Case 1816 Repower

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Luckyperk47

Member
Joined
Nov 5, 2013
Messages
8
I have a Case 1816 that the engine mount was for a Tecumseh 16 or 18 hp. I bought it at an auction for $600 without an engine. I re-engineered the engine mount and re-powered the Case 1816 with a 16 hp. Onan B43M. This Onan engine was my first experience with 2 cylinder. Last summer I started having trouble with the Onan running for a while and the quitting. The case 1816 had a a hydraulic leak from the get go. Everything mechanical is tight and very difficult to see. I engineered the Onan engine mount so the back two bolts removed allowed the whole onan engine and mounting plate slid back for changing belts. I finally got so frustrated with the Onan engine I started over from the beginning. I had been procrastinating finding the hydraulic leak, the machine needed a good paint job all the wiring harness needed to be junked and rewired. Disassembled everything. Found the running-quiting-problem in a cracked resister going from the 12 volt ignition to + side of the coil. After it ran a while the resister would heat up and break the 12 volt down to 9 volt connection killing the engine. I re-worked the carb. Replaced the fiber float with a brass one. Discovered the air adjustment screw and the gas adjustment screw could be interchanged. If you have the air adjustment screw in the wrong place you cannot adjust the engine idle and the carb will leak gas. Found the hydraulic leak. Repaired a lift cylinder that was leaking. Painted the machine. Adjusted the valves. Re-assembled everything. Adjusted the belt clutch. Added an idler sheave so the belt tension on the bucket and lift cylinders could be adjusted easier than factory adjustment. I have the machine running, but it looses power and dies. I am considering a re-power with another engine as a spare. I think the Onan probably needs valve and ring job. Winter is coming and I do not want the Case 1816 not running when the snow stacks up. Anybody have experience in your re-power jobs you would share. I read the Case 1816 re-power post and found a 16 Hp for $374 at Carol Stream Motor Co. Will this one cylinder engine have enough power to run that little loader?? The price sounds too good to be true. The Onan running at it best has plenty of power. The $374 price for the 16 HP makes Onan parts prices look beyond the description of pricey!!! Any experience you guys have that repowered a Case 1816 would be really appreciated. Thanks
 

frogfarmer

Well-known member
Joined
Jul 30, 2010
Messages
359
I have no experience with an 1816 but do have extensive experience with small engines. Skids need torque more than horsepower and the Onan is an excellent torque motor with its opposed design. The problems you are having are common on the Onan and have been replaced by many. A single cylinder 16hp wont make the same torque as a twin 16hp. If you chose a newer V-twin design they too are a little weaker than the opposed but work well and may be fine at the same HP rating. I would look for a Vtwin in the 20+hp range as a replacement. My suggestion would be Kohler but they can be pricey because they are a commercial engine. The Briggs options can be much cheaper but wont last near as many hours. Hope some of that helps.
 
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Luckyperk47

Member
Joined
Nov 5, 2013
Messages
8
I have no experience with an 1816 but do have extensive experience with small engines. Skids need torque more than horsepower and the Onan is an excellent torque motor with its opposed design. The problems you are having are common on the Onan and have been replaced by many. A single cylinder 16hp wont make the same torque as a twin 16hp. If you chose a newer V-twin design they too are a little weaker than the opposed but work well and may be fine at the same HP rating. I would look for a Vtwin in the 20+hp range as a replacement. My suggestion would be Kohler but they can be pricey because they are a commercial engine. The Briggs options can be much cheaper but wont last near as many hours. Hope some of that helps.
Thanks, frogfarmer I think you are correct on the torque. I was just kicking the thought around and wanted some input. I don't have enough experience on the small engines. I am not familiar with any Kohler. I just got a Wisconsin VH4D 30 hp running I took off a walk behind concrete saw. My first experience with Wisconsin also. I can tell at idle speed 1800 rpm 16 hp, it will run that Ford CL 20 with ease. It will not fit on the Case 1816 but it will fit on my Ford CL20 skid loader. I had to extend the counter weight mounts and hang it over the back end by 10 inches. The Ford CL 20 originally came with a 20 or 25 Hp Onan that was thrashed on the machine. I like the small 1816 bucket 36 in wide and fits on most sidewalks. If I get the Ford CL 20 running then I have time to rebuild Onan.
 

lesgawlik

Well-known member
Joined
Aug 5, 2010
Messages
355
Thanks, frogfarmer I think you are correct on the torque. I was just kicking the thought around and wanted some input. I don't have enough experience on the small engines. I am not familiar with any Kohler. I just got a Wisconsin VH4D 30 hp running I took off a walk behind concrete saw. My first experience with Wisconsin also. I can tell at idle speed 1800 rpm 16 hp, it will run that Ford CL 20 with ease. It will not fit on the Case 1816 but it will fit on my Ford CL20 skid loader. I had to extend the counter weight mounts and hang it over the back end by 10 inches. The Ford CL 20 originally came with a 20 or 25 Hp Onan that was thrashed on the machine. I like the small 1816 bucket 36 in wide and fits on most sidewalks. If I get the Ford CL 20 running then I have time to rebuild Onan.
I've had 2 1816s. Both had the original Tecumseh 16 hp single cylinder engines. I had a guy who was willing to bore out the 16 hp and said he could get it to 20 hp. Many people put in a twin V in the 20-24 hp variety, but those engines are quite expensive when new. I would think that any decent 16 hp engine would be good. The machines are light, and are going to tip before you stall the hydraulics. It was a good move to modify the engine mounting plate. Getting those four bolts into the engine drove me nuts. There was a fraction of an inch less room than the human hand needs to start the threads. Each time you broke a belt, the engine had to come out. What were they thinking?
 
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Luckyperk47

Member
Joined
Nov 5, 2013
Messages
8
I've had 2 1816s. Both had the original Tecumseh 16 hp single cylinder engines. I had a guy who was willing to bore out the 16 hp and said he could get it to 20 hp. Many people put in a twin V in the 20-24 hp variety, but those engines are quite expensive when new. I would think that any decent 16 hp engine would be good. The machines are light, and are going to tip before you stall the hydraulics. It was a good move to modify the engine mounting plate. Getting those four bolts into the engine drove me nuts. There was a fraction of an inch less room than the human hand needs to start the threads. Each time you broke a belt, the engine had to come out. What were they thinking?
You are correct the case 1816 will tip! I rotated the wheels so the total machine was 36 inch wide. I got in a hurry trying to get a small culvert covered before it got dark. Backed over about an 8" rock with the bucket down. It bounced and turned over on its side. I hit my head on the top of the cage. For a few seconds I did not know what happened. The Onan engine was still running. I still had my hands on the joy sticks and nothing was responding! Looked over my left shoulder and saw the ground! Smelled gasoline! I killed the engine and crawled out with knees jumping in and out of sockets! I was extremely lucky! No bones broken!. The sudden stop hitting the ground broke the mounting flanges off the Onan oil pan. I knew better than to get in a hurry running too fast! It only takes a second for a dumb move to be deadly even in a small machine. I walked away with bruises and much more safety minded. I turned the wheels back out wide and put a counter weight on the back. I found another oil pan on Ebay for $20.00. I managed to get the Onan to run about half throttle which gave it enough power to push snow and ice and not stall. I checked compression and have about 90 in both cylinders. Something is causing the Onan to stall out now and loose power. It is getting plenty of gas. The valves may be sticking, or the valve springs weak. I joined the Onan Engine club and have read every post available. Yesterday I got the Wisconsin engine and Hydrostatic tranny mounted in my Ford CL 20. I think I can get it running. I parked the Case 1816 for some further procrastinating on a spare engine vs valve job on the Onan. My original objective was to get my first Ford CL 20 running again. Bought another Ford CL 20 for parts. It came with the Onan engine not in the machine. Then I bought the Case 1816 at the auction and put the Onan engine in it. I am determined to get all of them running and sell one of the Fords at an auction. Thanks for your Case 1816 experience.
 

mx_599

Member
Joined
Dec 28, 2013
Messages
7
You are correct the case 1816 will tip! I rotated the wheels so the total machine was 36 inch wide. I got in a hurry trying to get a small culvert covered before it got dark. Backed over about an 8" rock with the bucket down. It bounced and turned over on its side. I hit my head on the top of the cage. For a few seconds I did not know what happened. The Onan engine was still running. I still had my hands on the joy sticks and nothing was responding! Looked over my left shoulder and saw the ground! Smelled gasoline! I killed the engine and crawled out with knees jumping in and out of sockets! I was extremely lucky! No bones broken!. The sudden stop hitting the ground broke the mounting flanges off the Onan oil pan. I knew better than to get in a hurry running too fast! It only takes a second for a dumb move to be deadly even in a small machine. I walked away with bruises and much more safety minded. I turned the wheels back out wide and put a counter weight on the back. I found another oil pan on Ebay for $20.00. I managed to get the Onan to run about half throttle which gave it enough power to push snow and ice and not stall. I checked compression and have about 90 in both cylinders. Something is causing the Onan to stall out now and loose power. It is getting plenty of gas. The valves may be sticking, or the valve springs weak. I joined the Onan Engine club and have read every post available. Yesterday I got the Wisconsin engine and Hydrostatic tranny mounted in my Ford CL 20. I think I can get it running. I parked the Case 1816 for some further procrastinating on a spare engine vs valve job on the Onan. My original objective was to get my first Ford CL 20 running again. Bought another Ford CL 20 for parts. It came with the Onan engine not in the machine. Then I bought the Case 1816 at the auction and put the Onan engine in it. I am determined to get all of them running and sell one of the Fords at an auction. Thanks for your Case 1816 experience.
Is it possible to repower the 1816 with a small diesel like perkins or kohler? I know they are expensive engines but I thought it would be a cool project. Thanks
 

Tazza

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Dec 7, 2004
Messages
16,829
Is it possible to repower the 1816 with a small diesel like perkins or kohler? I know they are expensive engines but I thought it would be a cool project. Thanks
There is no reason a small diesel won't work. The only hurdle is finding on the right size and HP rating to do the job.
 

mx_599

Member
Joined
Dec 28, 2013
Messages
7
There is no reason a small diesel won't work. The only hurdle is finding on the right size and HP rating to do the job.
I think I found a handful. There are a couple Kohler, a Perkins, and maybe Yanmar all had small engines. Kohler even had a liquid cooled diesel that looks perfect. It was very expensive. However, if someone found a nice condition 1816 and had the money, don't you think the small Kohler would be perfect? I am good mechanically but would start to struggle if too much fabrication was necessary. I guess I could pay someone for that but I like to do as much as I can. do I mainly need to just find would that will physically fit in the space? What kinds of things would need fabrication? Also, I have seen mentioned that possibly mismatched engine RPM to the hydraulic pump could be an issue? Does this sound correct? In other words, is it because the gas version would run higher RPMs than the diesel? If this were a problem, could one likely just bolt on a hydraulic pump from a larger case skid steer? Or is it not necessarily that easy? I totally understand that all this I am asking about is probably not worth it on a small machine with limited capacity...but I still think it would make an awesome project. Last question, how "delicate" is this machine? If someone had a little more power behind it than it was meant for would they cause structural damage and bend stuff or not likely? Thanks everyone!
 

Tazza

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Joined
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Messages
16,829
I think I found a handful. There are a couple Kohler, a Perkins, and maybe Yanmar all had small engines. Kohler even had a liquid cooled diesel that looks perfect. It was very expensive. However, if someone found a nice condition 1816 and had the money, don't you think the small Kohler would be perfect? I am good mechanically but would start to struggle if too much fabrication was necessary. I guess I could pay someone for that but I like to do as much as I can. do I mainly need to just find would that will physically fit in the space? What kinds of things would need fabrication? Also, I have seen mentioned that possibly mismatched engine RPM to the hydraulic pump could be an issue? Does this sound correct? In other words, is it because the gas version would run higher RPMs than the diesel? If this were a problem, could one likely just bolt on a hydraulic pump from a larger case skid steer? Or is it not necessarily that easy? I totally understand that all this I am asking about is probably not worth it on a small machine with limited capacity...but I still think it would make an awesome project. Last question, how "delicate" is this machine? If someone had a little more power behind it than it was meant for would they cause structural damage and bend stuff or not likely? Thanks everyone!
I don't think RPM would be an issue. Yes, the petrol version would have the ability to go higher than 3,000 that the diesels do but i believe they will be limited to about 3,000.
Having a little extra HP is never bad, it just means the engine will not bog down when under load, that means the pumps will be under a little more stress and may get hotter.
As for fabrication, i only see an issue being lifting the engine to make it mate up with the pump. Also, you will need throttle linkages, that's really about it that comes to mind.
 

mx_599

Member
Joined
Dec 28, 2013
Messages
7
I don't think RPM would be an issue. Yes, the petrol version would have the ability to go higher than 3,000 that the diesels do but i believe they will be limited to about 3,000.
Having a little extra HP is never bad, it just means the engine will not bog down when under load, that means the pumps will be under a little more stress and may get hotter.
As for fabrication, i only see an issue being lifting the engine to make it mate up with the pump. Also, you will need throttle linkages, that's really about it that comes to mind.
Great info. Do you have to look at the small liquid cooled Koehler diesels and see what you think in the small case 1816 or similar small case or same vintage? I was thinking if engine weighed a tad mire it could help a little with tipping? Also...if you could have any small diesel would water cooled be preferred and what brand? Okay...disclaimer. I have no wife or kids and decent job lol. Thanks!
 

mx_599

Member
Joined
Dec 28, 2013
Messages
7
Great info. Do you have to look at the small liquid cooled Koehler diesels and see what you think in the small case 1816 or similar small case or same vintage? I was thinking if engine weighed a tad mire it could help a little with tipping? Also...if you could have any small diesel would water cooled be preferred and what brand? Okay...disclaimer. I have no wife or kids and decent job lol. Thanks!
*have time...* Typo
 

Tazza

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Messages
16,829
*have time...* Typo
The only thing that you would really need to look into is output shaft height from the base of the engine. You can go up easier than making it go down.
If you know what the HP rating was for the old engine, match it or go a little higher. I wouln't worry about going the same vintage, most engines have gotten better over time :)
The extra weight could be an advantage and disadvantage. Without a load on, it may be more tippy, with a load it would be more stable. So you need to find a middle ground really.
Most engines rotate the same direction, but it is a remote possibility. Ensure the new one will rotate the same direction.
 

Lostshoe

New member
Joined
Jan 17, 2023
Messages
3
I have a Case 1816 that the engine mount was for a Tecumseh 16 or 18 hp. I bought it at an auction for $600 without an engine. I re-engineered the engine mount and re-powered the Case 1816 with a 16 hp. Onan B43M. This Onan engine was my first experience with 2 cylinder. Last summer I started having trouble with the Onan running for a while and the quitting. The case 1816 had a a hydraulic leak from the get go. Everything mechanical is tight and very difficult to see. I engineered the Onan engine mount so the back two bolts removed allowed the whole onan engine and mounting plate slid back for changing belts. I finally got so frustrated with the Onan engine I started over from the beginning. I had been procrastinating finding the hydraulic leak, the machine needed a good paint job all the wiring harness needed to be junked and rewired. Disassembled everything. Found the running-quiting-problem in a cracked resister going from the 12 volt ignition to + side of the coil. After it ran a while the resister would heat up and break the 12 volt down to 9 volt connection killing the engine. I re-worked the carb. Replaced the fiber float with a brass one. Discovered the air adjustment screw and the gas adjustment screw could be interchanged. If you have the air adjustment screw in the wrong place you cannot adjust the engine idle and the carb will leak gas. Found the hydraulic leak. Repaired a lift cylinder that was leaking. Painted the machine. Adjusted the valves. Re-assembled everything. Adjusted the belt clutch. Added an idler sheave so the belt tension on the bucket and lift cylinders could be adjusted easier than factory adjustment. I have the machine running, but it looses power and dies. I am considering a re-power with another engine as a spare. I think the Onan probably needs valve and ring job. Winter is coming and I do not want the Case 1816 not running when the snow stacks up. Anybody have experience in your re-power jobs you would share. I read the Case 1816 re-power post and found a 16 Hp for $374 at Carol Stream Motor Co. Will this one cylinder engine have enough power to run that little loader?? The price sounds too good to be true. The Onan running at it best has plenty of power. The $374 price for the 16 HP makes Onan parts prices look beyond the description of pricey!!! Any experience you guys have that repowered a Case 1816 would be really appreciated. Thanks
I repowered with a16hp Duromav Nothing but problem one after the other . Since the pulley is one piece with 2 different size belts I had to use the old pulley. Problem #1 shaft diameter old moter 1 1/16 new is suppose to be 1" but it is a metric conversion, Had to sleeve it and make a new key. Getting motor centered is impossible have to use 2 different belts on drive motors.Modify the exhaust remount ignition cables are a nightmare. I'm still working on mine to get it right. The last problem has been the leeves for the drive The pipe inside a pipe had to come out and heated and drove apart witha punch and hammer. now the linkage is off a mile. But I am hardheaded and will not give up on the little guy.
 
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