finish mower leaking gear oil

[Jughead3040]

New compact tractor owner...

I have a 72" Sovema finish cut mower, it seems to be pushing gear oil out of the filling plug on the gear box.....both the drain & the filler plug are tight.

so here are a couple questions someone may be able to answer

1) is the gear box supposed to be vented through the filler plug (i.e. the gear box was overfilled at the factory & is just leaking out the excess through the vent)
2) if the box is not vented, what can I use to seal the threads on the plug?

thanks

 

[RoyJackson]

New compact tractor owner...

I have a 72" Sovema finish cut mower, it seems to be pushing gear oil out of the filling plug on the gear box.....both the drain & the filler plug are tight.

so here are a couple questions someone may be able to answer

1) is the gear box supposed to be vented through the filler plug (i.e. the gear box was overfilled at the factory & is just leaking out the excess through the vent)
2) if the box is not vented, what can I use to seal the threads on the plug?

thanks

Do you have a manual? What does it say about filling the gear box...or checking the level.
My guess is it was overfilled at the factory or dealer. When the mower is ran, the lube heats up and expands (out the vent, it appears).

But, see what your manual says first...

Now, the threads... It's probable that those threads are tapered pipe threads. You can use dope or teflon tape.

 

[ToadHill]

Without a manual, I'd suggest the old method. The gearbox should have 2 plugs, a drain plug on the bottom and a fill plug part way up the side. Drain the gearbox, then open the fill hole and fill until lub starts draining out the fill hole then stop.

 

[greg_g]

Best of both worlds is to have the correct amount of fluid AND a vented fill plug. A vented fill plug will look something like a mushroom, and the top will usually spin. The level check plug is usually on the SIDE of the transmission. I recommend
1. If the fill plug is vented, remove it and shake it. If it rattles, it's good. If not (or if it's not vented) replace it.
2. remove the side plug - wait till it stops draining - replace it
3. reinstall the (vented) fill plug
4. clean up the mess

//greg//

 

[Jughead3040]

I suspect it was overfilled at the factory. I likely should just drain & refill to correct level (upper plug). If the oil keeps coming out, I'll look for another solution.

 

[madpogue]

The King Kutters have two plugs "topside", but neither is a drain. There _might_ be a drain below decks; I dunno. Above the deck, the higher plug is the fill plug, and the lower plug is the level check plug. You remove the fill plug to fill it, but you only fill it to the point where it would start coming out the check plug, which is considerably lower. If yours is like this, and it's filled all or most of the way up to the upper plug, it's WAAAAY overfilled. Try removing the lower plug and letting it drain down to that point. But again, that's ONLY if it's the same kind of fill system as the KK. If yours is a KK and you don't have a manual, they're available as PDF files on their web site.

 

[RalphVa]

My LX4 fill plug kept leaking until I wrapped it with teflon tape. Actually, I replaced the fill plug (a really nasty soft metal thing with a TINY little square end on it that quickly just sheared round; managed to finally get it out) with a fine thread bolt that fits nicely. It was the bolt threads that were leaking until I wrapped them with teflon.

The LX4 has a vent on top beside the fill plug. Don't know why they didn't combine the two.

Ralph