1987

Started by mikeandike, August 26, 2006, 08:57:30 PM

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mikeandike

Ok then..the old Onan blew up and got rebuilt about 40 hours ago.
Now it really got toasted. Locked up tight as a wedge.

I don't know if I am really up to any major modifications right now.
I'm in the middle of cutting out and building a dock, a deck, and a
new room. I need to be cutting.

So it looks to me like I have the options of:

                     1. Buying the WM replacement 25g Kohler
               
                     2. Trying to find another suitable gas motor and
                         parts to replace the Onan

                     3, Trying to go electric. No 3 phase. And I would
                         have to run 250 feet of heavy wire.

How much HP will the LT40 take? I might as well get all the power
I need now. right?

I figure that you guys probably know all the pros and cons and have the know how.

Hindsite says I should have gotten a new motor last time.

What do you say.  Big decision for me and I plan on making it this weekend
or Early next week.
Looking for a slabber
WMLT40HD

VA-Sawyer

I understand the mill is a '87 edition. Is that correct ?  Do you have a single lift chain or two lift chains? WoodMizer engineer told me the limiting factor for power on the older mills is engine weight. If you have a debarker then you should have 2 chains and they need to be marked 'USA'. Max recommended total engine weight is 150 lbs. If you have 2 'USA' chains and no debarker then you could push the engine weight closer to 200 lbs.
If you only have one lift chain then you should NOT have a debarker installed and the max suggested engine weight is closer to 100 lbs.

Have you considered the 28 Hp Fuel Injected Kohler engine.  It can be retrofited to the older mills with a little work.
VA-Sawyer

mikeandike

Well I have two chains and no debarker (yet) though that looks
pretty attractive to install while I'm upgrading.

I didn't see the Kohler 28 listed as a replacement engine at WM.
Do they do the retrofit or would I have to (and what might that
entail). What does the 28 weigh?

Thanks
Looking for a slabber
WMLT40HD

VA-Sawyer

Call WM and ask to speak with the engine guru. Normally I could tell you his name but, for some reason tonight, I got a bad case of CRS. I will post it if I remember it before Monday.
One of the sawyers from Ill. put one on his mill after his engine went kaput. I think it was Kevin_H. You might do a search for the thread. The guy a WM told me it cut wood almost as fast as the 35 Hp engine, but used a lot less fuel. I plan on installing one as soon as my Onan dies. ( It seems to be running better now than ever  :(  )
I don't know the engine weight but, I have a '88 mill and the weight is no problem with the debarker.
VA-Sawyer

mikeandike

Thanks so much for the info. I'll go search for the thread
and will call WM Monday.

That 28hp sounds great if I could do the repower myself.

Looking for a slabber
WMLT40HD

Brucer

My LT40HD manual says the Kohler G25 weighs 130 pounds and the Cat GD34 weighs 330 pounds. I'd guess the G28 weighs close to the same as the G25, except ... my Kohler G28 manual says the weight is only 95 pounds. Could be that WM has included an allowance for the engine mount as well.

I've run a G28 through 2 summers and a winter with only a couple of minor problems -- both with O-rings in the fuel system. Never a problem starting, no matter how hot or cold it is.

Bruce    LT40HDG28 bandsaw
"Complex problems have simple, easy to understand wrong answers."

scsmith42

Typically if you take a carburated motor of twenty-something horsepower and add fuel injection to it, you will gain 2 - 3 horsepower.  The 28 HP Kohler is probably the same basic displacement as the 25HP, thus about the same weight.

I have a 29HP Kawasaki FI motor on my lawnmower - no problems with it in 3 years and it burns about 25% less fuel than the carburated 27HP.
Peterson 10" WPF with 65' of track
Smith - Gallagher dedicated slabber
Tom's 3638D Baker band mill
and a mix of log handling heavy equipment.

VA-Sawyer

CRS is fading... I think the name of the guy you want  to talk with is Greg Brock. Tell him that you really want to put the 28 FI engine on your mill. It may take a little metal work... can you handle that ?
VA-Sawyer

Kevin_H.

hey the 28 is still running great, Would not hesitate to do it again, although I hope I dont have too... :D

this should be the link to our engine swap threads

https://forestryforum.com/board/index.php?topic=12861.0
Got my WM lt40g24, Setworks and debarker in oct. '97, been sawing part time ever since, Moving logs with a bobcat.

mikeandike

Yeah I can handle a little cutting a little welding. Just didn't really
want to take time for a major fabrication where I have to make
parts. I don't mind putting in a new fuel tank or mounting a new
box, trimming something to fit.

Took the old motor off today and started looking around at things
that might need doing while off. Looks kind of sad with no motor
on the mill and LOTS of logs.
Looking for a slabber
WMLT40HD

jpgreen

They are really well engineered, simple, and easy to work on. Bout the easiest mill for an engine swap I can think of.

You've probably seen my swap, but if not here's the link:

https://forestryforum.com/board/index.php?topic=17276.0
-95 Wood-Mizer LT40HD 27 Hp Kawasaki water cooled engine-

mikeandike

Well... I called Greg brock at Woodmiser and he was very less
than enthusiastic about the Kohler 28 hp. He said that HE and
Kohler had grave misgivings about that motor on MY mill.

He said that with my OLD mill I wouldn't see much production
increase with the 28 AND that they thought that the setup would
be hard to pull off anyway.

Anyway I ordered the 25....

Here's the mill with no motor..







I'm putting the motor on today and tomorrow. I'll let you know how it goes.

Mike
Looking for a slabber
WMLT40HD

jpgreen

Hmmm...

That's interesting.  They do sell the Kohler 28 on the current model LT-40..  ???

I wonder what they consider a grave missgiving?..  ???
-95 Wood-Mizer LT40HD 27 Hp Kawasaki water cooled engine-

mikeandike

He (the woodmizer guy) said that with the front alternator and the
way every wired together that it would be difficult and didn't recommend.

Well I got my motor and started doing the conversion. The bolts that attach
the front alternater pulley were missing. I'll see if the old engine has the
same bolts.

The instuction manual has MANY errors. My mill has never had a wire touched.
The wiring instructions don't have the right colored wires listed. I figured it
out anyway. Got it bolted up, wired up, oiled up. Just need to attach the
alternator pulley and belt..shoot the gas to it and go.

They sent a new double wide belt instead of the two I was using. I like the way it feels. Seems like though I have it a bit tight. How do I know how much
tension. (the belt that drives the blade).


Looking for a slabber
WMLT40HD

jpgreen

Go easy on the tension on the banded belt.  You can always add more.  Start on the lower end.

I've got at least a 1/2" delfection on mine so far.  They can put a lot of force on bearings.

-95 Wood-Mizer LT40HD 27 Hp Kawasaki water cooled engine-

mikeandike

Well just to finish this story, the wiring was still not completed and
the motor would start but would not run. I called WM and talked
to a tech . He was very nice and pretty knowledgable. I guess he
pulled up the wiring diagram of the new motor and the "kit" installation
instructions. In short, he didn't know and said that he should get out
and wire one himself and rewrite. I agree. I tried wiring it as he suggested
and no go.

Any way I got lucky and found the combination without burning anything
up.

the new motor (Kohler 25) is very superior to the old Onan I had.
quieter too. Very smooth. I'm a happy guy again.
Looking for a slabber
WMLT40HD

sparks

Did you find it to be in the black plug? Wre the wiers installed in the wrong terminals? That is what I have found in the past. Glad you got it going.
\"America will never be destroyed from the outside. If we falter and lose our freedoms, it will be because we destroyed ourselves.\" Abraham Lincoln

mikeandike

Yes indeed. I don't know squat about electrical wiring. I took a simpleton's
meter ( the kind that shows 12 volts) and ran it around on the wires to see
which were hot when switch was on and when cranking . Finally just attached
it to the red wire and voile it worked . thanks for the help.

the kit saved me a lot of grief and time as time is at a premium right now.

I would opt to do it this way if given another chance.

Woodmizer as always is very polite and helpful and this has worked out very well
for me.

thanks again.  :)
Looking for a slabber
WMLT40HD

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