[Ziggy65]

I know it's not the original engine, but if you are planning on repainting the engine and tins anyway, why not go with a Canvas white.
Give the machine the original Creamsicle look.

 

[VintageAriensNut]

I know it's not the original engine, but if you are planning on repainting the engine and tins anyway, why not go with a Canvas white.
Give the machine the original Creamsicle look.

I was thinking that but the gas tank is plastic and hear they are hard to paint properly so they resist gas. Even though its not the original engine i would like to keep it looking original.

I have some HF epoxy paint I tried on the underside of a cover and it doesnt hide anything well, I sanded everything down pretty good but the paints so thin you can see every imperfection so i'm going to try Krylon high heat satin paint I read good reviews on. $7 a can. Too bad because that HF paint is very durable.

I was cleaning the head bolts and the washers started splitting in pieces. Odd because three of them broke and there are 2 washers on 3 of the bolts, wonder if they were the bottom ones when installed. I couldnt find the exact same size but hopefully they are close enough to work. There is a piece on the engine that I cant find on the parts diagram, goes on top of the cover over the head. It cleaned up nicely though.

 

[Oneacer]

" There is a piece on the engine that I cant find on the parts diagram, goes on top of the cover over the head. It cleaned up nicely though. "

Probably a rod guide, or possibly even a lift point?

 

[Toon]

I was thinking that but the gas tank is plastic and hear they are hard to paint properly so they resist gas. Even though its not the original engine i would like to keep it looking original.

I have some HF epoxy paint I tried on the underside of a cover and it doesnt hide anything well, I sanded everything down pretty good but the paints so thin you can see every imperfection so i'm going to try Krylon high heat satin paint I read good reviews on. $7 a can. Too bad because that HF paint is very durable.

View attachment 209800

View attachment 209806



I was cleaning the head bolts and the washers started splitting in pieces. Odd because three of them broke and there are 2 washers on 3 of the bolts, wonder if they were the bottom ones when installed. I couldnt find the exact same size but hopefully they are close enough to work. There is a piece on the engine that I cant find on the parts diagram, goes on top of the cover over the head. It cleaned up nicely though.

View attachment 209808

If you take a look under the bolt head you may see a few lines left over from the bolt making process as these bolts may well be made with a split die, because of their length. The ribs under the head if present will split a hardened washer. If you use a softer washer this wont happen but it will affect your torque values a bit.
As for you first question in post #1 I use Tremclad, high gloss, aluminum paint for rust protection. It is a thin paint that provides rust protection dries quickly (10 min) and doesn't cause interference when reassembling parts.

 

[Ziggy65]

You will probably want to scuff/sand the metal and use a good quality primer before applying your finish coat.
I agree, difficult to find a primer and paint that will adhere well and wear well on plastic.

 

[VintageAriensNut]

I rethought my painting and admitted to myself i was being lazy with my prep work and didnt sand enough. I have used the epoxy spray paint previously on car parts with great results, it leaves a hard factory applied look. I did the heater box and gas tank bracket and didnt have enough paint left so i picked up a can of the VHT roll bar epoxy spray paint at Auto Zone, it is more expensive at $11.99 than the HF spray paint at $6.99 but i didnt feel like driving 40 miles to get it. I actually stopped in at Lowes and was just going to get the Rustoleum engine enamel but the directions say for best results on bare metal use a primer 1st, where this epoxy spray paints say do not use any primer on bare metal.

The paint applies thin and doesnt fill in any imperfections.

I was going to just leave the starter off since the machine starts great but figured if i ever do sell it or give it to someone down the road it's a nice feature to have.

Planned on just disassembling it and painting the body but couldnt figured how to get the internals all the way out.

The starter was fairly easy to clean with a bronze bristle wire brush and 1000 sandpaper. The cover was in rough condition, the paint looked wrinkled everywhere so i put it in the sink and wet sanded for a few hours. Starter with 400 sandpaper working down to 1000.

 

[VintageAriensNut]

When removing the head bolts two of them the threads were surrounded in carbon and there's oil on the cylinder at the fins where the bolts stop so I figured the gasket needs replacing.

Ordered the gasket should be here Sunday. Gives me time to clean and the paint to dry.

And clean up the rust on the fly wheel.

 

[Oneacer]

Fine job you're doing ... gaskets should never be reused, especially on a head, and make sure you properly torque them.

 

[VintageAriensNut]

I had a feeling the gasket was bad after seeing the head bolts covered in carbon. Can see where the gasket is worn and exhaust gases bypassing it getting to the bolts. It reminded me of scraping off old weathered duct tape. The old gasket is stamped with the Tecumseh logo so I ordered another Tecumseh brand gasket for $10.60.

I found the torque specs. Seems the same for all L heads.

I noticed the starter is missing the rubber cap in front of the gear so I found one on Walmart website for only $5.30 shipped from Abbeville Power Equipment.

When I got this machine it didn't have a starter so I was searching for one, I ended up finding a 1969 machine with a starter being sold for less than the price of a used starter. I think he wanted $45 and I offered $25 and he took it. It had the original 7hp engine but was missing the carb and the gas tank was in rough shape so I sold it for parts. I really like my Tecumseh hsk70, it's simple to work on and very reliable. I was having trouble decoding the manufacture date (D.O.M 6177 D) until I just saw 1986 stamped on the head. Pretty cool the engines 37yrs old and runs so good.

 

[VintageAriensNut]

I'm having trouble finding replacement stickers for the heater box and the primer. The heater box had a warning for the muffler which I did find one but it's not the exact same, it has Spanish on it also. I don't think it fits with the vintage theme.

Doubt I'm going to find the exact ones so I'd even settle for the Ariens engines stickers. What did everyone else use if they replaced the old stickers?

 

[Ziggy65]

Looking great, you are doing a fantastic job.

I would mask off the stickers, but correct stickers might be found here:

Vintage Reproductions

Vintage Reproductions

clickitandstickit.com

My 69 Ariens was a complete repaint, so I masked off all the stickers before priming and painting.

On the 74 Ariens, I was able to to maintain 90% of the original paint on the exterior of the machine and engine as well as all the stickers. I did repaint the rims, rakes, impeller and inside the auger housing and chute.

 

[Seaweed]

There is a numbered torque sequence to follow for the head bolts. I can send if you need.

 

[Oneacer]

 

[VintageAriensNut]

Looking great, you are doing a fantastic job.

I would mask off the stickers, but correct stickers might be found here:

Vintage Reproductions

Vintage Reproductions

clickitandstickit.com

My 69 Ariens was a complete repaint, so I masked off all the stickers before priming and painting.
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View attachment 209990

I ended up peeling off the stickers because there were rust bubbles and wrinkled paint under all of them except the serial number which I kept. Your 1st photo is exactly what I was looking for, I'm going to copy that on mine. There was a sticker on the top of the shroud for the electric starter but the plug ended up covering it so no need to bother with that. I also picked up a tachometer like the one you have.

 

[VintageAriensNut]

I was reading through the Tecumseh manual and noticed the head bolt washers that broke seem to be bellevilelle washers, never heard of them before. So I'm thinking it's not a good idea to use the regular washers I got at the hardware store. I guess the belleville washers are cupped and act like a spring. I was wondering why only 3 of the head bolts have washers then saw these belleville washers and think it's something to do with the bolts adjacent to the exhaust valve. Is it because of the high heat in that area and those bolts expand more?

I was able to buy an 8 pack for only $7.55 shipped.

Now with having to wait for parts I won't be in a rush to install the painted parts before they fully cure.

 

[VintageAriensNut]

I was able to find the original Snow King choke decal part# along with the muffler decal.

 

[VintageAriensNut]

The head gasket I ordered was delivered but it didnt look like the original gasket, didnt have the Tecumseh logo stamped on it and it looked like a different material so i sent it back and ordered another gasket where i was informed it is an original Tecumseh gasket.

Painted all the metal pieces once but I wasnt happy, the spray paint applies very thin and projects every imperfection. So i decided to give them another round of paint to see if i could fill and level some of these areas. I think they came out better and good enough for a snowblower.

I want to check the valves and clean out the breather assembly but the muffler bolts wont budge, they are philips head and dont want to ruin them. Been spraying them down with PB Blaster daily, hopefully they loosen. The block looked a little dirty so i gave it a good cleaning with engine degreaser and fine steel wool pads.

 

[VintageAriensNut]

The new head gasket and the belleville washers I ordered came in. Started putting everything back together, starter 1st and it doesnt function properly. The starter works it just wont engage the flywheel and spin it, it just spins and skips. I removed it and took the starter gear off and thankfully its the inside of the gear that is stripped as opposed to the starter shaft. Since its the gear i will look for a replacement kit. I was able to remove the metal clip holding the gear on by using needle nose vice grips and a pair of pliers.

Original head gasket $9.95 on ebay.

Came with 9 washers but I only need 3. On my HSK70 the washers go on the bolts at the exhaust valve. This was the cheapest option though, found them on ebay for $7.35 shipped.

Used the needle nose vice grips to clamp down on half the clip, then was able to grab the other end of the clip with pliers and rotate it open.

Inside threads of the starter gear damaged/missing.

Shaft looks ok to use.

 

[VintageAriensNut]

I originally thought the inside of the starter gear was threaded but after looking at a 33328 parts diagram I see it is a separate piece, Tecumseh I guess labels it as a Nut. So I used a small screwdriver and hammered the threads and sure enough it popped out. Seems the part has disintegrated and half of it is missing. I got the starter from a parts machine I bought and don't think I ever used it, I remember cleaning it and plugging it in to see if it works and then I installed it. The engine starts great by hand 1st pull and was too lazy to run an extension cord in the basement so never tried it until now I ended up ordering the whole kit that comes with the gear, cap, spring, nut and retainer and ring. The listing says it is for a 33329 starter but the parts should be the same for the 33328 starter also, at least according to my research.

Here's the part#s if someone's looking for a specific part.

1- Retainer Ring 33842
2- Spring retainer 33430
3- Anti-drift spring 33431
4- Gear 33432
5- Retainer and Nut 33433A (Includes Retainer Ring part# 1)

The pieces probably fell off when I was disassembling the parts machine and I didnt notice.

 

[VintageAriensNut]

Finished putting everything back together minus the starter. The black epoxy spray paint is a very good product in my opinion, bonds strong and turns out very durable and scratch resistant. Engine looks the same except cleaner and newer with no more rusting. Goal was to make it run and look as good as possible for as cheap as possible.

Head bolts cleaned up nicely. Got those belleville and flat washers installed at bolts 1, 3 and 7. Torqued bolts to 22.5 Nm.

I had to remove the red knob at the throttle lever. It was hitting the chute crank preventing it from going into idle or even shutting it off. When I first got the machine it ran horrible, after removing the carb it looked like the previous person changed the float level and bent the linkages to get it to run, instead of simply removing the knob like I did.

Used some 00 steel wool on the unpainted parts and muffler.

Debating if I should put a warning decal for the muffler on the heater box.