Hopefully I can use all of this info to get my Cub working well enough to sell it. I bought it in 2011 with 300 hours on it. I almost loved it at first. My 1 acre of yard is the side of a hill. The mower cut great and when one rear tire got cut, I replaced both with knobby atv tires. It worked much better to turn and mow. I was happy with it that first season. The next season was full of problems. I replaced the blades and spindles, and it worked again for a bit, then I had to replace the deck belt. It seems everytime I use it something else breaks. I've replaced/rebuilt the spindles 3 times (once was due to a rock though). It is on it's fifth set of blades. Replaced all the deck pulleys. Last year I had to re-weld the deck pulley mounts, several times to get the right angle to not wreck the belt. As soon as I got the deck working right again, the left hydro started acting up. First it didn't want to go in reverse, then it had no power going forward. The season ended, and I put it away and forgot about it. I can say the briggs 22hp motor has never given me the slightest trouble, always starts and runs great.
Fast forward to this year with 380 hours on it. I got it out, changed the oil, lubed everything, replaced another spindle, replaced the blades, and mowed the small portion of yard that the grass has already started growing on. I promptly got stuck in a corner of the fence. I couldn't back up, and the left hydro wouldn't pivot it out up hill. I pulled it out and carefully finished the small area in the fence. I topped off the hydros fluid through the vent, and tested. It didn't seem to make any difference. The left hydro still doesn't have much power. Once moving it will go full speed, but doesn't like to get going. I intend to pull both hydros out, drain and flush the fluid, and put them back in with a new 57" belt after reading several forum pages on the subject. Hopefully it will take care of the problem, and I can sell it with a clear conscience.
Anyway, even while I loved it that first season, (it was a huge step up from the old junky rider I had), I always thought it was not right for my place. It just never worked quite right with my yard on a hill. I believe it would work a lot better on a flat, more open, yard. I went out an bought an older, 1995, John Deere 345 with a liquid cooled 18hp kawasaki motor, power steering, and hydrostatic drive for just less than I paid for the cub 4 years ago. So I'm going to try and fix the cub up to work good again and sell it. Hopefully I can get $1,000 out of it without having to replace a hydro. What do you all think, as I would expect most of you have much more experience than I with these things.