Have had my Craftsman for about 12 years now. 42" with Kohler 17 hp. 6 speed. You can get one now at Sears for about 1300. Relpaced drive belt once. 15 min job.

Update: Good news...I think! Here's what's happened today: First, I checked the routing of the belt and verified that it was correct. Check. No blue marks on the belt. So I proceeded to take the deck off. Done. Started the mower...no smoking from the engine. Check. I then proceeded to put the deck back on. During this process it dawned on me that there was one thing that I had unnecessarily removed the first time that wasn't in the same spot as it appeared to be in the manual (the first time I removed the deck I pretty much removed every pin I found). I'm not sure what it is, but it was a rod (bent on each end) that was connected to the deck that seems to move (slide) a couple of parts on top of the deck. All I know is that when I looked at the mower assembly guide in the manual, it should have been connected from the deck to the back of the deck where another rod is also anchored (for the clutch?). Anyway, I put it on and reattached everything else. So I started the mower...everything ok so far. Let it warm up and bit and started to drive around. Ok. Then I engaged the mower. Seemed ok. So I started mowing the backyard. Other than running out of gas it was fine and I mowed the whole back yard! Well, I wish I could remember where I had connected that rod (by pin) the the first time so maybe it would make sense to you all what I had done wrong, but the main thing is I think I'm ok - for the moment! It started raining again so I'll have to finish the yard at another time. Thank you so much to you that offered advice. I was pretty much ready to give up before I posted this, and your input motivated me to keep trying. Jeremy

Derek, As I see it, you have need of a mower for a 5 acre property but your budget is for a lawn tractor that suits a 1 acre property. I think that you should go to link below and do a little bit of self-education. I point you at Deere's website because if you examine the various series they offer, you will also see the prices these tractors sell for when new. Anyone who owns a 5 acre property and needs to maintain the better part of that land should be considering a true garden tractor, not a lawn tractor. Right now, your budget fits a 3 to 4 year old lawn tractor or a 30 year old garden tractor. What's at issue here is the durability (lifespan) of the parts chosen to build these radically different models that have radically different price tags. A new lawn tractor (LT) can cost from $1800.00 to $3000.00 plus but it is still made from lower cost components. The engines chosen for such models are made to last at least 1000 hours of use before possibly needing to be rebuilt. In comparison, engines for high-end garden tractors (GT's) are designed to last for 3000 hours and up. The same holds true for the trans-axle assemblies. Engines are the most expensive part of any tractor but the trans-axle is the second most expensive part. So, if you buy a 30 year old GT for $700.00, the engine itself becomes the burning question. Many of the older GT's used Onan engines to power them because Onan was THE premium engine of the day. Premium engines use premium quality parts that come at a premium price so you can expect to pay at least $1500.00 to have an Onan PROPERLY rebuilt today. Other premium engines are Honda twins, Vanguard twins, Kohler Command Pro twins and Kawasaki twins. These are the engines of choice by manufacturers of high-end GT's and none of those engines are inexpensive to rebuild. Hydrostatic trans-axles are equally expensive to deal with. Some can be repaired or rebuilt but if you don't have the tools and skills to do this work, then the labour cost at a shop can be devastating. If a friend of yours told you that he was thinking of buying a 30 year old sports car for 7 grand and that sports car sells for over 100 grand new at the dealership today, what advice would you give him? This is where you are at. Any old GT is going to have issues that come with it as a result of age, wear, tear and all too often, neglect and abuse by past owners. Now you could buy a used Deere L or LA model that is a few years old for $700.00 but if it has high hours of use on it, then the risk of the hydro failing or the engine letting go is also high. The same holds true with a GT for the same kind of money. A tractor at that price point is pretty much used up or it wouldn't be selling for that amount. Realistically, your budget should be at $3000.00 so that you can find a decent, used GT that still has a lot of life left in it and won't need constant repairs. While ZTR's cut grass faster than most GT's do, they have TWO hydrostatic pumps and TWO hydraulic motors in them and those equate to TWICE the expense when they are houred up. In fact, there's a good chance that the cost of replacing the pumps and motors will exceed the current value of the ZTR at that point. So, a well-used ZTR wouldn't be a good choice for you, IMHO. Another "educational" place to review is the e-Bay auctions to see what various used GT's bring in the open marketplace. You can also visit ALL the local dealers and make notes of what makes, models, years, hours showing and the price of used units in their inventory. At least...if you buy from a brand-name dealer, there is a certain amount of good-will warranty that will flow with such a purchase because the guy doesn't want to lose your future business. For a five acre property, nothing less than a 54" deck is suitable and a 60" deck is really the smallest I would want to have. To cut down seat time even further and still have a mower that would easily negotiate the tighter areas near the house, then a 48" deck is ideal for that but for the large, wide open areas I would pull a 60" trailing mower such as those made by Swisher so I could cut 8 feet of grass on every pass. However, your budget isn't high enough for that but I thought I'd toss it out so you know that such a combo is available. Here is a link that might be useful: Deere

Seat switch is open when seat is occupied. Seat switch closes when seat is vacant. Closing the seat switch connects the magneto kill wire to ground, stopping the spark production and causing the engine to quit running. The clutch switch is part of the interlock circuit and WILL permit the engine to run with the seat empty provided the clutch/brake pedal is down. But since you connected the seat switch wires together, the clutch switch is the last switch to close and now it acts as though the seat is empty, even when the seat is actually occupied.