My favorite HF Tool!

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  • leehljp
    Just me
    • Dec 2002
    • 8429
    • Tunica, MS
    • BT3000/3100

    My favorite HF Tool!

    I posted something on this two years ago, (I think it was two years ago) but it sure was a huge huge help today. The Lawn Tractor Lift.

    Amazing deals on this 300Lb Capacity Lawnmower / Atv Lift at Harbor Freight. Quality tools & low prices.


    I have a 22 year old Craftsman LT1000 42" mower and needed to change the spindles out and add new blades. The first set of spindles lasted 12 years. Every three years since then - I have had to replace them. The new spindles just are not as good as the first ones. The spindles are not built to exacting standards and after two or three years the bearings are loose inside. Not only that, with the last set I put on - the blades were about 1/4" off set from each other. I didn't notice when I put them on but I sure did when I cut the grass. I let it go. So I ordered a new set of spindles and blades, added some great zerks to the spindles and filled the inside with grease. I also added some silicone caulk when I re-set the bearings into the housing to keep water out (hopefully.)

    I put the lawn tractor on the lift and raised it. Plenty of room up under to work. I placed a long square 1" steel bar from one side of the mower to the other and clamped it on both sides to the deck to measure the level of the blades. It was easy, using the bar, to see the alignment of blades. Both blades had one side about 3/16 lower than the other. It wasn't the spindles out of perpendicular to the ground, but both blades with all the curves on them - not level from one end to the other and therefore when tight, one side would be lower than the other side when making a revolution. I felt couldn't square / level the blades without introducing another distortion, so I shimmed one side of each blade at the spindle. Perfect of both.

    The lift was excellent. I could not have done that kind of work without it. I have worked on the mower numerous times over the last 20 years, and working under a lift has made it SOOOOO much easier.


    When I finished, I gave the mower a tryout. It seemed to be runnings smoother than it has since shortly after it was new. The grease fittings, the balancing the blades helped a lot! Thanks to the lift.

    That is what I did today.
    Hank Lee

    Experience is what you get when you don't get what you wanted!
  • capncarl
    Veteran Member
    • Jan 2007
    • 3564
    • Leesburg Georgia USA
    • SawStop CTS

    #2
    This is really nice tool for the homeowner with lawnmowers to maintain.

    I didn’t see you mention taking the inside seals off on the bearings?

    What happened to the comment option on the bottom right hand of the post?

    Comment


    • leehljp
      leehljp commented
      Editing a comment
      Forgot to mention that. I didn't notice or know about the (inside) seals at first, then while playing with one spindle, one dropped off and I discovered I could, then the purpose of it. Hope this makes it last longer!
  • Jim Frye
    Veteran Member
    • Dec 2002
    • 1051
    • Maumee, OH, USA.
    • Ryobi BT3000 & BT3100

    #3
    Looks like original posts don't have a comment option.
    Jim Frye
    The Nut in the Cellar.
    ”Sawdust Is Man Glitter”

    Comment

    • Jim Frye
      Veteran Member
      • Dec 2002
      • 1051
      • Maumee, OH, USA.
      • Ryobi BT3000 & BT3100

      #4
      Not meaning to twist a knife, but my electric rider is much easier to service. Four clevis pins and two electrical connectors leave the deck to be slid out, turned over, and worked on. However, the two hundred pound battery pack slide out tray requires a dolly to service the batteries, but that should only happen every ten to fifteen years or so. I feel for those folks who can't/won't service their own machines. The local mower shops charge $250 - $350 for annual servicing plus $50 - $70 for pickup & return of the machine.
      Jim Frye
      The Nut in the Cellar.
      ”Sawdust Is Man Glitter”

      Comment

      • capncarl
        Veteran Member
        • Jan 2007
        • 3564
        • Leesburg Georgia USA
        • SawStop CTS

        #5
        Since we are singing phrase to Harbor Freight, I have been really impressed with my my 56” 2 bay US General tool cabinet. It replaced a Kennedy industrial tool box and a Craftsman tool box. Note that I called my old boxes tool boxes, because that’s all they were, metal boxes with flimsy wobbly drawers. the US General tool cabinet is a far better than the ones it replaced!

        Click image for larger version

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        Comment

        • LCHIEN
          Internet Fact Checker
          • Dec 2002
          • 20914
          • Katy, TX, USA.
          • BT3000 vintage 1999

          #6
          Portland double edged Japanese style saw - only 12 bucks.

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          Loring in Katy, TX USA
          If your only tool is a hammer, you tend to treat all problems as if they were nails.
          BT3 FAQ - https://www.sawdustzone.org/forum/di...sked-questions

          Comment

          • twistsol
            Veteran Member
            • Dec 2002
            • 2893
            • Cottage Grove, MN, USA.
            • Ridgid R4512, 2x ShopSmith Mark V 520, 1951 Shopsmith 10ER

            #7
            I used one of these concrete mixers for 10 years, paid less than a week's rental would have cost me and sold it for nearly what I paid for it. The price hasn't changed since I bought mine, but I did have a 20% coupon.

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            Chr's
            __________
            An ethical man knows the right thing to do.
            A moral man does it.

            Comment


            • capncarl
              capncarl commented
              Editing a comment
              Leehlip, This thing will work you to death! A yard of concrete takes 7.7 loads from this mixer, and 72 bags (50 lb) of sacrite.

            • leehljp
              leehljp commented
              Editing a comment
              I remember as a kid watching them load and mix and pour continuously for a whole day and a half. It wasn't work for me to watch! :-)

            • capncarl
              capncarl commented
              Editing a comment
              When you were a wee tot hard work was not that hard
          • Jim Frye
            Veteran Member
            • Dec 2002
            • 1051
            • Maumee, OH, USA.
            • Ryobi BT3000 & BT3100

            #8
            All of this talk about a favorite HF tool made me wonder. I couldn't think of a HF tool in my shop even though there's a store about three miles from my home. I had to go down to the shop and look. Finally found the only one tucked in the back of a cabinet drawer. I liked the way it performed the last time I used it, so I guess that makes it my favorite HF tool.
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            Jim Frye
            The Nut in the Cellar.
            ”Sawdust Is Man Glitter”

            Comment


            • twistsol
              twistsol commented
              Editing a comment
              First place in a race of one.
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