Just got a ZD326S

[jcummins]

I looked at it again, found the shaft between the transmission and the motor, but greasing zerks through that hole..???...what a design. I called the service manager this time, he said yep that is what it's for, but they grease that shaft from the bottom, with the mower on a fork lift. That is what I'm going to do to, by backing the mower up on ramps. Haven't done so yet, but that is my intention. We'll see how that works.

I grease everything, just a little each time, about every 10 hours. Easy to remember using the hour meter that way. But those zerks I won't hit but every 50 hours. I don't even know why they have them. That shaft is a straight shot between the transmission and the motor. Service manager said almost every mower that they pull the motor on, the u joints where froze, since no one knows they are there and suppose to be grease. Short of it, if you never grease them, bet nothing would ever happen, but it would bother me to no end if I didn't grease them, at least a little.

On greasing a question. I have one zerk that has gone bad, the little ball is gone. I went to TSC, but could not easily match the zerk size. I suspect these are metric. Does anyone know the size zerk on these. The one that went bad was on the spindle.

 

[gregkabob]

I didn't have a problem with greasing the zerk on the u-joint through the hole. Once I rotated the shaft the zerk was straight up. Now the one that is on the shaft I just layed down on the ground and got that one easily.

If they put a hole to get to the grease fitting they could have made the hole bigger.

 

[jcummins]

I just looked at this again. I didn't think that shaft would rotate that way with it attached to the motor. I did manage to grease the front u joint thru that hole...the one on the shaft was much tougher. . The one on the back u joint was impossible. I could have got it from the side in front of the oil filter, but I would have had to trade out the flexible shaft on the grease gun with a longer solid one. At my 50hr mark, I'll check the access on the ground with it on ramps. I think it will be easier that way. Right now it's still way to humid to tackle that.

 

[Johnbro]

We bought a ZD326 w/ 60" deck for my wife's brand new landscaping business. To get used to it I've been mowing our place and a neighbor's (yeah, I'm a pretty nice neighbor).

Great mower! Cut my mowing time on my own place from a couple of hours to about 30 minutes or so, compared to my White 42" POS rider. Good tip about tire pressures, I'll check them.

 

[gregkabob]

Johnbro,

I'm laughing because I also have a POS White mower :laughing: that now will be going to the trash pile..... I know there's a spindle going out so I'll retire it.