Butch

Butch is an International 'LA', 1-1/2HP. It needed some work to get it running. Compression was almost non-existant, and it needed a gas tank. The magneto was hot and produced a good spark which was good news. The valve cover was not correct, it was off of a model 'LB' which was the successor to the 'LA'. Here is a couple pictures of the engine as purchased.

We tried to start Butch as is using a tin can for the gas supply but it only coughed a couple of times and would not run. So, Kelly and I took off the mixer and cleaned it out. Then we took off the head and found that the valve seats were very rough and needed lapping. Next we found that the throttle rod coming to the head was stuck, meaning that if the engine had started it would have run as fast as it could have with no governing. To solve this, took a quarter inch bolt, made it square in the grinder, and put it in the end of the coupling that would attach to the butterfly in the head. I turned the rod back and forth until it was freed up. Nothing major, just old sticky oil. Now that the valves and seats were in good shape, we put the head back ontothe engine. This turned out to be an interesting process. The throttle rod coupler sticking out of the engine was so short that we really had to be careful to hold the head tight to the block when rotating it into position so that the coupler would engauge correctly with the butterfly shaft in the head. It's harder to explain than to see it. Anyway, after several tries we got the head on and the throttle was free. Turning the engine over, we found that compression was now great! Again using the tin can we tried to start it. Well, it coughed and sputered and fired a few times but it would not keep running. I adjusted the needle valve all the way shut and Butch started and ran but always seemed to be very rich. It eventually stalled and I got blisters trying to start it again... Next was a gas tank. Found one including a complete fuel line assembly from a fellow in Montana ` over the internet (thank you Harry Matthews and BigEnginAds!). A week later and we had it on but starting Butch was still almost impossible, with the typical symptom being it just flooded even though the mixer needle valve was screwed completely in. This problem required a closer look so we took the mixer off again and investigated. Long story short, we found that the end of the needle valve had been ground to a new point (maybe several times) and had become too short to contact the seat even when screwed all the way in! So, a quick few minutes in the lathe and it was minus some threads, and it now seated completely. Tried starting it and it started right up!!! Yeah!!!
					This is an "organ donor" for Butch! We took Butch to it's first showing in September of 2001 and it ran OK for about an hour. Then we noticed that it was running faster and faster so we moved the throttle to slow it down and nothing happened. To be safe we shut it off for the rest of the show. A few days later I took the rear cover off and discovered that the new oil I had put in it had stirred up a whole bunch of gunk in the crankcase, mainly WHEAT! A grain of this wheat had wedged itself into the govenor assembly and made it stick. So, I cleaned and cleaned and blew and washed and cleaned as best I could through the hole in the back and got out TWO HANDFULS of wheat. It looked pretty clean and ther seemed to be nothing more coming out so I figured I had done as good as I could for now.
While apart, we discovered that four teeth on the govenor gear were either partially or totally gone - its a potmetal gear. We made a mental note that it would have to be replaced some time soon. Not having another gear for now we put it back together, ran it, and all seemed fine. The next show was about three weeks later, and the first day we ran Butch it started doing the same thing again, running faster and no speed control. Again we shut it off and it sat for the rest of the show. Kelly was dissapointed to say the least. Well, show season was over for us, so I made the 'LA' a winter project. I got a parts engine from a friend with a good gear in it and I proceeded to tear both of them apart to exchange parts. There is no way to get the gov. gear out except to take the flywheel and side cover off the engine. Well, the flywheel on the parts engine proved everyone I had ever talked to about it's removal wrong! It did not want to budge. I hammered on the shaft, I heated the hub, I pried, I tried all the tricks people had told me and it sat right there. I finally ended up setting the engine on oak 4x4's on the flywheel and, using a round steel bar the size of the crank and an eight pound sledge, pounded down on the crank. After getting out my BIG sledge hammer, the flywheel started to move, just a little, then finally it came off!! HURRAY!! You can see in the picture above the triumphal moment that the flywheel came off! The rest was easy - take out the bolts and pry (gently) the side cover off, then take out the gov. It was in great shape.
Now I was really afraid to tackle Kelly's engine for fear the flywheel would come off just as hard. The flywheel was not on as far as the parts engine was, and after loosening the clamp screw I tried the lead-hammer-on-the-rim technique that was supposed to work good. To my suprise, the flywheel started moving and after only a few taps around came right off!! After I got the side cover off I found another grain of wheat stuck in the gov. linkage - and lots more grain in little pockets in the engine. Well, I decided that it needed a good cleaning out, but I did not want to take it apart any further. So, I took it down to the good old do-it-yourself car wash and used about two bucks worth of quarters and blew it out and off, first with soap then just hot water. That was the cleanest that engine has been since it left the factory! When I got home I set it in front of my salamander heater for about an hour to really dry it out. Then I reassembled it all, put in fresh oil, and fired it up. It ran nice, the throttle worked! I let it run for about an hour to insure oil got into all the bearings and that the water evaporated. Since that time it has run good - hopefully it will for a long time to come!