Thanks for infoI'd look at pulley alignment on mule drive. As you apply tension to the belt, the pulley on the right (facing tractor) moves forward and the pulley on the left moves to the rear. With the correct JD belt, the tension indicator rod... if not bent... will show proper tension AND the belt will be coming straight down from the pto pulley to the idler pulleys. Over/under tension will result in misalignment and wear on the sides of the belt.
Tension drive pulley by watching idlers to pto pulley alignment and not the plate on the front of the mule. Another possible issue is that the plastic bushings in idler pulleys are shot! Check pulleys for "wiggle". Bob
An aftermarket belt is pretty much useless and disposable in that application.I found the bushings on eBay, thanks again
I’ll also have to recheck what I’ve been using for belt size. It’s a non JD belt and I believe the length to be 90”
Picked new JD belt todayYup, mule drive pulleys. JD shows an M82718 belt for the primary drive (engine to deck) belt. This specs out as 90.300" EFEECTIVE LENGTH (the outside length when installed). Some belts are spec'd at effective length and some are spec'd at length at pitch diameter. Bob
shaft moves freely and has been recently greased. Too hot to head out to garage tonight and my sons has soccer practice anyhow. I’ll reassemble tomorrow and see how all looksDoes shaft for RH tensioner idler pulley pivot easily IE has grease fitting been frequently greased?
Check that your not hitting a belt guide on the slap, even reduced and check pulley temperature a couple times to see if one still cooks grease.All reassembled and using JD belt. All seemed to be in check….drive pulley on deck spins free and has no play. Both pulleys on mule spin free without play. I did notice faint smell of burning rubber, not sure this is typical as belt engages pulley once pto is activated or not
rydplrs…I tensioned belt as you suggested, belt did not loose all slop but did stable out a bit. Took a pic of where indicator rested after I found my sweet spot
View attachment 802187
can I chalk this up to using non JD belts? Didn’t think this would make much of a difference.
If you look at his indicator it landed right at the hash mark for a new belt.I'm not getting into a pizzin' contest about how to adjust belts, but I use my method in post #7 and get 7 years plus out of my belts.
Faint smell of burning rubber: What rpm are you engaging pto? The lower the better for both the pto clutch surfaces and the belt. Start & warm engine, go 1/4-1/3 throttle and engage pto. If engine stalls, increase rpm slightly until you find the lowest rpm that you can engage pto without engine stalling.
JD belts are different from off the shelf belts. JD uses a 36º or 37º (I forget which!) included angle on their belts and pulleys. A standard off the shelf belt is 40º. This means the off the shelf belt only contacts the pulley at one small point and not along the entire side of the belt. This point soon wears, the tension needs to be readjusted and the now larger point of contact still wears! Eventually, it may wear enough that your belt is only driving on the bottom surface! A second problem may occur with the length as I pointed out in post #10. If you have a 90.3" belt, is this on the outside, inside, or pitch diameter? It's the little things that make a difference as to a belt working or not working or working for an hour or working for several years. Dollar for dollar, an expensive JD belt is usually the best choice! Bob
