Removing flywheel from 18hp Vangard

[Chappy]

I have a bad oil leak behind the flywheel on my 18hp Vangard. I can't seem to get the flywheel to budge, and I'm wondering how to get it off. Anyone have any advice for me?

[amphibious drew]

I use a BIG strap wrench to go around the flywheel. I had to order it offline as everyone only carried oil filter strap wrenches around me. Once you get the bolt loose. Tap it with a hammer and the flywheel will separate from the engine. It sounds kind of townie, but that is actually how Briggs recommends removal on these engines. I like to use a punch in between the hammer and bolt as to not risk hitting a thread and screwing it up.

[trevorakm1]

get a flywheel puller and should come off no problem. you can get one from Briggs and stratton on line or ebay pretty cheap. i never did it before and didn't know what to expect. I kept turning the two bolts and thought I would run out of screw length when it just popped. be cautious pulling it off so you don't do damage to the stator.

[Toys4Me]

I've always used an impact to get the nut off and then leave the nut threaded on at the end of the shaft and gave a couple good whacks with a hammer and off they come.

[fmints]

I've always used an impact to get the nut off and then leave the nut threaded on at the end of the shaft and gave a couple good whacks with a hammer and off they come.

Yup this works best for me also,, same thing as Drew's, just leave the nut on after you loosen it and unthread the nut until it is flush with the shaft.

[tattooman]

What is behind the fly wheel that will leak oil?

[Chappy]

The hammer trick worked like a charm! It's nice to come across easy solutions like that. Thanks folks!

[amphibious drew]

The hammer trick worked like a charm! It's nice to come across easy solutions like that. Thanks folks!

Glad you got it off. Where is the oil leaking from?

[Chappy]

I'm not sure...I've been working on it between thunderstorms, and I'd just gotten it off and sprayed degreaser on it when another one hit. I was expecting to see something obviously wrong from the volume of oil that was leaking, but I didn't. There were some things that looked like cracks in various places, but there were so many of them I think they were just cosmetic flaws from the casting process, but they worry me. This was the first time I'd taken my machine out for a test ride of any length, and it started running really rough right at the end of my trip when loading it up, and I noticed the leak. Also, I noticed that the clutch on the other end of the crankshaft appears to have malfunctioned which may have been causing the severe vibrations. I don't know yet, but I'll let ya'll know when I find out.

[fmints]

I bet the leak was from the crankshaft seal that is behind the flywheel. Maybe that will explain the vibration as well. I haven't heard much about those going bad all too often, actually, this is the first!! It's a cheap and easy fix thou, if this is the problem.

[Chappy]

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I hope this picture turns out right.... Okay...so I'm looking for the source of this leak, and I notice this screw kind of looking out of place. I noticed it was crooked and loose fitting in it's hole, and I was able to remove it with my fingers. The hole doesn't appear to be tapped, and I'm wondering if the screw just fell down behind the stator, and as it was turning it just got jammed into the housing, causing my oil leak. It's kind of hard to get a feel for the location of this hole from the picture, but it lines up with the center of the crankshaft on a horizontal plane, and is about 3 inches or so from the center of the crankshaft. I'm going to try an get some better pictures after I see if I'm putting these pictures up here correctly.

[Chappy]

Gah!

[Chappy]

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If you look closely, you can see the end of my screwdriver pointing to the hole in question. Anyone able to tell me if this hole is supposed to be here, or is it damaged? Thanks...

[Chappy]

Engine is nonfunctional now, dangit. Thanks to those who helped me out with this issue!

[amphibious drew]

I would say no that's not supposed to be there. Maybe you flywheel had some play and wore that hole in your engine. I don't ever recall seeing anything like that the last time I took the flywheel off my 18 vanguard.