How do I remove the deck from my troybilt riding mower?

how to eplace the drive belt on a troy bilt lawn moever

joe
April 2009

is there a way to tighten my belt on my troy-bilt lawn tractor LTX-1842. if so how ?

man
March 2009

Moontop here again:

I had to change my blades (bent to sh*t). Once I got the deck out from under, I propped it on edge, then grabbed 2 15/16" combo wrenches, put one on nut on the blade shaft and pressed (UGH-H-H) them in opposite directions. Fifteen seconds of strain and I had both blades and shafts out. If the nut at the blade end of the shaft doesn't loosen while taking out the shaft, set the blade on a firm surface, place a block of wood on one side of the blade (it's still sharp), set the wrench on the nut in a near horizontal position, step on the wood block (holds blade FIRMLY in position), then step on the end of the wrench. Voila!

Mark Roth, aka Moontop
June 2006

Keep in mind that I am working on a 2002 LTX-1842, so there may be some slight variation in procedure, but I do the following:

1) Set deck to lowest cutting position
2) Prop up front end of deck with piece of 2x4 on its side or better, 4x4
3) Pull the spring-loaded pins holding the deck to the rear lift frameand let the deck down to the ground
4) Unscrew the bolt on the right side of the deck drive pulley and unmount the lower drive belt (that is, the upper belt on this pulley)
5) Pull the deck forward to clear the front mounting bar
6) Slide the deck from under the tractor

Reverse the procedure to remount the deck. The prop at the front of the deck is important as it aligns the deck pins and rear lift frame.

Mark Roth, aka Moontop
June 2006

I found it too difficult to remove the deck just to sharpen my blades, so I used a car jack under the front axle and raised the deck about 4". Next you have to place something against the blade and side of the deck to keep the blade from turning while you loosen the nut. Besure to place the gear in forward and apply the parking brake.

You should be able to clean the while doing this also.

Robert Rutland robert.rutland@fnf.com
April 2006