New to me Craftsman LT1000 couple things, pushing mower question

[Jim1590]

Greetings all. Got a 2002 (I think based on serial number 022004d002845) LT1000 model 917.273401 with a B&S 18HP ybsxs.5012vp 274826. Got it on craigslist for 100 bucks back in October. Came with the bagger and the guy even delivered. Figured how can I possibly go wrong! He thought it had a head gasket leak so I figured it should be fixable. He only thought that because he smelled burning oil last time he used it. Thing started up for him fine and it drove around fine. We tested before shaking on the deal.

Fast forward to today and I am doing the following: Changing the oil (got almost 2 quarts of black gritty oil out, think there is probably not a leak, just not taken care of) got a new filter coming (man those are pricey) new spark plug, new fuel filter, new prefilter for the airfilter.

I went to push it to the middle of my garage since I already drained the gas and the push pull rod was not disengaging the wheels. Each rear wheel wanted to spin in a opposite direction. Which I think is how it is supposed to go. Once I lifted the back a bit I was able to pull it backwards with the right rear wheel dragging just a bit. So I think the push pull is not properly working.

I pull off the back plate and the first thing I notice is that the push pull rod does not seem to actually do anything. It is attached via spring to a piece of metal and is just sitting there. Is it in the right place?


I also feel the drive belt is very loose. I can cross the two sides over each other easily. Here is a shot looking towards the front:



I will be clearing off all the grass before using it. And I am doing all of this work before trying to get the engine to run! But with everything changed, should be fine.

I do have a downloaded pdf of the correct manual but not seeing what I am needing.

Another thing I saw, I volt metered the battery which is only a few years old and got 12 volts, but when I turned the key to headlights, they did not come on. Do they only come on when the engine is running? I didn't start it since the plug is out, oil drained and such. I probably will not get a chance to finish until this coming weekend. But weather here is in the 40's and had a inch of snow last night.

Thanks in advance for the help.

 

[ILENGINE]

the bypass lever is hooked up correctly, but sometimes when it isn't used for a period of time it will stick. You may need to manually move the lever a few times to get it freed up. Make sure the belt is on correctly, and I believe on those if you push down the brake pedal it released the belt. So check that out also. Most likely you have the charging system that only powers the headlights with the engine is running.

 

[Jim1590]

the bypass lever is hooked up correctly, but sometimes when it isn't used for a period of time it will stick. You may need to manually move the lever a few times to get it freed up. Make sure the belt is on correctly, and I believe on those if you push down the brake pedal it released the belt. So check that out also. Most likely you have the charging system that only powers the headlights with the engine is running.

So I shouldn't have had the parking brake on? Ok that's done.

For the rod, I am not seeing any lever. Just a metal bracket bolted to the frame.

 

[ILENGINE]

That double bend flat piece of metal with the end of the spring hooked into the hole at the top should move. That is the bypass for the tranny so you can roll the mower. It is most likely stuck. the other rod coming from the front of the mower and going through the hole in the lever with the spring to the front of the mower, is the parking brake.

 

[bertsmobile1]

Lift the rear of the mower off the gtound and support it on some sort of axel stands.
If you can turn the wheels by hand with the bypass engaged and feel a heavy drag on the wheels when the bypass is dissengaged then the bypass is functioning properly.
If one wheel turns forward and the other turns backwards then the parking brake is engaged.
Remove the right hand wheel.
You will see the brake rod passing through a spring then a lever.
Behind this lever is a small 4" disc brake
This lever is not returning fully and releving the pressure on the disc
Get some one to work the brake pedal while you watch it.
The lever will go down to what looks like a bridge with 3 bolts on it.
The middle is the adjustment and the outer two hold the brake caliper on.
remove the outer 2 bolts and pull it off, be careful as the disc pad will drop out and there is usually a packing piece behind it and 2 pins that actually push the pad onto the brake disc.

Now you need to clean all the crud off and behind the disc.
If you see the whole disc with nothing in front of it then slide it off the splined shaft again being careful not to loose the rear pad which will also drop out and may also have a packing piece behind it.
If the bypass lever is blocking the disc, do not pull it forward as the rear pad will drop off and it is a bitch to get it back in if you can not side the disc off the shaft.

The 2 pins that push the brake pads should slide freely in & out so clean them & lube them very lightly lube the centre pivot also lightly work it back and forth then reassemble and check the brake applies & releases.
You have now saved yourself $ 60 to $ 100 service call.

Try not to undo the center nut because if you do you will need to adjust the brake which is a lot trickier than it appears because the same pedal applies the brake and removes the tension on the drive belt and the brake can not come on till the belt is loose enough to slip otherwise you will start eating belts.

Not to the drive belt.
if you can not turn the belt without the engine turning over when the brake is up and the belt slips over the engine pulley easily when the brake pedal is down then the belt is properly adjusted. If not then adjust the position of the fixed pulley mid way next to the one that moves when you work the brake.
Check these two pulleys for flat spots and bearings for free spinning, if slightly suspect replace then they are not expensive.
While you are down there check the entire length of the belt for splits, cracks and thin spots which will indicate a replacement is required.

 

[Jim1590]

Ok. Lifted and rotated the tires. Spun opposite directions. Found where the bracket should spin (I think) and cleaned it out and sprayed with wd40. Removed bolt and put back it to get it good. If this is supposed to turn, still frozen. Wheels spun without resistance.

Took off the right side tire and inspected the brake. Went to remove the bolts and some idiot secured them with red loctite. Pop goes the bolt head. Well what's done is done. Pop the other one. Cleaned that off.

Found that with caliper removed, wheels still spin opposite directions.

It's going to have to wait a week before I get the caliper drilled out.

 

[Jim1590]

Here is what I did

 

[SeniorCitizen]

Here is what I did

If the brake rotor doesn't move freely on the splined shaft look forward to possibly making a puller. Oh the joys of owning equipment that wasn't ever lubed.

 

[Jim1590]

I was able to take the rotor right off without a problem. Found a new brake housing on Sears part direct for 17 shipped. Should be here next week sometime by their estimate.

Figured adjusting the brake to get it right will be easier than getting the bolts out.

Back to the push rod. Anything I can do to loosen it up? Already sprayed with wd40. Right now I am spinning the wheels freely and the disconnect rod is "in" which should be drive mode I think. Course wheels are spinning opposite but I can probably assume I am not cutting grass with this thing right now.

The bracket I am guessing should rotate on the bolt that was posted above. That rotation should be easy and free?

Thanks everyone for the help.

 

[bertsmobile1]

With the weels off the ground they will spin in opposite directions exactly the same as your car wheels will spin in oppose direction when off the ground.
However it now should roll foreward & back ward when the wheels are on the ground.
or if spin the drive pulley the wheels should now turn together.
While you wait for the bits to turn up drop the mower & see how it works, let us know.
Quite common for the bolt heads to break off .
You have a steel bolt in an aluminium casting that gets a lot of corrosive grass fluids shot all over it.