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Hello I’m new to this! I have a craftsman lt1000 model: 917275350.
I bought it used and worked 3 mows before it chewed up the belt. It got stuck under the left side pully I believe it’s the one with the spindle. I went and replaced it and mowed again no problem. I disengaged the blades and then went to renegade them and it started smoking and got stuck under the same pully. I have to always check the belt before I engage the blades now to make sure it’s not stuck, it never gets stuck when blades engaged already. Does anyone know if maybe I’m missing like a spring or anything on my deck that would keep the belt on the pully? It also starts very slow an winds up slow when starting blades. I have tried to tighten the tensioner cable but it’s one of the mowers that doesn’t have the bracket to tighten it. I’m going to add the pic I have of the deck. Maybe you guys can let me know if any parts are missing as I bought it used. Thank you!

OJSANDOVAL said:

View attachment 62361

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It gets stuck under that far left pully as u can see in the pic it’s stuck under the far left and upper portion of that Pully.

I'd start by replacing the belt. the V of the belt is probably worn down so there's more slack in it. And with that chunk out of it, there ain't going to be no keeping it on for long. also make sure there are no sharp or jagged spots in the groove of the pulleys.
belt Part number is

193214​

Already replaced, that’s not the issue unfortunately

Well according to Manual ( the Mexican know it all ) that deck does not belong to that mower or if it does then the entire Belt clutching system is wrong at worst or upside down at best and probably a mix & match
According to one site, this is what the deck should look like

Part numbered 144 is the belt keeper # 193414 marked as NLA
Part numbered 148 is the return spring # 169022 also marked as NLA
I think you will find Husqvarna part # 532158634 is either the same or can be modified to fit
And same for 532173442 which is what usually goes on the tensioner idler

Stanley B & D have bought out Craftsman and as the new owners they are not obliged to keep parts for older models so they now come up as NLA
However it is a down graded rebadged Husqvarna so if you check the Date of manufacture ( which should be on the ID tag under the seat ) and search Husqvarna models for that year ( tractor data.com is good for that ) then you can find the sort of equivalent Husqvarna model and source Husqvarna parts .
Better still you can download the Husqvarna parts book for your equivalent model.

Some times if your mower was a year or two after a new Husqvarna model or major upgrade then the Craftsman is the superseded model
I have to do this sort of search all the time to work out what parts are needed for locally branded mowers where no parts lists are available .

good catch Mr.Bert

bertsmobile1 said:

Well according to Manual ( the Mexican know it all ) that deck does not belong to that mower or if it does then the entire Belt clutching system is wrong at worst or upside down at best and probably a mix & match
According to one site, this is what the deck should look like
View attachment 62362
Part numbered 144 is the belt keeper # 193414 marked as NLA
Part numbered 148 is the return spring # 169022 also marked as NLA
I think you will find Husqvarna part # 532158634 is either the same or can be modified to fit
And same for 532173442 which is what usually goes on the tensioner idler

Stanley B & D have bought out Craftsman and as the new owners they are not obliged to keep parts for older models so they now come up as NLA
However it is a down graded rebadged Husqvarna so if you check the Date of manufacture ( which should be on the ID tag under the seat ) and search Husqvarna models for that year ( tractor data.com is good for that ) then you can find the sort of equivalent Husqvarna model and source Husqvarna parts .
Better still you can download the Husqvarna parts book for your equivalent model.

Some times if your mower was a year or two after a new Husqvarna model or major upgrade then the Craftsman is the superseded model
I have to do this sort of search all the time to work out what parts are needed for locally branded mowers where no parts lists are available .

Click to expand...

Oh jeez so this is a huge problem, should I just buy another deck? Or try to get those parts u mentioned and modify them? I’m new to this so I’m not afraid to do some work to it but I’m a little lost on some of it. Now that makes sense cause most videos on YouTube with this craftsman the decks have a plastic guard over the pully and mine doesn’t so I was wondering why I never saw a deck that looked like mine on there. Do you have any suggestions in what I should do to get the belt to jusy stop getting caught an breaking. Maybe a smaller belt or try those parts u mentioned? I don’t need it to be a show piece I just wanna cut my grass haha. Thanks !

The first thing that you could do is to clean the deck top off, in order to see exactly what’s going on. Please clean it off and send another picture. The belt is shot. Those pulleys and spindles need to be checked for binding up or slop. Those two idler pulleys look to be as old as the deck and could be problematic. The bushings or bearings in those pulleys are probably shot. The tension springs probably need replacement.
Grass and debris buildup can cause a belt to jump off.

My lord this is an AYP/Husqvarna mower. Stanley B and D might have brought the name Craftsman but Husqvarna still provides the parts for this particular. Just got to have a good database that is update with the supersedes of the part numbers. Stanley B and D actually brought out MTD which is what OEM Craftsman was using on their last rider mowers.

Bert if you are looking at the Searspartsdirect site. A lot of the times they will list things NLA just because they have never updated their part numbers.

PN 193414 has been superseded a couple times. > 532193414 and 531148901 is the service kit.

PN 169022 has been superseded to 532169022

PN 532173442 has been supersede > 532141043 > 531165901


Even the following website which you can get the original part numbers which I still need to run through my database to get the current part numbers but the Sears site don't list have all the part numbers listed or at least they didn't this morning. They also list the parts as NLA but that is just because they don't have access to the Husqvarna parts.

https://www.partselect.com/Models/917275350/

And two problems I see is both the LH and RH belt guard (retainers) are too far from the spindle pulleys allowing the belt to fall off. And the current belt part is 532193214 superseded from 193214. These needs to less half of the belt thickness to keep the belts on.

OJSANDOVAL said:

Oh jeez so this is a huge problem, should I just buy another deck? Or try to get those parts u mentioned and modify them? I’m new to this so I’m not afraid to do some work to it but I’m a little lost on some of it. Now that makes sense cause most videos on YouTube with this craftsman the decks have a plastic guard over the pully and mine doesn’t so I was wondering why I never saw a deck that looked like mine on there. Do you have any suggestions in what I should do to get the belt to jusy stop getting caught an breaking. Maybe a smaller belt or try those parts u mentioned? I don’t need it to be a show piece I just wanna cut my grass haha. Thanks !

Click to expand...

Not a big problem once you work out what Husqvarna it is
People take the pulley guards off because it makes changing the belts & cleaning the deck easier
Then they get lost / broken
Most are just covers & do nothing however on some decks they also double as belt keepers , but not on yours .
Unfortunatley the ID tag does not have a DOM on it and I do not have a decoder for the serial number
However we are not done yet
Using another part, in this case the stiffener plate # 108 in the diagram and searching it's Craftsaman number ( google is fine for this ) brings up it;s Husqvarna equivalent , part no 532133503
Dropping that into Parts Tree .com reveals that the same plate was used on a lot of mowers so from then on it is just a matter of clicking on a couple of them till yo see a deck that looks like yours
In this case I used

PB 145G38 (960120128-00) - Poulan Pro Lawn Tractor (2013-09)​

Because I can get Poulan parts books
And then looking up the belt keeper & spring I find that
Poulan 532193414 belt keeper is listed at $ 5.85 but has to be ordered in
plus
Poulan 532169022 Idler return spring is listed at $ 4.99 and they have 20 in stock

Unlike Star I do not have an up to date data base & the time it would take me to create one is more than my total working hours
But in any case there are work arounds as you can see.
Order the spring & the retainer and see how that goes for starters
It is a bit hard to tell from the parts diagram but the keeper is positioned so when the deck is engaged, it sits in the middle of the belt / pulley contact zone .

Bert, Poulan is owned by Husqvarna and Husqvarna uses the same part numbers.

As for having an updated list it is what my distributors provides me as price files with supersedes which I load into Adminsoft Auto Manager / Accounting software I use here. Currently I have only nearly 1 million part (SKU) numbers that are cross referenced and still SKUs that I must add manual or manually cross reference. Of course I have to delete last price update column and a few other columns that my software don't need. Now of course I have my own prefixes assigned just in case there are duplicate PNs by multiple OEMs.

I have loaded MTD, Husqvarna, Stens, and Rotary price files along many of the other OEMs my two biggest distributors provide parts and price files for.

Yes I know Poulan is owned by Husqvarna
But for some reason finding a list of Husqvarna models that might use this deck is a bit difficult.
Most of the sites that I use to cross reference do not list the Husqvarna models but they do list the Dixon, Red Max , Poulan, Weedeater, Electroluxe
Ojsandal does not need to build a comprehensive cross referenced data base , he just needs to know what should be on the deck of his 2nd hand mower so he can get the belts to stay on.
What both of us have overlooked to date is weather his mower has the belt keepers on the engine.
You in particular should know the problems people have when they buy used mowers that have had an "interesting" service history .
I was hoping to show OJ one method of working around the lack of information about Craftsman mowers and how to check is the same part is sold under different brand names & part numbers .
Hopefully he has an idea of how to go about it now .
And of course for me it was another learning exercise as it looks very much like that particular deck was actually sold without pulley covers

bertsmobile1 said:

Yes I know Poulan is owned by Husqvarna
But for some reason finding a list of Husqvarna models that might use this deck is a bit difficult.
Most of the sites that I use to cross reference do not list the Husqvarna models but they do list the Dixon, Red Max , Poulan, Weedeater, Electroluxe
Ojsandal does not need to build a comprehensive cross referenced data base , he just needs to know what should be on the deck of his 2nd hand mower so he can get the belts to stay on.
What both of us have overlooked to date is weather his mower has the belt keepers on the engine.
You in particular should know the problems people have when they buy used mowers that have had an "interesting" service history .
I was hoping to show OJ one method of working around the lack of information about Craftsman mowers and how to check is the same part is sold under different brand names & part numbers .
Hopefully he has an idea of how to go about it now .
And of course for me it was another learning exercise as it looks very much like that particular deck was actually sold without pulley covers

Click to expand...

Hey sorry guys I’ll take a look at all these messages soon. I was in the zone for hurricane Ian so power was out. I’ll look into this asap I did already have the deck off an clean at one point I know someone mentioned to do that. I cleaned it all off removed all debris from inside the undercarriage of mower as well. An has a new belt on it .

bertsmobile1 said:

Yes I know Poulan is owned by Husqvarna
But for some reason finding a list of Husqvarna models that might use this deck is a bit difficult.
Most of the sites that I use to cross reference do not list the Husqvarna models but they do list the Dixon, Red Max , Poulan, Weedeater, Electroluxe
Ojsandal does not need to build a comprehensive cross referenced data base , he just needs to know what should be on the deck of his 2nd hand mower so he can get the belts to stay on.
What both of us have overlooked to date is weather his mower has the belt keepers on the engine.
You in particular should know the problems people have when they buy used mowers that have had an "interesting" service history .
I was hoping to show OJ one method of working around the lack of information about Craftsman mowers and how to check is the same part is sold under different brand names & part numbers .
Hopefully he has an idea of how to go about it now .
And of course for me it was another learning exercise as it looks very much like that particular deck was actually sold without pulley covers

Click to expand...

Yes I understand that different areas have different setup for looking up parts. Plus Sears has gotten very lazy about their equipment IPLs.

And yes this particular deck was sold without belt covers which was a safety issue but many customers simply don't care about safety. It is just the deflector chutes for the discharge for the clippings. Some has to be there no matter what as there is large hole that the operator put their foot through. Some deflectors are too large length wise and can be shorten with reason.

The PartSelect site does show all the referenced parts and it take a little more effort to look the original numbers and then cross to the current numbers but I am use to having to research things to an extra level as I get some fairly old and odd equipment here. But to be honest this particular deck is a new one on me.

I usually use Ereplacementparts.com when I need to cross reference a particular part as in this case the deck shell fits the following mowers which get you easier to the current part numbers.







Note this are not clickable links, just screen grabs.

bertsmobile1 said:

Yes I know Poulan is owned by Husqvarna
But for some reason finding a list of Husqvarna models that might use this deck is a bit difficult.
Most of the sites that I use to cross reference do not list the Husqvarna models but they do list the Dixon, Red Max , Poulan, Weedeater, Electroluxe
Ojsandal does not need to build a comprehensive cross referenced data base , he just needs to know what should be on the deck of his 2nd hand mower so he can get the belts to stay on.
What both of us have overlooked to date is weather his mower has the belt keepers on the engine.
You in particular should know the problems people have when they buy used mowers that have had an "interesting" service history .
I was hoping to show OJ one method of working around the lack of information about Craftsman mowers and how to check is the same part is sold under different brand names & part numbers .
Hopefully he has an idea of how to go about it now .
And of course for me it was another learning exercise as it looks very much like that particular deck was actually sold without pulley covers

Click to expand...

I tried to upload pics of the belt keeper arms from the motor but it says my file is too large. If anyone wants I can email the pics. But I only have a belt keeper on the engine on the left side. There is not one on the right side. Is that normal to have one an not the other? The right side is also the side that it keeps slipping under the pully into could that be the problem right there ?

OJSANDOVAL said:

I tried to upload pics of the belt keeper arms from the motor but it says my file is too large. If anyone wants I can email the pics. But I only have a belt keeper on the engine on the left side. There is not one on the right side. Is that normal to have one an not the other? The right side is also the side that it keeps slipping under the pully into could that be the problem right there ?

Click to expand...

upload your images to an image host, like postimages or imgbb and copy and paste the links here.

Scrubcadet10 said:

upload your images to an image host, like postimages or imgbb and copy and paste the links here.

Click to expand...

bertsmobile1 said:

Yes I know Poulan is owned by Husqvarna
But for some reason finding a list of Husqvarna models that might use this deck is a bit difficult.
Most of the sites that I use to cross reference do not list the Husqvarna models but they do list the Dixon, Red Max , Poulan, Weedeater, Electroluxe
Ojsandal does not need to build a comprehensive cross referenced data base , he just needs to know what should be on the deck of his 2nd hand mower so he can get the belts to stay on.
What both of us have overlooked to date is weather his mower has the belt keepers on the engine.
You in particular should know the problems people have when they buy used mowers that have had an "interesting" service history .
I was hoping to show OJ one method of working around the lack of information about Craftsman mowers and how to check is the same part is sold under different brand names & part numbers .
Hopefully he has an idea of how to go about it now .
And of course for me it was another learning exercise as it looks very much like that particular deck was actually sold without pulley covers

Click to expand...

OJSANDOVAL said:

Album — Postimages

postimg.cc

Click to expand...

That is normal when the deck is disengaged.

StarTech said:

That is normal when the deck is disengaged.

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I was wondering if there supposed to be 2 of those belt keepers though is what I was asking. I only have one on the right side and none on the left side. That’s also the side the belt keeps getting stuck under pully

OJSANDOVAL said:

I was wondering if there supposed to be 2 of those belt keepers though is what I was asking. I only have one on the right side and none on the left side. That’s also the side the belt keeps getting stuck under pully

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Just the one. And then the belt is a little too long. I would try one that is about 1/2 inch shorter as the spindle pulleys vee groove is probably worn quite a bit. something like an 1/2 x 90"

StarTech said:

Just the one. And then the belt is a little too long. I would try one that is about 1/2 inch shorter as the spindle pulleys vee groove is probably worn quite a bit. something like an 1/2 x 90"

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This one that I have is thre recommend replacement part it’s 1/2 x 90”. So is there like a 1/2 x 85” I should try?

OJSANDOVAL said:

This one that I have is thre recommend replacement part it’s 1/2 x 90”. So is there like a 1/2 x 85” I should try?

Click to expand...

an 85" would be far too short.
i'd try a 1/2x89 or 1/2x89.5"

Scrubcadet10 said:

an 85" would be far too short.
i'd try a 1/2x89 or 1/2x89.5"

Click to expand...

Since it won’t be the craftsman OEM replacement part do I just buy any generic 1/2 x 89” belt? Like any one off Amazon or does it still need to be for a craftsman specifically?

generic will do, as long as it's the correct dimensions.
quality and durability may vary.

OJSANDOVAL said:

I only have a belt keeper on the engine on the left side. There is not one on the right side. Is that normal to have one an not the other? The right side is also the side that it keeps slipping under the pulley into could that be the problem right there ?

Click to expand...

My own 2005 LT1000 is a 917.275371; yes it is confusing that different manufacturers made these all under the Craftsman name.

Anyway, mine does have a "belt keeper" on both sides. My main issue has been dirt obstructing the movement of the tensioner pulley, or a broken spring for one of the keepers.

Cusser said:

My own 2005 LT1000 is a 917.275371; yes it is confusing that different manufacturers made these all under the Craftsman name.

Anyway, mine does have a "belt keeper" on both sides. My main issue has been dirt obstructing the movement of the tensioner pulley, or a broken spring for one of the keepers.

Click to expand...

247 prefix in model number = MTD made Craftsman.
917 prefix in model number = AYP/Husqvarna made Craftsman.
All current Craftsman mowers are Black and Decker/MTD

OJSANDOVAL said:

This one that I have is thre recommend replacement part it’s 1/2 x 90”. So is there like a 1/2 x 85” I should try?

Click to expand...

Prime Line, Rotary, Oregon & Stens all do OEM spec ( so they say ) mower belts
All of them have a "belts by length" table on their on line catelogues.
Stens & Prime Line also do a line of strait Kevlar reinforced belts in 1" increments .
Gates do a line of mower belts and again have a belts by length feature in their catalogue
Now there is a massive difference in belt structure
Deck belts usually have bigger reinforcing cords in them to give them greater shock loading resistance
Drive belts usually have thinner reinforcing
Belts that bend backwards a lot have the cords deeper into the V than belts that are not as serpentine in their run
Belts that clutch & need to slip like your deck belt must be covered so they can slip and not be sticky when hot like your cars fan belt
The cover can be kevlar fibre on the top shelf belts , cotton on lower grade & polly propolyene on the cheaper ones .
And then we get to the actual chemistry of the rubber which varies greatly
Finally there is construction
Top shelf belts , like the Gates ones the reinforcing is one thread wrapped spirally so there is no weak point in the belt
Cheaper belts are simply cut from a long roll & joined together then wrapped
While paying a lot does not guarantee a top quality belt paying a little guarantees a low quality belt
The only belts I fit come from my wholesalers and are Gates, Rotary, Stens , Prime Line or Oregon .
In 11 years of mower repairs I have never had a premature belt failure with any of them that was not my fault due to improper mounting .

bertsmobile1 said:

Prime Line, Rotary, Oregon & Stens all do OEM spec ( so they say ) mower belts
All of them have a "belts by length" table on their on line catelogues.
Stens & Prime Line also do a line of strait Kevlar reinforced belts in 1" increments .
Gates do a line of mower belts and again have a belts by length feature in their catalogue
Now there is a massive difference in belt structure
Deck belts usually have bigger reinforcing cords in them to give them greater shock loading resistance
Drive belts usually have thinner reinforcing
Belts that bend backwards a lot have the cords deeper into the V than belts that are not as serpentine in their run
Belts that clutch & need to slip like your deck belt must be covered so they can slip and not be sticky when hot like your cars fan belt
The cover can be kevlar fibre on the top shelf belts , cotton on lower grade & polly propolyene on the cheaper ones .
And then we get to the actual chemistry of the rubber which varies greatly
Finally there is construction
Top shelf belts , like the Gates ones the reinforcing is one thread wrapped spirally so there is no weak point in the belt
Cheaper belts are simply cut from a long roll & joined together then wrapped
While paying a lot does not guarantee a top quality belt paying a little guarantees a low quality belt
The only belts I fit come from my wholesalers and are Gates, Rotary, Stens , Prime Line or Oregon .
In 11 years of mower repairs I have never had a premature belt failure with any of them that was not my fault due to improper mounting .

Click to expand...

Ok, I was just gonna buy a cheap one in smaller size to see if that even fixed my problem. I’m still not even sure what the problem is that’s causing this damn belt to get stuck under the pully…

bertsmobile1 said:

Prime Line, Rotary, Oregon & Stens all do OEM spec ( so they say ) mower belts
All of them have a "belts by length" table on their on line catelogues.
Stens & Prime Line also do a line of strait Kevlar reinforced belts in 1" increments .
Gates do a line of mower belts and again have a belts by length feature in their catalogue
Now there is a massive difference in belt structure
Deck belts usually have bigger reinforcing cords in them to give them greater shock loading resistance
Drive belts usually have thinner reinforcing
Belts that bend backwards a lot have the cords deeper into the V than belts that are not as serpentine in their run
Belts that clutch & need to slip like your deck belt must be covered so they can slip and not be sticky when hot like your cars fan belt
The cover can be kevlar fibre on the top shelf belts , cotton on lower grade & polly propolyene on the cheaper ones .
And then we get to the actual chemistry of the rubber which varies greatly
Finally there is construction
Top shelf belts , like the Gates ones the reinforcing is one thread wrapped spirally so there is no weak point in the belt
Cheaper belts are simply cut from a long roll & joined together then wrapped
While paying a lot does not guarantee a top quality belt paying a little guarantees a low quality belt
The only belts I fit come from my wholesalers and are Gates, Rotary, Stens , Prime Line or Oregon .
In 11 years of mower repairs I have never had a premature belt failure with any of them that was not my fault due to improper mounting .

Click to expand...

Ok, I was just gonna buy a cheap one in smaller size to see if that even fixed my problem. I’m still not even sure what the problem is that’s causing this damn belt to get stuck under the pully…

OJSANDOVAL said:

Ok, I was just gonna buy a cheap one in smaller size to see if that even fixed my problem. I’m still not even sure what the problem is that’s causing this damn belt to get stuck under the pully…

Click to expand...

The problem is the belt jumping off of the pulley.
That is usually due to a belt that is too loose. (or too long)

I work by myself so random belt jumping off problems are difficult to diagnose
I use a cheap Go=Pro camera knock off with a clamp on mount to make a video of the deck .
Best place is on the left side near the rear wheel .
I then go mow a couple of times till the belt jumps off and upload the video to my computer then step through the actual "jump" one frame at a time to see where it originates from .
You can do it with a cell phone but it has to be solidly mounted and I don't need to warn you about what will happen if it falls off while you are mowing .

bertsmobile1 said:

I work by myself so random belt jumping off problems are difficult to diagnose
I use a cheap Go=Pro camera knock off with a clamp on mount to make a video of the deck .
Best place is on the left side near the rear wheel .
I then go mow a couple of times till the belt jumps off and upload the video to my computer then step through the actual "jump" one frame at a time to see where it originates from .
You can do it with a cell phone but it has to be solidly mounted and I don't need to warn you about what will happen if it falls off while you are mowing .

Click to expand...

Those are great ideas actually. But it only ever has this problem I’ve noticed when it’s done mowing and then going to re engage mowing.

THen run the deck for 5 minutes . turn the blades off then on then off wait a minute & back on then off then wait 2 minute then back on etc etc etc
If it won't come off sitting in your drive then go to the spot where you usually finish mowing, turn the mower on run the blades for 5 minutes, turn them off and drive back to your shed to see if there is a particular bump in your yard that causes this to happen .
The "art" of diagnostics is to recreate the situation that causes the problem in a controlled environment where it can be measures or in your case observed .

bertsmobile1 said:

THen run the deck for 5 minutes . turn the blades off then on then off wait a minute & back on then off then wait 2 minute then back on etc etc etc
If it won't come off sitting in your drive then go to the spot where you usually finish mowing, turn the mower on run the blades for 5 minutes, turn them off and drive back to your shed to see if there is a particular bump in your yard that causes this to happen .
The "art" of diagnostics is to recreate the situation that causes the problem in a controlled environment where it can be measures or in your case observed .

Click to expand...

Okay , smart thinking! Thank you ima give that a shot