Raptor SD 54 inch drive belt keeps coming off

[mhavanti]

Check for broken wheel motor brackets front and rear as well as loose bolts holding the wheel motors to the brackets.

We cover all kinds of these problems in the Hustler Mower Owner Group in facebook with photos and we have factory reps on board as well.

https://www.facebook.com/groups/HustlerMowerOwners/

See you there.

Max's Garaj Mahal

 

[The Chairman]

Check for broken wheel motor brackets front and rear as well as loose bolts holding the wheel motors to the brackets.

We cover all kinds of these problems in the Hustler Mower Owner Group in facebook with photos and we have factory reps on board as well.

https://www.facebook.com/groups/HustlerMowerOwners/

See you there.

Max's Garaj Mahal

Facebook has done more to harm these forums than anything. I avoid those kinds of usergroups, especially since you really can't search them. Thanks though.

 

[Mr. Mower]

Sub'd

 

[Grigg]

Hi Folks,
I have Raptor SD 60" that the drive belt popped off of this morning when i was backing out of my garage. When i was backing up, the mower sort of hung up and little bit and seemed to bind. i couldn't back straight up using both arms evenly so i had to use each one to maneuver out.

At this point the belt came off. So, i took it off and it was damaged and i bought a new one.

I put the new belt on 4 or 5 times today and each time when i crank the mower, the belt comes off immediately.

Any thoughts?

Thanks!

 

[bertsmobile1]

Check the pulleys for a bit of debris stuck in the bottom of the V.
Also make sure the tension arm is free to move and pushing the belt in

 

[mhavanti]

Grigg,

Sounds as though you have one or more of these problems: 1. Cracked or broken wheel motor support brackets. There are 5 brackets holding the wheel motors.

2. The lower wheel motor bracket that keeps the wheel motors erect and straight up and down. The straight up and down also refers to the pulleys laying horizontal and in the very same plane as the engine pulley and idler.

3. Loose bolts holding any of the aforementioned brackets. This will also allow the pulleys to misalign causing the belt to begin making contact hard on one side of the pulley and begin climbing the pulley to escape the confines of the V Groove.

Or, as Burt states, there can also be debris in a pulley. I'd check the fan blades to make sure you don't have one or more blades that have become warped and getting into the path of the belt as well. That can also cause belt climb.

Hustler Mower Owners Group in Facebook may be able to help you get warranty work done if it isn't too far out of warranty. 73% of it's population is made up of BigDog Mower, Hustler Turf and their mother company Excel Industries employees. We have managed to get a lot of folks squared away.

This is your invitation to join us and see if we can help you as well.

https://www.facebook.com/groups/HustlerMowerOwners/

Kindest regards,

Max
Max's Garaj Mahal

 

[Grigg]

Well, i found two sheared bolts underneath. Replaced those and thought i was in the clear. Cut grass for about 10 minutes and the belt popped off again. Now i'm not sure what's going on. Perhaps i stretched the spring too much that attaches to the tension pulley. I re-attached belt and tightened the bolt that holds tension pulley arm. I noticed that tension pulley and arm was dropping down a bit.

My thought now is to order a new spring for tension pulley. Any other thoughts?

Thanks.

 

[The Chairman]

Well, i found two sheared bolts underneath. Replaced those and thought i was in the clear. Cut grass for about 10 minutes and the belt popped off again. Now i'm not sure what's going on. Perhaps i stretched the spring too much that attaches to the tension pulley. I re-attached belt and tightened the bolt that holds tension pulley arm. I noticed that tension pulley and arm was dropping down a bit.

My thought now is to order a new spring for tension pulley. Any other thoughts?

Thanks.

I'm having this exact same issue after I broke a lower bolt holding the trans to the bracket. If I get into any load at all, the belt pops off. Looking from behind, I can see excessive camber on both wheels (leaning in at the top) and I believe that's my issue. The tips of the left fan blade show some odd melting wear so I ordered a new one. It's obvious that the bracket on the outer axles are bent. They are at slightly acute angles rather than right. A small triangle support between the two lower bolts would have kept that square. On this last pop-off the belt rested on the muffler and now it has a burn spot. I had gone from the 51" kevlar belt to a 50". It's harder to get the spring on, but I like this fit better. BTW, I use a double spring on mine. The original fits inside of the helper.

Now a caveat. A bit over 4 months ago I broke my leg while leading a dive trip in Fiji. Apparently, being over 60 complicates this a lot and it's been a sloooooow recovery. To add another injury to injury an old back issue has cropped up, so I'm not nearly as agile nor do I have any stamina. Popping belts back on sucks when you're trying to heal.

Anyway, if there's a bad camber then something is broken, bent or misaligned. I see the bend in the brackets, so I put in a nut and a washer between the stub axle housing and the bracket. That took out a lot of it. I popped the belt back on and it broke right at the burned spot. I'm too hurting to try and do it again with a new belt... maybe in the morning. BTW, mine is a 60".

Obvious positive camber on the left wheel, even with the weight off. The distance between the fender and wheel is 78". The right wheel is already off.

First attempt at a fix, I simply slipped a nut and washer between the stub axle housing and the bracket. I did this to both sides.

Camber looks a lot better now. There's now almost an inch and a half clearance between the fender and wheel.
​

 

[clubairth]

Yes make sure you have both of these braces and that the lower one is the upgraded version.
That will stop all the flexing which is causing your problems.

I also had a broken fender from this but did not know these braces were the problem.


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[The Chairman]

Yes make sure you have both of these braces and that the lower one is the upgraded version.
That will stop all the flexing which is causing your problems.

I also had a broken fender from this but did not know these braces were the problem.

I have to go look, but I don't think I have that brace. Any specifications on it? Looks like an piece of 2x2x0.250" angle would do nicely there.