Troy-Bilt Horse Tranny Problem

[Borgie]

Hello everyone!
I'm new to these forums so please don't give me too hard of a time.
I have a Troy-Bilt Horse mower, model 60TP or 128473, with a hydro tranny and a 23 HP Kohler engine. I was having problems with the mower slipping when backing down hills. There would be a pop coming from where the tranny is, then the mower would drift a few feet and then grab again. I replaced the drive belt and checked all the pulleys. Didn't see anything wrong. This did not fix the problem. It gradually got worse, to the point where the mower would pop and slip on level ground. I ended up pulling the tranny and disassembling it. The two flange bearings on the drive shaft were worn to the point that they wobbled. The drive shaft itself has some slight wear on the teeth, but nothing major. There are no missing teeth on any gear. The only other thing I noticed was that the differential assembly has a shaft on the gear housing side that wobbles around, like it was on a pivot. The shaft on the gear side barely moves.
Does anyone have experience working on these differential assemblies, and if so, is it normal for the shaft to wobble around so much? Any opinions or ideas would be greatly appreciated!

 

[Fish]

Can you find a model number tag on these components? A brand like Peerless or Foote?

 

[Borgie]

The only identifying mark on the whole assembly is an 8M or BM on the top of the pin that holds the gears in the gear housing. The Troy-Bilt part number for the assembly is 618-04041. Don't know if this helps or not.

 

[Fish]

Yah, all it is is a differential, and no wobbling is good at all. Replacement would cost @ $350.

The one main problem with these tractors was that the nut that held the top pulley on the differential would come loose, and the pulley, with a
star shaped hole would become wallowed out and slip, so you might want to look up there.

 

[Borgie]

I wish the nut had come loose. It would have been an easy fix. Had to use an impact wrench to get the nut off, so that was not the problem.
The differential assembly is locked into the tranny housing when everything is assembled, so the shaft would not be able to wobble anyway. Still, I don't like wobbly shafts.

 

[Fish]

yes wobbly = bad....