Riding Mower Deck Maintenance - Keep it Running Like New

Рет қаралды 81,997

Күн бұрын

Riding mower deck maintenance is often neglected, but your deck needs love too (it's exposed to the most wear & tear after all). To keep your mower deck running like new, we'll remove the deck, inspect it, lubricate it, replace the deck belt, sharpen & balance the blades and check the height/level adjustment. Also shown is an interesting hidden bearing issue.
Riding Mower Deck Maintenance Items Time Index:
- Intro 0:00
- How to remove a riding mower deck 1:12
- Deck inspection 5:42
- Mower deck lubrication points 7:45
- Mower deck belt removal 9:30
- Spindle lubrication & sealed bearing issue 11:26
- Underside of mower deck inspection 14:30
- Blade inspection, sharpening & balancing 15:48
- How to replace riding mower deck belt 20:42
- Refitting & leveling mower deck 21:40
Part 1 of the riding mower service/maintenance covers the oil & filter change, lubrication, and inspection:
• How To Maintain A Ridi...
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Пікірлер: 84

@Rchelicopterfun 4 жыл бұрын

Link To Part 1 Video: kzfaq.info/get/bejne/jNKIa7hl0LixcX0.html (riding mower maintenance - oil & filter change, lubrication, inspection, etc)

@mojo6385 3 жыл бұрын

It is hard for me to type on my phone or i would say more. Ty so mch for this vide. One of the best how to videos ive ever seen. I cant thank you enough for this!

@judasgoatamerika599 23 күн бұрын

Best video for the 105 belt system and thank you.

@Rchelicopterfun 23 күн бұрын

Glad it helped 🙂 Thanks for watching.

@Chris-5446 2 жыл бұрын

Just got my first rider. This was very helpful. Thanks!

@Rchelicopterfun 2 жыл бұрын

Glad it helped

@mikewalters9472 3 жыл бұрын

Thanks John, your videos are a BIG help to me. Thanks

@Rchelicopterfun 3 жыл бұрын

Thanks - Glad you like them 🙂

@chardonian1 3 жыл бұрын

Thank you. A very detailed video and well presented.

@Rchelicopterfun 3 жыл бұрын

Glad you enjoyed it :)

@keesvandentempel 2 жыл бұрын

Thanks for the video again (after part 1). Today I did the mower deck from my John Deere X126. Thanks to your explanation , it was pretty easy. Actually most work were the machine shields. It's good that the shield the motor and the mowerdeck, but they also cause an accumulation of grass. Cleaning everything was also necessary

@Rchelicopterfun 2 жыл бұрын

Glad your deck maintenance went well - other than the grass build up in the shields. I always blow my mower and deck down with the leaf blower after every use which seems to go a long way to keep all that grass & dust buildup to a minimum. Just mentioning that if you use a leaf blower after mowing to clear the sidewalk/driveway; might not hurt to blow down the mower as well to see if it might help keep the buildup down (it may or may not depending on how wet the grass is).

@thebeardedpaddler 4 жыл бұрын

Great video. Easy to follow and understand

@Rchelicopterfun 4 жыл бұрын

Glad it was helpful.

@haydenrupe8591 3 жыл бұрын

Great Video, thanks for the help

@Rchelicopterfun 3 жыл бұрын

Glad it helped

@matthiasi8292 Жыл бұрын

This was excellent. Thanks much!

@Rchelicopterfun Жыл бұрын

Glad you enjoyed it

@kwamepaul4418 3 жыл бұрын

Thank you, John. Very useful information.

@Rchelicopterfun 3 жыл бұрын

Glad you found it useful.

@Praise___YaH 3 күн бұрын

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@rcronin1 2 жыл бұрын

Awesome video!! only other suggestion I would make would be to check that your blades are straight and aligned to each other while the mower deck is off and upside down. Purpose: see if you have a bent mower blade, see if you have a bent spindle, fix uneven/striping mowing problems. Just spin both blades so their cutting edges are as close as possible to each other and make sure that they are almost exactly the same height. Do this for both ends of both blades.

@Rchelicopterfun 2 жыл бұрын

Good additional tips Rebecca. 👍

@tomvanleeuwen3914 Жыл бұрын

100 % Rebecca….all that time to remove the deck….. 2 mins to check blade alignment

@anthonymarino4260 2 жыл бұрын

great vid. learned. a lot

@Rchelicopterfun 2 жыл бұрын

Glad you enjoyed it 🙂

@sybamunki 2 жыл бұрын

Both videos are great. I can see me doing the oil changes and so on, but tackling the deck looks a mission!

@RaysLaughsAndLyrics 2 жыл бұрын

Teflon or ceramic coated deck would be premium. Even epoxy paint would be an improvement. Thanks for sharing👍

@troyb.4101 2 жыл бұрын

I use a 2 1/2" round chain link fence post flattened to hold the blades while torquing them to 60 foot pounds.

@elephantgrass631 Жыл бұрын

For blade sharpness, is it like your standard issue walk behind mower where the blades are "butter knife" sharp? I remember making my blades razor sharp and it was ruining my grass. Maybe bad grass? or was it the blade? Also, the blade chipped chipped like crazy whenever it hit something harder than grass. lol

@leoncope6649 Жыл бұрын

Thank you mine is a craft man I need to do this my belt engages then just stops I’m sure that what it is a bearing bad

@ed-xv4zl 3 жыл бұрын

Sure glad I bought an X-350

@andretraversy9391 2 ай бұрын

Merci

@everythingvideos24 Жыл бұрын

I had to purchase a die for my shaft on my mower deck. I used the impact wrench so much I threaded one of bolts on the spindle shafts.

@dominikberdysz5446 3 жыл бұрын

What grease should I use to grease the bearings? Thanks!! Great video!!

@Rchelicopterfun 3 жыл бұрын

Any standard bearing grease / general purpose grease.

@Outdoorpower-equipment 3 ай бұрын

Does the spindle housing gets inspected

@babyboomer9560 7 ай бұрын

I’ve read that you need to grade the spindles even if bearings are sealed cause it will prevent the inner tube from getting rusty

@RaysLaughsAndLyrics 2 жыл бұрын

Yardworks LT 1642 has same spindle bearing seals with zerk installed.. popped seals...filled spindles with grease. Probably a universal thing as the millennium goes 'forward'. . . .

@mr9c1driver59 3 жыл бұрын

At 3:03 there is supposed to be a washer in there with that pin you pulled. Should be one on the other side as well.

@breannaschlaht6501 Ай бұрын

I think that they didn't remove the seal from that bearing because you're not technically putting grease in that zerk to grease the bearing, it's for the spindle shaft. I would think that that area would be prone to becoming contaminated very easily so it would make sense for them to keep that seal on the bearing to prevent dirty grease from getting in or becoming over greased as well. I don't know if that's correct or not just kind of made sense the deeper you think about it. 🤷🏻‍♀️

@caryalmas4651 2 жыл бұрын

Nice work. Probably saving me $300

@Rchelicopterfun 2 жыл бұрын

👍

@robertturriff9836 3 жыл бұрын

Thank you for your video. I have a d105 that has new belt and new belt tension cable but the belt keeps coming off, I dont see anything wrong with any pulleys can you help me with this problem?

@Rchelicopterfun 3 жыл бұрын

Not without seeing it first hand. Only other thing I never mentioned in the deck pully inspection process is to also check the condition of the main drive pully on the motor shaft. Also make sure the belt is routed around that power pully correctly and on the inside of the belt keepers/guides on each side of the power pully.

@dddddd2100 3 жыл бұрын

This is a great and appreciated video. Thanks for posting it...On my John Deere 42" Edge Deck I have replaced the following deck parts: Both Spindles, both blades are new and balanced, both flat idler pulleys and a new belt, I have a vibration in the deck when the blades are engaged. it is worse when the cutting height is on a high setting (5) and not as bad but still vibrates with the cutting height set low on (2) I can't figure out why it vibrates. I did Not replace the two spindle pulleys, they are worn some where they mount on the spindle shaft, the hexagon opening is worn in both spindle pulleys and when in place they can be turned back and forth (left and right) don't fit tight to the spindle shaft. but once the lock nut is tightened that holds the pulley down they are nice and tight with no play. I'm wondering if these pulleys could be causing the vibration. any suggestions will be appreciated. Thanks.

@Rchelicopterfun 3 жыл бұрын

If the two spindle pulley's hex opening is loose fitting on the spindle shafts (likely because they have previously cammed out), they may not be centering on the shaft and that could cause some vibration but it would be slight. Worn out main shaft bearings in the spindle housing will cause excessive vibration so they are worth pulling out and checking if you haven't checked them yet.

@dddddd2100 3 жыл бұрын

@@Rchelicopterfun I have replaced both spindles with brand new ones and still the same vibration. not sure what you mean by they have previously cammed out? but also I would like to mention that the brake pivot arm (that's close to the tensioner pulley) is frozen, stuck in place but is away from the pulley enough that the brake is not on. being stuck like this was keeping the tensioner pulley arm from moving far enough to get enough belt tension so I backed off that small adjustment nut on the rod ( you talked about it and shown in this video at about 8:24-8:28) to allow the tensioner to move more and that in turn gave me more belt tension, and the blades engage right away when the lever arm at the steering wheel is moved to engage them and they disengage right away but could that frozen stuck brake pivot arm still be holding the tensioner back from a position where it should be and that would change the length of the belt between those pulleys and the engine pulley? I know what I mean to say but I could be confusing you or others. LOL. Thanks

@Rchelicopterfun 3 жыл бұрын

Camming out is when the pully flats slip on the spindle flats and round out the hole (assuming your model has the hex hole on the pullies like this D120 has). Some others use locating splines on the pulleys like on the blades to center and lock the spindle drive pulleys. Anyway, I have no further ideas other than the spindle bearings being worn out as I already mentioned. I know you replaced the spindles, but what about the bearings? Perhaps you got the entire spindle with housing assembly which of course has new bearings? If so - no ideas at all if you have checked everything else including blade balance. I assume the blades are also straight & not bent. I can't see how the brake or tensioner adjustment would have any impact on excessive vibration.

@dddddd2100 3 жыл бұрын

@@Rchelicopterfun Yes I did replace both Spindles that are a complete unit with bearings. the blades are both new and balanced only mowed with them once since I installed them. had the same vibration prior to installing them...yes the pulley flats on the hex hole are worn some but not completely rounded off. Thanks for the reply back. I will keep trying to figure out the vibration.

@troyb.4101 2 жыл бұрын

Check the 7" dia drive pulleys, they can strip the centers out. I had to replace both of them at ten years. Check play of the spindles , and check clearance of the blade to deck. I had to use a farm jack to straighten the deck back out. Yes you can bend the deck, you just drive into enought rocks, tree stumps etc, and it will bend. Good thing I have a welder, I beefed up the leading edge of the deck to make it stronger.

@theeabster1983 3 жыл бұрын

Have you ever had to replace the brake shoes on the spindles I guess they're called deck brakes? Richard recently purchased a Craftsman tractor and one of the deck brakes have burned through the shoe and started cutting into the actual metal. I seen sparks flying out from the shoot that I had tied up for the life of me I couldn't figure out what the hell was wrong. Flipping it over doing maintenance for the first time it was obvious after that. But was not sure if there's a certain procedure if you start on one end or the other or any tricks of the trade on reassembling to fully brakes? Thank you for your time

@Rchelicopterfun 3 жыл бұрын

I've never had to replace the brake pads. They see very little wear in normal usage (at least on a residential mower that's only used a couple times a weeks tops. Sparks and fast worn brake pads means the brake pads are likely dragging and not adjusted correctly, but that is just a guess without seeing it first hand to inspect the problem.

@troyb.4101 2 жыл бұрын

I think belts fail , because of the debri , junk that gets onto the deck, 3rd Belt in ten years . The drive belt I just changed it was still at about 85% . Overall they last a long time. These deck configurations have several changes in them. This is identical to the D125 I have. Other videos show modifications to the deck itself. Most of the chages are in the push pull rods to the brakes.

@williamodom2580 Жыл бұрын

Amazon has replacement spindle covers

@mattcurreen3440 2 жыл бұрын

Should there be up and down movement on the spindles not heaps but maybe a mm or two what’s causing that and would the cause the belt to come of and get chewed

@Rchelicopterfun 2 жыл бұрын

There is no end play on the shaft spindles on this deck, but I have seen a few over the years with a little spindle end free play. If it's only a 1 to 2mm, I can't see that chewing up belts. Definitely wouldn't throw a belt.

@jonlambshead5115 Жыл бұрын

A Good Idea Is To Write The Belt Numbers Under The Hood Of The Ride On Mower For Future Reference, Then You Don't Have To Look Them Up All The Time

@rvrt1829 Жыл бұрын

john deere have parts listed under the seat

@theeabster1983 3 жыл бұрын

I can't find video out there anywhere telling me if there's a top and a bottom to the pulley spindles? there's a number stamped on one side the other one's not. but it doesn't say up or down. is there a rule of thumb to follow or doesn't matter just put them on either way? and thank you. after watching this I took the spindle that I ordered apart and the bottom bearing was open to the inside of the spindle the top bearing was sealed on both sides. so I removed the seal from the top bearing and filled it with grease. I'm assuming them guys are supposed to take them seals out and they just screw up and forget.

@Rchelicopterfun 3 жыл бұрын

On this specific JD 42" deck, the spindle pullies are symmetrical on both sides so there is no top/bottom orientation to worry about. I don't know if other mower brand deck pullies are the same as that or have a specific top/bottom side?

@stevenmullens584 11 ай бұрын

If your belt is squeaking make sure to put a generous amount of grease on it too

@sergioromero2171 3 ай бұрын

If my brakes won’t disengage at all for the blades, what could be the issue? I just replaced pto cable thinking it was cause of that

@Rchelicopterfun 3 ай бұрын

Cable out of adjustment &/or brake pushrods out of adjustment?

@pierogi210 2 жыл бұрын

When you use the 2" block method, what number do you set the deck to?

@Rchelicopterfun 2 жыл бұрын

Hi Paul, I set mine to #2 while leveling the deck with those 2" blocks. Basically those numbers reference fairly accurately (at least on this specific mower), the cutting height of the deck in inches.

@bwagenberg 4 жыл бұрын

Does the white grease last a season with water cleaning, rain etc? Great detail. Where do you look up torque specs?

@Rchelicopterfun 4 жыл бұрын

Hose pressure or rain no issue - pressure washer will remove most of it. Torque specs: Owners manual or Google. Spindle nut torque on this specific JD mower is 55 ft/lbs (75 Nm)

@tracym9142 2 ай бұрын

How do you change the other belt??

@Rchelicopterfun 2 ай бұрын

I pull the belt pully off the motor shaft to remove the upper belt.

@grahamsmith347 2 ай бұрын

Great vidio ,but id like to see a vidio on how to replace drive and idler ,pulleys bearings .common 6203 bearings used on John Deere lawn tractor. havent a camera so ,,, have to drill out rivits and spot welds ,then bolt pully back to gether .save heep of dollars !!!

@Rchelicopterfun Ай бұрын

If mine ever wear out, I'll see about it; however for the time & hassle involved, I think most folks would just get the idler kit for the low cost they are: amzn.to/3vR9hUa Not even $20 bucks - less than the cost of the bearings alone in my neck of the woods.

@seamuskitty5890 2 жыл бұрын

After watching this video you should be able to do the job with ease. If you still have trouble understanding anything, stop immediately and take it to anyone else. You just don't try it anymore after that and everything should be fine.

@BackyardBroadheads 2 ай бұрын

2015 RZT S has sealed bearings

@Rchelicopterfun 2 ай бұрын

Good to know 👍🙂

@williamodom2580 Жыл бұрын

With the engine running how do you hear the squeaking LOL

@Rchelicopterfun Жыл бұрын

High frequency squeaks cut through engine running noise like a hot knife through butter; even with hearing protection I can still hear the bloody things.

@mzmadman 2 жыл бұрын

Hi John, well I too thought the spindle bearings were odd being sealed. It's more a dust seal evidentley, see this video kzfaq.info/get/bejne/ht1_lc6a0ay8fmQ.html from Woodchuck Russ the Deck Dr.

@Rchelicopterfun 2 жыл бұрын

Yep, like I said in the video, some grease will still migrate past the seals into the bearings regardless. Just more efficient & less required IMO if the inner seals have been removed - just my method of course 🙂

@andretraversy9391 2 ай бұрын

Merci

@Rchelicopterfun 2 ай бұрын

👍🙂