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bsaunier · 09-21-2009, 08:46 PM

My agco 1614H has a 14 hp kohler motor. Plenty of power and very smooth. No smoke whatsoever, no oil leaks. my simplicity LTH 12.5 has the briggs vanguard twin. Just as smooth if not more and maybe a bit quieter. ( that may be due to mufflers but they both seem in similar very good condition.) What opinions do you have, pros/cons, preference. I must say I was surprised by the briggs.
Bob in Pgh PA

p.s. I posted a pic of my bolens.

HYDROGUARDIAN16 · 09-24-2009, 01:18 AM

I like the Vtwin from briggs. My regent has the 18 horse commercial motor. Quiet as can be! love it, just dont you dare run it with the oil a little below the fill point. We have had it replaced once, almost a thousand but it was warrantied because we got the dealer to admit it was not our fault (dad's lol) and was free.

junkpile · 11-23-2009, 02:47 AM

Both brands have always treated me well, although I think I lean towards Kohler for longevity, but Briggs has always made smooth, reliable, easy to start motors. Kohler just seems to wear better in the long run. I never had a bad Kohler or Briggs motor.

HYDROGUARDIAN16 · 11-24-2009, 03:22 PM

I would have to agree, I see less kohler engines in the shop for repair. I believe that kohler builds a tough engine. I like briggs too because the parts are easy to find, the cost for parts is cheap, the motors are easy to fix, and they are less expensive. But Briggs has been making engines for a LONG time, But for the simplicity tractors the 2 kinds are both good engines.

It comes down to this: Personal Preference, thats how I see it.

HYDROGUARDIAN16 · 11-24-2009, 09:01 PM

Hey nice bolens, looks pretty umm.... sexy! Nothin' wrong sayin' that don't get me wrong I am str8

freeisforme · 11-25-2009, 02:28 AM

As far as I'm concerned, either the Briggs or the Kohler is fine. Any motor that I don't have to sweep up bits and pieces of is fine by me. Over the years I've learned to avoid Tecumseh, Kawasaki, and some Honda motors. I can't count how many Tecumseh rods I've seen hanging out of engine blocks over the years. I've only seen one or two BS rods broken, and one Kohler, and every one those were ran low on oil and badly neglected. I had both an 8hp and a 11hp Tecumseh both blow up within days of buying the machines. I had one Kawasaki 17.5hp seize up on a later JD, that turned out to be warranty but I sold the machine after they couldn't get it right after the new motor was installed. I also had two Honda motors fail at low hours, both were 5 hp engines on pressure washers. Both had valve or rocker issues.
Nothing compares to a Tecumseh coming apart though, the best one was in a Toro tractor I had about 12 years ago, it blasted the rod and part of the piston through the plastic hood on the side, covered my boot in oil and flashed into flames in a matter of seconds. I was just about done cutting the grass at the shop, the mower was less than a year old, and it went. Oil was well maintained, and the motor was at about 3/4 throttle when it blew. I had another one put a rod into a battery on an old Sears tractor, that one I didn't have new but it ran fine for a year before it popped on me.
As a kid, I used to explode those 5hp Tecumseh go cart and mini bike motors just about weekly while the BS motors would just run and run and run.

HYDROGUARDIAN16 · 11-30-2009, 10:21 AM

Tecumseh is a great snowblower engine, hands down freeisforme! The tractor motors and push mower motors couldnt handle much of a load. I found most of those with snapped con rods.

junkpile · 11-30-2009, 10:44 AM

I've always avoided Tecumseh too, with so many failures in tractors and mowers, I never took the chance on any of them. I did have one 10hp vertical shaft Tecumseh that lasted, but it was on a rear engine rider that I was given, and it came with the new motor in a box. The old motor had blown a rod through the block. Briggs Stratton motors have always seemed more durable compared to others if the owner isn't one to keep up on maintenance. While with any care, Kohler blocks seem to wear longer.
I've also had far less carburetor problems with Kohler, especially on engines that tend to sit long periods of time. My K301 on my John Deere sat for 5 years while I hunted parts and restored the tractor, when it came time to refire it, I just added fresh gas and a battery and off it went. My Briggs lawnmowers aren't that forgiving, especially the newer models.

I've also seen and had quite a few bad coils on the Tecumseh motors for some reason, I've bought a few dozen over the years, while I can't recall every replacing a Kohler or Briggs coil.

HYDROGUARDIAN16 · 12-01-2009, 11:35 AM

i hear ya

dustbowl · 09-02-2010, 07:17 PM

I have a small engine shop and deal with kohler and briggs both alot. If you want to build an engine for say a pulling tractor kohler is the way to go but for stock uses a briggs is the best. they are quieter, lighter, and much better on gas. Plus they are easier to maintain.

borgward · 09-08-2010, 02:12 PM

How many Licks?

WikiAnswers - How many licks does it take to get to the center of a Tootsie Roll Pop

lizella · 09-11-2010, 04:38 PM

I'm wondering what sort of opinions are out there on the old cast iron HH-100s with roller bearings mains. Mine turns age 40 this month and is on the third set of (standard) rings. 10 HP is a little underpowered for my 38" deck in heavy bahia but it runs as good as new, especially since I added a spark advance.

bsaunier · 10-02-2010, 03:23 PM

Since my first post i acquired a simplicity broadmoor with a kohler 15 hp. it came with wheelweights, chains , snowblower, simplicity repair manual, new blades on deck, bagger attachment with 2 turbo attachments, newer belts on deck and tractor plus 2 new belts. i had seen unit on craigslist and the seller stated it had a weak hydro tran. I was interested in chains and wheel weights but seller told me it was sold. a couple weeks later i got an email from seller saying buyer backed out and if i wanted it i could take everyyhing for free. i jumped on it and picked everything up that day. I tried twice splitting case on tran & changing fluid and cleaning filter but no luck. it was a hydro gear 312 0800 tran. i found it to be a very weak unit by reading various posts with simplicity even paying for upgrades to a tuff torq model, some up to 5 years after purchase. i chose not to rebuild this tran. i began looking for a donor. i recently found an agco 16 hp briggs vtwin on craigs' that had engine problems. I bought it for 100.00. it has wheel weights, chains, solid deck with gator blades. in diagnosing the engine i found it to have an internal governor problem. i put the 15 hp kohler in it. it runs great and the tran is the desirable tuff torq k61. very strong and solid. i put hood from simplicity on as it was much cleaner along with its seat and orange deck.

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