OutdoorKing Repair Forum Forums Repairs and Maintenance Questions on Engines Questions On Victa Two Stroke Engines How to remove top off old victa

Hello, I would love to know how to remove the top spinning part off this old victa utility. I circled the part Im trying to remove in Red in the attached picture. I can't see any obvious way of removing it (gently). Thank you for your help, Markus.

A flywheel puller will get you a long way on this one, I have a specially made one for victas that the bolt so it cuts threads into the smaller circles around the middle of the crankshaft and once you have it bolted on around the edges, simply wind in the center bolt and the flywheel will come off.

A flywheel puller. Thank you!

Slothland, here is an illustration of the Briggs and Stratton equivalent of the Victa flat-plate flywheel puller:

The Victa version has 3 screws instead of the 2 the Briggs one has, to match the holes in the flywheel. Normally people just make one, it only takes a few minutes. Whatever you do, do not attempt to use a gear puller to remove the flywheel.

If you're lucky, you can survive this time without the puller, however it is still a good idea to make one up.

To try it without a puller, soak the centre in penetrene for 20 minutes (or WD-40 for a couple of hours) then grab 2 long, flathead screwdrivers, and place then under the sides of the flywheel.

Get a mate to push one down (not too much, you want to apply pressure, not snap the top of the crank case plate) while you put pressure on the other, and using your free hand, bash the top of the crank shaft a few times with a wooden or rubber mallet.

If you don't have a rubber mallet, or thats not working, try popping the nut back over the end of the shaft, to protect the thread, and use a regular hammer, but be careful not to take it to far, too much pressure on the screwdrivers will warp or snap metal, and to much force on the hammer can bugger the crank.

Remember, this is the "Bush-Mechanics" way, and you need to use careful judgment.

Having just gone through this with my Victa 18 Special (coffee table project) I soaked the top of the flywheel round the crankshaft with Penetrene liberally and Joe Carroll kindly brought his Victa flywheel puller over, screwed it to the flywheel and wound the center nut down and it literally jumped off....well worth making that tool, it makes a safe and easy job of it!

Just to clarify the flat plate puller option, here is my Briggs version:


As you can see, it is hardly a major construction project. Mine, being for Briggs engines, has just 2 screws, which are 1/4" UNC to suit the existing holes in the flywheel. I used what I had, so I have to tap each flywheel with 1/4" UNC taps before I use the puller. (Briggs specifies self-threading 1/4" UNC screws, which I don't have.) I don't know the screw size for Victa flywheels, and of course there are three screws instead of two. To use the puller you just loosen the flywheel retaining nut until it is at the end of the thread to support the center of the puller, then thread the screws through the flat plate with the nuts on the same side as the head of the screws. Screw them into the pre-tapped holes in the flywheel until they bottom. Turn the nuts until they are firmly against the flat plate, with light even pressure on all of them. Go around the screws turning them 1/4 turn each. Repeat until there is substantial, but not major, pressure on the flywheel retaining nut under the flat plate, then tap the center of the flat plate (directly above the flywheel nut) once lightly with a hammer. Apply another 1/4 turn to each nut, and repeat the tap. Unless the flywheel is rusted on, by now it has disconnected itself from the taper with a loudish bang. Undo the screws from the flywheel and put the puller away until next time.

As Ty said, if there is any sign of rust on the crankshaft or corrosion on the flywheel, use Penetrene before you begin the process.

The briggs is on a tapered shaft, so it has the whole taper lock thing working against you.


The Victa flywheel is on a parallel shaft.
Give the two screw drivers thing a go. Just be careful, slow and steady wins the race.
If it has been sitting outside without the pullstart/cowling on it it can be corroded in under the cup which will make the job a lot more difficult.


If not a puller the same as above is easy to make. I would think that the Victa flywheel also has holes in it ready to be tapped at 1/4 unc. (probably whitworth actually)


A word of warning on the tapping. You can damage the thread with a soft faced (typically brass or copper) hammer, even with a plastic one. Take care. If you put the nut on and use a regular hammer you can also damage the thread if you do not take care. The thread is whitworth and a thread die will cost you about $80 or more, so its best not to damage the thread.
You would only tap lightly on the shaft while loading the flywheel up from underneath with screwdrivers or tyre levers.


Do not be afraid to load it up with peneatrene or WD40 or whatever and walk away. If it takes days, thats better than the red mist coming down and it turning into instant scrap metal.

Hi Bob, on my Victa 18 flywheel, I soaked it with Penetrene for over 2 weeks adding it everyday and the 2 screwdrivers just wouldn't do the trick...I would have broken the coil plate if I had tried to get it off that way...But, with Joe Carrol's puller...off it popped, no troubles, and not a hammer in sight!

Thats fair enough, but this one might not be as corroded. Some of them just slip right off with very little effort. Others take a lot of work and a puller becomes the only option.

Does not hurt to try before going to the trouble of buying a thread tap and some bolts and buying or making a puller.



I do not suggest the hammer either, i have been known to get my hand under a briggs flywheel and tap the crank but i would not do that on a victa as it is not on a taper.

With regard to the hammer, I did say tap it once, lightly. Briggs I/C engines generally have ball main bearings, and hammer blows on those are particularly undesirable. I normally find the flywheel pops off with a bang while I'm still applying initial tension to the puller - no light tap necessary. Flat plate pullers tend to be considerably more rigid, and therefore effective, than gear pullers.

Hi guys, I would like to add that when Joe used his puller, the screws just ran straight down into the existing holes in the flywheel...He did not have to tap the thread.

Deejay, from Joe's post in this thread I take it his puller uses self-threading bolts. These are hardened and have a longitudinal groove cut into the first half dozen or so threads, to act as a sort of tap. The actual Briggs design for my puller has the same self-threading bolts. I made my puller out of stuff from the junkbox, which didn't include the right bolts, so I used what I had.

Hi grumpy, thanks for that mate, I didn't notice that detail in his post or examine the puller to any extent. It worked a treat though...

Hi to All,
Here is a pic of the genuine Victa Service Tool for removing the flywheel....