Outdoor Power Equipment (Lawn Mowers, Snow Blowers, Chain Saws and more) Discussions

I did a search and found a few references to this machine but no answers.  Any one have one of these?  15.5 snow max engine, heated hand grips, 30" wide.  I can't find a listing for auger diameter or impeller diameter.  I called John Deere and the guy that was suppose to be the snow thrower expert didn't know either. 

What is the Easy Steer drive system?  The literature says: 

Easy Steer® drive system giving continuous power to both wheels and auto speed adjustment

Is it similar to the Ariens auto differential? 

I've heard that the units are built by B&S which translates to Simplicity.  They do have cast iron gear cases like the Simplicity.  The chute control is different than the simplicity and so is the turning method so they are not exactly the same.  I'm trying to compare the Simplicity L1530E to the JD 1130SE.  Any help would be appreciated.

Rick

Drive problems here, too.  Brand new machine.  Can stop at anytime.  Starting forward or starting reverse... or even while in the middle of a long straight... it will just stop.  I'll pull it and push it, fiddle with a bit,  try forward and reverse a few times... then it will go again.  No pattern that I could pick up on.... random stoppage.  I was clearing an easy 3 inch fluff today... should have been an easy job.... but I was dead tired after wrestling with the thing to get it moving over and over and over.

The drive engagement cable was a bit sloppy, so I adjusted it to the next hole.... didn't help a bit.  Something is obviously slipping in there... can't believe it could be the friction disk, unless there's some grease or oil on there from the manufacturing/assembly process. ??  The traction drive belt has a spring tensioner pulley... no adjustment there. ??

I'm willing to try a couple of things before I bring it in. 

Any ideas?

Disappointing. 

Clay wrote:
OK,  I read this again.  I haven't opened up the machine yet... but from the pictures in the manual... I don't see how that idler/tensioner can adjust... or even if it would matter.  The pulley swings on that arm... and the tension is supplied by the spring, right?  Would it even matter if the pulley could be moved one way or the other.... the tension is still supplied by the spring.  ??

Help... I'm feeling quite stupid at the moment. 

If this problem is due to some property of the friction disk it would explain why it occurs to both
Simplicity and Ariens models as they use the same disk.  Maybe the rubber recipe was changed
or something.  Or maybe the coating or texture on the drive plate is the culprit.

I'm waiting for Snowmann to put forth an opinion on this matter.  I realize that in a lot of cases
slippage could be due to misadjustment but if it persists even when the everything is set right
then it seems to me that there'll have to be some sort of company provided fix.

Paul

The weird thing is... it will go great guns for a while.  The scraper will dig into a ridge, or whatever,  and the tires will start digging like an 11 hp machine should.  Then, two minutes later, it will slow to a stop for no apparent reason.  Then it will go strong again.  Makes me think that the cause is external... snow/water getting in and disrupting things.  However, considering what the thing is supposed to be used for... that would be probably the most disappointing conclusion.

This may or may not help depending on if this is the problem or not.

Briggs' engines have a lot of bosses and standoffs on their PTO cover (behind the belt cover). The Tecumseh PTO covers were always very flat. Are all of the apparent problem units Briggs powered?

It's probably fair to say that nearly all contemporary 2 stage snow blower transmissions were designed with Tecumseh in mind. Even the Simplicity large and intermediate frame transmissions (and John Deere derivatives) are largely Murray in origin and pre-date both Briggs' latest snow engines and the acquisition of Simplicity Manufacturing (i.e. Simplicity and Murray used to use Tecumseh before they were acquired). That said, a Briggs powered snowblower may require special accommodation for sealing voids near the engine to keep moisture from penetrating to the drive plate and friction disk (especially for units that use an integral drive plate/pulley, which is most). As mentioned in this forum and elsewhere, similar problems may include Toro, Simplicity/John Deere, Ariens, and perhaps others. If a similar problem is experieinced, I would recommend checking parts manuals and with dealers to ensure that any intended accomodations are present and functioning.

Someone did mention some type of shield on the John Deere model. I'm not familiar with this shield, but the latest Ariens' model 921010 ST27LE and a few other models do have such special accomodation.

I hope this helps.

trekguy wrote:

I wish that I could post pictures on this board directly without going through a 3rd party .  I would be glad to email you a picture of the exact pulley and it's adjustment if you want to send me a PM through the board I will get it out.  If anyone here wants to help out I could send you the picture and you could insert it in this thread.  Sorry, not very computer literate.  Rick

I took a look in my owners manual for the John Deere 1130 SE.  Look on page 28, item "K" to see the pulley that is adjustable.  It made a big difference when it was adjust tighter on my machine.  Page 32 of the manual speaks to adjusting the friction wheel.  I will call John Deere and see if they have an owner's manual on line for this unit.  So far, I have been unable to locate one. 

Called JD in the middle of this response and just got off of the phone with them.  While they don't have the owner's manual for this unit available on line, the nice customer service person emailed me a pdf file of the owners manual.  I like to search for things electronically besides having the hard copy available.  You can request a copy of the pdf by calling 888-228-3068 and asking for it to be emailed to you. 

After I asked for an electronic version of the owners manual I asked about what makes some of this units slip to see what the snow thrower specialist thought.  They said that the friction wheel needed adjustment and that the directions for that are available on page 32 of the manual. 

I hope this was of some help.

I'm in agreement that it's likely snow getting into the drive area.  I noticed my machine begin to lose a bit of forward bite after a large amount of snow falls over the intake housing and onto the engine.  It never stops, but it will not drive forward as aggressively as it normally would when up against a lot of resistance.  I'm doing some experimenting to see if I can seal the areas where snow might be getting in.  Will report results and how to if It works. 

Clay wrote:
Yep, I see that pulley in the picture... but my question is, if there is a spring pulling on that arm/pulley, providing the tension on the belt... then doesn't that arm that's holding the pulley just swing free... which would allow the spring to put tension on it?  And, if it is swinging free, then what adjustment could there be?  I'm sure that it will make more sense when I actually can get a look at it... but it was -30 last night, and cold again today.  I'm going to wait for it to "warm up" a bit before I take a peek.

I will check the friction wheel adjustment, as well.

But... but.... IF they are not adjusted correctly, would it NOT drive properly all of the time??

Hmm, more and more, I'm thinking it's snow causing the slippage.  Heck of a deal, considering what it's designed for! 

borat wrote:
I will be waiting for your report. 

I have noticed some slippage on my machine also on two separate occasions. The symptoms are similar to what others have stated, generally the machine works fine until snow accumulates on or around belt cover / engine then some slippage occurs, moving the gear selector between speeds for a moments usually solves the problem. After the second occurance I took a look at both the cable attachment form the control panel, and the belts, but both appeared fine. I then tilted the machine on the auger housing and removed the bottom panel, to my surprise there was a considerable amount of oil/grease/water on the drive plate and friction disk. I cleaned this with solvent and the problem went away until the next time snow accumulated on or around the engine.

I believe Snowman is onto something because the amount of oil/grease/water on the drive plate cannot simply fall from the belt cover opening alone onto a vertical drive plate, but rather must contact some oil/grease on the way down. The rubber on the friction disk appears to be quality and the grip on a clean drive plate is considerable. If anyone has an approach for how this leakage can be solved I'm all ears.