OT - John Deere 160 Dive Belt Adjustment

[Colin King]

My mid-80s JD 160 lawn tractor will not move in 4th or 5th, and moves slowly in reverse. 1-3 work fine.

I am thinking that the trouble is either with low fluid in the transmission or an out of adjustment drive belt.

The transmission option seems to be out, as it appears to be sealed and lubrication is not an option according to my service manual.

I cannot find any instructions in the service manual for making adjustments to the drive belt. The only reference to drive belt adjustment is followed by a "See Your John Deere Dealer." Grrr. I don't like that idea.

Any thoughts, pointers, tips, would be appreciated.

Thanks,
Colin, MN
 

[Bob Harvey]

I had a similar problem with an old unit that I had. There is an adjustment on the idler pulley that you could check. Worked for me. Same thing, manual was 'sketchy'. HTH
 

[oldtanker]

Colin, try asking this over on weekend freedom machines (one word) dot com. It's only for JD lawn and garden tractors.

Rick
 

[Colin King]

Thanks, Rick. I'll check it out. I think there's a garden tractor forum on this site too...?

Any signs of spring your way yet? I heard some geese yesterday morning, which was nice.

Colin
 

[Colin King]

Bob, Do you recall where that idler pulley was? Did you find it necessary to remove the mower deck to get to it?

Thanks!
Colin
 

[Bob Harvey]

Didn't have to remove the deck,but blocked the unit up off the ground a bit. IIRC it was in fact an idler that was operated by the clutch pedal and used to tighten the belt for engagement. HTH
 

[Colin King]

Great, thanks Bob! Much appreciated!

Colin
 

[oldtanker]

yea it's starting to melt a little, I think I found my trailer! One fender is sticking out of the snow!

Rick
 

[Bob Harvey]

Hope it works out for you. My unit was an older odd brand that I got 8 yrs. out of, but the systems are pretty much the same. b
 

[tcjd160]

I installed my new belt and it worked great. 2 wks later I couldnt go up the smallest of incline. 4 th and 5th gone. I had an oil leak and the belt seemed a little loose too, but it would go up to 3rd gear. The tensioner pulley is located next to the main engine shaft. It just slides with no springs. Adjusted and now I mowing in 4th again. It was just loose enough and the oil made it slip. The bottom main leak will be fun to fix though...