LA145 48" Deck is high maintenance

[pennwalk]

Jim
This seems odd. I have a 95 F525 with a 48" deck. I replaced spindle bearings on 2 spindles last year with over 900 hours on the mower when they started to get noisy. I can't remember ever replacing the idlers.

Chris

 

[jenkinsph]

Steve, I can't imagine that everyone is having similar problems. I have changed most idler pulleys when they start to make noise or I can feel rough bearings, but I'd expect a lot more complaints from folks if everyone had similar issues. We just cut grass in a dry and dusty environment. Since the idlers are above the deck, you wouldn't think they would get sand blasted like the bottom surface and blades, yet, I've sure had my share of failures. The blade tension is completely a function of the large idler and the tension of its spring. Engagement of the electric PTO is ON or OFF, there's no feathering it and we start it at mid-rpm range as the operator manual suggests.

Does your deck have two small idlers and one large idler? Electric PTO? Is the first idler off the electric clutch a small one that has a rigid mount with no spring for shock absorbtion? Believe me, I'm looking for reasons for our problems, but we are doing nothing out of the ordinary for any riding mower we have ever owned. As I've said before, thank goodness parts are cheap and easy to replace. I put a new set of blades on every year and sharpen them once before they have to be tossed because they are eroded away. I'll replace parts as they fail as long as I can get them from JD. Parts support has been terrific. The dealer is very helpful.

I will have to look at mine to see the setup, will get back to you over the weekend. Since I have had no issues I am not real familiar with it.

 

[Jimmy Joe]

I drilled the rivets out on my big idler pulley, then i found out it was also spot welded together so I bought a new one. I had over 300 hours on the deck. When I picked up the new parts the parts man asked if I washed my deck after mowing. I told him I did, he asked if I ran the deck after washing it. I told him no, he said when the bearings are warm they actually attract moisture so I should run the deck for a while after washing it to dry it out.

 

[Jimmy Joe]

It looks like you could put a big washer on your idler pulley before you put the nut on. One that would cover the bearing and the ridge around it. You could pump grease on top of the bearing, then put on the washer and nut. That way some grease would work into the bearing and it would keep out sand and moisture. My idler had a washer on it so I decided to put grease under it figured it can't hurt. When I take the deck off I will grease it again.

 

[jinman]

Jimmy Joe, that's probably a good idea with the grease and washer. It sure can't hurt. We wash the top of our deck off and also use compressed air to blow it off. I try to run the deck to spin the water out of the tops of the idlers, but I can't guarantee I do that every time.

 

[joes_427_vette]

I have owned two 60" decks... one on a 455, over 2,000 hours and my current 60" on a 4110 with near 300 hours. Never had a failure and grease them religiously every 3-4 cuttings. I never heard of too much grease as some say. My plan seems to work just fine. These decks are quite expensive and don't have cheap throw away parts.

 

[OneMarineE5]

Just a thought! Have you checked your blades for being slightly bent or even a notch of metal missing from one of them. While I do not disagree with all the assessments questioning the sub-Deere quality looking material, I can't help but wonder if a blade imbalance could be stressing the spindle casings. It doesn't take much out of balance when spinning relatively fast to cause just enough flex to soon stress material like this.

Also, could belt be too tight (wrong belt/short etc.)? This would create a severe uneven pressure as well!

I did not read all three pages of this post, therefore if someone already suggested this......my apologies!

Good luck and please keep us informed!

 

[pennwalk]

Holy mackerel I hope this isn't contagious the big idler on the F525 went up in smoke yesterday. I hope the new one won't be one of those one a year kind.

Chris

 

[jinman]

All you can do is replace it and hope for the best Chris. If others fail, I'd start keeping a few spares like I do. Let us know what the idler's cost is for your F525 deck.

 

[pennwalk]

Jim I have been wondering if water played a part in your idler problems. I noticed in one of your pictures The inside of the small idler looks rusty. Did you see Hammereds pictures of his edge 54 deck in the mower axle thread? The idlers have cupped washers over the center of the idler. I wondered if the washers act to keep dust and water out?

Chris

 

[SandburRanch]

Some idler bearings can be replaced by drilling out rivets etc. I'm inclined to spend a little more on quality made in the USA bearings if they can be found and doing the work myself. The end result in cost is often about the same as buying a complete assembly but have a better product.

 

[mjncad]

Jinman:

I have an L-130 with a 48" deck that is probably the same as yours. With 75-hours on the clock, I've gone through three belts, an idler pulley belt guide bracket broke in my hand while changing a belt, an electric clutch and switch puke at 56-hours, and I'm on my third set of blades as I recall.

 

[jinman]

Jim I have been wondering if water played a part in your idler problems.

Chris, surely I am not the only one who washes grass off the top of the deck from time-to-time, but certainly water might be the culprit. I just don't know, but I'll try to run the deck for a few seconds from now on after a rinse down.

I have an L-130 with a 48" deck that is probably the same as yours.

Just call it Bambi's revenge I guess. It seems that there are some decks just prone to problems while others don't self-destruct like ours. I have not had nearly the problems you have had, and others have had nearly no problems at all. It sure seems hit-or-miss on long term performance. I'm just glad that JD's parts support has been superb for me. I haven't had to buy a clutch or switch like you did. Your JD dealer must have you on his Christmas Card list.

 

[pennwalk]

I have been wondering if washing is a bad idea. If you think about it, it is hard to imagine that the bearing seals could keep water out and still allow the bearing to turn. I think it is especially hard for bearings that are exposed and laying flat. If the mechanic is telling you to run your deck after washing isn't that telling you that water can be a problem? Does it make any sense that running the deck is going to remove the water? Those washers on the edge decks are called shields on JDParts. I wonder if they could be retro-fitted to other decks. I have been wondering if pressure washing my decks at the end of the season contributed to the spindle bearings going bad. If that was the case I might try to find some way to cover the spindles and idlers before I wash. Tinfoil? I kind of think that we have to expect that idlers will fail. After all they are a part that the dealer keeps in stock which tells me that there is a regular call for them.

Chris

 

[zzvyb6]

It looks to me, in examining the photos, that there is more going on here. The powdery substance on the deck, the corrosion around the break points and the missing paint suggest that there is something eating the aluminum hubs. Is it electrolysis (steel on aluminum)? Perhaps something in the water used to wash it? How about soap or detergents used to loosen the dirt. What grease are you using?

I have pretty much the same deck parts that are well over 15 years old. I use the TSC premium grease and wash only with an air hose, not water.

My decks parts are excellant. I burned a belt up from wedging a brick in the blade stream. But that's been it. What condition is your battery grounding strap in?

 

[mjncad]

I wash the crap off the top of the deck with water from the garden hose, and knock on wood my spindles still work fine and I don't have the greaseable ones.

 

[pennwalk]

I picked up the idler today $31.73

I was talking to the salesman. He has a 318 and said he only uses air to clean up with.

Those bearing shields are weird. On the F525 they used them on the early decks but not on the later decks. However the edge decks still use them today and I couldn't find anyone at the dealers who knew anything about them. I have found that from time to time I know more about certain JD stuff than the dealer does. That is kind of scarey.

Chris

 

[jenkinsph]

In using my L130 for five years I had to change the blades two times and sharpen them numerous times. Had to change the mower clutch once because I used it alot, on and off at high rpm's. After changing the clutch and reading up on the forum I was much more careful with its use. Still has the same belts, idlers, pulleys no issues.

The tranny is slowing down some, probably a 25% decrease in top speed but still works, if this mower doesn't sell I will likely rebuild the tranny and keep using it.

Cleaning the deck, I use my leaf blower occasionally to do this but admit to being lazy about it. No problems with any of it, clean the lower deck when I sharpen the blades.

I think the water cleaning is an issue and suggest you just use a blower or leave it alone? Worked for me.

 

[morser]

Hello,

Just a message saying thanks for this thread. I googled and ended up here not even knowing what the correct name for the part was (Idler) and left knowing what to replace, used JDParts to ship it to local dealer in Comber Ontario. It was there the next morning (already in stock). Replaced all Idlers and the belt on my 2009 LA145 and good to go.

BTW the new Idlers looked different then my old ones; the new ones have bigger rivits and have made in USA on them.
All Idlers made it to 140 hours before being changed out. One small Idler blew out. I changed them all at the same time anyway.

Thanks again for the thread.

 

[jinman]

Hello,

Just a message saying thanks for this thread.

:welcome: to TBN. You'll find this site to be a huge source of good info and good people. I'm glad to hear that you were able to find the info you needed. I've found that eBay is a great source of parts and some people even sell kits of parts at very decent prices. Unfortunately, international shipping to Canada from the USA is tougher than it should be in my opinion, so the eBay ads might just end up being a "wishlist."