[TheLink123]

Hi everyone!

I've owned an JD LX280 for about 5 years.

A few weeks ago, I'd just got it back from the dealer for its annual maintenance. Used it for about an hour without a problem hauling some firewood from the woods to the house. Nothing strenuous, no incidents.

Then, as I'm parking it in my shed for the day, all of a sudden it is "barely" able to go in reverse.
If I put it full throttle, pedal down, it will move veerrrry slowly in reverse. Going forward runs and feels just fine.
No strange noises that I recall. No smoke.

I turned it off and parked it, and haven't run it since for fear of damaging something.

I took off the mowing deck and poked my head under, but nothing looked fishy. However, to be honest, I don't really know what I'm looking for/at.

Was just hoping someone would have some advice before I suck it up and bring it into the dealer for repairs.

I checked the troubleshooting section of my manual, but didn't see anything specific to reverse. That being said, feel free to point out if this is a case of RTFM... I may have missed it.

Mike

 

[DRobinson]

I don't have experience with the LX280, but from time to time I have to tighten the set screw which holds the reverse pedal on the shaft of my 445. The JD parts book that the LX280 has two 6mm nuts which clamp the pedal to the shaft. I would post a copy, but I haven't yet figured out how to do it. Check and see if the nuts are tight and that the pedal is seated correctly on the square end of the shaft. I suppose that if the bearings for the shaft are worn excessively, that might also cause the problem. The 445 progressively gets slower in reverse as the set screw loosens. It took me about nine years to figure out the problem with mine was a simple fix. I'm sure someone with more experience on your tractor will also respond with more and better information.

By the way, welcome to GreenTractorTalk. This is a great site for those of us who love John Deere equipment.

 

[RandyM]

Looks like DR has some good info. for you to start on. All I can add is photo of the pedal assy from JD parts. Looks like you've got some things to check on that could be loose. Hope this helps.

 

[johnnyboy]

have you checked the screw set?

 

[Rob2010]

Mike,
I also have a LX280 after the first year maintenance I had same problem. Called dealer and they came out, tech told me a screw had com loose and was fixed in 2 minutes. Never bothered to ask WHAT screw but as usual the info posted here was spot on for my issue.
Rob

 

[TheLink123]

Wow!

Thanks for the great feedback.
And thanks for the assembly picture Randy.

So I took a closer look at the pedal assembly. As far as I can tell, there aren't any loose screws.

However, I do think you're all onto something. When I push the reverse pedal, for about the first inch or two of movement, the lever/rod (#21 in Randy's picture above) moves but it doesn't turn the shaft (#8). As if something isn't tightened all the way (as you suggested).

Subjectively, it just doesn't feel right when you push the pedal. It's the same kind of feeling as if you were pushing on the pedal and it was bending the rod instead of turning the shaft.

Anyway, I tinkered around for a good half hour and couldn't find any culprits. I think I'll just head on into the dealer.

Thanks again. I'll let you know what I find out (might not be for a while... vacation coming up)

 

[Justcut]

Difficulty going reverse lx280

Hi, My lx280 barely crawls in reverse when the cruise control lever is not returned to the fully off position. Was simple fix for me, hope you too.