Another Ted Williams 7.5 Air cooled

vkopf

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Apr 24, 2013
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I have a Ted Williams 7.5 Air Cooled (M# 217585911 S# 6D081112) that I purchased about 15 years ago at a Sheriff's auction. The motor ran great for about 5 years and then I sucked up a bunch of gunk into the carborator from a remote gas tank that I did not pay attention to. I ordered some carb parts from Sears about this time (10 years ago) but did not get back to the motor until this year. I found the misc. carb parts but would like to more complete maintenance to the unit. The unit is overall in very good shape as it has been in the shed these many years with all the gas drained from tank and carb. It does seem to have some oil leakage in the lower unit as the outside is covered with oil. I was wondering what year the unit is and if there are any good repair manuals available for the unit. I have applied for membership at the Eska Yahoo group but am currently waiting to get in. Any help would be most appreciated.
 

MahtyMaht

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Apr 7, 2010
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Re: Another Ted Williams 7.5 Air cooled

I just looked, and don't see nay pending members, so I guess you're in the Eska group by now. Look at the links on the left side of the page, and check out the Eska Files. Also, it makes me nervous when I see these things referred to as 'air cooled' - Yours has a water pump, and it needs it. See #7 here;

http://www.searspartsdirect.com/par...00001042/00004?blt=06&prst=0&shdMod=217585911

You also have a solid state ignition that's no longer available, so if you are checking for spark, be durned sure the plug is grounded when you turn it over, otherwise, it's thought to burn the ignition module down, and while that's recoverable, who needs it. If you decide to replace the upper seal in the lower unit when you do the water pump, be careful when you pull the drive shaft, as it goes thru a needle bearing in the lower housing, and you don't want to lose needles.
 

vkopf

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Re: Another Ted Williams 7.5 Air cooled

I made into the Eska site and have downloaded many good files. Your comment about the needle bearings is what I am looking for. Having those all over the floor tends to make your day go south.

I don't know for sure but think that I may have run the motor without water for a short time after the carb gunk incident. I was planning on replacing bearings, seals and gaskets throughout. I guess I probably should plan on replacing the water pump also.

Any specific pieces to look out for or parts should be inspected? What is the best place to get bearings, seals and gaskets? It seems that the Sears site has some but not all. Any suggestions about parts and/or sequence of teardown and rebuild will be greatly appreciated.
 

MahtyMaht

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Apr 7, 2010
Messages
605
Re: Another Ted Williams 7.5 Air cooled

Sears is a lousy place to get parts, you only need them for the part numbers. They get their parts from Certified Parts Corporation, who bought up all the Tecumdeh stuff when Tec went tits-up. You have to call them with part numbers in hand, they'll hook you up. Call this number;

VinParts

There's also these guys;

Results for Eska - Sears / Ted Wms

They do OEM parts, and some after market parts will cause you problems, even aftermarket gaskets. I would think the thing to nail down first would be the status of the low compression cylinder. If the head is warped or cracked, gasket's blown, etc, you want to know that before you load up on parts for a basket case.
 

vkopf

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Apr 24, 2013
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Re: Another Ted Williams 7.5 Air cooled

Thanks for all the very useful information. I have ordered a user manual and have been reading through the material from the Eska group. It will probably be a few weeks before I tear into the motor.

Another question I have has to do with leaded vs unleaded gas. Many of my friends that restore/drive vintage autos are cautious about the rebuild of an engine and the use of unleaded gas. I am told that the unleaded gas will result in burnt valve seats in a engine that was designed for leaded gas and that the valve seats need to be changed if the engine is going to use unleaded gas on a regular basis. Now the 2 cycle engine has a different design but I wondered if there was any issue with using unleaded or ethanol mixed unleaded fuel in these older 2 cycle engines?

Thanks

I should do some research first. I found lots of information regarding my question. Sure don't want to start another long discussion on something that has been thoroughly covered.
 
Last edited:

JB

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Joined
Mar 25, 2001
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45,907
Re: Another Ted Williams 7.5 Air cooled

Most of us have been burning E-10 unleaded for 20 or 30 years in our outboards, chainsaws, mowers, etc. Though the E-10 requires more careful maintenance the lack of lead is more a benefit than a problem.
 
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