Scag walk behind hydro problem

[grasdaddy]

I have a 2008 scag swvz 36 hydro with the 16hp kawi engine. 950 hrs or maybe 2950 hours. the hour meter kind of shows part of what looks like a 2 on the display sometimes and other times just 950. I dont know. Either way it has the handlebar steering gizmo which i thought would be easier on the hands vs pistol grip style hydros or belt drive. I just picked it up and the tracking is all funky. It wanted to steer to the left. I adjusted the left motor tracking knob way down(or the direction of more power to that pump clockwise) until it tracked straight but then had problems with it not wanting to turn when backing up and creeping in neutral. i then just reset the linkage by loosening the jam nuts and putting linkages even by eyesight and also even amounts of threads coming up through the trackin adjustment knobs. Previously one rod sat an inch above the other down near the pump linkage. I set them to not creep in neutral which i assumed would be a good starting point. Everything even should go straight and have even power right? I also understand one pump can wear faster than the other and hence the adjustment knobs they included to make it easy. Now the right motor way overpowers the left and it wants to go in a left hand circle unless i "steer" it far right as i mow which causes it to move slowly and not want to go up inclines(it just kind of loses all drive power) or turn right at the end of a pass. Is my wheel left wheel motor just bad? I will likely take it to a dealer which is over an hour from me in a couple of weeks but thought Id jump on here and see if any scag mechanics could give me a diag or help since Im pretty mechanically minded and have tools. Thanks in Advance
Kellen from Idaho

 

[Rivets]

Maybe this manual will be of some help. Pages 20-22 contain tracking adjustments. https://www.scag.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/SWZ_Book_03428_rev1.pdf

 

[grasdaddy]

Yeah so I just followed the procedure althought its not exactly for my mower. Its for lever style controls but I found some useful information on it. Anyway I think Im going to need a pump or motor. Heres why, While having tyhe rear jacked up doing the adjustment I noticed the left wheel moved a lot more freely than the right by hand. I then remembered a trick for testing snowblower friction wheels when i worked in a mower shop. You would put the blower in low drive forward and then reverse and try to hold the machine back. If it slipped it either had oil on the plate or it was worn out. Fast forward to today and I was able to keep the left wheel from spinning with my foot easily while in and forward or reverse speed on the left wheel. Could not stop the right for anything. this would explain it pulling left as the left wheel is not giving as much power as the left with the drag of the ground. Also explains the uphill issue and really the whole thing. Now Im not sure if its the pump or motor. Both are around the same price and both can be rebuilt. Any ideas how to test with normal tools or does this explanation give enough information to rule one or the other out?

 

[bertsmobile1]

IT is a design flaw that some better mowers have overcome
On most the belt is a strait triangle
the engine pulls the belt from the right pulley & pushes it towards the left
So the left pulley will let the belt slip a bit
Thus it is always running slower than the right , despite the tensioner being on that run
To overcome this latter better models moved the tensioner pulley so the belt is now a V run and the left side has a contact zone that covers 3/4 of the pulley circumference .
Added to this the left side hydros always seem to get a lot more dirt than the right
So the left is turning slightly slower & running hotter than the right so it usually fails first .