Lawn Tractor Deck Belt Keeps Breaking - Diagnosis, Repair, & Demo

This 12 year old Huskee lawn tractor has been breaking deck belts. The frustrated owner has had enough! He's decided to settle for a push mower! We can't allow that now, can we?!!
Join me as we diagnose premature deck belt failure, change out some worn components, and get this tractor cutting reliably once again!
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[@philliphall5198]

Kids having fun is great to hear them talking Hope you found the problem 😊

[@dennisoneal8505]

I know this video is 2 years old, I agree 100% take a leaf blower and blow the deck off. Saves the deck, Spindle bearings run cooler, belt works as intended. So many reasons to clean off. and you spend less than 3 minutes with a leaf blower and clean off the deck when your done mowing. For the cost of one deck mower blade spindle you can purchase a battery operated leaf blower that will not only save you money on repairs but also the headache of doing the repairs.

[@egyrmexiq1]

Excellent video, excellent instruction, excellent comments, excellent information, very instructive .. thanks for publish..

[@Buckwsr]

Thanks so very much!

[@mikejones-go8vz]

Your assistant needs safety boots 😂😊

[@jodym.2800]

Great video. I have three riders with the same deck setup. Very helpful.

[@togamac]

Thanks, Buck! I'm here because my friendly tractor place quoted me a $180 price for a belt, not installed, just the belt. I enjoyed your video and will try to solve my broken-belt problems myself because of your encouragement.

[@Buckwsr]

Whoa! That's a lot of money! Good job tackling it yourself!

[@philliphall5198]

I bet they are friendly for the price they charge

[@armyvet4081]

some time you can knock the bearings out -- clean and repack. I have had good luck with that

[@CorbinAce]

Some people just knock the bearings out remove the inner seals of both bearings. Re install with open sides towards the inside. That way the grease can enter and lube the bearings. It takes a ton of grease to fill the shaft housing. Yes it is stupid, does nothing to install grease fittings on a spindle with sealed bearings. Chinese what do you expect.?

[@crisprtalk6963]

10:45 my LT4200 deck is the same not quite as floppy as yours but still has some play in it.

[@mikejones-go8vz]

Your assistant needs safety boots 😂

[@MrFloppyization]

At 23:10 you mentioned that you got rid of a lot of the play or slop in the idler arm assembly, but how exactly did you do that? I have a Troy-Bilt pony that is having the same problem and that idler arm is loose as all heck. Did changing the pulley itself fix it or was it something else? Thank you. I have spent hours searching Google and KZbin for a solution to my belt problem and this is the closest I have come and with the best visuals of the deck itself. My deck layout looks about the same as this one.

[@Buckwsr]

I can't exactly remember what I did to tighten up that pivoting idler arm...I think I might have added another washer to the set-up. The problem then is that if you tighten the nut too much, it will pinch too hard and the arm won't pivot. So maybe get a slightly longer bolt, and use two nuts. When the first nut is tightened enough...but not too tight...add the second nut and tighten the two nuts together. That will hold it all in place, tight enough to get rid of some of the slop, but not so tight that it immobilizes the idler arm. I hope that makes sense. Good luck.

[@heavenbound78]

i have the same problem with loose idler arm and pulley, pulley is good but arm horrible wobble causing vibration

[@philliphall5198]

AllWAYS look at spring tension and figure out how to add more

[@tammirenae2296]

Thank you for the video. I think this is exactly my problem

[@johnkennedy528]

Nice job on this tractor.

[@Buckwsr]

Thank you, John.

[@claudecroft2732]

If spindles are not threaded what are they self threading with the regular bolts

[@BlueRidgeAuditor]

Did this fix the problem

[@summaof96]

I have a question. 1st off thx ya for this video. I'm going to make a video of me attempting to repair it 😂. My question is I have the same mower but when stop. The keeps on going then it'll stop. Any idea what could cause that and how to fix it?

[@jmpjag]

On that floppy idler pulley, did you just replace the pulley or did you do a little bit more? It seems like mine has the same issue as far as wiggling goes and it throws the belt every now and then.

[@eandatoo]

I have a Sears Craftsman GT5000 and the belts keep burning up. The Kevlar in the V part gets shredded and then the rubber starts smoking and shredding. The spindles do not turn smoothly when I rotate them by hand. They have lots of resistance to them. Could this cause the belts to burn?

[@Buckwsr]

Absolutely. Sounds like you need to get some new bearings in those spindles. Also check the pulleys. Everything needs to be spin smoothly and silently without resistance. You might be able to purchase the complete spindle assemblies. That's easier than changing out bearings. Good luck.

[@andyevansbusinesslifecoach4718]

hi Buck thanks for the video. I noticed you didnt straighten any arms or levers that the pulleys sit on. Why did the new pulleys bring everything back into alignment? wouldnt the arms they sit on be the issue? I have a deck where the belts are being chewed and the belt now seems really loose. any suggestions?

[@Buckwsr]

The pulley on the pivoting arm was particularly wobbly on this cutting deck. I don't remember precisely what I did, but I managed to stiffen it up a bit, and that helped out tremendously.

[@richardbaenen3438]

Would Like a step by step how to start a Troy-bilt Bronco 42 inch cut including all the saftey switches.

[@stevenmullens584]

NICE INFORMATIVE VIDEO. MURRAY KIND OF A CHEAP MACHINE, BUT PROPERLY MAINTAINE YOU CAN GET YOUR MONEYS WORTH OUT OF IT.

[@kencurrier4713]

Good job really helped thank you

[@Buckwsr]

Thanks, Ken!

[@amanderloo]

Hi! The link for the rebuild kit is no longer available. Do you have another link for a rebuild kit? I also have a huskee riding mower like this and my belt is also breaking too easily and is now much too loose. Your video has really helped & I think I can tackle some fixes on my own rather than bringing it into my maintenance guy for the 6th time this season (it’s only the beginning of June!)

[@Buckwsr]

Thank you. I updated the link in the listing description.

[@philliphall5198]

I drill 1/4 holes and grind off ribits and replace brging for 4 bucks or buy 40 bucks pulley

[@garyleahy4537]

Hey Buck, Just came across your channel and thought I'd ask a question. I have a 15 year old Craftsman YTS 3000 lawn tractor that has recently been tearing the grass instead of cutting it. It also doesn’t seem to have the pep that it used to. I thought I’d change both the blades and the belts since the belts are the original. They looked alright but I change everything anyway. Now, it squeals when I put it in gear and goes even slower than before. I checked everything several times and all looks good. Did I miss something or do the belts need a “break in” period? Please help.

[@Buckwsr]

Hi Gary, I assume that when you were working on the deck you checked both spindles and all deck pulleys to make sure they all spin smoothly and silently. There should be little to no resistance and also little to no noise. Is it possible that one or more of the pulleys or spindles is creating too much drag on the system? Here's something else to think about since you said the mower seems to be lacking pep. Does your tractor have a twin cylinder engine, perhaps the Briggs & Stratton V-Twin? If so, I would make sure it is running on BOTH cylinders. It is possible to run on just one cylinder, but of course, that will only give you 50% of the power you need. That could really make it hard bog down during mowing. Those are my only thoughts, and about all I can suggest without actually seeing the tractor. Good luck.

[@philliphall5198]

Could be a leaking head gasket and power loss Might do a compression leak down test on it to be sure Also could be a hub pulley freeze up

[@DIYVariety]

Its worth it, cheers

[@brycethompson]

It must have felt good blowing the grass off of that deck. I felt good watching it.

[@richardswann5300]

Turn around ! You're blowing your grass clipping onto the grass you are going to cut on your next pass. It keeps building up thicker and thicker and makes the mower work harder.

[@Buckwsr]

Precisely! Illustrating just how effectively we repaired this cutting deck. Thank you!

[@philliphall5198]

The alinement is nearly always the problem with belts jumping off or breaking

[@RickyJohnson-nt1km]

Plate holevwere is problem with bad bearing s aswell

[@chuckgladfelter]

If anyone needs a belt in a hurry, NAPA Auto Parts sells them and they're in stock for 42" and other common MTD/Husqavarna sizes.

[@philliphall5198]

There gates belts and there the best money can buy ❤

[@t-bonefeddicine4860]

You should show that beginning to all people that cut wet grass in the morning time. So they can see what happens when they don't clean their mower.....

[@philliphall5198]

Spending 300 bucks on deck repairs is nothing now, seen it reach up to 500 bucks along with engine service and parts 😊

[@philliphall5198]

Clean deck and keep it clean Problem gone 😊 Are you serious???

[@Buckwsr]

Not problem gone; but problem prevented to a large degree. Thanks.

[@RickyJohnson-nt1km]

A oring will.take all play out the pulley platevifvu look its the hole in plate and the collar washer both if u put right oring on irvthe coller tightingbit bsck u can back off just till the pulley releases ugood to go not play i even drilled out the holevto 10mm but that was not problem.in playbwascthevgolevin plate any bad bearings will cause a tro off belt to some have a hook for belt ride on atvreleast of belt keeps on from.jumpi g off but di the oring trick it works fine

[@floridalottery3134]

lol all you needed to do was add some washers boom nearly free fix

[@Buckwsr]

Interesting. Do you play the lottery much? If so, you're not too good at math either....

[@floridalottery3134]

@@Buckwsr this guy spends $200 on a $300 mower like a t@rd and is trying to justify it....dude bearings are like $2 bucks for each...you didn't need to buy the whole spindles...the idler pullies are like $8-$10 bucks....blades are like $20....belt is $10...what you did was a huge waste of money and time...LOLZ good luck on your channel but you'll go broke trying to make videos like this

[@charlesgray3810]

Now it keeps coming off.

[@clifforddeschaine6346]

Thats the worst alignment i ever seen on a lawn tractor !!!l i ve seen it on snowblowers but not for grass !🤔

[@badbehavior1883]

Good Job! PPM...................................................PIS POOR MAINTENANCE`

[@dennisoneal8505]

Again, I know this video is 2 years old, BUT the urban myth about the sealed bearings has been debunked. Personally never believed it anyway, I have always regularly greased my deck spindles and in over 30 years have never replaced one. There is a you tube video that demonstrates how the grease gets to the bearings, Watch it and you may want to edit this video to stop the spread of the myth? By the way I really liked your video, so please don't think I'm slamming you.

[@clifforddeschaine6346]

Briggs and crapsman ...oem ...

[@philliphall5198]

The brging are so cheap just replace them all on both

[@davidbertrand6884]

Deck looks a lot like a Troy Bilt Xp 46” Workhorse. Your video showed me where the blade brakes were. My main reason for watching. 9-27-2022 ✅👍🏻🦾💪🙋🏻‍♂️❤️‍🔥

[@Buckwsr]

Thanks, David.