RZT50 trans noisy when cold/ first mowing and slower on same side

[mccubbin05]

Hello I have a 06 RTZ50 with kawa engine. One of the trans seems to be alot noisy when cold or when you first start mowing. After it warms up it seems to get better. Also the same side seems slower you have to push the arm more to keep straight line. Also with arms full speed it will drift to the noisy side.it has never slipped on me yet. I have read alot on this web site and have learned alot. Can someone send me the info/diagrams on my trans thats in my mower I could not get it to down load. Also does this hopefully just sound like I need to change the fluids ? Thank you for any opinions and info

 

[BukitCase]

My RZT50's about 4-5 years newer than yours, so not sure if the tranny's are the same - in your reading, did you catch that a worn drive belt will cause the LEFT side to slow down? You didn't mention which side was slower.

Both tranny's on mine are noisy at first, maybe it's just the nature of the beast? I've nothing to compare it to.

I have pdf's of operator, service and parts manual for mine, not sure how big pdf's can be here and they're probably newer than yours, but if you want I can try to upload.

Word of warning - what they tell you to do may NOT be possible in some cases - manual says there is a 1/2" square hole in one of the belt idlers, you're supposed to insert a breaker bar and pull to slack the belt. Problem - the hole is there, but it's half covered up by the idler pulley so it's useless. I took an extra 3/4" drive large socket I'd never use and cut part of the walls of it away, making a tool that fits over the pivot point and grabs the idler bracket. Think I have a drawing I made for someone if you're interested.

I would check your drive belt if it's your LEFT side that's slow - I just replaced my belt for that reason, and it fixed the problem - let me know if you want me to try uploading the 3 manuals... Steve

 

[GBHRPS]

Gentlemen,

I hate to rain on your parade, but you may be looking at replacing the entire hydro drive on the one side of your unit. I've been a member of this forum and another similar forum for years, and have read of the continual failings of the hydro units on the least expensive MTD, Cub Cadet, John Deere, etc., zero turns.

They are not serviceable. There is no way to drain the hydro fluid, change it, or even to get any parts. They are simply changed out for a new one if they go bad, which from my readings, is usually around the 250 - 300 hour mark.

It was the research on this problem that led me to spend more money and purchase a Cub Cadet Z Force, as it has hydro drives that are serviceable. All of the units above the RZT's are serviceable. It seems that most of the other manufacturers have the same non serviceable drives in their entry level mowers, and you need to go upscale to get the reliability and repairability in the hydros.

You may indeed have a slipping belt that is causing your problem, but you need to be aware that the drive may be on its way out. Best of luck with the issue!

 

[mccubbin05]

Ok ya im pretty sure its the left side thats slower. I havent checked the belt or tensioner I will try and check all that this weekend. I could see how that would cause it to be slower but I wouldnt think it would make it alot louder than the other side but im not an expert on these things thats for sure. If I read one of the forums correctly mine is a sealed unit technically none serviceable, but cant you take thes off and drain/fill it through the vent tube or somthing? I thought I read some people trying that sort of a last resort thing. Thanks for the replies and id be glad to look at any pictures or diagrams

 

[BukitCase]

http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/...t-rzt-50-ongoing.html?highlight=rzt50+ongoing

Somewhere around the middle of this thread you'll find a few people who have "done the impossible" - Yes, it's a PITA to do, but this statement
"They are not serviceable. There is no way to drain the hydro fluid, change it, or even to get any parts"
is NOT accurate.

If your "slow" side is the left, the belt change, while relatively irritating, is your best FIRST choice. Also, the tightness of the bolt that the tensioner PIVOTS on is pretty critical. Too tight, it won't keep tension - too loose, and the idler flops around (in and out of plane) and will cause premature belt wear.

IF, like mine, your RZT has the 1/2" square hole in the idler arm but it's NOT accessible, one way to fix that is to make a "special socket" - I used a large 3/4" drive socket from a cheap HF set; one that was NEVER gonna get used for anything else. I cut two notches out of it, shaped like ___\----/____ (in other words, a wide notch with the outer ends narrower than the inner ends, so they will "grab" the two legs of the idler arm and not slip off)

Add a short extension and either a breaker bar or ratchet and you have a tool that actually WORKS, and the long bar makes it nearly effortless to hold the idler out of the way while replacing the belt.

When you "get into" these machines, it's obvious they are "built to a price point", just like the other branded $3k ones you see at Home Depot, etc - if they had the better components of the higher priced units, guess what - they would COST MORE.

Of the "$3k class" machines that were available when I bought mine, the RZT had bigger front tires (slightly better ride, less lawn damage), better engine (Kohler "courage" is on a par with Briggs, my older JD mower had a Kawasaki 14 horse you couldn't kill with a stick so the Kawi twin was a no-brainer for me)

Oh, BTW, I tried to upload the largest of my manuals and got a "corrupted file" msg - it may have just been too large, around 10 megs.

I'll check back on this when I think of it, let me know if I can help further... Steve