The Southern Cross engines are a very basic design and therefore a very easy engine to work on. Even the gaskets are so simple that anyone who is a bit handy with a pair of scissors and a sharp knife could cut one out in no time. They were also virtually indestructible. Most of the screws and bolts were also basic imperial, being a couple of fairly standard UNF bolts and then 1/4" UNC and 5/16" UNC nuts and bolts in the main, and with a big 3/4" nut/coupling on the bottom. I don't know how many modern engines I've pulled apart and you end up with about 10 different spanner sizes and sometimes even different thread types. I guess Southern Cross had farmers in mind. Farmers are generally handy and have at least a basic knowledge of machinery and engines. Also, farmers can be located a long way from the nearest town or service centre. So the parts had to be robust but also fairly "user friendly" and "user serviceable". The KXD truly was the ultimate "bushies" mower of the day, but also attractive enough to look good mowing any suburban yard too.
The beauty of the KXA, you also then had the advantage of a big rear catcher. The KXD models had the side chute and only a relatively small catcher.
