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main spindle pulley


2fulhund

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Hello All, I've got a question. Is the main spindle pulley on a 42" series mower deck (63 LL) have a thin -pressed/stamped/spot welded type pulley or should it have a heavy duty cast iron type, like on my 48" series mower deck (68 Sovereign). the reason I'm asking is because that I'm smoking belts. Even original simplicity belts, they last longer--but not much-- 10 minutes max. the pulley that is on there now looks like it is original but obviously something is wrong. these belts literally smoke after about 5 min. Any help will be appreciated. Semper Fi, Gregory
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My B-1 deck has heavy duty spindles/pulleys, I think...I'm on EMS duty and away from it at the moment, but I believe that is correct. Does the spindle move freely or does it hang up when turned by hand? Pulley aligned properly with other pulleys so belt is straight? Funny noises from the deck? Is one spindle hotter than the others? Another thought (and since I'm away from it I can't tell) is to check if these are greasable spindles. Do they have grease zerks to pump grease to the bearings, and if so, have they been greased? Most older original decks were built this way. Need to be greased about once a month under regular use, according my guy. Hope some of this helps...
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I have the same deck as you. The pulley is a heavy casting. Smoking belts is not caused by the difference in pullies, though. You have something else amiss, maybe a locked bearing somewhere along the way? Do all 3 blades turn freely by hand? If so, look further. Is the belt aligned at the PTO? The deck belt is twisted, so alignment is not really a concern. I'd look for frozen or nearly so bearings in the deck. You have a choice of 6, I think. As for the greasing of the deck, the grease is added simply to keep moisture and garbage from infiltrating the housings, as all bearings are sealed. Greasing won't hurt, but greasing will not make the mandrel run any better.
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I have also been having belt problems with the 42" deck on my 2010. I get about 2 hours out of one. I just picked up a belt 1/2" longer and am going to try that. I already replaced the middle pulley. Everything is free and not binding. It's getting expensive at $22 for a Simplicity belt to have that happen. Jack
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Maybe this is obvious, but check clearance between the running belt and the height adjust bar that runs along the rear of the deck. On my tractor, the clearance looked fine sitting on the driveway, but it turns out as the deck floats around over uneven ground, the belt spends a lot of time in contact with that bar, to the tune of a really hot belt and lots of rubber dust. I am in the process of making a little idler to hold the belt off of that bar for the time being. The only other solution that I can see right now is lowering the deck, but that would be too low for my tastes. Good luck Matt
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My son's deck had a similar problem. We fixed it this weekend. Check out: "Anybody Had This Problem?" in this forum. It started smoking the belt and wouldn't cut right, but it still worked. On that one, the arbor was actually being held in place by the belts.
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Has anyone changed transmissions on the tractor? 7100 Series tractors have a single idler pulley on the spring loaded belt tensioning lever. 7000 series like my 712 had one small idler and a larger idler mounted on the spring loaded tensioning lever. When I changed the transmission on the 712 and replaced it with one from a 7100 series my drive belt did not last long. I found that the small idler ran at a different angle, I assume because the 712 and 7100 have a different wheelbase. I modified the 7100 belt tensioning assembly with part of the 712 idler assemble and now my belts last much longer.
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Make sure the needle bearings on the center PTO are ok and have grease in them.If they are dry or locking up,you'll be eating pto belts.
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Matt is right about the crossbar eating a belt. But, that situation also brings on something else. If the crossbar is eating belts, most likely, the deck itself is the culprit. As with most lawnmower decks, there is adjustment on the front of the deck to raise or lower the front edge to promote level cutting. I have seen articles here addressing that adjustment. I believe the front of the deck should be 3/4" or so higher than the rear of the deck for proper cutting. When the deck is set properly, the crossbar becomes a non-issue anymore, or at least it did for me, unless my blades are still engaged as I raise the deck further than normal cutting height. As for getting a longer belt? The belt length determines your PTO action. If the blade is too long, you may be unable to engage at all.
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