Honda pulling back is like having the brake on

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viperv10

Well-Known Member
I have 2 honda gcv 160 honda self propelled walk behinds. Both of them are hard to pull back on. Are they all like that or would it help if I adjusted the cables one way or the other.
I have a newer gcv 170 self propelled that pulls backwards just as easy as forward. The first gcv 160 I replaced the whole self propelled unit in it. I thought that would fix things but it did not help at all.
The second one I just picked up from a friend and it pulls back just as hard. He took it to the dealer every year to have it serviced. I was just thinking the dealer must not have thought anything
about it pulling backwards so hard because maybe they all do that. Does anyone have any thoughts or suggestions about this? All 3 mowers seem to have the same drive system. It just seems
weird that the newer model seems to work perfect.
Regards,
Jerry
 
I will be watching this thread to see if anyone has cracked the code on Honda self-propelled being hard to pull back. You referenced the size of the engine but I don’t think that’s it. I have had a few HR214’s with the GCV160 engine and they pulled back with little effort. I have also had an HR215 and a HR216 that pulled back easily. The difference was that these were all higher end BBC mowers. The less expensive Hondas that have passed through my hands were a real pain to pull back. I looked at many YouTube videos by people claiming to have solved the issue but none of the remedies worked for me. I had one such Honda that was only a couple of years old and very lightly used. A friend gave it to me after he switched to a battery powered mower. I was going to give it to one of our co-workers who had just bought her first house. I did everything to the axles and wheels. Disassembled, cleaned, lubed, polished axles with emery cloth. Nothing worked. I ended up removing the self-propel and made it a push power. Her lawn was small and flat and she was young. I stand ready to learn the secret, but I think that Honda just cheaped out on the economy model self-propel units.
 
That could be. I'm a lawn boy 2 stroke fan myself. But I like the hondas that have the rear discharge.They don't throw the clippings out into the street or against the house or flower beds.
 
Most likely either the belt is too tight, and out of adjustment so the rear wheels are still driving, or the clutches / pawls in the axles need greasing. Most of the mowers like that get rust and dirt in the parts inside the wheel area, and that causes issues. That is how it is on my Toro when it does that. The Toro has some annual service items that involve keeping that area clean and lubed.
 
viperv10 said:
I have 2 honda gcv 160 honda self propelled walk behinds. Both of them are hard to pull back on. Are they all like that or would it help if I adjusted the cables one way or the other.
I have a newer gcv 170 self propelled that pulls backwards just as easy as forward. The first gcv 160 I replaced the whole self propelled unit in it. I thought that would fix things but it did not help at all.
The second one I just picked up from a friend and it pulls back just as hard. He took it to the dealer every year to have it serviced. I was just thinking the dealer must not have thought anything
about it pulling backwards so hard because maybe they all do that. Does anyone have any thoughts or suggestions about this? All 3 mowers seem to have the same drive system. It just seems
weird that the newer model seems to work perfect.
Regards,
Jerry
Click to expand...
This might help
B

Thread 'Can't Pull Mower Backwards - HRR216VLA to bearing conversion'

Edit:

2 Year update 10/18/2021 - the needle bearings worked great for 2 years. I disassembled for re-greasing and found that they HAVE caused some minor damage and mushrooming to the drive shaft especially on the left side where the transmission sits and pulls against the shaft to tension the belt. Basically the thin needle bearings seem harder than the shaft and "pushed" the metal out around them to the outside edges. I simply removed this with a dremel, but clearly it's far from ideal. At this point I think the best recommendation is the stock bushings with an extra dust seal added...
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