When good spindles go bad

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Ausfahrt

Ausfahrt

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As a bitog guy, the fact that I let the spindles on my Craftsman mower deck deteriorate to the point of failure is disappointing and a little embarrassing. This garden tractor was purchased new in 2002 and sees about 50-60 hours of run time per year.

Don't hold back, let me have it.....here are the pics.
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Originally Posted By: Brian123
Did those Spindles have grease fittings?


No. That is what irritates me since it would not cost much to add zerk grease nipples to the spindles. But then they wouldn't sell as many replacement spindles or even new mowers.
 
I bet it will be a lot quieter & cut better when your done!

Drill some 1/4" holes in the recesses of the deck for water drainage, Using compressed air..Blow all debris off the deck after each use.
 
A woman i work with seized a spindle on her 1980 CC and just kept on mowing; eventually the pulley worked loose and by the time she was finished with the yard, there was a 3 inch burnished hole in the pulley. 1 spindle, 1 pulley and 3 blades later, the cost was $350; that was with only .5hr labor.

I never asked her why she did not equate loud deck noise with potential damage to the equipment.

There might be a gene for that.
 
"I never asked her why she did not equate loud deck noise with potential damage to the equipment.

There might be a gene for that."

LoL I think you might be on to something.
 
I mow with ear muff hearing protection and an MP3. The Air Force could do a bombing run near me and I might not hear it, however when something like that happens you can feel it right away!

I have a 2001 LT1000 from Craftsman. I replaced my spindles last year with new ones. Took about 40 mins and cost under 60 bucks. Replaced the belt too.

You can rebuild the spindles, but I could not get one of the bearings out of the aluminum housing. It was easy just to get the new ones. Does yours have a Kohler or Briggs and Stratton?
 
Originally Posted By: bigdreama
Originally Posted By: Brian123
Did those Spindles have grease fittings?


No. That is what irritates me since it would not cost much to add zerk grease nipples to the spindles. But then they wouldn't sell as many replacement spindles or even new mowers.


But it is a sealed bearing. What would you grease? Or do you want a greasable bearing installed.
 
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Was reading the title and thinking of the similar-sounding Gary Larson cartoon:
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I had the deck to my '77 IH Cadet 80 lawn tractor off so I could sharpen the blades, I cleaned the goop away from the zerks. I pumped quite a bit of grease into the 2 hubs. Glad I thought of it. The Inty is ready for another season. I put my battery charger on the battery about 3 weeks ago. It spent the winter in the garden tent. It fired right up today and I drove it over toward the shop.
 
Originally Posted By: Joe_Power
Just a thought. It might not be worth it, but could you take the spindle apart, and drill and tap for a grease zerk? Or would it be more trouble than it's worth?


That thought had crossed my mind too but at $18 per spindle it's probably not worth the trouble, plus as mentioned they are sealed bearings.

ls 1 mike: Thanks for the input, the tractor has a Briggs v-twin.
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Originally Posted By: bigdreama
As a bitog guy, the fact that I let the spindles on my Craftsman mower deck deteriorate to the point of failure is disappointing and a little embarrassing.


There isn't really much you can do to prevent this, in fact I'm impressed you got that much life out of them.

I agree that they should have grease fittings. My John Deere has grease fittings on the spindles. Its a 2005 model with about 600 hours on it and the original spindles. The deck is still nice and quiet after all the abuse it has seen.

The manufacturers probably assume grease fittings are a waste of money now since the average consumer probably won't touch them. It's sad, but if people can't be bothered to change the oil in their mower they probably won't grease it.


Edit: I really like that valve you have on the oil drain!
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The spindles on my Deere D105 have grease zerks in them. I gave them a good shot of grease before first use. They might be for show more than anything else, as the bearings may well be sealed units. Whatever, I'll keep shooting grease into them since it takes little time.
 
Originally Posted By: bigdreama
Originally Posted By: Joe_Power
Just a thought. It might not be worth it, but could you take the spindle apart, and drill and tap for a grease zerk? Or would it be more trouble than it's worth?


That thought had crossed my mind too but at $18 per spindle it's probably not worth the trouble, plus as mentioned they are sealed bearings.

ls 1 mike: Thanks for the input, the tractor has a Briggs v-twin.
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Very similar to mine. I have the 20HP one. This mower has been about the best lawn tool I have ever owned. Takes one heck of beating and always starts after sitting all winter. Infact if your motor didn't say 25 HP I wouldn't be able to tell
the difference. I like your oil drain setup! Can you tell me what you have going on there?
 
Years ago I tired of the mess created by the little plastic gizmo that is used to drain the oil so I got a pipe nipple and ball valve from Lowes to make it a little easier.
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This pic was taken shortly after I added the extended drain pipe and I later reversed the ball valve so that the handle faces rearward to reduce the possibility of snagging on a bush and draining my oil.
 
Originally Posted By: clinebarger
I bet it will be a lot quieter & cut better when your done!


Wow! What a difference.

I feel like I'm riding a brand new tractor again! I was wondering if this tractor would last until we sell our home in 2-3 years but now I think it can.
 
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