Who knows about fixing a riding mower?

[Guest FIST]

I have a Bolens riding mower that is a money pit. My most recent issue is there seems to be no power when driving on an un even surface or very very small incline. I am thinking belts but not 100% yet.

[10-Ring]

Slipping of the drive belt would be the first thing that I would check.

[Guest FIST]

so would it be a waste to replace the drive belt?

[Show]

Mine did the same thing two months ago. Drive belt slipping, turned out it was just the rear one but I replaced both. You will pay out the nose at lowes etc. Check out rural king or tsc.

[UncleJak]

I have fixed mine Bolens twice. It is most likely the drive belt(as stated above). If you have some decent tools and a few hours you should be able to change it yourself. The most important thing is to get the stupid deck back on exactly as it was before you removed it. I learned this the hard way

If you have any specific questions, feel free to pm me,

[Guest FIST]

Mine did the same thing two months ago. Drive belt slipping, turned out it was just the rear one but I replaced both. You will pay out the nose at lowes etc. Check out rural king or tsc.

What were they going for at Lowes? The best price I found online was 25 bucks for both belts in the drive system and 35 for the deck belt.

I have fixed mine Bolens twice. It is most likely the drive belt(as stated above). If you have some decent tools and a few hours you should be able to change it yourself. The most important thing is to get the stupid deck back on exactly as it was before you removed it. I learned this the hard way

If you have any specific questions, feel free to pm me,

I will take you up on the advice, I'll probably start it Saturday. Any special tools in particular?

[hornett22]

Seems a lot of new mowers don't have adjustments for belt tension. You have to just replace the belt. Unless you're handy of course. Then you could make a tensioner for it.

[Fourtyfive]

Are all Bolens hydrostatic ? My father-in -laws needed fluid once as I recall.

[Mike.357]

If you have not looked it is possible that the belt simply jumped off of the spring loaded tensioner.

Mine is a lowly mtd but the belt jumps off from time to time.

I also apply belt dressing several times a year. It helps.

For special tools you might need a torque wrench.

I had my drive belt replaced at a small motor shop. The owners manual recommended using a air gun to remove the bolt holding the main spindlle in place. That scared me off of doing it myself.

[Guest FIST]

I picked up the belt today and probably will dive into it first thing tomorrow. I only have about 400 invested in the mower so I don't mind tinkering on it.

[enfield]

No they're not all hydrostatic -- I've used a belt-drive Bolens.

The drive and deck belts should have tensioners, otherwise it's hard to get any life out of a belt and even harder to install one. The belt stretches the first time you spin it.

[UncleJak]

I fixed mine with ratchets, screwdrivers, and a big hammer

[Guest FIST]

So I replaced the belt and no difference in performance. There are a few springs down there that look like they might increase tension on the belt so I'm going to poke around at that next.

[56FordGuy]

Mine is a lowly mtd but the belt jumps off from time to time.

Most all of them are, these days. The modern Bolens is a far cry from the good ole days. If it's not made by MTD, it's usually AYP (American Yard Products). There's one more, maybe Great American Products? They buy up the names of good old garden tractors, then slap them on cheap junk. If it's at a big box store, it's usually no different from the stuff at the next box store down the street, regardless of the name on the hood.

As for the air gun, that's just for convenience. You can hold the main pulley with one hand and run the air gun with the other to break the bolt loose, using hand tools makes it a more difficult process.

[UncleJak]

As for the air gun, that's just for convenience. You can hold the main pulley with one hand and run the air gun with the other to break the bolt loose, using hand tools makes it a more difficult process.

That is where the hammer comes in...

[hornett22]

Almost everything is made by AYP or MTD. The drive pulleys on the tranny are known to get wollowed out around the shaft and wobble which will cause the belt to jump off. should be a Tuff Torque trans.

Edited June 22, 2012 by hornett22