Hmm, yeah, a leaky float would've been my guess too.
Just out of curiosity, do you have it set on choke when you are cranking it over and it does this, or is it off choke? If it's off, you might try putting it on choke and seeing what happens. It *should* fire right up and when it does, take it off. If the engine is just cranking over for a long duration of time without starting, then that would explain why it's getting flooded as it's just adding more and more fuel.
Sometimes I find with small engines that they want a little choke to aid with starting if they are not completely warmed up, but this may not be related at all to your issue.
For what it's worth, here is a link to Kohler's troubleshooting tips: Kohler Engines
Just out of curiosity, do you have it set on choke when you are cranking it over and it does this, or is it off choke? If it's off, you might try putting it on choke and seeing what happens. It *should* fire right up and when it does, take it off. If the engine is just cranking over for a long duration of time without starting, then that would explain why it's getting flooded as it's just adding more and more fuel.
Sometimes I find with small engines that they want a little choke to aid with starting if they are not completely warmed up, but this may not be related at all to your issue.
For what it's worth, here is a link to Kohler's troubleshooting tips: Kohler Engines