Good evening, all. This week's curiosity starts with last week's mishap. I set out to mow, got one lap around the front yard, and heard a pop. And then the little Deere decided it wasn't moving. The engine didn't stop, but the mower sure did. The drive belt broke.

So, with a funny-looking cut on the yard, I pushed the little Deere back into the garage and set about acquiring belts. Might as well replace the deck belts while I'm in this, right?

Belts have arrived, and I figured this evening would be a good time to get into that project.

Step one: get the front end off the ground and get the old belt out.

Yes, I know the grille is out too.

Jack stands under the front, steel ramps wedged up under the back [after this pic was taken]. We're stable now.

I got the old belt out and had a look at a manual. That page mentioned releasing the belt tensioner before removing the old belt (naturally, the book doesn't assume your belt has broken and pretty much come out on its own).

That's where the situation started to look like it might be worse than I had expected. There's a lever under there, for sure. But I'm thinking (a) is this lever supposed to "cam over" when under tension? (b) Is this lever broken? There sure is a shiny spot on it, and (c) what's this odd hole in the black plate? Is it supposed to be shaped like that?

My next thought, of course, was "ask SF and PHPaul."

So here are a few pics to illustrate the madness, taken from beneath the left side of the mower.

First up, the lever. Is it broken? The end of it looks/feels rough, as if part has been broken off.




Next, the tensioner. I think the far left bar (top of pic) supposed to be closer to its mate than this.


And then there's this plate with the odd-shaped hole in it. It seems to be part of the go/whoa system, but I'm just plain ignorant about it. Does this look damaged or normal?


As always, I thank you all for your help and advice.

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ETA: After watching this YouTube video and studying the diagram below, I'm convinced that lever is actually broken (item 5, appears to be JD p/n JDM111015), and that funny-looking hole in the black plate may actually be correct.

I have that mower but I’m not sure when I would be able to look under it.

Many John Deere owners are unaware.
You can go to the JD website and look at exploded view parts diagrams.
Even for the older stuff like your LX176.
I use the JD resources on their website frequently.
I'm keeping an old LX172 and a newer X700 running.
You can also identify what parts are available at a particular dealer.
Also, if you don't have a owners manual, pdf owners manuals generally are free.
Technical manuals (service manuals) you'll have to pay for.

Yes, the lever #5 is definitely broken.

The plate in Picture #4 appears to be worn but not broken. That's #9 in the diagram. It's what the other end of the spring that tensions the belt attaches to. As long as it pivots smoothly, it should be fine.

Thank you, Paul. I'm hoping that's all that's broken/missing now.

Have you done a drive belt replacement yet? How does this task rate on the foul-language scale?

Never mind the foul language scale, how is it on the leaky knuckles scale?

quote:

Originally posted by vthoky:
Thank you, Paul. I'm hoping that's all that's broken/missing now.

Have you done a drive belt replacement yet? How does this task rate on the foul-language scale?

It's about one "well shit" on the scale...IF...you take very careful note (and preferably pictures) of how it's routed before you take the old one off.

Getting the deck off the tractor so you can work on it is usually good for two bandaids and a "dammit".

I think you're right, Paul.

Getting the deck off was a one-dammit, as I forgot to release the tension on the belt before dropping the front latch. That made getting the rear latches out a lever-and-pull event. I should know better by now.

Looks WAY DIFFERENT than my X520, but Paul is absolutely correct in a most important thing: Take Pictures!! LOTS of pictures. (And another important thing is that you SHOULD release tension on the belts by releasing the belt tension lever before you start removing decks or replacing belts.

quote:

Originally posted by jtedescucci:
you SHOULD release tension on the belts by releasing the belt tension lever before you start removing decks or replacing belts.

Indeed. I screwed up by not releasing the tension on the deck belt before trying to drop the belt. I should know better by now -- I've only had this mower for 18 years or so.

The drive belt, however, had ALL of its tension released already -- quite suddenly!

Having found the tension lever broken (I push-mowed the yard this past weekend and saw no sign of the rest of that lever) and the spring housing separated, I wondered how many other things might be broken underneath. I admitted [defeat] to myself last Friday and dropped it off at the shop a couple of blocks from work.

I hate that I can't do the whole job myself, but there comes a point when I have to admit that fixing it myself is going to take more time than I have available right now. I sure hope I can have it back before leaf-crunching season.

Update: I got the little Deere back on Wednesday. The tension lever was all that was broken underneath. Second lesson learned: there's some safety mechanism built in, such that if that lever is out of place the mower won't start. I wasn't aware of that before.

Once I got it back home, I cleaned the deck, replaced the belts, and reinstalled the deck. I should be good to go for a while.

If it will finally stop raining....