GBHRPS
Bronze Member
I bought a Z-Force 48 about 3 weeks ago and have used it 4 times. Quite a learning curve from my 23 year JD 175 Hydro!
Anyway, after one event each mowing where the drive belt to the deck has hopped off the deck pulley, today it occurred twice and I decided to fix it for good. Anyone who has a similar unit with the same problem might try this simple fix.
After removing the deck from under the tractor and searching for a fix, I figured that the two idler pulleys had to be the culprits. It may have been just one of the two, but I figured to fix both would save another tear down.
The stationary idler pulled sits on a spacer about 3 inches above the top of the deck. On the side of the idler where the drive belt sits onto the pulley, I drilled a hole through the deck for a quarter inch by 4 inch long bolt to fit, so that the bolt's shaft was just an eighth of an inch outside of the pulley when fastened. Placing the belt on the pulley, I then put a flat washer and nut above and below the deck on the bolt and tightened them against each other. Now the belt cannot come off the pulley.
The other idler pulley is on a swinging bracket that allows the pulley to contact the backside of the belt, and when its spring tensioner assembly is locked in place, it takes up the slack in the belt. On my unit, the swinging bracket that this idler pulley is attached to, has an extension that has a predrilled hole in it, at the exact location where an inch and three quarter long stove bolt can be used to lock the belt onto the pulley. It looks like the factory may have had this as an option but decided against using it. Once again I loaded the belt onto the pulley, and then put a stove bolt through the bracket, fitted an inch long three eighths hollow steel tubing over the bolt, a washer and then a nut. (The steel tube won't cut the belt like the raw threads of the bolt would, I'm guessing.)
Then I reinstalled the deck under the tractor, slipped the belt over the PTO, stretched it forward and forced the belt over the deck drive pulley as I turned it. It is a muscle job to get it on, but once on and the belt tensioner properly locked, there should be no way for the belt to fly off by itself anymore.
I cut the remaining half of my lawn with no more belt issues. Only time will tell if this completely solves my problem, but I believe the issue will not return.
Anyway, after one event each mowing where the drive belt to the deck has hopped off the deck pulley, today it occurred twice and I decided to fix it for good. Anyone who has a similar unit with the same problem might try this simple fix.
After removing the deck from under the tractor and searching for a fix, I figured that the two idler pulleys had to be the culprits. It may have been just one of the two, but I figured to fix both would save another tear down.
The stationary idler pulled sits on a spacer about 3 inches above the top of the deck. On the side of the idler where the drive belt sits onto the pulley, I drilled a hole through the deck for a quarter inch by 4 inch long bolt to fit, so that the bolt's shaft was just an eighth of an inch outside of the pulley when fastened. Placing the belt on the pulley, I then put a flat washer and nut above and below the deck on the bolt and tightened them against each other. Now the belt cannot come off the pulley.
The other idler pulley is on a swinging bracket that allows the pulley to contact the backside of the belt, and when its spring tensioner assembly is locked in place, it takes up the slack in the belt. On my unit, the swinging bracket that this idler pulley is attached to, has an extension that has a predrilled hole in it, at the exact location where an inch and three quarter long stove bolt can be used to lock the belt onto the pulley. It looks like the factory may have had this as an option but decided against using it. Once again I loaded the belt onto the pulley, and then put a stove bolt through the bracket, fitted an inch long three eighths hollow steel tubing over the bolt, a washer and then a nut. (The steel tube won't cut the belt like the raw threads of the bolt would, I'm guessing.)
Then I reinstalled the deck under the tractor, slipped the belt over the PTO, stretched it forward and forced the belt over the deck drive pulley as I turned it. It is a muscle job to get it on, but once on and the belt tensioner properly locked, there should be no way for the belt to fly off by itself anymore.
I cut the remaining half of my lawn with no more belt issues. Only time will tell if this completely solves my problem, but I believe the issue will not return.