[AT] Oil Filters

[Billy Hood]

I have ran into some of the same situations with air cooled engine filters.  I have a really good NAPA dealer with great knowledgeable parts man.  When I bought a Lincoln Ranger 8 portable welder about 4 years ago it had a Kohler engine.  When I made the first oil change, I bought several NAPA filters to fit as I like to keep filters in stock.  At 40 something hours the fuel pump went out on the Lincoln went south and I hauled it in to the welding supply shop for warranty repair.  The shop lead man is a friend with whom I have done business for many years.  He told me to quietly replace the white filter with a black Kohler as they would void the 3 year warranty if it had any filter other than OEM.  He said that the Kohler tech rep had been in his shop the month before and refused warranty on another machine because of this.  

To keep the 3 year protection, I complied and bought 2 Kohler filters at nearly $13 each.  I priced them all over town and this was the price almost universally.   I complained to my friend at the parts store and he looked up the supplier  and it was the same as the NAPA (6$).  Go figure.  It is now over 3 years old and I can use the old NAPA number filter.  The NAPA filter had the same base as the B&S on my John Deere L&G, but was slightly long for the space.  A ball peen persuader could put a dent in the top and make it short enough, but I gave up and went after filters for the JD.  I have two B&S engines with filters and they are different and not interchangable.  Go figure.  

Recently I needed 2 filters for TO20 AND TO 30 and NAPA was out of stock.  Went to the other parts store locally  and was given two filters in Hastings Boxes.  When I opened the boxes, both were Baldwin filters.  I thought Baldwin was independent other manufurors.  Go figure.

My mother has a Husquavarna bought 4 or 5 years ago and the factory material said that you would extend the factory warranty on the Kohler in it for a year if you would use OEM filter and synthetic oil.  JD dealer said to never use synthetic oil in his B&S powered model.    Go figure

I did put a filter in H JD yesterday and it has same parts number it had in '39 parts book.  Go figure.

Bear
  ----- 
  From: Len Rugen<mailto:lrugen at c-magic.com> 


  .  My Kohler powered Scotts riding mower was a pain.  I got a filter from a lawn
  and garden store, no part number, "one size fits all" filter, which they
  assured me would fit.  It was $11.  It didn't fit.