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Build information: Jacobsen Chief 1200 Garden Tractor Build Dates The Jacobsen Chief 1200 garden tractor was produced from 1966 through 1968 TractorData.com+2. It was manufactured in Racine, Wisconsin, USA and was part of the Chief 1000 series, designed for residential and light-duty...

The differential should be an inch below the fill hole to allow for heat expansion of the fluid. That is how I fill most manual transmissions. As for ATF. Just regular old type "A" or type "F" should do just fine. A basic cheap hydraulic fluid will work as well. Nothing with a bunch of...

Hello R., Was the old voltage regulator not working? I take it that you are measuring for a voltage drop from ground to ground? Is the body of the voltage regulator properly grounded? Try running a temporary ground wire from the battery to the voltage regulator body and see if the reading...

Verify the seat switch and brake/clutch switch are good.

Was the mower sitting for a long time before the flood incident? Was the mower running good before? This should be fairly easy to revive. There are no pesky electronics to worry with. You should change the oil, run it for a couple of minutes and then change it again. Second time run it a...

Hello sgkent, I thought that I included the ID plate info, but I missed it. I will get that info and add it to the posting.

Hello S., The wording for this simple solenoid has been a debated jumble since these came out years ago. Between the P-C types being "perfectionists" and DIYs throwing in their half-wit phrases (slang) it has created a lot of confusion and calamity. .

Hello R., I commend you on your efforts and your tenacity to stick with it and see it through. Basically, this mower shut down and has not started and ran since? Currently, it does crank well after a new starter was installed? Initially, two things come to mind.... First is the after-fire...

Make sure the exhaust outlet pipe at the head is tight and the gasket is not sucking in air.

See if you can find a good Kohler Command engine and get rid of the "bucket" motor. The Courage engine was designed to fail, and it does just. You can fix one thing and two more will break in a short time.

Is the "after fire" happen when you shut down and the engine is hot? If so, that means the fuel solenoid on the float bowl is not closing off the fuel flow. That is the most common problem. The solenoid pintle usually gets sticky from old fuel and additive that breaks down in the fuel. Most...

Hello Newbie, Welcome to the forum. The first thing we need with any machine is the product label information that is on the chassis and the engine model and spec numbers. This way we can reference what configuration your machine is. They are not all built the same in a "cookie cutter"...

I have the above-mentioned rider from an original owner who has since passed away. I have gotten the machine running and cutting great, but it is missing the deck chute. This mower has a 30" deck, and I need a chute because it is a hi-lift deck like most Snapper riders back then. I prefer the...

One thing comes to mind and that is the coil kill wire or switch contact is grounding out. I've had a few that had that issue. Unplug the coil kill wire and see if tries to fire up and run.

"It quiets down a rod knock".... until the rod breaks and goes through the block. At that point, no noise and no oil to worry about. LOL

Once the control arms are adjusted an initial "comfortable position", the steering arm links need to be adjusted by trial and error dynamically to obtain the "sweet spot" where both respond correctly. As you dial in the function, adjust the operator control to even up the lap bar. Once ideal...

Hello M., Consistent regular oil servicing and using the same brand of oil has always been important to me. Engine oils have improved greatly in the past 40-50 years, so the old engines that used to specify only SAE 30 oil, now actually run better on SAE 10W-30 or 10W-40. For hot seasons like...

Hello M., All carburetors are basically made by various overseas companies these days, some are just better than others. I also suggest to pick the middle of the price range if given the choice. The best deal is not always the best part. Not sure about what has been happening with Jacks small...

Fuel filters are only good for small dust particles, but the chaff debris gets caught in the fuel line long before making it to the filter. Fuel lines also get dry and rigid with age and collapse the inner liner of them which will restrict fuel flow, especially under heavy engine loads. B&S...

It's just another way JD saves on material costs and quietly plans for deck rust to make the mowers virtually useless in a few years. I have quite a few "haul cart pullers" around my area because the decks rusted out in only a few years. JD and many other manufacturers have not made a "10-year...

Hello U., This problem suggests to me that the fuel tank need to be emptied, removed and cleaned out well. Along with that all of the fuel hoses replaced. With use and age, dust, grass clippings and even bugs find their way into mower fuel tanks. This stuff lays in the bottom of the tank and...

Hello D., A person does not have to "register" their mower, but they do need the product model number off of the manufacturer label that is under the seat or on the seat frame (on most models), so they can find the applicable manual. Even Cub Cadet does not have a very good repair information...

Sounds like it's time to move on to a commercial brand other than JD. By all means stay away from the "box store" models.

There is no "better" starter made to overcome a camshaft with a broken compression relief mechanism. Have you pulled the spark plug with the valve cover off and watched the valve operation to see if the small bump of the intake valve is occurring? There are videos online about how to check for...

At the very base of each lap bar there is a turn knob that can be loosened to adjust the lap bar to the position you want them to be. Pretty easy to do.

Hi Slomo, Maybe they can find an old bottle of slick 50 on the shelf and cure all of their engine troubles? LOL

Hello S., Welcome to the world of franchised dealerships. JD "corporate" is only interested in selling the "big money" farm, industrial and forestry equipment. The L&G stuff is a sideline hustle they really don't profit from. I have not seen a "serial number" on a JD rider mower deck, that...

Hello B., Unfortunately, there are a lot of boot leg repair information copies that people have cracked the code on. I stay away from them. I worked for JD and saw this all the time. My general manager wanted me to actually charge area independent techs that I have known for years for any...

Hi Star Tech, I guess I still have a soft spot for the old manuals, but it is hard to store them and keep bugs a rodents from using them for bedding or to snack on. I'm worried about using any of the "cloud" services for back up due to the service disruptions I deal with a few times a year...

Solenoids are typical to fail especially when a battery is too low, and the starter is straining to turn the engine for startup. It creates a lot of heat on the solenoid contacts and in the starter.

Hi Star Tech, Most automotive and AG parts counter personnel anywhere you go these days are nothing more than breathing bodies who are occupying a position until something better comes along with better pay and less work. If they do not show an item on their computer screen in stock, they often...

Hello B., The difference in price for the JD repair manual/CD and an eBay repair CD clearly demonstrates their corporate greed and a crumbling customer support system. They have a high image of themselves as being "exclusive". John Deere was a premier product for many years, but they have...

All oil manufacturers have material data sheets (MDS) for each formulation of oil they produce. The weight viscosity is an API unit of measure. A given company could produce several different blends of additives in a "10W-30" engine oil. Many Of their formulas are "proprietary information" so...

Hello A., Are you referring to the traction drive belt or the deck blade drive belt?

Hello E., The carburetor has a blocked internal air bleed, sediment in the carburetor passages or the fuel line has garbage in it from the fuel tank. Those are the 3 most common things I see on this series engine.

Sadly, JD has really their lost direction when it comes to quality and workmanship. It was going downhill fast when I was a service manager up until 2010. Everyone just plays pass the buck and no one takes responsibility to resolve issues anymore.

That is residual oil getting cooked due to an overheating condition. The cooling fins under the fan shroud need to be cleaned really well. There is also a very high chance that the head gasket is failing. This engine design is bad about this. There are plenty of videos online about how to...

Pull the main power fuse and look at it. If it looks partially melted in the plastic, the holder contacts are getting rusty, and the fuse has poor connection. You can put the fuse in and out a couple of times and if the mower will start, the fuse holder needs to be replaced.

Some of the newer (small) Briggs and Stratton engine do not even have a drain plug, just an "add oil before starting engine" sticker. Of course, customer think that means it has some kind of magical "lifetime" oil. After the sticker wear off who cares? It's doomed from day one. Hence the title...

Thanks for letting us know B, These are occasionally "slide in" throttle blade (on some models). If it has a small center screw, it will need some Loc-Tite to prevent it from happening again.

It's crazy (to me) what people pay for "equipment branded" oils, but they are brand loyal especially if it involves the illusion of "free" warranty repairs. Truth be told, no equipment manufacturer makes their lubrication products, they just purchase large quantitates of oils and greases from...

As I recall Peerless made quite a number of rider mower manual gear drive transmissions. Many of them were used in MTD and AYP chassis riders. "Murray" is just a chassis product label. The only weak point was the input shaft and pulley shearing the splines or keyway, but a tack weld can resolve...

Hydrostatic (automatic) transmissions produce more fluid bypass internally and fluid aeration when pully input shaft Rpm goes higher. The design of the hydrostatic transmission does not have any internal tricks to really make it go much faster. If you want more actual speed, find an early...

Hello M., Why a steering wheel on a zero turn? Smoother control especially in tight areas or turns. The one I have seemed to sit a little higher as well. It appeals to many that cannot handle (not a pun) a separate R&L hand control because they react (jerky) too fast. I have both an RZT s-50...

1980's Flashback.... Add a bottle of Slick 50 oil additive and it will run forever.

I run Royal Purple 20W-50 in my '95 Harley and it is a vast power improvement over the SAE 50 Harley oil they were recommending. Straight SAE 50 is way outdated in my opinion. Air cooled engines are critical about the correct viscosity for the ambient temperature conditions. The most wear on...

Hello ILENGINE, That is so the investors can swoop in and build housing complexes on land that was once used for crop production. Why teach students about farming when there will be very little land left to farm in the future? If things keep going this way, we will have to visit a museum to...

Thanks Star Tech for the clarification.

Hello Star Tech, I went through industrial arts and technical trades school, and we actually had hands-on lessons back in the 70's and 80's. As the 90's rolled around many of the schools stopped supporting the trades and focused more on "grooming" kids for college or scholastic sports. Now we...

Did you put the shorting bar back in the same way it came out? It could simply be upside down. It is spring steel and flexes with seat pressure when the seat is occupied. With the shorting bar removed it takes the seat safety switch out of the circuit.