Tuff Torq K46 in my L120

[Squatch1971]

I'm working on a John Deere L120, it has the infamous Tuff Torq K46 hydro, as is typical it will not climb the smallest hill. I've read forum after forum full of complaints and a few hints, well my question is has anyone made an alternative to bnb this hydro that will work in its place? I've heard the Peerless model H2000 will work with "minor modifications? Can I get any advice?

 

[bertsmobile1]

I'm working on a John Deere L120, it has the infamous Tuff Torq K46 hydro, as is typical it will not climb the smallest hill. I've read forum after forum full of complaints and a few hints, well my question is has anyone made an alternative to bnb this hydro that will work in its place? I've heard the Peerless model H2000 will work with "minor modifications? Can I get any advice?

Lots of hydros that can be substituted for yours.
In fact any axle can go in it is just a matter of making new linkages to connect the mower to the tranny
Mulligans are the people to go to with your enquirey
They will tell you what is a plug & play swap & what will fit with a bit of fiddleing.

 

[PAMedic]

Lots of hydros that can be substituted for yours.
In fact any axle can go in it is just a matter of making new linkages to connect the mower to the tranny
Mulligans are the people to go to with your enquirey
They will tell you what is a plug & play swap & what will fit with a bit of fiddleing.

Here is one conversion but I am not familiar with your model so I don't know if it's applicable. It also beefs up your axle and it might include wheels.

 

[gotomow]

I think the last L120's was 2005 so it's most likely at least 15 years old. How does the area around the breather look? Is it clean or does it look like the trans has overheated and barfed out some fluid? If the rest of the mower is ok why not dump the old fluid and chuck in some fresh. Seen time and time again on the web thru Youtube and different lawn sites that fresh fluid can invigorate the K46.

 

[bertsmobile1]

JD specify 10W50 oil for their trannies
This is so they can be used as snow plows on -40 deg days and mowers on + 120 deg days
Like all "one size fits all" attempts it does everything reasonably but nothing properly.
Changing to 20w50 fully synthetic oil can do the same in your box as putting 70W oil in a smokey engine.
It slows down the leaks for a while
I do it .
Some times it works well for a long time & others it just barely makes another season.
IT all depends just how bad the box was to start with.
All trannies should get an oil change every 5 to 10 years, particularly if they have an internal brake,
However as mowers are not designed to last that long it does not feature in the maintenance schedule in the owners manual that no one bothers to read in any case .