Trash picked GT3000 917.273012 w/Kohler twin and 6 speed

hlw49 said:
I have a Craftsman GT3000 that looks just like the one you have. I have pulled the engine off it to put on a Dixie Chopper I have. I also have an older 18.5 46inch cut that is has the same seat on it. I pulled the engines off them to put on two Dixie Chopper mowers. One is a hydro and the other is a gear drive. If you want to drive to middle Tn, you can have them. The gear drive even has a twin bagger that goes on it I used to bag my grass with to make compost when I use to garden. Oh yes, the seats are in rough shape.
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I appreciate the offer but I'm a good 12 to 14 hrs from say Smyrna or Murfreesboro area.
(Used to make that drive years ago).

I have the seat pan parts coming, putting a seat on it won't break a $20 bill. I had a seat, got a stack of misc seats I've saved, including two that say Craftsman on them, but I'll likely go with a high back model seat.

A basic seat can still be had for about $40, the missing base is $67 if I had to pay retail. For now its got a tied up roll of shipping blankets for a seat, I've run it long enough now to know everything works. It cuts grass, the clutch, pto, iights, all work, and all the gears work. The thing is very much like a new tractor.
I would think its likely better than what they sell today, the modern machines don't have a very good reputation.
Its not on the level of my Simplicity machines but its not bad as a mower if someone has the need. It just don't have all the PTO options and cast iron engine like the older tractors.
 
The old cast iron days are just becoming distant memories. Most of the US iron mills are shut down and most engines are now aluminum and imported from other countries even though their headquarters are in the USA.

Luckily, this rider appears to have been stored and not left out in the elements. Neglect and weather are the biggest problems with riders as they age. For the price that people pay for these things new, you would think they would care more. (A fault of easy credit and small payments)

This 3000 Craftsman is a good solid rider that will give you years of service. Be aware that the tires and belts are aged, so expect to have to replace the belts sooner rather than later. The tires are likely dry cracked and will slowly leak down, but tubes can cure them from totally failing. Don't use junk tire sealer in an old tire.
 
The old guy that had it parked it in the garage and forgot about it I suppose, the tires were all up when I found it, they needed a bit of air but none were flat. all four tires still have their little nipples on the tread surface and the garage there is open to a game room, so its heated in the winter and cooled in the summer with no windows on the garage end so it didn't get any sun fade, but there is something spilled on the hood, it looks like rubber cement, the stuff they use to put down formica or veneer. Its sort of a giant blotch above the one headlight. its not on the headlight, just the paint. If I can find matching green paint cheap I'll repaint the hood, if not maybe a black top on the hood is in order. The foot treads are loose, neither one is glued down or attached.
Both belts look oem and feel good, no wear showing at all and they feel pretty much new in hand. There's one tiny ding in the front where it bumped something once, but its barely noticeable. No bigger than a thumb print with no paint loss.
The rest of the paint is perfect. I pulled the motor shroud off, the motor looks new no grass no dirt, nothing but shiny aluminum. The oil looked new. I still changed it once I got it hot and ran it a bit. I put some Mobil 1 10w50 in it that I had here.

I suppose the 6 speed is the better version of these? I see they make a hydro and a manual. How tough is the 6 speed in this thing? It looks like an aluminum version of the old Peerless or Spicer gear boxes?
 
I got the seat and bracket today. Judging by the way it sits with the seat all the way back they didn't build these for guys 6ft 3in tall and 300lbs?
With the OEM seat, minus the pad even, I can't get a leg between the steering wheel and the front edge of the seat. With a seat off an LT2000, its better but not by much.

I'm going to have to do some customizing if its gonna stay.
I've got a 36" inseam and a 44" waist and the way it sits now its nearly impossible to get on unless I can swing my leg completely over the seat and down to the running board without falling over of off the other running board.

I even extended the slot almost two inches and its still not far enough back.
I fit easily on my Simplicity 3410 and 7116, and a Cub Cadet 2155 that I just picked up.
The CC is smaller, but the steering wheel tilts and the seat pan can be moved rearward into several sets of holes as well as the seat moving back on the hinge. When I sit on that thing the seat is about even with the back edge of the fender pan.

I'm thinking of getting a plate of steel to attach to the hinged plate and then move the seat back about 6 in.
With the way it sits now the steering wheel is about 4" from my stomach, The front edge of the seat hinge is even with the front of the seat pan. There's not enough room between my legs and the bottom of the steering wheel.

Has anyone modified one of these for more room?
 
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I just found the Cub Cadet, its mostly a pile of parts and a rolling chassis. Someone had an add on CL for it for free the other night. I drove right over with my truck and trailer and grabbed it. The Its all there but the headlight lens and bulbs. The motor is apart, he gave up after breaking off the screws that hold the coil and being told by the machine shop that they wanted $300 to remove and replace them. I bolted the seat on when I picked it up to help hold the fender pan down. There's even new foot treads and tires for it. The engine is honed, stock bore with a new piston, rings, bearings, gaskets, coil, plug, alternator stator, pto clutch, a new 44" deck, new spindles, blades, pulleys idlers. There's even a quart of white and quart of yellow paint. It just need to be put together.

I took the seat back off, and was able to loose the center knob set up and using two of the holes already in the hinge pan, I moved the seat back about 4 3/8", then I drilled three new holes as far forward as I could to get three more bolts into the seat pan. took the seat cover off, and put weld tabs inside the seat pan to bolt to. That way its got bolts at the leading edge, and as far back as the hinged pan will allow into two alternate seat pan bolts. Its not perfect but its doable for now. The seat pan came to $23 with the pan, and all new hardware, the switch plate, and switch assembly. Its not connected now but it can be.

I thought about putting a boat seat with a swivel on it, the kind that locks. It would make getting on and off the thing a lot easier.

The Simplicity doesn't have a deck, it never did run one, it was bought new to clean sidewalks at my uncles place, its got a pto brush, a snow plow, grader blade, and rear weight box.
 
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vintagerust said:
I just found the Cub Cadet, its mostly a pile of parts and a rolling chassis. Someone had an add on CL for it for free the other night. I drove right over with my truck and trailer and grabbed it. The Its all there but the headlight lens and bulbs. The motor is apart, he gave up after breaking off the screws that hold the coil and being told by the machine shop that they wanted $300 to remove and replace them. I bolted the seat on when I picked it up to help hold the fender pan down. There's even new foot treads and tires for it. The engine is honed, stock bore with a new piston, rings, bearings, gaskets, coil, plug, alternator stator, pto clutch, a new 44" deck, new spindles, blades, pulleys idlers. There's even a quart of white and quart of yellow paint. It just need to be put together.

I took the seat back off, and was able to loose the center knob set up and using two of the holes already in the hinge pan, I moved the seat back about 4 3/8", then I drilled three new holes as far forward as I could to get three more bolts into the seat pan. took the seat cover off, and put weld tabs inside the seat pan to bolt to. That way its got bolts at the leading edge, and as far back as the hinged pan will allow into two alternate seat pan bolts. Its not perfect but its doable for now. The seat pan came to $23 with the pan, and all new hardware, the switch plate, and switch assembly. Its not connected now but it can be.

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I thought about putting a boat seat with a swivel on it, the kind that locks. It would make getting on and off the thing a lot easier.

The Simplicity doesn't have a deck, it never did run one, it was bought new to clean sidewalks at my uncles place, its got a pto brush, a snow plow, grader blade, and rear weight box.
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A little trick that will help get those small broken coil bolts out is to heat the aluminum standers really well with a propane torch (Note: An Oxy/Acetylene torch is too hot and will melt the aluminum.) Heat them for a couple of minutes each and then slap an ice-cold wet rag on the aluminum standers.

These are dissimilar metals, so they shrink/ contract at different rates when hit with cold water. It will instantly break the corrosion bond and allow the broken screw stems to be removed more easily. A small center punch and a very small lefthand drill bit will usually back the screw out without having to fuss with an easy out.

I learned this working with antique equipment and vehicle engine many years ago.

Note: Make sure you use the correct coil hold down bolts when you reassemble it. Do not use anodized or coated bolts because the coil(s) will not work correctly. I recently learned that with a hard to start portable generator I was working on. The coated bolts interfere with proper grounding of the coil frame. It took me several hours of (known good) parts swapping to finally narrow the problem down to the coil retainer bolts.
 
I got the one out already with heat and by cutting a slot in the top of the broken stub. The other one is buggered up pretty good, he already tried to drill it and missed. the plan is to just drill the mess out, tap it to a 1/4" or 5/16", locktite in an insert and re-drill and tap it for a new coil bolt.
There's a new set in the lot of parts. There was a piece of drill bit stuck in the remaining hole but I got that out by sticking a welding rod to it and working it out.
The machine's hour meter is only reading 211 hours, which is super low for one of these to need much work. I see no sign of any damage on the old piston, its carboned up a bit and has a stuck ring but the rest looks just fine. The motor is a greasy mess but most of that is up around the valve cover area. The guy even bought a new carburetor, but I see nothing wrong with the original. The tires are dry rotted, but it came with four new tires. Its even got a bagger and snow plow. Even the old deck doesn't look bad, not sure why he bought a new one and all the parts for it. I can't imagine what he spent on all the parts. I do like the fact that its shaft drive, and as these things go, the Hydro model is the better transmission. (There's a spare hydro too).

I suspect there's going to be a few former owners very disappointed in the new machines they bought. From what I've seen the newer models are pretty bad.

It seems when it rains, it pours, I picked this one up on the way home Friday.

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Other than the deck belt being flipped upside down and a noisy spindle it seems like a decent machine, but not a keeper. I'm fairly certain I have someone who wants it already. I have the deck spindles and a belt for it that I bought for another one.
It was out on curb with a great big FREE sign on it. I need to go to work more often with my trailer in tow. I got the Cub Cadet because I didn't feel like unhooking the trailer and ran to the hardware store the other day, and came home with a tractor, Friday I was driving home just after noon and spotted this one out by the road, it came with a snow plow, bagger, a reel type manual push mower, and a battery powered string trimmer. I got four push mowers in the same block, two started and ran fine, one is a Honda GX powered mower with broken deck. The other needs brake cable for the bail. The Honda has no shut off switch, someone gutted the brake and the kill switch wire. Its the second Honda powered mower I got in two weeks. If I'm not careful the yard is going to look like a scrap yard.
 
vintagerust said:
A neighbor who's in his late 90's, put this out to the curb, or rather his son did.
He's had a lawn service mowing his lawn for the last 25 or so years, so its been sitting in the garage since it was new. The rubber nipples are still on the tires. The blade edges still have paint on them. The battery, which is dated 2/99 somehow took a charge and seems to be working.
It had no gas in it, the fuel line was off and plugged with a golf tee.
The seat and one foot tread is missing. The guy said he was going to make a roller seat for his wife out of it.

It start, runs, mows grass. The fact that the old guy even had a riding mower back then is sort of insane as his whole yard is maybe 20x40ft. Its got some stuff spilled on the hood, and lots of scratches all over it from being buried in old blankets, baskets, and boxes in the garage for nearly three decades.

When I charged the battery and added fuel I really didn't expect it to start but it fired up nearly instantly.
The deck is marked 46", but its sitting on a trailer that measures 49" wide and the deck is 4" from each side. It measures 46", but it sits on an angle so the effective cut is maybe 44".
The engine is smooth, quiet and runs perfect.
The bad part is going to be finding a seat base for it I've got a seat.
It feels like the seat needs about a 5" riser or so. It feels pretty cramped being a tall guy.

What surprised me was he said it sat out front with a big free sign on it for four days and no one took it.
Am I missing something or is there something wrong with these that I'm not aware of that even the scrappers didn't want it?

Judging on how the new stuff is failing, I'd think the older models would be more in demand?
I see these listed all over for $250 or less, no clue on their condition but that seems cheap, most push mowers are listed for more.
I found the original receipt from 4/1999 in a zip lock bag behind the dash, he paid $2,689 plus tax for it new.
Anything this size now is double that at the big box store.

I have my doubts if it ever cut grass before I ran it up and back across my lawn sitting on a rolled up shipping blanket shoved into an old duffel bag for a seat.

How interchangeable are those seat base pans?
Can I use one from a different model?

I'd like to add some height to it, about 5" or so. I need to make some leg room.

The last picture is of the under side, its oddly super clean underneath as well.
Its kind of hard to believe its 28 years old.
I only wish I had found it when I had grass to mow. my lawn now only takes five passes with a 20" push mower.
I just can't see selling it for what most machines this age seem to sell for.

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Great Find. Seat and Clutch Pedal are easily available. Adapt. Great 25 HP Kohler. 46" is the Cutting width. 3 speed Forward. Get a seat and ask $975, sell for $800.
 
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