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211200 Timemaster (10hp) with electric start purchased in Jan 2021 for my one acre totally flat section. Happy with the build quality, it is easy to start and the personal pace is quite easy to get used to. I am familiar with ride-on and push/self propelled mowers, used Grillo climber, simplicity and a top Masport one for a few years.

BUT, the thing is such a dog when mowing slightly lower or over dense lawn. The blades slows down when I go over a slightly higher or dense patch of grass, they slowly come to a stall but the engine does not get affected, ie. still runs as normal. When I release the blade engagement lever and re-engage it to try to restart the blades, the blades mostly do not start, or they start slowly but never reach the normal speed, ie. slowly come to a stall once they touch the grass again. I have to turn off the engine, wait for about 3 minutes or so before the blades can be restarted again. There are no signs of any engine problems, it starts, stops and runs well, no smells/weired sound. The engine never stalls, just the blades. This happens during the summer when everything is dry and temperature in the 20-30deg range (Melbourne, AU).

I have done reseaches, checked and tightened all things (brake pads, blade engagement cable, belt tensioner etc.), bought and installed new blades from Turfmaster, checked engine oil, use good quality petrol but the problem stays the same.

ANY ideas/suggestions?

My thoughts would be the belt is worn and not gripping the drive pulleys. The belt engagement system is not fully engaging, meaning the idler arm is sticking and not fully tightening the belt, or the drive pulleys are worn and the belt is bottoming out in the V groove which will cause belt slippage.

Thanks for your thoughts. Got this one brandnew and only used it for less than 10 times... I know the pulleys and belts are prone to clippings clots so I remove the cover and clean every time after use. The pulleys and belt look new to me...

Make sure that you have adjusted the cable correctly. Clutch cable adjust
Have you checked the engine RPM's?
There are lots of videos on the web with guys using the Timemaster commercially, have you watched some of those to see how your mower is operating compared to those? Some of those guys almost brush hog with the Timemaster. It would be helpful if you post a video as this is happening

gotomow said:

Make sure that you have adjusted the cable correctly. Clutch cable adjust
Have you checked the engine RPM's?
There are lots of videos on the web with guys using the Timemaster commercially, have you watched some of those to see how your mower is operating compared to those? Some of those guys almost brush hog with the Timemaster. It would be helpful if you post a video as this is happening

Click to expand...

Yes watched that video and pulled the cable as tight as the brake pad is already way off from the brake, to tighten the blade engagement belt. the problem remains the same though, blades stall over thick or slightly tall grass. Have ordered a new belt and will see if the problem stays.

Yes already read most of the timemaster posts but it kinda universal that the timemaster isn't built for cutting short somehow. Toro designed this unit not for mowing tight grass apparently...

update:

timemaster comes to life once the blade-driven belt is replaced (my last resort before on-sell). it mows through thick and cut short without any hesitation as it should be. the original belt does not look bad at all just discolorated (dark brown) but guess it has deteriorated after 3 months.