Looking at that setup, have you checked the two front idler pulleys? If they are worn and wobble just a little, they could be the cause of your problem. Spin them between your finger and thumb, are they rolling smooth. Also, check to see that the belt guide on the right hand pulley does not show any signs where the belt might be touching. Finally those two pulleys should not have any side to side movement when mounted correctly. If one or both move sideways, that would cause any edge wear.
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Repairs MTD Belt Failure
- Thread starter Steve Smith
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Export threadSteve Smith
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- Nov 30, 2011
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Yes, the belt is installed correctly. It has the 1/4 twist so that only the sides touch the pulleys. It is not rubbing anything, I have checked and rechecked that. This is a very tough application, and they do run hot. But, what surprises me is that the 'generic' belts last longer than the genuine MTD belts. I got 6 hours out of an A&I belt and it only failed when I pushed it too hard in long wet grass. The MTD belts only last about 45 minutes to and hour in moderate mowing. I am wondering if MTD has cheapened their belts with a new supplier?
bertsmobile1
Lawn Royalty
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- Nov 29, 2014
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When you look at your belt you can see at the bottom, the printing is worn from the back of the belt where it is running on something.
On your set up, the back of the belt should never ever touch anything so after 100 hours the back of the belt should look like new.
The tensioning arm on the deck pulls the double pulley which tightens the PTO belt and the deck belt.
The deck belt has has a spring loaded tensioner which runs on the back of the belt but the PTO belt has no tension idler on it.
The landlord runs 4 Cubs and they mow 1000 acres of pasture with them plus the 1 acre around the house.
They get 1 to 2 seasons out of PTO belt and when they come off the back is clean.
These acres are rough with drainage ditches everywhere and they are usually knocking down 4' tall clumps of tussock grass that the cattle will not eat so the decks get a pounding & I am forever welding patch plates in the front where the blades chop through the deck.
When we mow, a session can go anything up to 10 hours strait, so if your belts are doing this something is drastically wrong with your belt routing.
Have a good look at the muffler and see if you can stretch the belt to touch it as despite being tensioned by the lever on the deck there will always be slack on the "push" side of the belt at the engine & deck pulleys.
On your set up, the back of the belt should never ever touch anything so after 100 hours the back of the belt should look like new.
The tensioning arm on the deck pulls the double pulley which tightens the PTO belt and the deck belt.
The deck belt has has a spring loaded tensioner which runs on the back of the belt but the PTO belt has no tension idler on it.
The landlord runs 4 Cubs and they mow 1000 acres of pasture with them plus the 1 acre around the house.
They get 1 to 2 seasons out of PTO belt and when they come off the back is clean.
These acres are rough with drainage ditches everywhere and they are usually knocking down 4' tall clumps of tussock grass that the cattle will not eat so the decks get a pounding & I am forever welding patch plates in the front where the blades chop through the deck.
When we mow, a session can go anything up to 10 hours strait, so if your belts are doing this something is drastically wrong with your belt routing.
Have a good look at the muffler and see if you can stretch the belt to touch it as despite being tensioned by the lever on the deck there will always be slack on the "push" side of the belt at the engine & deck pulleys.