Need Help with Blade issue on John Deere LT155

   / Need Help with Blade issue on John Deere LT155 #1  

WHATAVALE

New member
Joined
Jun 28, 2016
Messages
3
Location
clifton va
Tractor
John Deere LT155
Good Morning...So...I have a John Deere LT155 mower with 42" mulching deck....Yesterday I hit a large rock in our yard ...what a racket....I quickly turned the blades off but now only the right blade cuts. When I turned the tractor off and reached under the deck, the blade that cuts has tension on it but the blade that doesn't cut spins freely. Any ideas as to what this could be? I am a woman and want to try and fix myself.

I mowed the rest of the lawn with the one blade that is working. : /

Oh and the Boyfriend doesn't know about this....hopefully I can fix without bothering him. ; )
 
   / Need Help with Blade issue on John Deere LT155 #2  
For one blade to continue to run means the timing belt is still there and functioning, so my guess would be that the non turning blade has a broken spindle.
 
   / Need Help with Blade issue on John Deere LT155
  • Thread Starter
#3  
For one blade to continue to run means the timing belt is still there and functioning, so my guess would be that the non turning blade has a broken spindle.

Thank You so much....Is that something that is easy to replace?
 
   / Need Help with Blade issue on John Deere LT155 #4  
^^^^
Agree at this point.

You may have to remove a cover or two to see the belt and pulley on the top side of the mower deck, but spinning the blade that "doesnt have tension on it" and is not cutting.....look and see if the pulley above it is spinning.

If it is not spinning, it "could" just be the bolt loosened up....check that. Make sure the bolt is tight. If that dont help....yep....broken spindle shaft
 
   / Need Help with Blade issue on John Deere LT155 #5  
I commend you for your determination. :thumbsup: My thought is the spindle bolt #5 has spun in #34 and OR item #5 of the JD parts catalog which you can view here. John Deere - Parts Catalog
Get the boyfriend to help....friends do that. :)
 
   / Need Help with Blade issue on John Deere LT155 #6  
What is your level of mechanical ability and tools at hand.

For me....it would be easy.

For someone with only a pair of pliers and screwdrivers as tools, and no mechanical knowledge, would be next to impossible.

Never worked on your mower, but it looks like you can buy the spindle and bearing housing all as one. So that would require removing the blade off the bottom. Then removing the belt and pulley off the top. After that, looks like 4 nuts unbolt the whole unit from the deck. Then install the new one, put pulley back on, belt, and blade.

John Deere Mower Deck Bearing Housing Assembly - AM144377
 
   / Need Help with Blade issue on John Deere LT155 #7  
Thank You so much....Is that something that is easy to replace?

This particular deck was not the simplest to work on. It uses a timed system to keep the blades out of each others way. As mentioned above, probably start with removing the timing belt cover from the top of the deck to see if you can visually tell what is going on. The blade spindle is not provided with the spindle housing it can only be purchased separately and your dealer will need your s/n to provide the right parts. It could also be that the gear that drives this blade has been damaged and not the spindle. All of this assumes that we are working on the mulching "only" deck and not a 42c or ap deck that has a mulch kit installed. The best advice I can give once repaired for this style of a deck is don't hit anything, they prefer to stay on nice manicured lawns with no obstruction or else they got a tad spendy to work on. The timing belt itself is normally over $70, and there is a fair amount of gears under the cover. That said other than making sure it gets re-timed this project should not be horrible to do. Good luck
 
   / Need Help with Blade issue on John Deere LT155 #8  
I just replaced the spindles, belt and blades on my 155c (48" deck) a couple weeks ago. You can get all the parts on amazon. I think the spindles were about $30 each.

Most of the bolts holding the old spindles to the deck snapped when trying to loosen them. I went to lowes and bought some 8x1.25 metric body bolts to replace them. The new spindles do not come with threaded holes. The body bolts will cut new threads as the spindles are soft AL. I did buy a tap and cut new threads just to be safe.
 
   / Need Help with Blade issue on John Deere LT155
  • Thread Starter
#10  
Thank you all for your help.....I Love and Have tools...not afraid to get my hands dirty...I also am an engineer so I have mechanical ability....just needed help in trouble shooting the potential issue as I am trying to do this myself. Usually my boyfriend handles this type of repairs, but he is laid up with bulging discs and pinched nerves and it would just frustrate him even more not being able to help me.

You all have been so helpful and gave me lots of things to check, but all lean towards the spindle issue so I will start there, checking for loose bolts, non spinning shafts, spindles, gears
etc : )

Wish me luck!
 
 
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