After much pounding on the top of the crankshaft in my attempt to remove the flywheel and repair my engine, I’ve broken off the top of the crankshaft. My main goal was to remove the flywheel in order to check the flywheel key. Since the timing seems to be off in the engine, many people noted the flywheel key may have been sheared in the keyway. This can happen when the lawn tractor hits a stump or a large rock. While the engine is still moving, the crankshaft is jerked back against the force of the mower and the main thing holding the crankshaft to the flywheel is the flywheel key- which can then be sheared.

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