Thanks for the reply, The kickback problem was my stupidity! Didn't tighten it down enough just like you said. Sheered the key in half. Thank god I reused the old one for testing - had the new one just waiting to be inserted, and torqued it down good. Lawn tractor runs better then before. Also adjusted the timing when it was apart earlier. Able to cut my lawn finally!!! And with the new flywheel gear no more aligning the flywheel to catch a few good teeth to start :) Also I haven't pulled apart the head, I installed a new oil dipstick seal - will see if it helps the old one was shot. Wasn't burning too much oil just little over time. I'm hoping it was just too much air getting past the old seal. Within a couple of weeks I'm going to revisit the one behind the shed. I need a new starter for it but I think I can resurrect it now. Thanks for the info Walt, may email you when I tackle the other one. Curtis Reno

My personal advice, get the Wheel Horse. When the motor craps out it's still worth re-powering. When the deck is gone, there are many nice used ones on e nay, Craigs, etc. Of course this all depends if the tractor overall is in good shape. There are so many different attachments and spares out there for the WH classic series you could keep it going forever...almost. Plus, excellent dedicated WH owners forums to network with.

I think if it's just a broken cable on your present mower, you have a new deck on it so if it was me I'd take a chance and save a lot by just having the cable replaced., If there are other existing issues then that would be a different story.

To do an oil change see this http://www.mytractorforum.com/232-articles-drive-train/161413-how-do-oil-change-tuff-torq-k46-transaxle.html To see how to repair the K46 see http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/parts-repairs/164892-tufftorq-k46-repair-guide-pictures.html To get a tractor with a better trans you will probably exceed $3500. I have a Deere X300 for 5 years with the K46 and first thing I did was drain the factory 10-30 oil and put in 5-50 Synthetic which will make it last much longer. It is a good trans - keep it clean and do not over work it and it should last. A rebuild looks easy for someone with average mechanical skills.