CC 1200 to JD 140 Engine Swap

When I got my grandfather's H1 140 last summer I put the 12 HP Kohler out of dad's old Ford LT120 in it so it was mobile and I could test the hydro system. You can see the blue tin in this pic. I intentionally left the engine dressed that way because I knew it would bug me enough to be actionable. And sure enough I'm doing something about it sooner than I might have otherwise. I'm treating this project the way I would if grandpa wanted me to deal with the busted block and get the tractor back into service for him. Not gonna be a restoration. Just an engine replacement. Never say never but I doubt I'll ever do more than that to it. Other than the engine swap, the 140 will be original to when he last used it. I feel like some of his DNA might still be on it.


Grandpa mowed the highschool grounds with the 140 for several years before the balance gears exited through the side of the block. This pic shows the areas he did. It took a while with the 140. The brownish areas inside the track and the soccer field are grass too. This is an early spring pic so they must have a different kind of turf that hasn't greened up yet (?).


Doesn't matter (to me) if the 140 has a K301 or a K321 in it when I'm done. It won't be the original engine anyway. I'm gonna keep the 14 HP Kohler with the hole in the block that was in it but no intention to repair/rebuild it. This CC 1200 12 HP Kohler was the lucky winner to replace it.


I installed the 140 PTO clutch assembly on the K301 from the CC 1200 to make sure it would bolt on ok. It has the correct pulley diameter for a 140 deck. Haven't tested it yet other than connecting a 12V wire from a battery. It makes a clunk noise like it should when it engages so I'm pretty confident it's ok. Note the dipstick location. I could eliminate it with a pipe plug but there's no provision on the engine for a dipstick/tube anywhere else. It's a pretty scruffy looking engine at the moment. Won't be like that when I'm done though .


I looked at putting my spare 14 HP Kohler in the 140 but the oil pan/engine block won't work. It's too bad because it's a really good motor. It was out of a Toro reel mower and was red to start with. It's black now.


This would be a good golf cart engine if it wasn't so tall. The Honda/clones are half the height with the tank, muffler and air cleaner removed.

The flywheel backing plate (or whatever it's called) cleaned up nice. I wish the whole engine had turned out this clean but cast iron doesn't do that. The flywheel is off because I'm swapping it for the flywheel from the 14 HP Kohler the 140 had in it. Doing that to get the correct bolt holes for the 140 driveshaft adapter. Both flywheels popped off easy using a simple 2 bolt puller.


I was very patient removing the exhaust header from the K301 that's going in the 140. I have extracted broken header pipes from Kohler engines like this. Not something I enjoyed doing. There was no rush getting it out so what I did was chisel the pipe lock ring off first, then applied penetrating oil and let it sit for a day. Next I put a big thick bolt in the end of the header and kept tap-tap-tapping it with a hammer and squirting more WD40 around it periodically for a few days till it eventually started turning and came out. The 140 muffler is in pretty nice shape and I have the correct adapter for it so I should be good to go for the exhaust.


I finished cleaning the engine up then put everything back on it for safekeeping till I can paint outside. I used a chemical stripper and coarse/medium steel wool. I know some guys don't like using paint stripper but it does the job for me. I have chemically stripped a lot of stuff over the years. Complete frames, transaxles, side panels, engine tin, etc. It's pretty messy sometimes but not enough to discourage me. No painting weather in the forecast for the next several days and maybe longer. That's ok. I have to pull the Ford Kohler out of the 140 yet anyway and there's a ton of other spring work to do and some of it isn't the fun kind.