Archive through June 26, 2011

[lbuttke]

Dave

No oil leaks, motor uses very little oil, maybe a 1/4 quart to every 40 gals of gas burnt.

 

[lhinds]

Lonny you could check that with a laser tach if you have one.
I figured why Charlie is buying all this garden equipment. He is going to load that big tractor trailer and come fix everyones garden.

 

[digger]

Luther H.
Good luck with that thinkin!

 

[mlindberg]

Nice pieces you got there charlie. I looked at them both but they were to expensive for me..... I got a 800 and a 86 there. There was some really cool stuff there. I especially liked the swisher golf cart on the original and the treancher. Great show! I wish it was in Minn every year.

 

[rfuller]

I was looking at the CC parts look up for my 44c mower deck and I noticed I can get 2 different types of blades, regular and hard coated. Are the hard coated one's worth the extra money? Once I sharpen them is the coating gone and no good? What about running gator blades on this deck? Also I noticed there is a deflector. Is this deflector for mulching or is it so the grass does not spray out as much?

Sorry for all the questions.

Rob.

 

[jdreese]

}After I mowed the lawn yesterday with my 122, I realized the gas in the tank was boiling. It has been suggested that the engine timing is off and I need to check the points. I can't imagine it is normal for a 122 to run this hot. Does the timing solution sound right? If not, I am open to suggestions on how to remedy my engine's temp. Thanks guys!

 

[nhasson]

Charlie, my 149 has an aluminum pan on it also. Not saying it was original but it sure didn't have any threads in it when I got around to fixing it. The PO had let the 4 inch bolt in the drivehaft hub destroy the hub and driveshaft causing some serious vibration which rattled the heck out of the engine. I used to think my Harely vibrated bad until I got my 149. I ended up putting heli-coils in the pan and lock-titing the heck out of them and using a 1450 driveshaft setup and no more vibration. Works great. All that dancing around the engine was doing sure did rub the pan pretty hard though.
I just bought one of those lawn sweepers two weeks ago and it does a real good job. Wish I would of had it for the beginning of the mowing season when the grass was a lot thicker.

 

[digger]

It just goes to show ya, no matter how many of something you've seen, there's always something new to learn about Cubs.

Thanks guys!

 

[kweaver]

John R - One thing that comes to mind on your gas boiling is *How much alcohol* does your gas have in it ? Alcohol has a much lower boiling point than gasoline.

 

[wshytle]

John-

I'd blow some good pressure in and around the engine shroud and see what comes out. If you had a mouse nest or years of dirt build-up the fins might be seriously blocked. The best way to remedy this problem is pull the engine for a cleaning.

Gas shouldn't be boiling. Good luck.

 

[fboyce]

Hi Guys! Finally got my Cub back today after some major work now it purrs like a kitten. Cut the yard and now I'm noticing on uphills the tractor loses its mojo. Engine runs great but seems to lose power (Trans?). Could this be a fluid issue? I have never had a hydrostatic trans tractor went from an old Craftsman to the IH is this normal? Tractor is useful but this doesn't seem OK to me. Unit is a 1650 Hydro (serial#609299).

 

[digger]

Fred B.
Try the FAQ's.
My hydro is speeding up or slowing down on its own. How do I fix it?

 

[jbaker]

Fred along with the trunion repair as charlie mentions in the FAQs You might want to try changing the hydro filter and fluid change. And use IH Hytran fluid

 

[tcbusch]

Charlie!!!
I saw the sold sticker on the earthcavator, never could have dreamed it was you!!

 

[pfunk]

Fred B. It sounds to me like your governor might not be set correctly. Is the engine losing power, or are you just slowing down??? If you're just slowing down and the engine rpms remain the same, then Charlie is putting you on the right path. If the engine rpms are dropping, check your governor setting.

 

[jchamberlin]

Rob:

The deflector does just that, it "deflects" the grass down and out. I have one on my 44" deck, but I haven't run it yet, so I can't tell you what sort of difference it makes. I understand that they are often removed.

A lot of guys run the Gator blades and are happy with them. Again, I haven't run them so I can't give you a comparison and I'm not sure if you need a mulching plug to use them, I kind of doubt it.

I have the same question about the blades. The hardened ones aren't that much more money. I seems too, that the way the blades wear (more at the tips) anything that would help make them last longer would be worth it.

Hopefully someone with more knowledge and experience will chime in and set us both straight.

 

[lhinds]

Jeremiah, Rob, I have used the gator, regular, and hardened blades on my 44A deck. The best combination for me is the high lift, Hardened blades with the deflector removed. I have also put a speed up pulley on the deck. I also use a spring assist so it won't scalp the lawn when i turn around to fast. I use the 169 with R P M set at 3450.

 

[lhinds]

John Reese. I would clean the engine fins and static time it also. You will get hot enough to ruin the engine with it running that hot. BTDT

 

[dfrisk]

A company here in town heat-treats & plasma coats the hard coating on lawn mower blades for many many OEM lawn mower companies as well as many other parts. The hard coating is a thin layer of probably Stellite on the underside of the blade cutting edge, the thinking being that it will wear less and the blade will wear "Sharper". Whether the added cost of the hard coated blades is worth it depends on your mowing conditions. If you have any rocks around where you mow I'd stick with the standard blade. My experience has been that the hard coating tends to chip off in larger pieces and they wear faster than the standard blades. The hard coating is applied to an area about 4-5 inches long depending on blade length, and about 3/8" wide so when the hard coating is gone from the underside of the blade the blade is "wore out" per IH's operators manuals.

I had a set of standard blades on the 44A deck on my old 129 that were on it when I bought it back in 1990 and the SAME exact set of blades was still on it in 2006 when I sold the tractor. I'd always used hard coated blades but stopped after I saw how well the standard blades held up.

 

[jchamberlin]

Wow Dennis! Thanks for the input.