I have a yard machine riding lawn mower and when I engage the blades the deck starts to wobble really bad. Does anyone know how to fix that?

Jay Mcvay, July 2007

I have a Yardmachine lawnmower that keeps burning the starter my voltage is there but no start i just put this engine on and its a briggs&stratton engine im wondering if i have the right amount of cca for this 18hp engine. What size battery should i go with.

Jose, June 2008

I'm Back, I replaced the one spindle making he gu-thump sound and forgot to order the lower bearing for the other spindle. I checked both blades and they both appear to be in balance. I reattached the deck and I still have vibration, but nowhere near as much as before. I removed the deck belt and noticed one of the deck belt pulleys on the one of the spindles may have a problem. When I spin it, there is a small "dip" in the pulley on the horizontal axis. Could this cause my shaking, or do I still need to look at the blades? Also, on the brand new spindle assembly I just installed, I can move the blade a tiny hair vertically. I wrenched down on the bolts that hold the blade and the pulley, but I still get this tiny vertical movement. Is this normal for a new spindle assembly ?

Rain Man, October 2007

I just purchased a used 1997/8 Yard Machine riding lawn mower, 14.5 hp, 42" cut. The seller disclosed that the deck shook when mowing. In fact it shakes pretty violently. I pulled both blades and checked for balance. They both checked ok, I laid both blades one a top the other and both matched up. No deviances indicating a bent blade. One spindle spins freely and continues spinning. The other spindle does not turn as freely and has a gu-thump sound when spun. I removed the bolt holding on the pully and had to drive out the spindle. The spindle and bearing came out as one unit. On other mowers I've worked on the spindle fell right our after removing the pully bolt. I'm going to order two new lower bearings for both spindles and see if that resolves the problem. The top bearing on both spindles appear to be in good condition e.g, they spin freely with no noise or grind. I've bookmarked this q&a and I will get back to you and let you know how things turned out.

Rain Man, September 2007

I would say your blades are out of balance. If that is the case, buy new blades. Also, check the bearings for the shafts the blades mount to. they could be out of adjustment or dry, or even getting ready to seize.

Daniel, July 2007