Newbie just bought first lawn mower RZT 50, needs love

[Farmingusa]

Hi I just bought my first lawnmower, a cub cadet RZT 50. It has the Kawasaki engine. I got it from craigslist for $850. It has 97.9 hours. From what I can tell it's been garaged, but maintenance has been about zero. It needs two new front tires, at least a tune up, some love, and who knows what else.

What front tires should I get? I read that using tubes is most reliable, is this the case? I see its missing a few bolts here and there, has no battery, is low on oil, and blades look like crap. I want to give this machine what it needs without breaking the bank. What oil is best for this machine? Do you haave a source for a PDF manual? What about blades? When I buy parts I usually toggle between ebay and amazon and have gotten pretty good deals. Is there another place I should look?

Any other tips before tearing into this thing and pretending I know what I'm doing? Thanks a lot.

It really is my first mower, never owned a tractor either. Somehow I feel like I still got a good deal, and I'm stoked I didn't end up with a $799 mower from Walmart. Even if it means putting some hard work into it.

 

[rcbe]

If your trannies and engine are still in decent shape, you may have a diamond in the rough. Some tips: 1) Lay off the washdowns !! Do a spongebath very sparingly to remove grease/grime and leaf blower for loose trash instead. L&G eqpt just wont take getting wet.
2) locate the I D plate/decal on the unit and get the FULL model # and serial #; go to website PDF Manual Web Archive enter that data and d/l pdf copies of manual and parts list, also mebbe engine info. Use all that info to work up a "refurbishment plan". I would go over the machine head to toe = not only to fully check it out, but to become fully familiar with it.
If the ground you plan to mow is rough or has stickers/thorns/etc., would definitely elect for fr tire tubes. Beyond that, pay close attention to yer tire pressures both fr and rear, and keep both fr and both rears equal (will help strg)
Blades - sandy soil, low lift. clay/heavy soil, hi lift. CC offer good blades, but not cheap. Gator blades (Oregon Chain) is another good source.
As to condition, 2 things to look for: a) cutting edge not chipped/rounded b) lift wings not missing or partially worn away. If you see either, time to replace - and dble-chk with yer manual as to procedure.. every mfgr has their own little routine.

Develop a routine. Alway chk engine oil before starting engine. Always visually chk tires for air. Let engine warm up a minute or so before going to full load/full RPM. Mow at full RPM. let unit come to a stop before going into reverse (will save yer trannies). cut no more that i/3 of grass height per pass ( will keep yer deck from plugging up and leaving a messy job). Let engine cool down when thru by running at 1/3 idle for a minute or two before shutting off. ALWAYS blow cutting/trash off unit and deck before putting away. DO NOT leave out in weather.

On the Kawa engine: also think with the model # info off the engine you can go to the Kawa website and d/l tech info for it so as to get correct oil grade/type, etc... as you have around 100 hrs on it now, it's beyond breakin - mebbe time to switch over to synthetic oil?

good luck; take care of it, it'll take care of you.

 

[ustmd]

I have the same mower, over 400 hours and so far minimal problems.

AS for the front tires, we have a lot of mesquite and I got tired of plugging holes, so I did a solid tire retrofit on the front tires (I think I got them for either Northern Tool or Amazon). I had to do some work with spacers and washers on the axles, but it has worked out great. The ride is a little more rough and I give up some traction during turns (especially in wet grass), but never have a flat now.

 

[Farmingusa]

Thanks a lot for all the good advice! So far I got these items all from ebay;

Two new lug nuts (had 2 missing) $11.98

Mulch plate $39.99

Oregon mulching blades $35.84

5 pack of fuel filters $5.69

4 sparks plugs BPR4ES SOLID $11.47

Oil filter $5.29

Air filter with prefilter $13.00

Two inner tubes for front 13x5.00-6 with TR13 stem $15.70

Two new Carlisle straight rib tires 4 PLY 13x5.00-6 $59.89

I really hope I made a good choice with the tire/tube combo I went with. I figured I'd pick up a tube of mobil-1 grease and grease up all the fittings. What oil do you think would be the best to run? Still trying to find a good manual for this model 17A12ACP056 but no luck. I did find a parts manual, and I see it has an oil screen. I wonder how hard this is to replace?

 

[Farmingusa]

Well my 10yr old nephew and I took out the deck, blades, and 1 bad spindle. This mower was FULL of crust. We removed enough debris from this mower to fill a 55 gallon drum. I realize getting it wet was not ideal but I don't think there was another option. I just spent about 5 hours cleaning this thing, seriously. I took a blower and dried it afterwards.

Should I just replace the one spindle, or should I replace all three?

What oil is best for this thing?

ALSO, is it normal to take 2 adults to push this thing? Does it not have neutral? I have the e-brake off, deck lever all the way up, tried everything in different positions including the PTO switch but this thing is a ***** to move. Is this normal????

 

[DuckSlayer1017]

There may be a way to disengage the two hydro drives, check the manual. As far as oil I use Mobil 1 10W-40 in all my small engines.

 

[BukitCase]

Not sure if size is too big for TBN, but here goes - No way, TBN's limit for pdf's is 1 meg. phooey...

So here's the page you need, guess you'll have to find a download somewhere else, sorry -... Steve

Oh, and with those bypasses pulled out the mower's a BIT more movable - otherwise, it'll skid the tires (and possibly damage the hydro's)

 

[GBHRPS]

farmingusa,

Buckitcase has the goods on moving the unit by hand. Each hydro drive has a rod sticking out the rear of the tractor that is bent down (see his pics with the smaller arrows pointing to it. Lift the rod up and pull it straight rearward until the welded washer on the rod comes out of the hole in the frame. Do this on both hydros and you can push the unit around freely.

Obviously you need to put the rods back into place when you go to run the tractor. Good luck with your new toy!

 

[rau2009sch]

My experieice with tires is pull those tubes out the first flat you have, and leave them out. Then run it tube-less. Put in plenty enough Slime, do what the bottle tells you, and don't put in too little. The Slime ought to fix most leaks. For bigger leaks, go to Wally-World and get a plug patcher kit, back in the tire aisle, by the autmmotive tires. If you can see a bigger leak, plug it, it's really easy to do, REAL easy. And the Slime will also help seal up around the plugs. I have done this in my Cub Cadet, on my Troy-bilt, and my bigger Massey Ferguson and IHC farm tractors. Works, and best part is you never have to take tires off and haul to the tire repair shop. Works.

 

[rcbe]

My experieice with tires is pull those tubes out the first flat you have, and leave them out. Then run it tube-less. Put in plenty enough Slime, do what the bottle tells you, and don't put in too little. The Slime ought to fix most leaks. For bigger leaks, go to Wally-World and get a plug patcher kit, back in the tire aisle, by the autmmotive tires. If you can see a bigger leak, plug it, it's really easy to do, REAL easy. And the Slime will also help seal up around the plugs. I have done this in my Cub Cadet, on my Troy-bilt, and my bigger Massey Ferguson and IHC farm tractors. Works, and best part is you never have to take tires off and haul to the tire repair shop. Works.

with that crap in there, you can't adjust the PSI well.. and obviously you never have yer had to replace a tire with that gunk in it. The plugs are OK if installed correctly...