My new-to-me Hustler project

Greetings fellow forum-goers!

I'm Travis, I'm 16 and live south of San Antonio, Texas. I've been following AATVs with interest for the last few years, ever since Nick O. introduced me to them through a game called Rigs of Rods. I even ended up modelling an Attex and putting it in the game. There's a thread for it somewhere on this forum.

Fast forward to last week, Nick messaged me on Skype with a link to a craigslist ad, it was listed as an Argo, and his asking price was $500. But Nick and I quickly determined that it was in fact a Hustler. The seller said it ran when he bought it and that he disassembled it and began a restoration of sorts and finished the entire lower half, he believed it was complete, and from what I could tell in the pictures, that seemed to be the case. All it really seemed to need was tires, and of course whatever work the engine may need to get running again. The seller said it would need new tires, but Nick said if there weren't any holes all the way through the tires, tubes should make them usable. So I contacted the seller and after a few messages asking various questions, I offered $300 and he came back with $330, which I had no problem accepting. So I made the 3.5 hour drive with my parents to take a look at it.

As usual pictures can only tell you so much, as it turns out it's not entirely there. But I ended up buying it. The biggest thing that's missing is the engine cover/rear seat. But the rest of what's missing seems to be small bits and pieces. It did come with a box of wiring, the fuel pump, headlight seals, one headlight bulb, an extra axle flange, and a few other small things. Mechanically everything seems to be in working order, the chains have very little rust, good tension and when you turn the axle there's little to no resistance. The passenger side drive chain is missing, but the seller gave me a small roll of chain to cut down and use. I also shifted the tranny a few times and moved the sticks around, everything was smooth as butter. Though the right stick moves farther forward than the left, I've traced that to the bolt that acts as its pivot point, the welds seem to have broken free. It also has what looks to be a nearly brand new drive belt. Also, as far as I can tell, someone replaced the axle pins with nuts and bolts, so I see that as a big plus. The condition of the body is fair, there's only three minor cracks on the lower tub, but the upper is where the problems exist. It has cracks all around it, though only four or five that I would consider major issues.

The tires are also a point of interest, they're in worse condition than I hoped, but they don't appear to have any holes going all the way through. So I'm on the fence on whether to attempt to use them or not. My fear is that something like a stick or sharp rock could punch through the week-points on the tires and puncture my tubes.

Now on to identifying what exactly I have, from the data plate on the engine I found that it's a Kohler 440 (exact model K4402AX). And the carb appears to be a Walbro WF17-043655, but the F and 0 are partially worn off. As far as condition of the engine, it has a broken spark plug boot, the fan belt and recoil are missing, and the exhaust manifold has a small crack where it looks like it broke completely and someone tried to repair it. Other than that it looks to be in pretty decent shape, and it still has compression. It also has the flex pipe for the exhaust, but the muffler is rusted out and filled with dirt and various critter nests, so I doubt it will be much use to me.

As far as the machine itself goes, it doesn't have the plate that would usually be to the left of the driver, and I can't find any kind of identification on the chassis. But with the help of a couple threads here, Nick and I are pretty sure it's a 1976 900HK model.

Here's a list of what I think I need, so far, along with some things I'd like to get done for cosmetics/future proofing:
- Tires (maybe)
- New wiring (maybe)
- Headlight bulb/lexan light shields (maybe)
- Various hardware/mounting equipment
- Throttle/choke cables/choke lever
- Fan belt
- Recoil starter
- Carb rebuilt kit
- Fuel line
- Spark plug boot
- Air filter
- Muffler
- Rubber bushing for motor mount
- Lots and lots of epoxy. Possibly sheet metal for bracing
- Paint to go over epoxy, maybe bedliner for the tub. Debating spray bombing the rims
- New handle grips
- Floor boards

If anyone has pointers on repairing cracks, getting anything else done, places to find deals on parts, or even things to add to my list of things to buy, that would be greatly appreciated. After all, my reason for posting here wasn't only to share my excitement with the community, but also to get any advice I can. Because as a first time owner I need all I can get!


Thanks for taking a look, here's a link to the pictures I've taken so far: 1976 Hustler 900HK - Album on Imgur

Congratulations on picking up your Hustler. I wouldn't worry about the tires until you get everything running like you want. If they hold air at all, just use them while you test things out. If they don't hold air, tubes are just a temporary fix. With tubes, you would have to run higher pressure to keep the tires from spinning on the wheel which would shear a valve stem. You will want to avoid the tubes long term. Good luck with your rebuild. :cool:

Thanks, Mike! I'll be sure to keep that in mind.

Right now I'm trying to track down a rebuild kit for my carb. I've found a few different gasket sets, but only one true rebuild kit, and that's at Richard's Relics. I've been having trouble getting in touch with him though. I've also found my fan belt and spark plug boots, so it's looking like the only thing I need to find is the rebuild kit, then I can get everything ordered and see if I can't get this engine running.

I'm sure Richard's Relics would have what you are looking for. Some people feel like he is overpriced so you may want to check eBay or even somewhere like Jacks Small Engine to compare prices. You could also go to your local small engine repair shop. They may also be able to help you out. Good luck with the engine.

Change of plans, I'm ditching the 440 in favor of a 4 stroke. Both for better trail performance and to save the money I'd spend on parts to get the 440 running. But after looking at the price of a comet 780 clutch, I just can't spend that much.

So what I'm wondering is, can I take my current clutch, and replace the springs with a 780 spring kit? It's either that, or I'd have to find an alternative CVT to use.

Hey Travis, congratulations on the buy. You'll enjoy it when you get it going. For a trail machine a 4 stroke is the way to go, more low end torque a lot less noise. When it comes time to buy tires you can go as big as a 25 with minimal spacing on the rear axles. Good luck bringing it back to life.

Thanks, yeah, I figured since I don't have anywhere/anyone to race down here a trail machine would be the most useful to me. Thanks for the info on the tires too, I was under the impression that only bigfoots could run 25s.

Sorry to double post, but I really need to know about the clutch. If there's no way for me to avoid buying the 780 my project will definitely have to go on hold until I get a job of my own, which could be anywhere from next summer to a couple years depending on how things play out.

So if someone who's done a 4-stroke swap could give some insight, it would be greatly appreciated.

I'm not a CVT guy but I think you can use a lighter spring in your 2 stroke clutch. You may also have a tapered shaft on your clutch but you can purchase an adapter to allow you to run it on a 4 stroke. If someone else doesn't chime in, give Roy at Quality Drive a call. He will know what you need to do.

the cvt is a different animal, you can take it apart and re-clock it, their are different holes where you can move the spring to get differnt tensions, i never could
get one to work for me on GOLIATH but you might. i could get it to haul a$$ but would not down shift properly so i ditched the cvt for a 780.

good luck

Thanks a lot for the info. Now that I have a starting point I can do some more research and hopefully make some progress on this.

I may be wrong but I think both Mike and WFO are talking about 2 different clutches in the last 2 posts.

The driven or transmission clutch (Convertor) could be out fitted with a green or red spring for 4 stroke use and although the ramping is slightly different it shouldn't matter for now. The drive clutch on the engine has a 30mm tapered bore and would be set at a different rpm engagement point than a 4stroke clutch, springs may be needed to change that ( though I am no clutch guy) and need the bore adapter Mike mentioned. I believe he meant CVT in general and not the brand.

The CVT brand WFO mentioned is a later piece than you would have and is seen on some larger Max and most Argo machines and is a less peppy (casual engagement) clutch set up.

Correct me if I am wrong fellas.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by ARGOJIM

Correct me if I am wrong fellas.

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No, you are right. Your post definitely helped to clarify things.

Wow, thanks Jim! That really makes this process straight-forward from here. Now I just have to see if my engine sells on CL.

Progress!

The past couple weeks have been great in many ways, including some relevant to this site.

With the help of money from my birthday and a small loan from my generous older brother, I was able to order all of the basic necessities to get my machine going. I bought a clutch from blink115 on this forum, and ordered a throttle cable, then picked up my fluids, nuts and bolts to get the upper on (which I somehow got too few of :hmmmm2: ), along with other odds and ends. Oh yeah... and a 440cc Honda Clone lol.

So yesterday my dad and I started prepping for heart surgery, we threw my 4 good tires on, got the machine off the trailer it was sitting on and drug it to the slab we park on. I have to say, I've never been so satisfied to see something getting towed. To think of how long this machine had been without its own tires to stand on, let alone roll, is really something.

Fast forward to today, I goofed up by cutting my right side drive chain too short, but was able to salvage it with an extra master link, then we cut off the old bolts for the engine mount, and the redneck cooler-rack that occupied the rear seat brace, then threw the clutch on the engine and did a dry fit, everything lined up really well, and will be perfect when we get a permanent engine mount. Now all that's left should be throwing my left side drive chain on, getting a mounting plate for the engine fabbed up, changing my tranny fluid and filling the engine with oil, then getting lugs on the center tires. After that it's shakedown time!


Pictures: Hustler Resto - Album on Imgur

Glad you're making some progress on the machine, hadn't seen an update in a while was wondering how it was coming along. It looks a little rough but not so far gone that it can't be made to run again. Except for some of the cracks I see in the pics my last 950 was in similar shape but was brought back. There are some cool mods you can do to the machine if you can weld and since you're talking about building an engine mount I'm betting you can. One that I think would be best to do now, while you are fabbing the engine mount, is to brace the transmission. The nature of skid steering puts a lot of torque on the xmission mounts and there are plenty of horror stories on here about housings lost due to that. Do a search for t20 bracing and read up on it. The split shift is another good one but they are a little more complex to do on a hustler if you want to keep both shift levers under the driver seat. Glad to see things going well, hang in there!

Thanks! The upper body is definitely the worst part of the machine, I plan on picking up a plastic welder from Harbor Freight as soon as I can, then I can make everything on the body nice and sturdy again. As far as transmission bracing, I definitely think that'll be on the to-do list. Yesterday I found out that the left side transmission mount is already wallowed out a bit, so I really can't afford to leave it be. Speaking of wallowed out, I also should probably weld up my pinned axles before I'm having to replace them altogether. Split shifters would definitely be a convenient thing to have, I'll have to think about doing that.

I'm to that point where I'm really getting anxious about driving it for the first time, and I'll definitely try to keep this thread updated now that the project is really moving forward.

OH, everybody on here who has ever done a restore can identify with being anxious for the first ride but don't be in too much hurry and omit something that could keep the first ride from being all the fun it could be. If the axle holes are wallowed out, definitely fix them while you're in the build mode. Chain tensioners are another issue , Hustler tensioners were known for not being the best feature on the machine and were almost impossible to keep tight. Once you have all those figured out and you're ready to install the chains here's a trick I learned. Hustler sprockets are not always exactly centered on the axle sleeves, which can cause excessive chain stress and premature stretch, or even break chains if not addressed and improperly adjusted. With the sprockets installed on the axles and the machine on blocks so they can be rotated, hold something stationary, for a pointer, close to the tips of the sprocket teeth. Spin each axle slowly and watch the sprocket if you see the tips getting closer to the "pointer" mark an arrow on the side of the sprocket from the axle toward the high spot. Repeat this on the corresponding sprocket. When you install your chains point the arrows in the same direction (I usually pointed them level toward the front). You've just clocked the sprockets. Repeat for each set of sprockets and then tension your chains. Usually even after going through all that you might still observe the chains getting tight then loose then tight as you roll the axles, this is due to them not being off center the same amount when welded up during manufacturing. There isn't much you can do about that but the process I just talked you through will have it to an as-good-as-you-can-get-it condition. I learned this trick after building some very unforgiving tensioners then popping a brand new chain.

Yeah, I'm definitely trying to keep myself grounded and not get in a hurry, thanks for the words of encouragement there. I'm hoping we can get the machine over to my grandfather's place this weekend and get some of the welding done, we're having to borrow his welder since we don't have one. The machine actually came with the chains installed, but I have noticed the odd slack that you're mentioning, so I'm definitely going to follow your advice and get all the chains back out and properly adjusted. I'd hate to break a chain since I don't have the biggest budget for this project, at this point it's a blessing that I've even made it this far. I'll also probably have to break down and pick up a set of rollers for the tensioners, since the chain has eaten into most of them.

After a bit of a break, some progress has been made. Last Saturday my dad and I got my new engine fired up for the first time on our "test stand", cut the plate steel we'll be using for the motor mount, and some other odds and ends. Still to do is clocking the sprockets/tensioning chains, getting fluid in the transmission, bracing the transmission, finalizing the motor mount, and welding up the axle pins. Then I should at least be ready for a test ride!

I do have a quick question though, I've never given the machine a good cleaning, and I've really been wanting to do that lately. My plan is to take out the chains (going to have to do it anyway when I clock the sprockets), spray everything down with degreaser/dishsoap, then rinse with the hose and dry with a leaf blower. So my question is.. Is a T20 case waterproof enough to stand up to garden hose pressure? Or do I have to get it out of the machine before I do my cleaning?

The T20 case will be fine to spray down with the water hose. You don't want to sit and just focus a stream of water at the plungers or up under the diamond shifters for any extended period of time but hitting those areas for a brief period won't hurt.

That's great to hear, thanks! Can't wait to get it squeaky clean now.

Seems like every time I post my to-do list gets longer, but I can't complain because I'm still making progress.. slowly. There hasn't been a whole lot of progress lately, mostly due to needing parts and not having the funds. I've been doing what I can though, I started plastic welding my body since I had some scrap plastic and my grandpa happened to have a soldering gun with a spade tip, so it's been nice to see some of the ugliness taken care of. I still have a long ways to go on the upper body, but the tub is only a crack and two small holes away from being water-worthy! Aside from that I picked up some linseed oil, paint thinner, and black spray paint with my last round of parts. So it shouldn't be long until the body is full of color again and the rims are a nice flat black. I know I'm forgetting other things I've gotten accomplished on the machine but they'll have to wait until my next post if I can remember them.

Now to the mechanical side of things, in one of the last test fits of the engine I came to the realization that my belt is too long, the new engine is much longer than the Kohler and because of that has to sit a lot further forward in the machine. I did some searching and found a thread where someone pointed out the Quality Drive Systems Baja SAE catalog from 2009 for finding belt sizes by using center-to-center distances on the clutches. But their reference chart is for 700 series clutches, which my driven is, but my primary is a 94c Duster. The only difference I've been able to find dimension-wise on the two primaries is the diameter, mine is 7.5" and a 700 series is 7.25", the belts for are both 1-3/16" top width. So my question is will the chart more or less match up with my clutch setup? Even if I can just use it for a ballpark estimate that would be good, considering I have 6 to 8-ish inches of wiggle room in the engine compartment.

Call Roy at quality drive systems. He knows his stuff and is glad to help.

A real easy way to get you close to the right starting length is to simply measure it with a flexible (fabric) tape measure. Put the belt that's too long on the machine, make sure it fits well on the two clutches by just holding it by hand or putting a couple zip ties around it (between the clutches, so it's squeezing the belt tight on the two clutches. At this point, you can take the tape measure and figure out how long the actual belt needs to be by essentially "making" the belt with the tape measure. I loop it around the bottom of the clutches (over the top of the zip-tied, too-loose belt) and then pull it tight on the top and get the measurement. Make sure the engine is moved the entire way forward in its adjustment before you do it. You can add a 1/4' to a 1/2" in the measurement just to be safe. I do this each time I put a custom machine together, since I'm not smart enough to use the center-to-center/pulley diameter method. :)

Here are links to a couple pictures showing excerpts from the Dayco belt catalog with dimensional data and part numbers. Make sure you get the right top width, too. There's a .pdf of this in the brochures section, but I can never download it correctly.

http://www.6x6world.com/gallery/data...ata_Page_1.jpg

http://www.6x6world.com/gallery/data...ata_Page_2.jpg

Thanks hydromike, that makes things very straightforward from this point on. Now I can get the belt taken care of and focus on getting everything finalized.

More questions.. I have a gentleman interested in the old Kohler that came in this machine, he asked if any transmission came with it, which I am letting the primary clutch and belt go with it, so all he needs to find is a secondary. Then I thought about my current secondary it's obviously a 2-stroke clutch, and it needs a new spring. So I'm wondering if just swapping the spring to one from a 4-stroke 780 will suffice, or if I'd be better off finding a proper 4-stroke driven clutch? I think I remember reading somewhere that the ramping on the cams are different between 2 and 4 stroke, but I'm not certain I'm remembering correctly. Also, I'm having trouble finding what driven Comet matched up to the 94c from the factory, some places I've found that it's the 90d, some people mention running a 40 series secondary, then there's the option of just finding a 4-stroke 780 series clutch. Anyone have opinions on that issue?

So if it would be best for me to get a 4-stroke secondary, my plan is to let my current secondary clutch go with the engine, that way he has a complete transmission system for whatever his project is, then I can find myself a proper secondary. What are your guys' thoughts?

I just realized how long it's been since I posted in this thread, that's partly due to PC issues that kept me down for a couple months, but that situation is thankfully all cleared up now.

A few weeks ago I finally got my engine mounted with the help of my dad, it's not pretty but it works, so that allowed me to measure for and find a belt, I ended up going with a Dayco HP3017 which is a half inch longer than what I measured using hydromike's method. I could have probably also used a Carlisle UA428 which was right at the measurement I took, or a Dayco HP2026 which was in the middle of the two, but was an ever so slightly wider belt, and I didn't want to take a chance on that. But I plan on making a new, nicer looking motor mount at some point, and I'll definitely add adjustability, so I'll most likely have a lot more options for the belt when I get around to that. Along with mounting the engine I re-pinned the axles as a temporary deal until it gets splined axles (probably a few years away) got the chains back in and properly tensioned, changed fluid in the transmission, installed a red clutch spring and got the throttle cable in.

At that point I was ready to test drive, but it was already dark and not having lights around the property or headlights I decided to wait to drive it and just test it on blocks. So I fired it up, adjusted idle and such since this was only the 2nd run of this engine, then put it in gear and tested it out, everything worked great, both forward and reverse, so I shut it off and my dad and I started cleaning up tools and such, a little while later we came back to find oil dripping from the passenger side output shaft and upon closer inspection I found that the oil seal was all kinds of twisted and warped, it also started leaking from the center of the cases later on.

Now I'm in the process of rebuilding the transmission. I have it torn down and have gotten a parts list together, I'll be getting all the seals, a couple output shaft bearings since one is completely rusted frozen and the other has a few rough spots, and two shift pins since mine aren't in good shape, one even fell out somewhere between my test run and disassembly of the transmission. The first thing I found upon inspection was a sludgey buildup in the bottom of the case presumably from water getting in somewhere in its life, but for a 40+ year old unit I kind of expected that. Thankfully other than the rusted bearing, the only other rust is very minor surface rust on the drum and band surfaces, and that all wipes off with a rag. All my gears have all the teeth intact, no visible damage and no rust, even the teeth on the shift collars don't have very much rounding on the edges, and the bushings and washers are in great condition as well. The overall condition of this transmission is way better than I could have hoped for, which is a great thing considering the cost of parts for these units.

On a side note.. I did find two rectangular pieces, similar to the size of the input shaft key that appeared to have a round piece coming off the top at some point, but after looking at exploded diagrams and part lists for the T20 I couldn't find anything that looks anything like those pieces, I found them sitting underneath the shifter, shift collar, and output shaft if that's any clue to what they could have been. I'm not too concerned about them because there's literally no place for them to go in the transmission, couple that with the lack of documentation and I really doubt they were meant to be in there in the first place.

I won't say I'm close to a test drive since every time I've said that in this thread I've been delayed by a few more months, but I will say that things are looking good for this project.

As far as the rectangles , they are your missing shift dogs. I have one in mine as well.

Should you buy new diamond shifters....

Ah yeah, after looking at the diamond shifters with the broken pieces I can see that's definitely where they went... Would it really be necessary to buy new shifters seeing as the new ones don't even have the shift dogs? Other than the pins and dogs my shifters are in good condition.

No, you could use what you have unless you want to go with the new style pins.

Progress update. Finally got in a position where I could get the parts for my T20 rebuild, and today the man in brown paid a visit and handed me the best goody box I've gotten in a while. Next step is sending out my bands to get relined when I get the time and a little extra money.

http://www.6x6world.com/gallery/data...DSC_0173_1.jpg