Pedals on Z force S 48 quit working

[galevin]

I bought a used RZT and a Z force S 48. The RZT was okay but that Z force S 48 stole my heart. I love this machine. Great for my hills and slopes. This thing is a beast. Unfortunately when I was using it today the pedals quit working as if something in the linkage had broken or failed. The pedals would depress with no action. No forward. No reverse. The PTO would still work. The engine would still start but the mower would not move. Looking at the linkage from the side did not show anything broken. I'm new to riding mowers and wondering if this is a simple repair I can do or do I need to take this to a dealer? I need to get this fixed asap so I can finish the yard. Appreciate any and all help.
Thanks
Gerald

 

[OldMachinist]

Did the belt that drives the pumps break?

 

[BukitCase]

That would be my first guess also - my RZT50 threw the drive belt when I got into some small sticks - one got thrown up into the drive belt area, and it "derailed" the belt - in the process, it also removed all but 3 of the fan blades on one tranny.

If your belt is off or broken, I would carefully count the fan blades on both drive tranny's, if even ONE is missing you'll need to order a replacement. Those tranny's are kinda marginal as is, and won't take kindly to ANY lack of cooling... Steve

(That's also the reason the operator manual says to run it at full throttle always, and slow down by NOT pushing the levers as far)

 

[galevin]

That is exactly what happened. The drive belt came off. After checking it I found a spot in the drive belt that was very worn and about to break so I am having a new drive belt installed. I took it to a repair shop and they had to order the belt and should have it fixed in the next day or two. In regards to the fan blades on the drive tranny's, can this be seen easily by looking at the tranny's or does this need to be seen during assembly/disassembly? The reason I'm asking is this will be repaired shortly and can I inspect this myself with no disassembly? Would this be an easy part to replace if I needed a new fan blade or should I have my shop check this and replace this while they have it? Many thanks for the help as I love how this mower works my slopes.

 

[GBHRPS]

galevin,

Crawl under the rear of the tractor and you'll see each of those fans. Its a good idea to clean the grass and debris that collects on the sides of the drive motors near them.

Changing the drive belts, or the motor to deck belt, or the deck blade belt is a task anyone can do. My advice would be to check your owner's manual (or download one for free from CC). As well, when you pick up the mower from the shop, have them order a complete set of belts for the unit and store them.

It never fails. The next one to break will be when you're half way through cutting the lawn, and the dealership will be closed, and you are scheduled to go away for a week the very next day. Having spare belts at your disposal can save the day. Ask me how I know!