Redoing my mower

[E150GT]

Having recently acquired a new mower I am now left with my old one. I dont plan to get rid of this one since the engine works well. I decided for a nice little project to either redo the deck that is rusting or find a donor deck to transplant the engine to. I could leave it as is but it's something to do.
Just need to figure a way to get the paint stripped off so I can sand the rust off.

 

[Lubener]

Pretty straight forward. Scrape, sand, treat, prime and paint.. Myself, I would have a good chance of finding a mower with a better deck in the rubbish having engine problems. Then make one good mower from the two.

 

[FT92]

i have "restored" many an old mower ..something interesting to do and not in a hurry project

 

[Nukeman7]

If you really want to restore the TB-130 mower to like-new condition, consider buying a new factory deck from Troy-Bilt for ~$100. That (MTD) deck is also available in many other colors for a few dollars more.

 

[oil pan 4]

I bought a brand new mower with a seized engine from Lowes 2 years ago for $15. I just wanted the deck.

 

[E150GT]

I bought a brand new mower with a seized engine from Lowes 2 years ago for $15. I just wanted the deck.

did you just happen to come across that or were you looking for one?
I was browsing facebook marketplace for any non runners. I had to reactivate my facebook to do so. Best I have found is an old Honda Harmony II with a non working transmission and a smoking motor for $75.00. The deck looks ok from the pics.

 

[oil pan 4]

did you just happen to come across that or were you looking for one?
I was browsing facebook marketplace for any non runners. I had to reactivate my facebook to do so. Best I have found is an old Honda Harmony II with a non working transmission and a smoking motor for $75.00. The deck looks ok from the pics.

I needed a Briggs and Stratton mower deck for a while. My mower had small wheels all around and was rusty. The broke mower had a larger deck and had the large rear wheels so it was a no brainier to buy that one.

 

[Exhaustgases]

I bought a brand new mower with a seized engine from Lowes 2 years ago for $15. I just wanted the deck.

And how did you find that? Did they advertise it or what?

 

[oil pan 4]

And how did you find that? Did they advertise it or what?

Almost every lowes and home Depot has a junk return pile. Most of the stuff they fix and resell but some of it they just want gone, like that mower.

 

[jeepman3071]

I bought a brand new mower with a seized engine from Lowes 2 years ago for $15. I just wanted the deck.

Wow what a deal.

Around here even non-running mowers with missing wheels people still want $40 for on Marketplace.

 

[dlundblad]

If you really want to restore the TB-130 mower to like-new condition, consider buying a new factory deck from Troy-Bilt for ~$100. That (MTD) deck is also available in many other colors for a few dollars more.

View attachment 222918

Wow. This would be awesome.

 

[oil pan 4]

Wow what a deal.

Around here even non-running mowers with missing wheels people still want $40 for on Marketplace.

Yeah those people are smoking crack.

 

[E150GT]

Ok. While waiting on my new deck to get here (troybilt is super slow to ship) I'm trying to get a little housekeeping done to get parts ready to put the mower back together. The only major issue I have had with this mower is the wheels. One of the front wheels locked up tight. The rear wheels have bearings. I have removed them from the wheels and they do turn but not very well. Are these a servicable item or do they just need to be replaced ? It would be pretty cool to be able to grease em up and reuse them. Save me some money. The wheels are expensive too and I don't want to wait another few weeks for them to come in

 

[The_Eric]

Are there any numbers on the sides? They look like a common 6203 or similar bearing with a metal shield. You could probably match them up at a decent hardware store or industrial supply house.

 

[Nukeman7]

Are there any numbers on the sides? They look like a common 6203 or similar bearing with a metal shield. You could probably match them up at a decent hardware store or industrial supply house.

There is a Grainger warehouse in San Antonio that sells to the public. See if you can match up the size and type of sealed bearing that you need here:

Grainger Ball Bearings

 

[oil pan 4]

Are there any numbers on the sides? They look like a common 6203 or similar bearing with a metal shield. You could probably match them up at a decent hardware store or industrial supply house.

That's one of the bearing sizes in most of the common mower deck spindles.

 

[The_Eric]

That's one of the bearing sizes in most of the common mower deck spindles.

A super common size in general. They're used in most of the automotive idler and tensioner pulleys - I stock several and just replace them instead of replacing the whole pulley at a significantly higher price.

 

[Tdbo]

And how did you find that? Did they advertise it or what?

You'll know it when they do.
They will have them stacked in front of the place.
I have seen them stacked five or six rows deep at times.
What they really want to move is $20, however they may have some that they have refurbished that may be at a higher price.
Even if you see one of those, make them an offer. As long as it is within rational reason, they'll take it.

 

[oil pan 4]

A super common size in general. They're used in most of the automotive idler and tensioner pulleys - I stock several and just replace them instead of replacing the whole pulley at a significantly higher price.

Cheapish single bearing generators too.

 

[E150GT]

well I tried removing the seal while in a vise. That was a no go. I found some bearings on amazon that people said they used on MTD wheels. Will give those a shot. Good to know about the bearings you can get at grainger. If the HRX ever has bad bearings I know where I can go.
In my downtime I ordered some wheel bearing grease and fluid film for when I put everything back together.