Mowing Finally bought a real mower, Cub Cadet 1862

[JimR]

I picked up one of these tractors tonight to rebuild and use for mowing. It has the Kohler 18HP Twin, shaft drive, hydro tranny, power deck lift and power steering. It runs great, goes like a bat out of **** and seems to mow pretty decent. I mowed the seller's lawn in the rain. This mower belonged to his deceased FIL. I got tired of my box store hard to turn MTD steering wheel. I decided it was time to enjoy mowing the grass. I do need to adjust or replace the brakes, adjust the shift linkage, replace the seat cover and deck belt and a few other details to get it back to looking nice again. I may even pull it all apart and paint it all up to look like new. I feel spoiled just sitting on it. Now I have a little brother for my Cub 7275. He wanted $1000.00 for it. I almost passed on it until he said just make me an offer. I need it gone. Of course my offer of $500.00 was the final determining factor on buying this mower.

 

[art]

That was a good buy! Most people don't worry about the brakes other then for parking as the hydro will do the stopping for you!

 

[JimR]

That was a good buy! Most people don't worry about the brakes other then for parking as the hydro will do the stopping for you!

That is what I thought too until I shut it off on in the guys uphill driveway yesterday. We were flying down the driveway backwards before I could even get out of the seat, Yeeha, that too may have been what made the guy say, Get rid of it. I was just out looking at the mower deck. I had the best laugh that I have had in a long time. The three mower blades are installed upside down.

 

[Dave01]

That's a great buy on an 1862! The brakes might just need the linkage adjusted, which is very easy, it tells you how in the operators manual. If that doesn't do it you'll need new pads, I've never replaced them but should be fairly easy. Like you found out, the brakes need to be in good working order, otherwise someone might get hurt.

I really like my 1864, I've come to believe that this series is one of the great values today in used tractors. If you like power steering, tight turning radius, Kohler Command power, and a bulletproof hydro the 1990 to 1997 garden tractor series is a good choice, you can buy a tractor worth $6,000 plus new for $1000-$1500 (only lucky guys like you find them for $500!) that can run another 20 years. Enjoy your new tractor and let us know what you find on the brakes.

 

[JimR]

Dave, I think the brake problem is rusted rotors or sticking pads. I see that the brake pedal does not have a direct connection to the brake calipers. There is a spring in between the linkage and calipers. I will try cleaning them up to see if it helps. If that doesn't work I'll try adjusting the links or replace the two brake springs. I'm starting to believe that this machine has been sitting outside for many years unused. I was out playing around and using the mower this afternoon. The hour meter turned 272 hours. I chipped off a lot of rust on the deck pulleys today. I am replacing them with new ones as soon as they come in. I could only get one spindle pulley locally and had to order the other spindle pulley. The inner main double pulley looks pretty good. I also picked up an oil and hydro filter for it and will be changing out the fluids this week. I am truly impressed with how fast this tractor is. It really flies down the road. I love the hydraulic deck height adjustment. I hate the reverse PTO disconnect and the seat safety. Both of those are getting disconnected if possible. I did do some research on the values of these tractors. A nice machine even with 1000+ hours still sell for $2000.00. Mine has been abused a bit and has seen a lot of outdoor weather. I hope to be able to sandblast the deck down this winter and repaint it Cub Cadet yellow. I might even do the whole tractor over this winter if I can make some space in my garage. I'll probably rebuild the deck spindles at that time also. All three have a little bit of up and down play in them. I know there are tapered bearings in the spindles unlike the roller bearings in my Powerkraft (MTD). I didn't find any leaks underneath it today. That made me very happy. The Kohler motor is a strong engine. I like it better than my 18HP B&S.

 

[JimR]

I jacked up the tractor today and pulled the rear wheels. I disconnected the safety switch under the seat and started the motor up. I put it in gear and let it run full speed forward while I sanded the brake discs clean. I locked up one wheel and did the other brake disc then switched to do the other. The brakes were not frozen and the pads are in great condition. The linkage was loose as a goose. I adjusted both brake links by four turns. The brakes work fine and hold the tractor on my steep driveway without any problem. I also changed the hydro fluid and filter. The fluid looked really good. The filter looked like it had been on the tractor since 1991. The engine oil was disgusting. I also greased it all up. I have two things I need to fix now. The PTO kicks out when I hit a big bump while mowing. I think there must be a loose wire somewhere. The other problem is the steering has a hard spot when the wheels are straight forward. The steering wheel or something else is catching. I didn't have time to check that out today. I'll have to jck it up to see what the problem may be. It could be a rusted king pin for all I know. I greased up the king pins, front wheels and center pivot bolt on the front axle. I replaced the spark plugs too. The electrodes looked like new. The rust on the outside of the plugs and on the tip where the plug wire goes on made the plugs look like they may be 10 years old or more. It does have a new battery (wrong one) new starter solenoid, a new air filter and two fairly new rear tires. I took it out after all of that and did some mowing with it. I would have done some more work to it today. But I promised to buy a new gas grill and set it up today for my wife for Mother's Day. I do not have an owners manual for this tractor. How often do you change the engine oil and filter on this motor?

 

[Dave01]

Jim, it sounds like you really lucked out, not much at all to be fixed on that tractor. I think your PTO cut-out problem might not be wiring, it might just be the seat switch. Sometimes if I'm mowing, maybe leaning forward a bit or going downhill, and hit a bump the seat jumps just enough to trip the switch and shut down the PTO. You might be able to adjust that, I've never done so. Just moving the seat forward a notch might fix that problem. Start the PTO and bounce on the seat a bit to see if I'm right.

 

[JimR]

Jim, it sounds like you really lucked out, not much at all to be fixed on that tractor. I think your PTO cut-out problem might not be wiring, it might just be the seat switch. Sometimes if I'm mowing, maybe leaning forward a bit or going downhill, and hit a bump the seat jumps just enough to trip the switch and shut down the PTO. You might be able to adjust that, I've never done so. Just moving the seat forward a notch might fix that problem. Start the PTO and bounce on the seat a bit to see if I'm right.

I didn't know that the other switch was for the PTO. I do have the kill switch disconnected on the left side. I bet that switch is what the problem is. It really is a pain in the butt when your mowing. I'm also going to move the reverse mower cutout switch. I tried unplugging it. The mower will not start without it plugged in. There are way too many safety switches on this tractor. I wish they never installed any of them. I do realize that these switches were all added features to prevent injuries. Or better yet to CTA in case of lawsuits. They are in fact a time consuming PITA as far as I am concerned. I get off my seat, the motor shuts off, the PTO disengages. I go backwards to mow that small spot I just missed and the PTO disengages.
I'll get them all figured out eventually and disconnect most of them. I will leave the brake pedal/engine start alone.

How often do you change your oil and filter?

 

[Dave01]

If the brake is locked, the engine will stay running when you get out of the seat, but if the brake is up the engine will stop. The PTO disengages in either case. When you bounce quickly on the seat, the blip is enough to drop the PTO since its just an electric circuit, but the engine will just miss or not even notice the quick interrupt. At least that's what mine does.

I won't argue the safety switch issue, I've just decided its a personal decision, to each his own. For me, I like the brake switch and the seat switch, but won't put up with the reverse safety switch. You'll find that to be about a 20 second fix when you look closer.

I don't put all that many hours on in a season, so I just change the oil + filter at the end of each season.

Here's a link to your operator's manual:

http://www.ihregistry.com/manuals/op/1861.pdf

 

[JimR]

If the brake is locked, the engine will stay running when you get out of the seat, but if the brake is up the engine will stop. The PTO disengages in either case. When you bounce quickly on the seat, the blip is enough to drop the PTO since its just an electric circuit, but the engine will just miss or not even notice the quick interrupt. At least that's what mine does.

I won't argue the safety switch issue, I've just decided its a personal decision, to each his own. For me, I like the brake switch and the seat switch, but won't put up with the reverse safety switch. You'll find that to be about a 20 second fix when you look closer.

I don't put all that many hours on in a season, so I just change the oil + filter at the end of each season.

Here's a link to your operator's manual:

http://www.ihregistry.com/manuals/op/1861.pdf

Dave, Thanks for the link to the manual. I just printed it out. It makes sense about the brake pedal having to be locked down to keep it running too. I did see that the reverse switch can be fixed very easily. I noticed in the owners manual that the turning radius is 25 inches. I'm going to have to check out my steering. Mine has about a 5-6 foot turning radius.