The bolt holding the idler pulley on broke at the mounting bracket. I have 2 questions for the group.
The mower was purchased this spring from Lowe’s.
The bearing in the pulley doesn’t turn as freely as I would expect but it’s a long way from being frozen and the spacer in the bottom doesn’t appear to have spun in the bearing.
The break appears to be a shear failure father than a torsion failure.
Has anyone else experienced this issue and what does the group think might have happened.
I plan to replace the bolt and put it all back together, hoping this is a fluke.
If it turns out that the pulley bearing is bad and the bolt breaks again it brings up my second question. Having never been faced with a warranty claim on a mower before, how would I go about obtaining a new pulley under warranty. Replacement should be simple and I have no way to carry the deck or mower to a dealer for repairs.
Thank you for any advice you may have.
Try using a Grade 8 Bolt with washers & a self locking nut.
Take your receipt along with broken bolt & idler pulley to Customer Service Desk at Lowes & tell them you want new replacement parts. Be sure to have Model & Serial numbers from tractor with you &
if you feel inclined ask to speak with store Manager.
You have a mower which has a broken bolt and bad bearing after only 6 months use? If it were me I’d be talking to Lowe’s about warranty service. There is something else wrong for a bolt and bearing to fail in that length of time. You’re probably not going to get free parts to install yourself, warranties’ don’t work that way.
Having never been faced with a warranty claim on a mower before, how would I go about obtaining a new pulley under warranty. Replacement should be simple and I have no way to carry the deck or mower to a dealer for repairs.
