How do you lube a mower's axle drive?

[reynoldston]

I do not think I understand either. I looked up the various Toro drive boxes and even looked at my old one. They all have one thing in common. a sealed box with the gears enclosed inside shaped so that the cover holds the lube and the wheel shaped gear as it runs picks up the lube from the pool in the box and lubes itself and the gear that fits into it as well. According to the sheet it says on rebuild to fill the box with a few ounces of lube , coat the gears with lube as well, close the box and go mow.

If this is the case why in the world would would you want to take the gear cases apart, clean, install new lubrication every blade sharping? It just seem like over kill with a lot of problims. Do what possum said close the gear box and go mow.

 

[Bill Crowell]

Reynoldston wrote: "If this is the case why in the world would would you want to take the gear cases apart, clean, install new lubrication every blade sharping? It just seem like over kill with a lot of problims. Do what possum said close the gear box and go mow."

possum wrote: "a sealed box with the gears enclosed inside shaped so that the cover holds the lube and the wheel shaped gear as it runs picks up the lube from the pool in the box and lubes itself and the gear that fits into it as well. According to the sheet it says on rebuild to fill the box with a few ounces of lube , coat the gears with lube as well, close the box and go mow."

I don't think that either of you read the earlier posts carefully.

I don't see what's so mysterious about a Toro front axle drive assembly. It's just a couple of steel bevel gears enclosed in an alloy case with a removable sheet metal cover. The question is how to make sure that the gears have constant lubrication. I never said I was going to take the gear case apart to lube it. As I stated earlier, the housing it has a sheet metal cover that is easily removed.

The reason I want to lube it periodically, as I also stated above, is because the gears don't last very long if you don't lube them, and they are expensive.

If you lube the gears the way possum says to, they throw off all the lube, run dry and wear out fast. Nor did he say what kind of lube the "sheet" he is referring to said to use. Hence the questions. I don't want to pay almost $100 again for a front axle drive if I can avoid it.

 

[reynoldston]

As I said in the very first post I am just guessing. One place I sees dry gears in a sheet metal cover and then a sealed gear case? Two different systems with different lubrication needs. I will still say open gear lube or chain/cable lube. You want something to stick to the gears and not leak oil out of a sheet metal cover and make a big mess like oil or a light weight grease would do. I thought I have also said that in a earlier post. I though I have both systems covered. Other then that maybe send a picture of what you have.

 

[possum]

Me thinks you are right. I gave poor directions and am overwhelmed by the complicated Toro axel drive assembly. If I were you I would try your local Toro dealer for assistance with this lubrication problem and see just what the factory suggest to solve the dry gears and how to increase the life of the Toro axel drive assembly.