Alrashid2 171 #1 Posted November 4 Hey guys. I have a 1985 Wheel Horse 312-8, with the Kohler 301 engine in it. Pretty awesome beast! I'm curious what fuel consumption you guys get with similar setups, and what I should expect. It'll get some heavy use here in Dec onward for firewood season, but for now I've just been running it here and there to test it out and move it around the property. This is a rough estimate, but seems like I used up a quarter tank running it just 20 minutes or so. At that rate, I'd blow through the entire 3 gal tank in just 1 hour 20 min! Seems a hair excessive. Appreciate the feedback Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Ed Kennell 38,329 #2 Posted November 4 (edited) I run my 312H @ WOT when mowing with a 48" SD deck Probably uses 1.5 gal/hour. A gear drive should do a little better. Edited November 4 by Ed Kennell Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Alrashid2 171 #3 Posted November 4 Thanks @Ed Kennell for weighing in. I very well may not have been realizing how much I've been running it. I filled her up and will keep track more closely. Looks like I used 0.75 gal/hr so maybe that is normal! Currently not mowing or using any attachments. Just going to be using this to pull a 6 cubic foot cart of firewood from the wood storage area to the house. Yup, have the 8 speed manual so we'll see if that helps any! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Ed Kennell 38,329 #4 Posted November 4 Just remember these air cooled splash lubricated engines must always be operated at a minimum of 1/2 throttle and full throttle when under load. Don't try to save fuel and blow an engine. 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Alrashid2 171 #5 Posted November 4 (edited) Yes, starting to learn that! I'm assuming half throttle is an RPM halfway between Idle and WOT right? My throttle adjustment lever can move from Idle to the Halfway Point and the RPMs dont change at all. RPMs don't go up until I get past the halfway point between Idle and Fast. I was going by the sound of the engine as I don't have a tach on this model. And I assume running at Idle is fine when idling? Ie, parked and loading up wood into my cart before moving again for 5 min or so? Edited November 4 by Alrashid2 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
pfrederi 17,743 #6 Posted November 4 Kohler specs 1200 rpm for K seires idle speed. Faster than you may think... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ri702bill 8,387 #7 Posted November 4 8 minutes ago, Alrashid2 said: I assume running at Idle is fine when idling? Ie, parked and loading up wood into my cart before moving again for 5 min or so? Edited 5 minutes ago by Alrashid2 Too low an idle is not good, as mentioned. Don't get hypnotized by the unmistakable "Putt-putt-putt" on low idle with the ACR open below 700 RPM!!! You DO want to return to idle after running at WOT before shutting it off, though to reduce backfiring. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Handy Don 12,281 #8 Posted November 4 A full-time tach isn’t really needed. I’ve been using an app on my iPhone called Video Tachometer when setting idle and WOT (along with ear protection). The free functionality, with accuracy to ±10 RPM is more than good enough for my purposes so I haven’t paid for the premium version! 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
