Need help with JD Mower

[fasteddie]

My son inherited a John Deere L100 mower . He did some work on it to get it started , etc . When he engaged the blades , it didn't cut anything . I took a look and figured the belt was worn and loose . Nick bought a new belt and put it on yesterday . The problem is ..... when the blades are engaged the mower engine cuts out . He is trying to engage them while in neutral . The belt install looks right but I sent him a text this am to check and see if the belt is installed properly . Any ideas ?  

[Jeremy K]

Did you spin the blades by hand with no belt on to see if something is bound up?

[mowin]

If it's a electric PTO, it could be the PTO switch.  Had mine go south a few times over the years. Mower runs great, hit the switch, and nothing happens... 

[Jeremy K]

I had to Google the model to see what kind it was and come up with some reading about disabling the safety switch on the end of the engage lever ,or obviously replacing if jumping that switch turns out to fix the problem. Is there a safety switch under the seat as well that could make the system think the blades are supposed to move but cut out because it thinks the rider bailed?

Edited June 25, 2017 by Jeremy K

[mowin]

18 minutes ago, Jeremy K said:

I had to Google the model to see what kind it was and come up with some reading about disabling the safety switch on the end of the engage lever ,or obviously replacing if jumping that switch turns out to fix the problem. Is there a safety switch under the seat as well that could make the system think the blades are supposed to move but cut out because it thinks the rider bailed?

Ok, so disregard my previous post since JK did his homework and this model has a engage lever not a electric PTO. 

So I agree with him that there's a switch under the seat or the reverse switch that's bad. 

Seat sould be easy to test. Start mower and get off. If it stalls, switch is working.

That mower shuts the deck off once the gear shift is put in reverse. Some mowers there's a way to override that system. On my brothers craftsman, you had to turn the key further to keep the deck on while backing up. 

[fasteddie]

1) Blades spin freely 

2) Seat switch has been jumped so it stays running if the rider gets off .

3) The mower cuts out when the blades are trying to be engaged IN NEUTRAL 

4) Jeremy - where did you find anything about a  safety switch on the end of the engage lever  ? I have GOOGLED all kinds of things with no luck . Can't get a PDF or anything unless I buy a manual .....

Thanks for the ideas ............

[mowin]

Little clarification.  When you say the mower cuts out when trying to engage the blades, your meaning the engine? Or the blades try/start to turn, but the deck shuts down and engine keeps running? 

If the engine shuts down, I'm leaning towards seat switch. I know you said it's jumped, but try plugging it back in and see what happens.

[Contender]

Hey Fastone,

I would disconnect the belt that drives the deck and then try to engage the blades with no load. If it still stalls , then some kind of safety switch or sensor is bad somewhere.

If it stays running  with the belt disconnected I would guess something in the deck is binding or the engine doesn't have enough power to react to the sudden load change. Could be just improper carb adjustments , plugged or restricted fuel supply, or something in the governor system. If these engines still have a butterfly, that could be stuck. Has a new spark plug been installed?

Try that and if it still doesn't work then say the hell with it and just don't cut the grass. It will get covered up in the winter anyway  .

Good luck

 

[fasteddie]

9 hours ago, mowin said:

Little clarification.  When you say the mower cuts out when trying to engage the blades, your meaning the engine? Or the blades try/start to turn, but the deck shuts down and engine keeps running? 

If the engine shuts down, I'm leaning towards seat switch. I know you said it's jumped, but try plugging it back in and see what happens.

The engine shuts down when engaging the blades with the new belt . It didn't shut down with the old belt that was stretched and loose which didn't turn the blades . 

[grampy]

I have the 111. Try cleaning and lube with Tri-Flow the tensoin pulley and bracket. It is attatached to the rod that is connected to the engage lever. Had a similar problem with mine last year, and thats what I did to fix it. Tried a few other things first. But that was what fixed the problem. Good luck!

[New York Hillbilly]

I agree with whats being said about the seat/safety switch.

Just taking a stab here: But, in your case, you say the old belt was stretched and loose, so double check the belt tension arm (has a spring on it, or a least did on all mine) and see if it has an adjustment on it. It's the lever that you release the pulley to fit the belt on and off. 

If the belt tension lever is adjusted to make up for the slack of the old belt, maybe when you re-engage the spring lever with the new belt it is just too tight and is seizing up.  If not that, double check how you have the belt on the pulleys. 

Best of luck!

[growalot]

Go  to you tube..everyone fixes everything with cams rolling...I'm sure someone has a clip out there on this...

[fasteddie]

I stopped in to the JD dealership in East Avon this am on my way to Geneseo . I talked to a woman in the Service Dept about the problem . She said that if the battery is weak that it could cause it to stall . I said " WHAT " ? She said it takes a lot of juice when engaging the blades . She also said that if the clutch bearings are bad , that it could be the problem . She seemed quite confident in her diagnosis but I was waiting for her to try to sell me some turn signal fluid . I know for a fact that the battery "is" in bad shape as my son has a jump start gadget that he has to hook up to the mower to start it ....... thanks for the responses . 

[dbHunterNY]

sure dealerships would love to sell you something but they aren't all bad.  tractor dealerships don't seem to be like car dealerships.  those suckers will take you for all you've got.  i'd go with what she said.  they know.  clutch bearings would make sense. but you'd probably feel play at the drive pulley.  all I know is I had a good but old JD that came from a dealer.  it would kind of overheat and shutdown.  couldn't mow for more than 15 minutes.  I got a CubCadet Z-force zero turn from a dealer and thing I feel will run for ever.

[mowin]

 

Ok are u positive this model is a lever engage deck? 

a lever engage doesn't have clutch bearings as there's no clutch. Most just tighten up the drive belt to the deck pully.  

Try keeping the jumper cables hooked up and then try the engage lever. 

 

[fasteddie]

2 hours ago, mowin said:

 

Ok are u positive this model is a lever engage deck? 

a lever engage doesn't have clutch bearings as there's no clutch. Most just tighten up the drive belt to the deck pully.  

Try keeping the jumper cables hooked up and then try the engage lever. 

 

1) yes , it has a lever engage deck 

2) The mower is a 5 speed with a clutch that has to be depressed to shift 

3) When I get a chance , I will take my spare battery down and put it in my son's mower and see if it makes a difference 

4) All of the pulleys will move freely if no pressure is placed on the belt - nothing binding 

[grampy]

5) The tension pulley bracket is moving when the lever is engaged and disengaged? 

[mowin]

Check to see what the engage lever actually moves.  If it's basically tightens the belt to engage the deck, then the transmission clutch is a separate unit. 

 

[Culvercreek hunt club]

Eddie, Is there a yellow button (back up safety switch) that needs to be pushed to back up? If that seat switch is on good order I would bet a drink on a malfunctioning backup safety switch or the wiring coming from it

Edited June 27, 2017 by Culvercreek hunt club

[WNYBuckHunter]

I had an L108 until recently. I ran a dead battery that I had to jump start every time for an entire year before one of the cells went bad and I had to replace it. It is absolutely not a battery problem that hes having. The seat switch wouldnt be it either, mine was jumped at one point, it mowed with no issue. This mower does not have an electric clutch either, it has an engagement lever.

I would bet that Culver has it right, its probably a bad reverse safety switch.

[fasteddie]

I gave my son a copy of the responses on here . We disconnected the belt from the drive pulley and moved the engage lever . The engine stalled out . Still looking for a solution . Thanks for the responses .

[stubby68]

Maybe you already checked these. See you were still having problems so thought I would throw in my 2 cents. One of three problems. Engage lever switch bad, peddle switch bad or battery is bad. Takes a lot of juice to power fuel solenoid and engage deck causes engine to drop power a little and creates enough draw to pull power away for solenoid. Any of these can cause the problem.

[mowin]

On 6/30/2017 at 10:47 PM, fasteddie said:

I gave my son a copy of the responses on here . We disconnected the belt from the drive pulley and moved the engage lever . The engine stalled out . Still looking for a solution . Thanks for the responses .

It's definitely a safety switch. Mower thinks it's going into reverse, or thinks know one is in the seat. To eliminate the seat switch, plug it back in, then try it. 

Switch may be internal inside the tranny, but there's got to be some plug, wires going to it or a switch/sensor somewhere.  

There's someway to override the reverse safety. Some have a 3rd position in the key switch, if its there, it could be that key switch. 

If its not ,I'd start unplugging everything except the ignition, headlights, ECT. 

I highly doubt it's the battery. I'd bet it has a gravity feed fuel system, of vacuum fuel pump, that doesn't take any power. But to eliminate that, leave the jumper cables hooked up while engaging blades. 

[WNYBuckHunter]

1 hour ago, mowin said:

It's definitely a safety switch. Mower thinks it's going into reverse, or thinks know one is in the seat. To eliminate the seat switch, plug it back in, then try it. 

Switch may be internal inside the tranny, but there's got to be some plug, wires going to it or a switch/sensor somewhere.  

There's someway to override the reverse safety. Some have a 3rd position in the key switch, if its there, it could be that key switch. 

If its not ,I'd start unplugging everything except the ignition, headlights, ECT. 

I highly doubt it's the battery. I'd bet it has a gravity feed fuel system, of vacuum fuel pump, that doesn't take any power. But to eliminate that, leave the jumper cables hooked up while engaging blades. 

The reverse safety switch is a small white button on the left lower part of the dash. Fuel is not gravity feed on these, as the tank is lower than the engine. The blade engagement is done with a cable between the tension pulley on the deck and the lever above the steering wheel. Im still betting its the reverse switch.

[sbuff]

I know we all like to tinker, but sometimes we need to bite the bullet and let the pros handle it . The mower was free so even if you sink a 100 bucks in it your still doing good . They may even throw in a tune up, I know my local JD is very helpful and cost friendly .