105 exhaust leak near head
 

I was trying to start my 105 today and noticed what looked like some fuel coming out from under the head, blowing out towards the front of the tractor. I think when it runs, exhaust comes out of here. Is this concerning and what is the cause of this?

That's a blown head gasket.

Follow the link

https://www.onlycubcadets.net/forum/...ead.php?t=5656

Agree, when you replace it make sure the head is nice and flat and clean. Torque,heat up,cool and re-torque at least 2-3 times and you shouldn't have an issue ,also get a good head gasket like a stens or genuine Kohler .

I very much appreciate the info, I will order the gasket and get it fixed.

It's always a good practice to keep up on periodically, checking and keeping head bolts to proper torque

In Matt's howto, he says to lightly oil the head bolts before putting them back. Am I reading this correctly? Reason I ask is that it would affect the effect of the torquing, putting the bolts in dry vs. oily.

Proper clamping force is why we oil the threads.

Have your camera ready when you pull the head and get us some pictures of the gasket and area of the head itself, OK?

I asked CoPilot,
"Should head bolts be oiled?"
The answer is....

And from the manual....

here are pics of the removal

How was the torque on those head bolts,I'll bet there was some loose ones!!Head bolt torque and checking is a important part of maintenance on these tractors

you are correct, they came off no problem with a 3/8 ratchet