LT1042 throwing the deck belt at PTO

jamiersmith · Apr 9, 2010

I come seeking wisdom a broken defeated man. Here's the story When I bought my new house I bought a LT1042 (model: 13AX11CG710 april 2006) with it at what seemed like a reasonable price for only 50 hours (1200). I noticed that it leaked a little oil, but since I'm an idiot when it comes to mechanical things I ignored it until I went through a whole quart to mow have of my .5 acres. Now as I said, I don't work on engines of any kind (I work on computers) but when I took the cover off and noticed the engine block cracked nearly in half it occurred to me that it was a bad thing. With much cursing an weeping I put out 600 for a replacement engine and with my fathers help we replaced it. Everything seemed to be running fine except that the deck belt kept slipping off when I tried to cut the grass the belt would slip off. Figuring I needed to sharpen the blades I took off the deck and took it to my friendly neighborhood You charge HOW MUCH to sharpen blades? dealer and had them sharpen the blades. Upon returning Home I decided to bring the tractor up instead of carrying the deck down back so when I started it up I immediately discovered that I hadn't put the guide back in place so I sheared off the PTO wires from the relay. I did manage to fix that but now whenever I engage the PTO the deck belt slips from the PTO in about 5 seconds. I give up I would appreciate any suggestions.

rcbe · Apr 9, 2010

that "replacement" engine... was it an exact identical model/type as the original engine ? Could be a difference in the crankshaft length now improperly positioning your PTO clutch assmbly..?

jamiersmith · May 6, 2010

It was an exact model replacement. I think I discovered the problem though. My deck front was an inch lower in the front than it was in the back and according to the service manual it has to be between 1/4" and 3/8" inch lower in the front. Once I got it within spec the belt stopped slipping.

tg1955 · Jul 23, 2010

Deck design is bad. I have a 2007 LT1042. I go through 5 or 6 Deck Belts per year. Looked up parts manuals on-line, and found they changed the routing design in 2007. I converted my Deck to the old style. No problems since. Easy conversion, just move back pulley to the Pivot point on the idler arm. You can use the same bolt and flange nut that is on the back pulley. Buy Belt number 754-04060. It is shorter than the belt you keep replacing. Look up the diagram on the Cub Cadet website. It is a much simpler design.

savageactor7 · Aug 3, 2010

Boy I sure would like to see a pic of where exactly you moved that drive pulley just for a heads up.

I've been toying with the idea of making a stepped or graduated locking stops for the rod tensioner imo it's like way too tight right from the get go so there will be a stop that short of OEM. And those way too tight belts from the start lends itself to stretched belts...and over taxed deck drive pulley bearings.

Our 2550 is throwing belts too. Sure the belts are slightly frayed but with no possible adjustment I just think it's wasteful.

tg1955 · Aug 11, 2010

Look up the parts diagram on the Cub Cadet website. Pull up the Deck diagram. There will be 2 different ones. One will be the new style, and one will be old style. On the old style, the two Idler Pulleys are side by side. On the New style one of the Idler Pulley is mounted toward the rear of the deck. The new style is a bad design. Just move the Pulley from the rear, up next to the other Idler Pulley. It will go on top of the Pivot washer. You can use the same bolt and flange nut from the rear mount, The rear bracket is still on my deck, but nothing is hooked up to it. You will need to buy the shorter Belt which is listed on the parts diagram. Mine is a 96" Belt, Part No. 754-04060B. I haven't broken or thrown a belt since I did this.

TPajak · Aug 28, 2010

tg1955 said:
Look up the parts diagram on the Cub Cadet website. Pull up the Deck diagram. There will be 2 different ones. One will be the new style, and one will be old style. On the old style, the two Idler Pulleys are side by side. On the New style one of the Idler Pulley is mounted toward the rear of the deck. The new style is a bad design. Just move the Pulley from the rear, up next to the other Idler Pulley. It will go on top of the Pivot washer. You can use the same bolt and flange nut from the rear mount, The rear bracket is still on my deck, but nothing is hooked up to it. You will need to buy the shorter Belt which is listed on the parts diagram. Mine is a 96" Belt, Part No. 754-04060B. I haven't broken or thrown a belt since I did this.

what about the bolt stop for the front pulley...did u flip that upside down or something?

garyboer · Oct 4, 2014

I just performed this pulley move following utube vid

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T7w-fDSoU_o

The video could have shown more, but it was just enough to get me through it. He and others recommend a 96 inch belt, but I went with a 93, as some recommended in comments section. I removed the bolt that he suggested grinding down. I took it off, it wasn't doing anything. I also took off the entire bracket where pulley had been. . .3 bolts I believe. To route the belt I paused and looked very closely at his video. I have field tested successfully. . .but needs to work for several mows before I'm sure I fixed the problem.