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Hi guys, I have a 950 Hustler that I changed out the Briggs L head 18 hp twin and put in a Vanguard 16 twin. Now here's what's happening, when the old 18 was in there, the ground speed increased very quickly from a no-load stop. With the new 16 Vanguard, the acceleration in speed is very slow, probably takes 50 yards to get it wound up. Everything is lined up very nicely, the blet is pretty darn tight, not over an inch of vertical slack when you push down on the top of the belt. When it's sitting still in neutral, I don't have to rev the engine very hight to get the clutch to run the belt up, but when I'm in gear, I really am having to rev the engine very high (3600 +) to get the clutch to start it's run. I'm pretty sure it's not too loose, but wondering now if it's too tight. Any help would be appreicated.
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Pointman,Originally posted by pointman View Post
Without looking at your set up and clutching, it's hard to tell but a couple of notes about the two engines:
That cast iron 18hp twin makes a lot of torque at low RMP and has a nearly 30 lb flywheel and heavy crankshaft. This combo produces a lot of low rpm "pull" that you just won't get from the stock 16 hp vanguard. The Vanguard makes power at a much higher rpm range. I personally think the 18 is a better engine for the hustler than a stock 16; you can build the vanguard to get a lot more HP, but it will cost $$. Roger built a really nice motor for his Argo. That being said, I am a fan of the cast iron L head engines; you cannot get the power that you can from a OHV engine, but they are cheap to build, make good power and are indestructible.
Hope this helps. -
Are you using the same clutch on both engines? I don't think the belt could ever be too tight.Comment
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same clutch, but here's a twist. When I was checking the vertical play in the belt, I just pushed down on the top of the belt to check. I decided to squeeze the top and bottom at the same time and my belt touches together if I give it a good squeeze. Seems the trans pulley will spread open pretty easy to give enough slack to let the belt squeeze together, is that a sign that the belt is not tight enough or am I squeezing it together too hard and causing the tran pulley to spread? thanksComment
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From your description it sounds like the spring in your secondary clutch is weak if you can get pulleys to spread by hand. When accelerating the secondary opens up too quickly before the engine can develop torque. Thats why the 16 hp takes longer to make speed. Make sense?Comment
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makes perfect sense to me, I'm a rookie at all the clutch stuff, that's why I'm wondering if it's normal to be able to spread the secondary clutch slightly by simply squeezing the belt together, didn't seem like you should be able to do that, but I'm not sure. Anybody else chime in here on that...Comment
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No, that would definitely be abnormal...even with the green clutch spring, that is too easy to spread apart.
The good news is that a new clutch spring from Recreatives is under 30 bucks...the install is not too bad either.
Here is a few threads that may help you decide between red and green clutch spring, as well as with install.
Hammers should have warning labels.Comment
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Turns out the belt that was on there was too long and too wide. I replaced it with a shorter belt and the thing came alive, runs 25-30 mph easy with fast acceleration. Climbs and torques well, saved me a lot of skinned knuckles worrying about changing springs, etc. i guess with the belt so high in the secondary clutch and wide, when I grabbed and squeezed both sides I had plenty of leverage to force the pulley apart. Anyways, it's tight for sure now and I can't squeeze it apart anymore. No wonder you guys preach tight belts, it's the golden rule....thanks
pointman....>>>
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