How To Replace The Drive Belts On An MTD Variable Speed Riding Mower - with Taryl 

Love that part were you tell the guy you will be the last thing he sees,that is so funny,great job

Taryl, you just saved me a ton of money again! My Toro LX426 my father-in-law recently gave me stopped pulling. I looked at it underneath, and it's almost the same drive train as this one. The top belt and bottom one were both chewed up (same belts from factory, and it's a 2008 model). I watch your videos as soon as you put them out, so I recognized the drive train as soon as I saw it. I came right back to this video to get my dinner. The only obvious differences underneath are mine has different steering that's sort of in the way, and the spring-loaded top pulley under the battry box has the spring on top. I had to take a nut off the top of the pulley to get the spring and a belt guide loose to get the top belt off. This video helped me get the new belts on with almost no frustration at all. Just a few hard to break-free bolts/nuts. You are the man, and I really appreciate the dinner you're forking out. Please keep it up.

Thanks Taryl, I have this exact MTD mower in Sydney Australia, can I compliment you by saying that I found this particular video and information in it very detailed, you didn’t miss a trick, as well as some components of the video quite entertaining. I find your videos all great.Ta. The problem I have is getting a hold of replacement parts, obviously they’re a lot more readily available in US than here, Again great honest information in your videos , kind regards.....

Wow!! I had to do this job and noticed I did not install the guide pin for the belt on the correct side of the belt. No wonder why the belt jammed and started to burn. Thanks a ton for such an in depth procedure!!!

Good video. When I replaced the belts on a similar mower, I took the variable pulley off and drilled a pathway for grease to lubricate the bearings. Mounted a grease zerk on top of the bolt.

Thanks for the laughs. And the detailed instructions appreciated too

I did mine today on my 1998 mtd yard machine it has the Briggs apposed 17.5 I really like your videos at this moment I have 7 riders, it's always good to watch these videos.

Thanks, Thats the belt I'm replacing now , Thats one belt I never change before, watched quite a few videos on how to do it, Funny how they can do the whole job in 10 mins. Thanks to your video I got it done,,,liked and subscribed.

That was the best one yet! Thanks Taryl!

Great video,you guys do the best how to videos,great camera work and editing thanks for posting,and thanks for the laughs

These intros/ends are hilarious and well made. Keep em coming!

Thanks Taryl! This was a bloody nightmare of a job but your video was awesome and helped turn my turd of a mower into an awesome machine. My place has lots of hills so with the main belt chewed up it didn't stop the mower. Now she stops on a dime. And yeah it's a poor man's hydro but I got it for a killer price, spent a couple days under it, did everything in your video plus leveled the deck, sharpened/balanced the blades, and now she runs, cuts and bags like a champ. Looks like shit but works great 👍

I absolutly love ur videos Taryl !!!! they help me alot thanks alot THERES YOUR DINNER!

Best mower repair channel on the innerweb... also the weirdest. Thank you for sharing your knowledge.

Absolutely hilarious…a master mechanic no doubt about thst

Been looking for this for an hour cos it helped previously when I had to put Murray 11ic/36 on its side to change drive belt. This is the only vido on the interscreen showing ow to tip a riding mower. Took lots of photos but couldn't remember details: remove battery? Drain oil & petrol? So now my brake / clutch pedal doesn't spring back. Thanks for vid wic I shall now SAVE!

I have watched nearly all of Taryls videos. They help me allot!

Him showing you to bend the belt guides if the pulley is stuck on the engine is one way I had that problem so I instead removed the four engine mounting bolts and slid the motor back a few inch's and removed and replaced . After putting belt around pulley slide engine back into place and install bolts and tighten .

Thank you Taryl...you hit on exactly what I needed!!

Hey Taryl would you to a how too video on rebuilding a MTD non hydro transaxle. Like your videos! I have learned a lot about fixing small engines and mowers from you.

Great job asl always. Appreciate leaving in the things that go wrong, those are the things that us weekend mechanics really learn from. Those steril everything goes perfectly videos are completely not "real world" .

Thanks for whooping ass at the end. Wish I could do that at times. Enjoy ur videos. Very informative n funny at the same time. Thank you.

Taryl...you make Goofy look pretty darn normal! :) Thanks so much for putting this out on RU-vid. Not sure I could have rebuilt the deck and replaced all the belts without it!

Nice work team Taryl !!!

Thank you for making this video it really helped me out.

Taryl, You are Da Man! My upper drive belt on my Cub Cadet was shot. I saw that this mower was similar to mine. I figured it was going to take hours to get to the upper belt and get it out. Now, here's the part where I got my dinner! You flipped up the seat, said take out the battery and just lift out the battery holder - - DingDingDing!! There was the upper belt right in front of my face!! About 15 minutes later I was back in the house watching football. You are the one and only Taryl Dactl!! Thanks

Thanks for the video. I watched it before changing the belts on the same rider mower.

Best episode! Bring back mechanic friendly equipment.

the best video on your channel - skit was AWESOME!

Thanks a bunch for this video! I almost bought a new variable speed pulley which is 184 bucks on Amazon. I didn't know the bearings could be serviced. I also noticed the previous owner didn't have the 3/8 bolt and sleeve guide reinstalled, so I have to pick one up. I keep eating belts, so I am hoping this resolves the issue.

Great video I have a Husky/ MTD and the only way to start the mower is practically stand on the clutch/ brake is there some kind of adjustment for that mower 1998 Husky 13hp

Really appreciate the video tutorial! My mower is a Troy Bilt LTX-1842 and appears to be the same. I purchased it from my neighbor and all the belts were in the same shape as the ones you replaced. I have a question related to the lower drive belt. I replaced it the hard way by jacking it up and crawled under it. After putting it back together, the lower belt was as loose as yours. Is it supposed to be the loose? I haven't finished putting it together because I wasn't sure. The manual suggests an adjust but having trouble making the adjustment. I hope you get this and can let me know if it is normal. Thanks.

Another classic! Funny and educational!

You're the man Carol

can you adjust the drive belt tension? replaced mine on the same style of mower. it's a Lawn chief made by mtd.Looks very similar to the mower you showed. Now when put into forward or reverse the mower creeps and the brakes won't work due to the transmission spinning. I thought it might break in after an hour or two of use but it hasn't. Should I adjust the arm that goes to the pulley from the pedal? Or should no adjustment be required after placing it?

Taryl, you sure gave those E-Z Wurkz guys what for!

LOVE it!

This seems *very* similar (Perhaps identical) to my TroyBilt Garden Way. I read there were but outs and acquisitions every which way...

Ur episodes are getting even better!

Too funny a d informative, too. Another great video Derrelll.

Do you have to replace both drive pullies at the same time? I only replaced the one that went bad on mine and now the belt is slipping sometimes. Someone told me its because I didn't do both of the belts at the same time, but if that's not why I don't want to waste 40 bucks on a new one. I also installed the little collar with the curve side the wrong way so I'll have to fix that.

THANKS TARYL! I remember watching this video last year and hoping and praying I would never see this mower. Guess what showed up yesterday to be repaired. THE EXACT mower, except it looks more like a bucket of rust. It was made in 2000, and the owner is dumping money into it. The transmission is probably dry by now, but he wants new belts....fine...whatever. All labels are long gone, so it took a while to figure out the model: 13AK608G129 Many parts places have the correct parts, but manuals with that part # show a different mower deck/belt configuration. Frustrating, but common. Best luck to all!

great stunts guys 👍😁

hey taryl ive got a huskee supreme 26 hp 54'' cut that I replaced the variable speed belt and the other just like on this video but now the new belt sounds like its slapping around real bad. is there an adjustment to tighten it up or is there something I may be missing. thank for your help.

I just picked up one of these mowers and will be replacing the drive Belts soon. This will be a big help!. I am having trouble with the Deck belt. All though The factory replacement once installed and the belt properly routed there is to much slack even under tension with the PTO engaged for the belt to turn the blades. There does not appear to be any tension adjustment points. Is there anything else I can check such as deck location or pulley size that might help with this? The OEM Belt is supposed to be 97 inches but when I put a rope through the system and measure it under tension it is only 89.25 inches. I feel like there is something big and obvious that I am missing.

Have a 2012 Craftsman model 247.2888529(LT 2000 with a briggs engine and 46 inch cut) with low hours that i've taken apart to repack the bearings underneath on . Took that assembly off that has the two pulleys on it that tensions the lower drive belt (the one that runs from the engine small pulley all the way back to the lower variable speed pulley after running through the tensioner you speak of that has the hole in the top of the platform drilled that the "geniuses at MTD" placed in the later models). Well. with the assembley off I can see the hole up in the platform where the bolt of the assembly goes through that looks to be the size necessary for the bolt going through the assembly; but then to the right of it as you would set in the seat there is a SECOND bigger hole right next to it that was obviously machined there from the factory. The tiny amount of metal between the two holes has worn through where the two holes are now connected. Parts diagram of the machine shows only one hole there. Since you also have a second thinner piece of metal above the piece that these holes were machined into (the thin piece that makes up your platform and where all the safety decals are stuck on to and makes it difficult to work on the piece of metal that the holes are drilled through underneath.....guess I'll need to take a cut off grinder and remove a portion of that thin platform so I can get to the two drilled holes and maybe weld a bolt in place permanently or even weld the big thin flat washer in place that dropped down when I removed the assembly. When you work that assembly from side to side with your foot on the variable speed pedal.....guess it wore that little hole oblong to where it joined the other hole even through the bolt was snug it wasn't real tight and the assembly musta been working left to right all the time. ANY IDEAS WHAT THAT SECOND DRILLED HOLE WAS FOR ANYONE?

Mr taryl, I have a question, if I have a mtd 618-0163b transmission, is there a generic Tran can fit for replacement? Thanks

Seems like it could b a sort of torque converter found on mini-bikes an Go-Karts. One pulley opens up or closes so it could be an 8 inch pulley or a 4 inch pulley, changing the speed and torque.

You 'da man Taryl! Really enjoy your videos.

Designed to fail. Great video! Nice house Taryl!

Shout out to you and your camera man this is another great video. Thankyou for your time and i appreciate you being clear and specific to the steps in all your videos. And theres YUR dinner!

Tarly .... legend!

Taryl poked em in the eyes! hahaha

27:05 I laughed way too hard at this. Every. Single. Time.

Taryl, I have a similar MTD Yard Machines with this motor and drive system with a 46" deck. Should my deck already be sitting on the ground after only putting the height selector down from 5 to 4? I would think it shouldn't be on the ground until in position 1. If mine is not correct what could I look at to fix this?

great video guys your the best

Replaced all drive belts and deck belts now runs well. But did I move something because now the brakes works on neutral or engine not working. Brakes on the mower will not stop when the engine is running forward or reverse. Any suggestion to fix? thanks.

That long run of belt is really loose. I am wrapping up on a similar model right now the Huskee 808k. Should I be concerned with the tension? I definitely bought the MTD OEM belt. Mine has an electric clutch. 2004 model. I appreciate the video very much. But if you have any chance to offer any final advice I would definitely take it!

I have this exact mower and just replaced the drive belts. They are the correct belts, but my issue is that the belts are too loose. I adjusted the tensioner arm as much as possible (shortened it) and it is still too loose. It is routed correctly as well. Anything I’m missing that will help out? It only engages in gear if the pedal is almost floored.

I have a john deere h3 140 do a video about axle seal replacement the crimp style bearing retainer is a pita to replace

Hilarious. Love the humor and kick azz fixin stuff. Saved my butt many times.

hey taryl, is the disengagement rod a way to adjust the tension on the deck belt on a yard man 136x694g401

Great and entertaining, again you made me glad I have a 1993 12.5/42, much less complicated. I put oil in the hole on the top of that VS pulley every year. I had to change those roller bearings once after they became like little square things and jammed. My mower is ALWAYS stored inside.

Always funny and your videos are very descriptive and how to fix things nice job

he hee just turn it up side down to work on it 🤣 Good Job 👍

Came for the instructions, stayed for the plot!!

I just changed my craftsman drive belt and now its hard to shift in F and R and as soon as u do it starts to go even tho the clutch is still pressed in. Any idea whats wrong?

You can add most car manufactures to the list of stupid, needless and unnecessary design systems. Their sole purpose is to augment repeated sells of cheaply made propitiatory parts to keep their company and dealers afloat.

Thanks u helped me with my troy built that I turned into a go cart

I just changed the pulleys on the same mower the pulleys i got look just like the ones you installed, the second pulley I put on hangs down just a little lower then the first pulley is that the way its supposed to be, any info would help, thank you

I was working on this motor trying to get it to move. Everything was rusted, but it did crank after a new coil, but only last a week till the casing cracked. I knew it was probably not going to last. Now i'm stuck with a frame in my yard till the owner finds another engine.

I know this video is not about deck height adjustment. But I am having a problem with the height of my mower deck. I need to raise it higher than the maximum 6 position. I have a Murray model 40507x8a. Can the height of the deck be raised up more than the normal height maximum range?

great vidieo

A really big thank you to Taryl for showing me so clearly how to do this absolute prick of a job. As a weekend mechanic I was very happy to see Taryl cut a hole in the footwell fender to access the other side of a pulley bolt nut - I was going spare trying to figure out how to get to it, and it gave me confidence to do the same thing. (I made a small improvement by peeling back the sticker first then cutting the hole, so I can cover the hole with the sticker lol). My setup was slightly different in that the rear variator pulley wasn't bolted to the axle but to the chassis behind the rear left wheel so i had to pull the left rear wheel off as well. It seriously is the most ridiculous method for changing a drive belt. I think my "Bug" Yardman by MTD (16HP Kohler single with 42" cutting deck and the cheap imitator hydro drive) is the EZ-Wurks 9000 POS, way worse than the 8000 POS (that Taryl refers to) to work on. Thanks for taking your complaint up with the people who design this stuff Taryl, I laughed my arse off but it hurt as well, because it's so true. Thanks to your channel I can do so much mower maintenance now, faster and better than before. Big tip of the hat to you & your team from this DIY'er Down Under. Keep up the great work!

Brilliant video thank u 😀😀😀😀😀😀😀😀😀👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍

Could you please talk to EZ Works and have them build a 20 propeller Hover Rake to clean up leaves before they fall. Make sure they use some obscure fasteners too! Thanks Taryl

I replaced a drive belt on a Bolens (MTD?) and the 1-6 position speed control no longer works and is stuck in 1 or 2 slow speed. It's the correct belt but went on really tight. Any ideas on what happened? Tension spring was really tight and hard to get back on. I can't even tell what that speed lever does to make it work.

If the designers did not get their NoGGins whacked up GOOD ENOUGH feel free to use me as an excuse for their next NoGGing. This was an awesome video... I will be heading for the brake video too. Wow, now I see how to run the belt through the maze of steel. Your funny videos take the work out of working... what more can a person ask for. Blessings to you and your crew.

You've shown a lot of Videos on the MTD riding mowers but what about how to replace the mtd model 607 and 608 683-0450 Engagement Plate Assembly tensioner pulley??? Do ya really have to take the whole Mower apart to get to a Nut up by the Engine???

Gary I pulled that transaxle and replaced the axle bearings, and checked the clearances in all the gears. Put it back together and same sound. I have heard some of these were noisey from the factory. Some had issues with the case not being true . Rather that's true I don't know. I am out of ideas. Wonder what Teryls input would be.

That little bolt with the sleeve, when I have a bolt that goes into a recessed place like that, I put a piece of paper or plastic bag into the socket to hold it in place so it doesn't drop out.

Will the head of a 15 horse ohv briggs fit and work on a 14.5 briggs?

If you own a 2005 MTD "Yardman" (model 13AG601h729), there a few changes starting with the "vari-speed" pulley. The pulley is a different design with ROLLER BEARINGS (p/n 941-0600) that ride in a "bearing cup" instead of the needle bearings. Also, the third pulley on the tension arm is NOT the same as the other 2. The p/n for that pulley is 756-04209. The belt numbers for THIS machine are: 954-0467A and 941-0468A, respectively! Otherwise, the procedure is the same!

Is the belt guide on lx460 Toro in the same place

On a second note, I would have never rolled the dice on MTD turd except it had a Briggs opposed twin. Bought it for the engine, im a gluten for punishment evidently, after engine ran so good I hated to trash the unit. I'm second guessing that. I've owned several older Briggs twins and like em well. Usually, and you might agree is starter issues foremost. They need power to spin over. Second is carb and needing near full choke to get going. I watched another video of yours where you walked around the yard talking about a good dozen mowers and couldn't agree more! Don't make it look too easy. Lol.

love the house tour haha nice little bike

Hey I just subscribed

Trayl I need your help........................I purchased a used MTD 20hp / 14 speed / Transmatic Garden Tractor and I just got finished rebuilding the entire thing, however, I have one issue.................There is NO belt that runs from the engine pulley to the drive pulley on the Mowing Deck and I have NO CLUE what size belt I need for it....CAN YOU HELP?? (the manuals I have do not give any belt sizes for the mower)

hey Darryl I don't have the part number to my mower but that's spacer that goes in the variable speed pulley I need a part number can you help me out

Have a Murry mdl 425303x92b. having trouble with drive belt routing. can u help?

Swatters. Omg you guys are hilarious..love the pyjamas😂😂😂

I use marine grease on everything except for wheel bearings with disc brakes. Marine grease does not dissolve in water like regular grease but it cannot stand heat from disc brakes.

i put a new drive belt on my mtd,, but now when you have to push down hard the last three inches or so,,,to go faster ,,, my leg gets tired,,,,,any ideas,,,thanks

Anyone know y my mtd 125/96 main drive belt is to loose when i push the pedal down ?

Anyway you can tell me the part number for the spring that’s hooked to the deck engagement lever.

Tarryl I need some advice I have a 2003 MTD Yard Machines Rider. It's not hydrostatic but has the automatic drive with the F N R lever and you push on the Pedal to make it go and control your speed. Is it normal for these Transaxles to have a whine to them under load like going up a hill but the whine goes away when the load decreases. Wanting to fix this annoying sound.

You could put a rubber plug in your access hole to flash it up.

thank you very much for this video i have the same mower and it needs the same parts

Question for you, I have a Troy Bilt Bronco auto bought 2018 had to replace drive belt and once done I tested it put it in forward and it just took off put it into neutral and it still wanted to go. What's your feedback on something like this?

I have an old LOWES brand - the rear drive belt for the trans broke. I can't tell if I have the bew belt on right and or where this one spring goes. I looked many times at the diagram but I am still lost ---- I have the deck off - the new belt on and am still stumped. It's for a friend and I don't want to spend the money on his behalf. I usually can fix these without help but at 71 there are some that require HELP.