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I have received my new transaxle for my 2007 MTD Yard Machine, and have a few questions before I install it.


I'm going to replace the grease it came with, for several reasons - 1. I have no idea what the quality of the grease they put in it is. 2. It makes no sense to me to have all that grease in there, when, other than what is actually touching the gears and other parts, the rest of it just sits there doing nothing but taking up space. It's too thick and stiff to move around and mix with the grease already on the gears, and doesn't actually provide any fresh lubrication to the parts that need it. So I am going to clean everything out the best I can, and replace it with Super S Cotton Picker Grease 00

From what I've read it is much better for transaxles, in that it provides excellent, long-lasting lubrication, and it is not too thick, and thus can actually sort of 'splash around' in there to ensure the moving parts are constantly lubricated.

So, I have several questions about this. 1. Will the new lubricant play well with the old grease? As I said, I am going to clean out all of the old grease as best I can, but I don't have the means to completely remove it from every nook and cranny. There's going to be some of it left, and I don't know if that will be a problem. 2. Along the same line, I have a question about the new differential. The old one seems to be sealed

but the new one has openings as shown, one each on opposite sides (the original transaxle is no longer available, and has been replaced with several 'new and improved' versions. The new one I have is the latest version, and this is just one of the changes made, hopefully for good reasons and not just to cut costs and increase profit)

I could be wrong, but it seems the only reason for these openings is to be able to add grease to the differential. Can I just fill it with the new grease, or, again, will this cause a problem with them mixing together?

Does anyone have a suggestion on the best way to completely remove the old grease from all the parts?

Thanks in advance for any help or suggestions

If the old grease is bentonite it won't play well with the new 00 grease. Bentonite grease is clay based and 00 grease is lithium based. Should not mix them. You need to disassemble the trans and clean all the old grease out before installing 00 grease.

Can't believe that a gear box is actually lubed with stiff grease. I'm with you on the change of lube. Looks like a pretty heavy duty differential for a mower though. As above, clean it good first.

I'd say, unless you can seal it back up real good....your thinner lube will just run out of it eventually. Grease clings and will stay longer.....remember, this is a low speed mower, not a car going down the highway at 70 mph.

I'm kind of surprised to see lube still on the actual gear teeth in that old gearbox. There was some flowing lube in it rather than just dried up displaced grease.

Put it back together and on the tractor.....

I decided to go ahead and install it before I went to the considerable trouble of removing all the old grease, just to make sure it would actually work. Well, after I got it in, I don't seem to be able to shift it very well. I adjusted the shift bracket a number of times, sometimes I could get it to shift to one gear, but nothing else. Sometimes neutral only. Results kept varying. Decided to install the old transaxle, same results. Both transaxles shifted just fine on the bench. So the problem of the grease is on the back burner for now. Should I continue this on this thread, or move it over to the MTD forum?

Is the shift problem with the engine running or off? If off can you rock the mower back and forth and then shift it?

Well, actually I only installed the transaxle, then connected the shift rod. Didn't install the pully to connect it to the variable speed pully or anything. Would that have affected the shifting?

It can be that the clutch dogs are on the high point the 45 tooth gears on the drive shaft. Sometimes it take up to a third turn of the drive shaft for the gears and clutch dogs lock in place.

While trying to shift gears I did rotate the input shaft, and also the axles. Wouldn't that have been sufficient to preclude this?

Why did you replace the old one?

Were there little notches/tabs on the bushings, and did you make sure that they were lined up correctly?

And was the detent ball in place correctly?

Fish said:

Why did you replace the old one?

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Well, that's a strange story. I was starting the first mow of the year when I suddenly got a monster cramp in my thigh muscle. You know that when that happens you have to straighten your leg, immediately. So I stood up, and thanks to that stupid safety switch under the seat the mower began to shut down. For some reason, instead of just letting it do so, I decided to sit back down, with my leg sticking out to the side. Well, the mower stopped shutting down, but afterwards would not move. Still ran fine, mower worked fine, but no forward, no reverse, nothing. I figured that forcing it to start back up again by sitting back down when it was just finishing shutting down must have put some sort of strain on something, it was working fine before that. So, I got it back into my shop and checked everything I could think of, and finally decided to pull the transaxle. Found an excellent video on YouTube about 48 minutes long, which covers everything about removing, disassembling, checking, repairing and reinstalling this transaxle, plus a lot of really good tips. Anyhow, after I got it apart, the gears and everything looked good, but the left half of the axle was rusted and pitted, and the outer part of the upper and lower housing was etched and corroded, with a thick layer of some sort of white powder filling it (the photo shows it after I had cleaned it up). While this didn't affect the operation of the transaxle (yet), it wasn't something I wanted to just ignore. After pricing the parts needed, decided I would just replace the entire thing. Yes, it's 13 years old, but I've become sort of attached to the beast.

Fish said:

Were there little notches/tabs on the bushings, and did you make sure that they were lined up correctly?

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Yes, although they were different from the old axle. Instead of two horizontal tabs/notches, there was one tab on the bushing and one detent on the bottom of the housing. Was very careful to ensure they were properly aligned.

Fish said:

And was the detent ball in place correctly?

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Yes, although, again it was designed differently from the old housing. While the old style required you to insert the spring and ball into the lower housing and carefully lower the indent shaft assembly onto them (after making sure it was in the neutral position, the new one had a hex screw on the upper housing, which you removed after getting everything in place and then inserting the ball and spring. Not a bad change.

Hammermechanicman said:

If the old grease is bentonite it won't play well with the new 00 grease. Bentonite grease is clay based and 00 grease is lithium based. Should not mix them. You need to disassemble the trans and clean all the old grease out before installing 00 grease.

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I have no idea whether the old grease is bentonite. Can you tell by looking at it? I'll just assume it's a type of grease that should not be mixed with the new 00 grease, and get something like this at Lowe's (I get a 10 percent discount there) and scrub the hell out of everything. Gonna be fun

tom3 said:

Can't believe that a gear box is actually lubed with stiff grease. I'm with you on the change of lube. Looks like a pretty heavy duty differential for a mower though. As above, clean it good first.

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Well, when I say 'stiff' I just meant that it didn't flow, not enough fresh grease getting to the parts that need it.

tom3 said:

I'm kind of surprised to see lube still on the actual gear teeth in that old gearbox. There was some flowing lube in it rather than just dried up displaced grease

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You're probably right, but if there's a better grease out there, why not use it, right? Anyhow, that's my way of thinking.

mower king said:

I'd say, unless you can seal it back up real good....your thinner lube will just run out of it eventually. Grease clings and will stay longer.....remember, this is a low speed mower, not a car going down the highway at 70 mph.

Click to expand...

I was also concerned about this, until I began researching the 00 grease. Found some other people who had the same concerns, with transaxles that 'sealed' using flat metal surfaces like on mine. But they reported that they had encountered no problems after using it for some time, and I will keep an eye on it for any problems.

You mean your mower can't go 70 mph?

The reason the mfgr used the thick bentonite grease is because it does not need seals in the trans and it is waterproof. Many lithium based greases are not waterproof and will break down with long exposure to moisture. Not uncommon to open a 20 year old trans and find some water in it with the grease and the water has not affected the grease.

Hammermechanicman said:

The reason the mfgr used the thick bentonite grease is because it does not need seals in the trans and it is waterproof. Many lithium based greases are not waterproof and will break down with long exposure to moisture. Not uncommon to open a 20 year old trans and find some water in it with the grease and the water has not affected the grease.

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Is there any way to determine whether the grease in the new transaxle is actually bentonite grease? As far as water getting into the transaxle, I don't really think that would be a problem for me. I NEVER let my mower (or any of my lawn care equipment) get wet, don't let it sit out in the rain or anything like that, it's always either parked inside or covered with a waterproof cover. And I never mow wet grass. So, for me, the only potential problem would be not water getting into the transaxle, but the 00 grease getting out of it. And, as I mentioned, from what I have read it doesn't seem like that would actually be a problem.

But just to cover all of my bases, I've been considering using a liquid gasket material. Haven't really decided on which one would be best for this yet, still doing research, but something along the lines of Permatex The Right Stuff Gasket Maker. Would put a very thin coat on surfaces that press together to 'seal' the transaxle. The potential problem with this is the thickness of the material affecting the fit of the bushings and whatnot. Although when the upper and lower housings are tightened together the difference should be minimal. This is just something I'm considering, it may fall to the wayside.

I've also been reading about John Deere Green Corn Head Grease. It's 0 so it's a little thicker than the 00 stuff, but still thinner than regular grease. I've read some good stuff about it. Found a good source of information about all the various greases available in this thread https://www.lawnmowerforum.com/threads/the-daily-yardman-thread.39996/ Its about someone rebuilding an MTD transaxle. It's a really long thread and they get completely off-subject a LOT (and I do mean a LOT), but it does have some good info.

What's really frustrating for me is that I wouldn't even need a riding mower if my tired old body could still push a mower without falling apart. My hip and back just won't let me do much of that anymore (plus I'm currently recovering from four broken ribs, a punctured spleen and a concussion). Growing old gracefully is a myth!

But the issue of grease is definitely taking a back seat right now until/unless I figure out the shifting problems. And I'm beginning to lose hope on that. If this drought continues I might just set the lawn on fire.

Well, this thread seems to be dead. I can understand that, and want to thank everybody who offered advice and suggestions. Very much appreciated.

If I ever do figure out what the problem is with the shifting, I will pass it along in hopes that it might help others with a similar problem. Also if any problems develop due to the use of the 00 grease.

VikeuMus

Sorry, the only foreign language I speak is German, from when I was stationed there a couple of years (and that was like 32 years ago and I've forgotten most of it).
Wish I knew what your message says.

Steve.

Einmal bier bitte.

Hammermechanicman said:

Einmal bier bitte.

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Du brauchst einen größeren Hammer

Scrubcadet10 said:

Du brauchst einen größeren Hammer

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Good one. After 2 years behind the wall in Berlin about all the german i remember is how to order a beer.

I really can't believe this tread.
1) Bought a brand new transaxle.
2) Took it apart to put fresh lube in it. Don't you think the manufacturer knows what they are doing ?
3) Research of the Bentonite would explain how the stuff works.
4) Why buy a new unit when the old one is easy to repair. I did on mine and still used the factory grease. Machine is 1988.
5) Yes the 00 is a quality lube, but you have to clean EVERYTHING out of the unit to begin with, to do it properly.
6) Going to have a cold beer. ?

Where do you get this 00 grease?. I've checked several Tractor Supply, Rural King, Menards stores. No luck.

i see tractor supply carries it according to their website.
and i think stens sells it under the part number 770-123

Yep, there it is. The one store I didn't go to, LOL. Tractor supply has a pretty good website seems like.

You can order it on Tractor Supply's website and have it shipped to the store near you.

Apart from that.
Tractor shops will sell you a 5 gal pail of the grease for about the same price as Stens will charge for a pound.