Continuing LA145 high maintenance issues

jinman · Jul 25, 2012

160 hours and I have to replace my fuel tank. This morning while mowing, I noticed a strong smell of fuel/gasoline. I stopped the mower and checked the engine for leaks and looked at the hoses and filter closely. Everything was fine, so I just figured it was vapor leaking out of the gas cap due to our very hot weather. My grandson and I finished mowing the grass without incident, but he also complained of smelling gasoline. When he was finished, we looked at the fuel tank. There was the problem. About 2" down on the fuel tank (visible from under the operator's platform in back) we saw a 6" crack across the fuel tank. Nothing whatsoever has pushed in at this point. It has to be a failure from vibration or other fatigue. I didn't get a photo, but will post some when I replace the tank.

JD parts has a tank for around $104. I found one online that is supposedly OEM for $89 and $5 UPS shipping. I won't start tearing down the mower until I get the tank.

jenkinsph · Jul 26, 2012

Jim,
You sure have had a lot of problems with this mower. If I had the prblems you have had I wouldn't care for Deere near as much.

mjncad · Jul 26, 2012

Jim:

You have more patience than I would have with that mower.

jinman · Jul 26, 2012

Well, one of my reasons for posting all my repairs is to reinforce that you get what you pay for. Deere's cheap mowers are cheap mowers. In today's world, it's very hard to build a large mower with 48" deck and electric PTO for just over $2000. If you don't have any problems with them, you are surely lucky. This year has been relatively problem free with regular deck greasings at 8-10 hour intervals. I'm also now getting the platform paint flaking off in big chunks, probably due to poor cleaning of the base metal before powder coating. My grandson peeled off a chunk of paint yesterday about 1' long and 2" wide. There are several places it is bubbled. However, the plastic hood (that I really like) is as good as the day it was new.

I see X3xx tractors on craigslist used for around $2000 and am very tempted. However, there is a glut of 100 series mowers always. I want to make sure that I do all I can to discourage folks from buying the 100 series and spend a little more money if they can.

jenkinsph · Jul 26, 2012

Jim,
I try to take good care of my equipment but admit to not doing much maintenance on my L130. Mine is a 2005 model with 282 hours as of Sunday, I have change out blades twice the last set being bagger blades this spring. The rest of the mower deck has been cleaned about three times and washed with a hose when the blades were changed. I have greased the mower when I changed blades but as far as greasing every 8 to 10 hours that hasn't happened. My cutting is always dry grass so I don't have any clogging issues to clean out. I suspect over cleaning with water causes more problems than it helps, as I am still on original belts, bearings and spindles with only blade a couple of blade changes. Most of the paint is in good shape except for a few minor scrapes and scratches and this mower has been outdoors its whole life.

I have changed the electric clutch once, replaced the existing fuel pump with an electric pump, replaced the front tires due to dry rot and I am on the tail end of my third battery. The electric fuel pump from NAPA makes starting dependable and instant in that it fires up with a bump of the starter. Right now I need to rebuild the tranny as the mower is getting really slow.

Right now the x749 is picking up the slack mowing my own lawn and working with the landscape grading and lawn start ups. Since my own lawn areas are complete and finished the L 130 should be able to handle the easy mowing conditions I have. I figure if I can get 50 to 75 mowings at home with the rebuilt tranny it will pay for itself. I plan on rebuilding it myself for about $250.

suzy · Jul 30, 2012

What's the purpose of the deck greasing? So the grass won't stick? Mine wouldn't even move a few weeks back, it was so packed with grass. Pulled it all out and it was good. What kind of grease?

jinman · Jul 30, 2012

suzy said:
What's the purpose of the deck greasing? So the grass won't stick? Mine wouldn't even move a few weeks back, it was so packed with grass. Pulled it all out and it was good. What kind of grease?

Suzy, I'm referring to greasing the spindles where the blades are attached. The three spindles each have a grease zerk nipple for a grease gun. I believe JD's recommended interval for greasing is every 25 hours of operation, but I grease every 8-10 hours and that seems to produce better results. In the photos below, the first is a photo of the bottom of the deck. That's a normal amount of grass and I don't worry about removing it if it doesn't build up more than that. The second photo shows the spindles from the top and third photo shows the grease zerk on a new spindle. If you have a failure of a spindle, the replacement from JD is only about $60. Other mower's spindles are often $140 or more, so this is a good deal.

Feel free to ask any other questions about these mowers. I'll try to answer truthfully with as little hyperbole as possible.

jhonb · Jul 31, 2012

I am one of the lucky ones, my 2007 LA120 still runs and almost looks like the day I got it. All the original parts including the belts. The only thing I have changes are the plugs, filters, blades and oil.
Knock on wood!

jinman · Aug 1, 2012

I hope nobody else has the problems I have, but I doubt that I am the only one with similar problems. I bought this mower in April 2008. It has been covered with a mower cover and parked under our deck until last year when we built a bathroom addition on the deck in it's parking place. It's been out from under the deck quite a bit until this year when I found another place to put it. Since it was parked under the deck completely out of the sun, I have not put the mower cover on, so when it rains, water drips down from the deck. The photos below show the footrests areas. The first shows how the paint has just peeled up from the left footrest. It's even peeling for about 1/3 under the instruction decal as seen in the 2nd photo. The third photo is the right side platform. and how it is starting to bubble. The final two phots are the visible portion of the fuel tank from behind the mower. To see this, you have to get down and look up under the operator's platform. Even if the mower were sitting out in the sun, this is so well covered and so low that you might get 1/2 hour of sun in this area if the back was pointing west and the sun was setting. I just don't think this is from UV ray damage.

I started removing the deck because I've received my new tank from UPS. I had other things to do yesterday, so I still have the new tank to install. I'll snap a couple of photos of it and the installation as I make progress. To lift the platform, you have to remove two bolts under the seat springs to disconnect from the frame and there are 6 ea, 10mm bolts to remove where the dash cowling (black plastic) mates to the platform and frame. To easily get to the bolts, I had to remove the battery and it's shelf plus clean out all the grass clippings collected in the area. It's not a hard job, but it is pretty tight in this area. I'll try to post photos of this too.

jinman · Aug 1, 2012

I finally got the old gas tank out of my LA145 this morning. To get the operator's platform to raise up enough, I had to remove the lower part of the cowling below the steering wheel (photo 1). Once I did that, the platform raised easily to expose the tank (photo 2). The tank is not bolted-in in any way. It just sits inside the rear frame on supports. I removed the hose and lifted the tank out (photo 3). Looking inside the frame you can see the tank support pads on either side at the rear and the front of the tank has supports that sit on top of the cross-shaft for the deck lift mechanism (photo 4). Finally, the new tank compared to the old one just before installing it into the mower (photo 5).

I'll take my time buttoning up the mower, but I just can't see spending a lot of time and effort on this machine. I'm thinking that as soon as I get 250 hours on this machine I'll offer it as free stuff on craigslist and let the 1st person who shows up have it. At 250 hours, this mower will have cost me a bit over $10 per hour to buy and maintain (not including fuel). Of course, that's assuming I make 250 hours.

mjncad · Aug 2, 2012

Holy crap on the paint problems. I thought the color was molded into the plastic deck.

jinman · Aug 2, 2012

mjncad said:
Holy crap on the paint problems. I thought the color was molded into the plastic deck.

The hood is plastic and superb. The operator platform is sheet metal and must have had poor prep. I'm definitely beginning to believe I have a "Monday Mower." I know other people don't have nearly the problems I have. I can see no reason for the fuel tank to split like this unless it was exposed to the sun for a long time before factory installation. I doubt that, and just can't figure out why it would split like this with no stress or nothing poking it. It'll just have to remain one of the mysteries of the universe.

For John Deere to make any money at all on these mowers, they just have to throw them together and ship them out the door. I'm sure there are not a lot of QC inspections or manufacturing steps to ID bad paint. JD's other lawn tractor lines have to be much better or they would have no reputation at all. I'm not sour on JD, just on their low end. Unfortunately, everyone is not like me and these mowers won't help JD's reputation.

jenkinsph · Aug 2, 2012

Jinman,
Does your home's deck have alot of treated wood over the parking area for your mower? Could be your problem with the paint, that stuff is very corrosive to painted metal. Having the water drip through after soaking on the deck joists would be alot worse than leaving the mower in the open areas where it would dry out faster.

jinman · Aug 2, 2012

Yes, Steve, it is treated wood, but why only the operator's platform having rust? None of the other exposed painted areas have any indication of paint problems and all fasteners don't have excessive rust/corrosion. This paint peeling started at the rear of the foot pad area where water pools from rain or rinsing the mower with a hose. Also, the mower was covered until the last 8-10 months. BTW: The deck shows nothing like these problems even though it has also had standing water around the spindles. Its paint job is as good as new.

Gator6x4 · Aug 2, 2012

In the hot Texas sun gas will expand. Most gas caps have a check valve. They will allow air in but not out. If your cap has a one way valve this may explain why the tank split, vapor expansion in the tank.

jenkinsph · Aug 3, 2012

jinman said:
Yes, Steve, it is treated wood, but why only the operator's platform having rust? None of the other exposed painted areas have any indication of paint problems and all fasteners don't have excessive rust/corrosion. This paint peeling started at the rear of the foot pad area where water pools from rain or rinsing the mower with a hose. Also, the mower was covered until the last 8-10 months. BTW: The deck shows nothing like these problems even though it has also had standing water around the spindles. Its paint job is as good as new.

Just a guess but isn't the spindle under the platform? I was also under the impression that the decks are powdercoated, maybe the platform is enamel paint, don't know for sure though.

jinman · Aug 3, 2012

jenkinsph said:
Just a guess but isn't the spindle under the platform?

The outside spindles are exposed on either side of the platform footrests. They came with plastic belt guards installed, but I took them off to make it easier to grease the spindles and clean out grass. I think you are right about the deck being powder coated, but I'd expect the platform to be painted the same way. Don't know. . . .

Gator6x4: I guess that theory is as good as any, but I don't ever remember removing the cap to refuel and having air/pressure escape. I think most likely my weight in the seat (about 250 lb) is somehow flexing the platform down to put pressure on the tank. I'll check that theory when I get it all back together. Slight pressure on top of the tank to cause flexing might the problem . . . and I am going on a diet.

However, the seat rails are mounted wider than the tank and I don't see how any pressure is on the tank.

The fill neck/cap is in the middle under the seat instead of being on the side like many JDs. The seat is always far above that, so no pressure is there, However, if the seat were lifted at some time and something sat on top of the cap like might happen in shipping/uncrating, it could have weakened the tank and now it's just showing up. That's the scenario I'm thinking happened, but it's completely unprovable.

jinman · Aug 3, 2012

Got the mower buttoned back up this morning and everything is working fine. My grandson wanted to immediately mow even though the grass doesn't need cuttin'. I wish he was as anxious to clean his room.

Gator6x4 · Aug 3, 2012

jinman said:
Gator6x4: I guess that theory is as good as any, but I don't ever remember removing the cap to refuel and having air/pressure escape. I think most likely my weight in the seat (about 250 lb) is somehow flexing the platform down to put pressure on the tank. I'll check that theory when I get it all back together. Slight pressure on top of the tank to cause flexing might the problem . . . and I am going on a diet. However, the seat rails are mounted wider than the tank and I don't see how any pressure is on the tank.

.

I encounter the expansion problem one time on my Cub Cadet. Filled the tank and did not use to mow. A couple of days later I walked into the shop and was struck with a strong gasoline odor. Expansion had forced gasoline into the crankcase and out. Oil change later everything was okay. Since then in the summer I don't fill the tank until ready to use. I also loosen the gas cap to allow for venting.