Repairs No forward or reverse movement

Mischiefabrewin

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Jun 3, 2018
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I am new to this forum and joined it because I recently acquired a Scott's L17.542 mower (manufactured by John Deere) with no drive (forward or reverse). I knew very little about lawn mowers but have done a lot of research on this one. It has a Tuff Torq K46V hydrostatic transmission. Now, I have some mechanical skills and am not afraid to tackle new projects, so after watching 5 or 6 youtube videos, I proceeded to disassemble this transmission. Most advice I have found about the trouble with these transmissions is that the motor, center case and pump are usually the culprit. So after removing the bottom plate, I noticed very little wear and tear on this transmission (285hrs) and could find no reason for its failure. There was minimal filings collected by the magnets and none in the bottom of the casing. All gears looked new and even the wear parts (brake) looked good. Calling Tuff Torq, the kit they advised to repair this was over $400 (With purchase price and this, it is probably close to the value of the entire mower when running properly). Doesn't make any sense to me to buy a new transmission ($550-$935) or the repair kit Tuff Torq recommends. So, my question here is, if I am unable to get this transmission working properly, I am looking to replace it with a used transmission. Does anyone know what make/model transmissions would be compatible or has anyone done a conversion to another type? I also know that most in this forum are here to solve problems using the expertise/resources available without having to pay the "dealer fees" so selling and trading within this website should be available, but I have been unable to locate the link. Any help there?
 

bertsmobile1

Lawn Royalty
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Nov 29, 2014
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The gears never wear.
'You get wear between the valve plate & the valve chest.
The oil will take the easiest path which ends up being between the two plates rather than move the pistons.
Same story with the pump.
The piston pushes on the oil but the oil slides sideways out between the plates rather than go through it and work the motor.

The surfaces on the valve chest and valve plate should be glass smooth and dead flat for the system to work as there is no seal there .

Some times you can squeeze a little more life out of them by using a heavier oil that will be slower to leak out between the plate & valve chest.

Also you have to bleed the air out of the system and that can take a very long time.
 
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