i remember a couple of years ago i stumbled across your channel you inspired me to get into small engines this week i got hired at my local small engine shop thank you mustie

My favourite time of Sunday evening, in bed, hot cup of tea and a Mustie1 video. Good evening all from Adelaide, Australia.

Banging on that crankshaft in double time was downright musical

Thanks Mustie for inviting all of us into your little operating theatre. First time I've seen you do "major surgery" on a riding mower engine like this. Even though it eventually turned out to be just an "autopsy" it was still very interesting to see what "killed" this fine specimen.

Geez one bolt fails and the crap hit the fan! Thanks for having me over to hang out in the garage bud it's a good time as always.

I can hear Project Farm going: Wow, thats a lot of damage!😁

I really like the wrap up synopsis- really helpful for you to run back through what we’ve seen as the final “act” of the video. Thank you.

Hey, I want to thank you for all the helpful videos. I retired and moved to Northwest Arkansas in the deep Ozarks. It's pretty much just my wife and me. Since I found your channel I have been able to work on my own small engine equipment. I can even help neighbors. It's been very rewarding. Thank you.

I'm sitting here on a sunday morning and watching LSI (lawnmower scene investgations) and I couldn't ask for anything better. The way you look and diagnose what went wrong with that Toro was nothing short of amazing. And I always enjoy watching a master at work. Love your stuff and keep up the good work.

Loved every minute of it, 100x better than anything on TV!!

My neighbor gave me a honda push mower that was locked up. I soaked the cylinder with pb blaster and have been using it for 4 years. Love the videos musty. You have really increased the depths I'm willing to go before I give up on equipment. Thanks 😊

Your presentations are amazing Mustie ! The humour stands your channel well apart from others out there and we can relate to your findings as though in person. In truth i think we all watch for your trademark phrases lol.. "think it's got spark..." "think it'll run" ... "well that ain't good" ... and then .. there is the laugh! You Sir.. are an entertainer and a joy to watch with your tear down and repairs. Here's to the next video and thank you so much for sharing

No matter how old we get we're all still a little boys that like to take things apart to see how they work

You are a power house, tearing into this thing at turbo speed. Love the energy!

Your videos are never long winded...always very informed and n depth...no one else would go into detail like you..ty very much for what you do and how you do it...never change your style or videos..

I absolutely love all your videos Mustie. I have learned so much about the functionality of anything mechanical to tool use. My hobby is restoring mowers, weed eaters, and pretty much anything mechanical much like you. I was wondering how/where to send you a thank you package. I’ve had some hard life challenges and your videos have gotten me through them. Please PM me to where I can mail you some thank you items. You’ve inspired me to track down the moped I used to have and start restoring it. Thanks again Mustie you ROCK!

Thanks for your educational videos. Recently bought a 20€ lawnmower and within 30 minutes cleaned the fuel system and carburetor and now runs like a Briggs & Stratton 😀

Great autopsy on that engine. The synopsis you did to explain the failure was amazing. Thanks for posting this video :)

Just wanted to say thanks for all the information on small engines. Just helped my friend with a Kawasaki 15 HP twin with a bent push rod. Straightened it out, put it back, adjusted the valves and it LIVES...lol...never would have tried that without watching you. Keep em coming to Walkertown NC.

Classic Mustie ..... "its comin out, it just doesn't know it yet" ! Oh how I love this channel !

What a weird engine! Never seen a fixed counter balance like that? Thanks for getting your hands oily and showing us!

Love the what ifs teardowns. Learned alot about the interaction of components. Thanks for the look.

Man, I really got a lot out of this video. Thank you so much. I really appreciate the time spent on you explanations of the overall mechanics.

I have owned a mower with this engine for the past 8 years and have had no issues due to regular maintenance. One day while going over the mower I noticed all the top cover bolts have come slightly loose most notably the ones near the back where the locating thing that that screw screws into and is located in the top case. I think what you said about the bolt failing and working loose is true, but I think the reason said bolt was able to work loose was because of warpage or looseness of the top cover where that silver locating thing sits in the case. Fingers crossed mine keeps going haha.

Good show, Moe. The sinister laugh at the end when putting the crank back in with "Up Next. Will it run?" is cliffhanger material all day long. Hysterical and surely has us wondering how bad it will be and how long it will last!

Mustie's enthusiasm is admirable. I'd be like "Crap, guess I gotta take this darn thing apart..." Mustie is "Cool! I get to take this apart and find out what's wrong!" 😁

Your trick to spin the allen wrench blew my mind.

Well I was looking for boat hull restore info and I find this vid that has nothing to do with boats. Well I have lawn stuff for parts or repair. So i find myself riveted to this video and here is why. I hate videos that sensationalize, monologue to much or can't hold the camera still or drown out the sound with some crazy too loud background music. Also hate that lots of vids have no point or just don't know anything but brag about themselves.. So this guy does an informative video that completely makes true sense of things right before your eyes and ears. So well informed, so thorough, so comfortable and easy to watch. Answers so many questions and makes you feel like your at your friends shop helping him figure out what happened. So now I am informed, learned plenty and gave mustie1 a thumbs up and subscribed. Mustie 1 should be teaching tech schools. He doesn't brag so I thought I would do that for him as in reality it should be. Give credit where it's due and dont brag. Put it in your resume'. Thank you Mustie 1.

Good video. I finally found me a hammer like you have. At the flea market last weekend for $1.00. Been using it last week. Thanks for the videos.

Such an inspirational & educational channel, & yet a minority still give a thumbs down. Those people need to go back to bed, have coffee or sit in a bowl of rice or something!!

You’ve got to love wrenching vicariously through Mustie, and maintain clean oil free hands, thank you for allowing us to be there with you whilst you do autopsies on stuff 👍

MAN! This has got to be my absolute favorite channel! Your depth of knowledge is astonishing! Mesmerizing actually! You should teach this stuff! I mean beyond what you do for us here! You didn’t have to go that in depth, but you did! And I’m profoundly grateful for that! And to think, we’ve got someone of your caliber right here in the Granite State! Thank you once again!!! I’m a Mustie junky!! Hey, that’d be a wicked cool t-shirt!! Mustie1Junkie Club!🤣👊🏻

I love the projects that you get into. The way you explain things is great. Thank you for sharing b

I never tire of riding mowers.

Good job, I'm hooked....I've been taking apart and most of the time putting together all my life.....I still push myself to do all of my own work [I just turned 72]........but the satisfaction of [gettin it fixed] is a great feeling...........I can hear your amusement when you [hear it run].........you've got a great personality thanks a lot for the intertainment.

Very good Mustie, I've never seen the inside of these newer engines. All of my experience is with the old iron Briggs and Kohlers. Thanks a bunch. Art

Good morning Mr Mustie ... Good to see you today.

I'm a dedicated viewer as I learn SOOOO much watching your various challenges, diagnoses, and solutions. Apart from your mechanical understanding of engines (of all types), you include a strong understanding of the physics at play in engines. I'm curious, are you self taught? Hoping you might give us some insight into how you garnered such a deep knowledge of these things. Also, you uniquely speak to us as though we're there in your shop, further immersing your viewers in the process. No wonder you have a half million followers. THANKS!

It's amazing how the simplest little prick can cause such a BIG problem! The way that governor exploded was CRAZY!

What surprises me is the engineers would have to have known that bolt was completely wrong for the counter-weights. Yet, here we are. A more unusual reason for engine death we've seen on your channel. Much enjoyment derived. Thanks, Mustie1!

I appreciate the discussion as much as the wrenching. Definitely helps me learn.

Always a pleasure and an education Mustie!

Kohler 🤦 used to be a tough motor, only behind Onan & Wisconsin. Now handily surpassed by Predator. Sad times we're in. Another great adventure Darren 🍻 I think your diagnosis is spot-on. I know those things like to eat those plastic cam gears too.

Thanks Mustie - another great episode !! 👍. I appreciate you doing these vids - always learn something and have a good laugh as well. Cheers !

Greetings from Thailand. Thanks for the small engine (including VW) education over the last couple of years.

it's amazing how he could pull things apart & remember how they go back together i see mustie as a teacher in a trade school he's that amazing as a matter of fact i watch his vids over n over again he's so amazing

Back in high school, I made several old Briggs run with many parts missing - the preview did not disappoint me. Can't wait for next vid.

Hi Mustie, I really enjoy your stuff so thought I would send you this one. 20hp Courage single would lock up at TDC. I thought it was either Battery or starter motor. Replaced both with new. still no go. THEN while fixing the leaky rocker cover gasket I decided to check the valve lash, 17 thou on the exhaust which of course rendered the automatic decompression in operative which made full compression too much for the starter motor. Reset valve lash to 7 thou and all is well. I haven't seen this on your site or any other but I am sure I am not the only one with this prob. Keep them coming bro. I am learning lots.

...... a couple more 'who's your daddies'......Gotta love Mustie's commentary .

Always a fun synopsis. The force of gravity allowed the lower side to drop and get out of alignment every time the motor was stopped and restarted. The upper would remain flush on the bearing surface. Look forward to the rebuild/re-power.

We have a twin of this Toro. Fingers crossed we don't experience this failure. I had to "re-engineer" the deck and pullies in an attempt to get it to quit eat belts. Nice detailed teardown.

This is the real, reality t.v. Very much enjoyed watching and appreciate the posting. Especially the information you gave during.

I've been waiting since 5:30 AM for this.

Yay. Sunday evening with Mustie to watch. Hi from New Zealand.

Love each episode of Musti 1 ever since i met him and the karman giaha a couple of years ago. Learned lots from your videos sir. Thank you very much.

Good video, start to finish. I've learned avoid YT videos with AMAZING, GENIUS, and YOU WON"T BELIEVE titles. I'm glad I made an exception on this one.

It was amusing watching you stand there and repeatedly try to turn the engine over by hand trying to figure out what was the matter. Reminded me of someone who gets an unexpected letter in the mail and spends 10 minutes trying to figure out who sent it or what they want instead of just opening it.

I have an Ariens mower with the same engine and the counter balance came apart. It was at idle and came through the side of the block. I replaced it with a Predator 708

Mustie your explanations and mechanical skills are inspiring Keep em coming

Thanks for explaining how the oil flows through the crankshaft. Learned something new today.

As Taryl said, they call it a Kohler Courage because you need courage to work on one! A Command would have never behaved this way!

Makes me glad my Toro has a B&S motor. Only issue I've had is with the decompressor. If the valve clearances are a bit too big the decompressor doesn't work and the starter struggles to turn the engine over. I bet many people have replaced batteries or starters only to find that all it needs is the valves adjusting.

Another great video from Mustie1!! Love all the extended and "long-winded" videos! Judging from what we've seen in this teardown and from what folks have said in the comments, even if a good replacement engine was found it would likely break again. The engine design is over-engineered to the point of scoring high on the lemon-list. Probably better to find some other basic engine with a good track record. A few less horsepower would not matter a lot, this machine won't be competing for any off-road records. Uhhh ... right, Mustie?

Thankyou ,I have always been curious how they worked but never had a patient teacher. I love your csi style.

i have that engine on my Craftsman LT2000 nice to see how in works on the inside Great job enjoy all your videos

Kohler really made a turd when they came out with that engine! The Courage twin was pretty good, but I shortblocked a ton of the singles under warranty because the cam boss in the bottom would crack and lose all the oil while running and BAM! thrown rod! Compression release was problematic too. 99% JUNK!

I believe I saw what we called in the Air Force "military engineering" which basically translates to " if it don't fit, force it. If it breaks, it needed replacing anyway " lol. I love watching these break down, I hope you repair it.

Pretty interesting...always learn something from your videos! Thanks for the "teardown" to see what probably led to the failure.

42:42 Southern Auto Auction note pad on the work bench! I was a wholesale buyer for 26 years, met my wife there in '92 she was a title clerk. I attended SAA up until 2017 just about every Wednesday.

When I recently purchased a secondhand ride-on, the first thing I noticed was a lot of Koehler motors that had died on the ones advertised. All had counterweight issues that had let go and in most cases cracked the crankcase. I think you were lucky that it stopped without writing off the engine. Ended up with a Briggs and Stratton engine and runs like a dream.

Mustie1 thanks for all the great videos! I am learning mechanics from watching your videos. Could you go through how the primer bulb fuel systems work on weed eaters or small engines. I bought a replacement but cant seem to get it replumbed properly. Thanks for the friendly humor too makes me feel like i am a welcome guest, or friend in your garage. Youre an awesome teacher!

That Kohler Command took a licking, but didn't keep ticking! Great video, as always...extremely knowledgeable!

"Eh, yeah, that can't be good." Some of the best words to ever be spoken.

I was beginning to think there might not be a video this morning...whew.

In my limited experience of Kohler Command engines I think your pretty close to the sequence of events. The engineering involved to make sure a lower bearing fails is pretty impressive as it seems very common for balancer or lower main bearing to seize. (although in this case it was the long bolt holding balancer together) I'm pretty sure there would have been an increase in vibration before failure. The starter gear looks new, seems that the starter motor fails very shortly before bearing failure.

Always learn something from you Mustie. Thanks again.

It's mouse revenge! One got pissed and got in there with a small jack hammer and had at it! : )

this channel is relaxing versus the chaos of hearing todays news :-O

Have been watching the channel for a time. Love to watch you and listen as you work. I have added to my bag of tricks as you might say. My first time to comment. Thanks for the video.

I really enjoyed the engine autopsy. This is one of my favorite videos of yours.

That's so Mustie: The whole engine is crap, several parts destroyed... Coming up next: WILL IT RUN? 😂

Oh if Kohler only would reproduce the old Command series of engines. I had to make the move to Kawasaki once the Courage line made its debut. Love my Kawi's as long as you keep them oiled and the valves adjusted.

It looks like a Kohler courage to me. I've never been inside one of them nor have I worked on one, but I always remember they said that they are twin cam engines. Obviously I'm pretty sure they're not OHC or DOHC, but seeing both of those cam gears tells me this is probably a Kohler courage, that being said I have not heard one good thing about them. If anything they probably really hurt kohler's reputation. Can't wait to see what's coming up next. If anything it would be nice to see a video of this being repowered. Awesome video Darren!

Excellent analysis Mr. Sherlock ! I learned a lot again. Thanks !

Coffee and snack time + a Mustie1 video = a great Sunday : Happy Sunday all

Mustie’s small engine true crime is a great watch.

Thank you for this video, it will be a great help in a Kohler that displayed symptoms like this motor did.

Great video, funny thing, I was helping father-in-law over the weekend with his mower, 23 yr old craftsman with 20 hp Kohler v-twin motor. It just abruptly quit on him. Replaced blown fuse (probably from him trying to restart it). It’s full of oil. Crank only moves 1/8th inch or so, starter is good, pulleys underneath aren’t seized. We haven’t taken head off yet, but after watching your video I’m suspecting something similar. There is something jamming the crank because both pistons move up & down equally the same as I can only rock the fly wheel back & forth that little bit.

"Magnetic Mush" was a lesser known heavy metal band. From the eighties!

Good morning Mustie1 and alll the Mustielits from Maryland, USA.

You really help me understand how the motors work

Thanks Mustie1, Good to hang out with you for a while. Central California Watching

What a weird internal set up on that engine. You'd think standard counter weights would be fine but there you go, a whole motor wrecked after that one bolt snapped. If that bolt hadn't broken the next wear item would be that locator cam/slider thing. This is why Briggs & Stratton engines are as simple as they are.

Jeez I was just singing the praises of the old 70s/early 80s Kohlers on Diesel Creek the other day. This is what they have become, nylon gears.

Mustie, love the diagnostic work you do!

Awesome... it's these kind of tear-downs I really enjoy. Adding knowledge to why things fail. I'm sure at least 50% of it is bad initial design that simply will not last.

I’m a small engine mechanic and Kohler courage is our very notorious for blowing due to the counterbalance or they develop a leak and you just don’t know and then they end up throwing a rod or throw in the balancer

I'm not sure why I love these videos, but I do.

On my tractor was running hot from years of no maintenance. Find packed with dirt and grease and black as night oil from never being changed, just added to, was super hard to get started. Piston wasn’t getting lubrication and carbon pieces were causing it to rub and even get stuck at times in the case. Cleaned it all out and reassembled. Runs like a champ now. Didn’t need any parts or valve adjustments

Enjoyed this, very educational and really like the “detective” thing. Nice work.