JD 14SB owner....fix this or sell it?

[gentlejax]

I just picked this up from a local guy who said it had a oil leak, we got it to start but it would die after a few so I figured it was a fuel issue.

Got it home and removed the carb and cleaned it up and put it back together. Fired right up. I liked the sound of this motor, quiter than the briggs and stratton Toro I have.

anyhow I decide to go out front and run it a little. I engage the drive belt and it spins..its soon evident the oil leak is a little worse that I expected and its dripping somewhere out the bottom of the deck but its hard to see. the mower moves when engaged and I manage to get it to 5th and rolling all over the driveway. I engage the blade and it works as well.

By this time more oil has leaked and it appears the drive belt isnt getting traction because the mower no longer wants to move. I was starting to worry about the oil sO i killed it and put it up. I tried to look at the leak but wasnt able to. the carb was leaking and I decided to stop before the whole thing caught fire and burned down the house or something.

I was happy for all of 5 minutes till I saw the oil. I am hoping the oil is causing the wheels to not engage or maybe the belt is stretched . it spins but it stopped driving the wheels.


how hard is this going to be to fix the leak? I was told some seal was leaking. I have never worked on a mower until today when I yanked off the carb to clean it. I really like this mower I just cant afford to pay for it to be fixed. I am pretty mechanical..work on my own cars and should be able to do this..

luckily no rush to fix as I can use the toro...but I like the JD better

 

[shiftsuper175607]

You have to clean it up and find out exactly where the oil is leaking from.
It could be very simple, such as a lose oil filter or it was too tight and pushed the gasket out. O ring on an oil fill plug...etc.
Bad valve cover gasket...there are a lot of easy causes and fixes.
No one can tell you what to do until you find where the leak is.

I see it is a walk behind...well, that should be easier to find the leak. there was thread a day or so ago about replacing a seal on the lower crankshaft.

 

[gentlejax]

i know, thats the next step...clean it off and find out source of leak.

just wanted an idea of the difficulty working on these and if it was worth it. I got time so its ok if it take a while. I had to buy a new recoil starter for it so I am already into it now $80 and that includes buying it. I dont want to get into too much money on it too fast and be stuck with a $300 mower

im not familiar with small engines and its a miracle I cleaned out carb and got it back on and running first try...although its leaking at the bowl..lol..

 

[gentlejax]

Im also considering a Honda HRT216 for sale locally that I might buy and sell my toro and this JD

 

[Mike88se]

I've never owned a JD 14SB but I've heard they are great mowers. I don't know what model Toro you have but if its a Home Depot Toro then I'd keep the JD, especially if it has the Kawi engine. I'm not sure if this relates but I installed a crank seal on a Honda engine and it was a very easy job. So yeah, like everyone says, look at it and see whats leaking.

 

[gentlejax]

the toro is a personal pace mower from few years back. it works but its a big overgrown nothing special about it to me. the old JD just seems to be a better mower .

luckily I have found an old retired airman in my own subdivision who will fix the leak for under $100 which Is ok seeing how I read these days small engine repairs can be as much per HR as regular mechanics..lol....

im going to clean it up and see if I can locate leak and go from there. I am also trying to buy a JD 14SC for parts cheap cause I really like the Kawasaki motors

the local mechanic told me it was worth getting the deere running so apparently its worth it.

 

[redmondjp]

I now have about a half-dozen Deere walk-behinds - the Kawasaki engine is fantastic (my favorite mower engine of all time, no joke) and the cut quality is very high. I also have several Hondas (older plastic-deck, current-generation plastic deck, and steel deck) and I would keep the Deere over any of them. A plastic-deck Honda works great for mulching and won't ever rust out - I'll give them that.

 

[gentlejax]

whats really funny is I never thought I would be getting excited about lawn mowers...lol....I hate my toro but it would be good for some old person who has small yard...and wants electric start ....I DO LOVE the kawasaki motor...so much better than the crap briggs on my toro...but the toro starts and I have not been kind to it lol...