Old Silver Craftsman 12 Hp Lawn Tractor shifting trouble

[@delainekirkeide7036]

I have a mower just like this one. It was hard to shift and it would not go into reverse. If you flip up the seat and remove the battery and battery box you can see the big pulley. Just in front of the big pulley is a heavy-duty bracket that is attached to the shifting lever. My heavy-duty bracket was bent. I removed it and straightened it in the vise with a hammer (very easy to do). Next, I removed the shifting lever and put it in the vise very tight, clamping it at the very bottom of the shift lever with the shifting ball straight up. When it is in the vise, you should be looking at it like you would see it if you were looking down to shift it. My lever was bent, so I hit it with a hammer so the ball end of the shifter moved about a half-inch to the left. I put it back on the mower and for the first time in two years my mower shifted easily and I had reverse. I hope this works for you. It was all very easy and did not take long at all.

[@woodysgarage469]

I'll have to check it out, I don't recall anything looking bent. Thanks for the tip!

[@fredrickvoncold]

I found one of those mowers sitting in a old womans yard , she gave it to me . I think its a 95 with a 13.5 flathead, turns over nice. It was missing a starter and a deck ,but I cant wait to see if it runs this spring . They look like they were good, well build mowers . I think it had been sitting there for at least ten years , a bit dirty and some rust , but its in good shape.

[@woodysgarage469]

The deck seems to be the most vulnerable part of the mower, they get rusty and rot, otherwise they are decent. Check Craigslist people give them away and you might be able to get a deck and starter.

[@tractorguy97]

I had a similar problem! Shifter was very stiff when running but easy to move when turned off. My belt was on the wrong side of the guide bar that sticks down instead of up aginst the idler pulley. This made the belt too tight and I eventually figured it out when i smelt burning rubber 😂 It's easy to check and see if your belt is messed up first then move on to the transaxle

[@woodysgarage469]

I've routed them incorrectly in the past and had a smoke show, 😆. I think last time I looked I followed the routing in the manual. This video is now 4 years old and it shifts, but I think it is getting stiffer overtime. But it is worth a check if it ever stops raining here. Thanks.

[@johncollins8304]

Thanks for sharing your FRUSTRATION then JUBILATION! I have a 40 y.o. Murray, very difficult to change gear when running but no problemo when engine off. Someone said to make sure drive belt is not connected to so turning the transaxle but am not sure what that means. Thanks to anyone who has any idea.

[@woodysgarage469]

Try grabbing hold of the pulley and see if there is excessive movement (worn bushing/bearing) there that make make it hard to shift when running. I've been told the correct belt can make a big difference as well. Good Luck, let us know if you solved the problem.

[@johncollins8304]

​@@woodysgarage469Thank you. Will try. 😮

[@bubbatooth7744]

Thank you for all the details and demonstration. I have enough info to get er done!!

[@bubbatooth7744]

Fanks!

[@Lucky7MudMowers]

That the same body style that I use for Lucky 7 brings back memories when I see that machine when I first started building

[@kakabekadigger2851]

Good video. Finally found one for my old tractor. Mine won’t shift atol.

[@woodysgarage469]

Try the heat, go easy on it, a bit at a time, not too hot. Mine is still working good a year later.

[@wrench]

I have to rock mine back and forth to get it to go into gears when it’s moving on it’s own power. When off I can shift away

[@woodysgarage469]

Maybe the heat trick will help.

[@piotrchadzynski5190]

hard to hear because of the music

[@Lucky7MudMowers]

Those two screws down there for adjustments for your ball bearing which is tension by a spring

[@JasonsFamily]

I have been mowing some yards for years with a self-propelled push mower and I’m too damned old to keep it up. So I found this exact mower for sale from a guy for $100. It runs great, but yea it’s a pain in the arse to shift constantly. I’m going to try what you did and what Delaine suggested.

[@woodysgarage469]

I started mine up the other day, still shifts ok (not great) . It's been 3 years now so worth a try.

[@Lucky7MudMowers]

Now you need to take the transaxle out since you remove the clip Basta shifter lever there's a little ball bearing held in by a spring

[@woodysgarage469]

I was afraid you were going to say that...lol. I'll probably run it for now since it shifts decent, next time rip it down. Thanks Lucky.

[@jeep2003]

i dont think it fell in enough to loose the ball. you wouldnt have gotten the clip back on without pulling up the shaft.

[@Lucky7MudMowers]

I can tell you anything you need to know about that tractor inside and out

[@woodysgarage469]

Have you ever had the shifting problems I had? Is there another method? Thanks Lucky.

[@Lucky7MudMowers]

@@woodysgarage469 I usually take the transaxle completely out of the machine seems much easier I disassemble the transaxle I clean thoroughly with diesel fuel regrease assemble back together

[@hankjobe1662]

​@Lucky7MudMowers what do you take apart and regrease? I have the transaxle out. Thanks

[@Lucky7MudMowers]

Sounds like the slide pins are no good

[@Lucky7MudMowers]

Peerless 820

[@davidberry1379]

whats with the damned music? turn that off please while you make a video

[@woodysgarage469]

Don't watch it then, Champ.

[@vf24renegade23]

A novel approach....earthquake vision so we can't see whats going on, overriding really bad music so we can't hear what's going on and a really annoying way of stretching a 3 second video into eternity. So...just say, try heating it.

[@woodysgarage469]

Thanks for watching sunshine.