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Spent the afternoon working on this problem. Verified the belt routing and adjusted the idler all the way to the edge of the threads. It still pulls a little when put in gear but it is better. Moved on to the brakes and found the whole setup rusted and not moving. The slide pins were forced out...

Drive motion was working as it should before the belt broke. I have printed off a copy of the manual and will look through it again. Thanks for the heads up on the brakes.

Found this thread and will check when I get a chance. https://www.lawnmowerforum.com/threads/after-changing-all-belts-riding-mower-moves-on-its-own.79296/#post-511132

Another issue popped up that I'm puzzled about. Had to replace the drive belt recently and since then the mower wants to start moving soon as I select forward or reverse. Acts like either the belt is too tight or I have incorrect routing. Not sure if there is some adjustment I am missing or is...

Not much to add since the last update. Found a brand new set of blades on marketplace for $10, deal. Got the new idler pulley mounted and the deck is still has more noise than I like. Still working on the emblems and doing some touch ups on the paint. Had to stop to take care of some other projects.

Idler pulley was the culprit. Bad news is the prices for this pulley are outrageous and out of stock in most places. Found one online for a favorable price and placed the order. Now I have to wait several days before I can start working again. In the meantime I will work on the seat. Covered it...

Was reading somewhere that steel wool can be loosely packed in the muffler to deaden the noise a bit. Some #3 steel wool for a couple dollars did a pretty good job. Quiet enough that now I can hear more deck noise. I'm gonna pull the belts off again and check all the pulleys one by one till I...

Thanks for the reminder. Actually I did check the oil first. It was a bit dirty but still free of any gas smells. I have since changed and installed a new filter and will probably change it again before turning it over to its new owner. Kind of used to checking things as I frequently work on...

Not sure what those marks are from. Came to me that way. Plan is to either cover or replace the seat sometime before May. This whole project is for someone else. I removed the spindles without removing the deck. Easy enough to replace the bearings on the workbench then bolt the spindles back...

Finally got around to taking a few pics.

Got it all back together today and everything seems to fine. The muffler is shot so the motor makes more noise than the deck. Probably won't do anything about that. Blades are chewed up some so I ground some material from the opposite ends to balance them a bit. Next big thing is to work on the...

Pulled the spindles off today and yes the bearings are growling. The numbers on the old bearings do indeed match as stated above. This should make quite a difference in noise levels when I get it back together.

New belt is installed and seems to engage the blades properly. Next up is going to be the spindles. The noise level is very high when the blades are turning. I'll take the belts off the pulleys and spin each spindle and pulley till I find the culprit. Maybe just plan on some new bearings while...

Spent some time over the past couple of days doing some small things. Oil and filter, adjusted the valves, air in the tires, rubbed some plastic restorer on some parts, tried buffing out some of the sun fade and oxidation, a little paint touch up and some general cleaning. Still waiting on the...

Found it. The belt I'm looking for is the 68.25" by .63". I kept calling it the deck belt but the diagrams list it as the PTO belt. You had it right but I couldn't see it. Thanks

The 63" belt is too short. I can force it onto the pulleys but there is no slack at all to disengage the blades. Still cannot find any data to give me the correct length to buy. Trying to decide on the next length to try, leaning towards a 65" but not sure.

I think the 63" is the way to go and I ordered one. Should be here in a couple of days. Thanks for all your help.

Thanks for the reply but 68" still seems to be a bit long. The old belt is closer to 63" and unless it was routed wrong (doubt since the routing is pretty straight forward) the 68" would never engage. There are no visible numbers on the old belt. Makes me wonder if something was swapped out...

Broke the deck belt which was already badly worn. Book calls for 954-0349 but that is way too long at 79". I took some string and wrapped it around the pulleys ant it was closer to 60". This deck has 2 belts to run the blades, Top belt from the motor, around the tensioner pulleys and the left...

I'm just used to using the introduction area to meet and get pointers on where to look for needed information. Then using a more specific forum to ask technical questions. Anyway, I did start another thread and already received a quality reply that helped me.

Good catch on the solenoid working. Could not detect any clicking while turning the key off and on. Checked the plug and it did show 12 volts but it was rather crusty. Sprayed some contact cleaner and worked plug a couple of times and it started clicking. Hit the starter again and after a few...

Will run on starting fluid but not on its own. Checked the fuel pump and it seems to work. Pictures show a electrical plug on the bottom of the carb that I'm not sure what it is supposed to do. If that checks out my next idea is to pull the carb for cleaning. Printed a user manual for reference...

New here and I just purchased a used MTD Yard Machines series 601. It has a 21 hp motor and a 46" deck. Got it to fire on starting fluid but would not stay running. I'll head over to the MTD forum and post some questions.