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Brian D.
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2002-12-17          46238

I have a New Holland TC29 tractor and a Land Pride FDR2560 rear discharge grooming mower and I am using it to cut 6 acres. They are both about two years old and the problem I am having is I am going through belts like crazy on this mower and it is costing me a fourtne. This year alone I have counted at least 7 recipts for belts. I was replacing the belt with the land pride belts but at $60.00 a belt I could not aford it. I went to my local belt store and they matched it up with a B103K witch is a Kevlar belt and cost only $32.00. These belts seem to last a little longer than the one's from land pride but not much it is still hard for me to cut my whole 6 aces twice with it. I am not going fast and the grass I am cutting is not long. I have tried adjusting the belt tension by what the book says even went out and brought a belt tension tester to do this but it did not help. I asked the dealer how to set the tension on the belt and they told me to adjust the eyebolt until the spring started to gap. I tried this and it did not help. The belt store told me to check my pulleys so I checked the pulleys and the drive pulley other pulleys looked liked they were warped because when I would spin them and look at it from the side they looked like they would wobble. I went ahead and ordered some new pulleys and change them out and put on a new belt and brought it to the dealer where I got it from and had them look over it and check the belt tension. They told me everything looked o.k.. It did the same thing again. I also have a new pair of blades on it. The mower is wearing down the belt on the V side until it finaly pops or just shreds it. Some body please help me before I put this mower at the road with the trash.

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DH83
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2002-12-17          46239

Brian,heres an idea,borrow a infered temp gun and check the
temp of all the pulleys,bearings and idlers after you have been
mowing a while.Slipage and misalignment causes belt failure.Could be a worn pulley causing the belt to ride too
deep in the pulley and sliping.I know a guy with a TC33 and
belly mower,he is always replacing the belt at least once
a year and has had bearing problems also,I don't know what
brand of deck it is.If you can't find any hot spots,alignment and tension look good call Land Pride....good luck ....

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JerryGoucher
Join Date: Feb 2002
Posts: 100 NW AR
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2002-12-18          46242

Brian,
Tell us a little about the six acres. Is it rough, smooth, rocky? How tall is the grass? Is there brush or small bushes that are being mowed? How tall is the grass and what is the density of grass? ....

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Art White
Join Date: Jan 2000
Posts: 6898 Waterville New York
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2002-12-18          46248

Brian, when you mow, is it at or near full throttle? Do you have any trouble with the deck clogging? Rust on the pulleys will give you trouble but you have replaced them as well as checked the alienment from what you say so there isn't to much left. ....

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TomG
Join Date: Feb 2002
Posts: 5406 Upper Ottawa Valley
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2002-12-18          46250

I wonder if anybody has definitely said that the failure rate is abnormal in normal operations? Certainly it seem to be abnormal, but then JD considers some leak-down rates on their loaders normal and some owners don't completely agree. So, who knows?

Anyway finding out that a dealer or manufacturer also considers the failures excessive provides an orderly starting place. If the answer if that it's considered normal, then maybe the trash is the best recourse. I think that if I was throwing new parts at something without effect then the trash might seem like a good idea to me too.

If the answer is that it seems abnormal then the operating environment can be looked at. The tractor is well within the recommended power range for the mower. But maybe there are operating conditions that exceed the mower's capabilities. If it has a slip clutch, is it adjusted or is a shear pin appropriate for the mower? Is what is being mowed appropriate? Is the mower operated at PTO RPM and is the PTO clutched infrequently? Is the dealer and owner setup and maintenance appropriate?

If it's yes to all of these questions then it seems like a manufacturer's problem and hopefully one dealt with under warranty.
....

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marklugo
Join Date: Jul 2003
Posts: 281 Tifton, GA
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2002-12-18          46251

I have encountered this problem several times. It has always been a bearing problem in the spindles. A spindle that has a slight resistance can really shred a belt. I know it is only 2 years old, but I have seen this problem on new mowers with bearing pre load be set too high. Also make sure you are running right at 540 and that your grass isn't too high( not more than 2 or 3 inches at a time. If your pulleys are warping, it could be from heat generated from a dragging bearing. ....

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Billy
Join Date: Oct 1999
Posts: 975 Southeast Oklahoma
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2002-12-18          46257

I have the exact same mower but only had to change my belt once in the last 4 years (due to my error). The only thing I can think of that you can do is take your belt guards off and start the mower. Try to get a level view with all the pulleys. If one is way out of alignment, you should be able to see it. It has to be an alignment or bearing problem. There's really nothing else there.

Billy ....

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Brian D.
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2002-12-18          46272

The six acres is smooth I choped and leveled it two years ago when I brought the property. The grass is not long it is average hight for a lawn. All of the bearing seem fine when I take off the belt and spin them. I don't fill any drag or play in them. Is there something else I can check on the bearings. How would I check the pre load on the bearings. I am run the pto at 540 rpm witch is recamended. ....

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BillMullens
Join Date: Jun 2000
Posts: 649 Central West Virginia
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2002-12-18          46276

Brian,
The problem is not necessarily in the pulleys. It could be a bent shaft; it could be a height misalignment of the pulleys. If you can arrange it to be able to look across the vee in pulleys when the belt is on and is turning (should be obvious even turning it by hand) you should be able to see the problem. An hour spent troubleshooting and you'll know what to do. Let us know when you fix it.

My first guess would have been a bad bearing; next I'd say a bent shaft.

Bill ....

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Billy
Join Date: Oct 1999
Posts: 975 Southeast Oklahoma
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2002-12-18          46277

If at all possible Brian, run the mower at 540 (with the belt guards off) for about 30 minutes. Stop it and slip the belt off. Spin each blade (or pulley). If you have a bearing that is trying to seize (going bad), you'll be able to tell. If the bearing is bad enough to cause the belt to slip through the pulley, it'll be hard to turn.

While you're waiting the 30 minutes, get down there and eyeball those pulleys. It has to be one of the two.

Billy ....

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Peters
Join Date: Feb 2002
Posts: 3034 Northern AL
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2002-12-19          46319

I had a similar mower that I bought used. It was used at a Army Engineers flood control site and had cut untold amounts of grass. They changed the belts before I bought it but I never touched the belts in the years that I had it.
Like was stated the bearings or the alignment is out. The belts should track straight and there should be no wobble in the shafts. The heat must be being coming from some area.
Do you have a independent PTO? I guess some heat could be generated if you were starting and stopping the deck a lot. ....

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DH83
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2002-12-19          46325

Brian,you mentioned that you changed some pulleys,did you
change the drive pulley?The drive pulley carrys much greater load than the 3 driven pulleys.Here some simple
things to retrace...Is the belt flopping or rubbing on something,does the belt tensioner pivot freely,does each
pulley have approx. 2/3 belt wrap around it?Is
the belt on correct(it could be on the wrong side of a
idler or belt tensioner,is it the correct belt?Is the
belt tensioner spring hooked in the proper place?Is the
belt tensioner pivot wore out and out of alignment?
Let us know what you find......... ....

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slowrev
Join Date: Jul 2003
Posts: 231 Winchester , KY
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2002-12-20          46371

I go with Billy's posts and the one above this one. The only other thing I can think of is that a guard or something is dragging against one side of the belt.

....

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kadorken
Join Date: Jul 2003
Posts: 67 Canada
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2002-12-23          46476

Do you allow the belt to cool down after cutting the grass?

A friend (using a woods 5 ft mower) found that his belt lasted MUCH longer if after cutting the grass, he allowed the mower to run without load for 10-15 minutes to allow the heat buildup in the pulleys to dissipate. Simply stopping the mower after cutting allowed the hot pulleys to sit on one particular part of the belt (his theory) weakening it. ....

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JimMc
Join Date: Jul 2003
Posts: 5 Harrisburg, IL
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2002-12-29          46687

You might be able to find a buildup of black belt dust from chafing in the problem area, also. For instance, if the lower bearing in the gearbox were going out and allowing the output shaft to tilt, the drive pulley would operate at a slight angle relative to the rest of the system. Normally, on a cleaned deck, you would find the residue from the disintegrating belt in that area. ....

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