I did finally get my tractor running the way it should again. It took a lot of patience and persistence. Once I was consistently shifting between forward and reverse, I put it back together and gave it a try. I wasnÂt sure how fast the axle should be spinning, but while it was on the jack and the wheel was off I did note it was up to about 1 revolution per second. When I tested it with the wheels on the ground, the tractor barely moved. I popped the wheel off and opened the vent again. This time I had more trouble getting the "O" rings out, so I left them in place. The vent still had some play and this seemed to work fine. I let the tractor run on the jack in forward for 10 minutes. The axle revolutions gradually increased to about 60 revolutions in 20 - 25 seconds. This rate didnÂt change after another 5 minutes, so I put it back together. I would HIGHLY RECOMMEND checking the fluid level again at this point (especially if your test route is down hill from your work area). Since my filler cap is under the battery, and a pain to get at, I went for a "quick" test drive first. Initially, my speed was actually faster than it had been for the last five years (since the last time I changed the fluid) and the shifting was also tighter. It had been so long, I had forgotten the tractor had lost a step the last time I changed the transmission fluid. As it turned out my fluid was now low, and I didnÂt make it back to the garage. Topping off the transmission fluid where the tractor now sat, wasnÂt quite enough to get it to move under its own power again. Thankfully I had made it up the steepest part of the lawn before it stopped completely, and I was able to push it the rest of the way back to the pavement where I could jack it up, pull the wheel, loosen the vent, and let it run for another 15 minutes. This time I made sure to check the fluid before going any further. I would also recommend that you avoid over filling your unit. I had a bit of a mess when I popped the cap off this time. Once I replaced most of the fluid that was now on the outside of my transmission, I tested it one more time, reassembled, and it was good. I would say the speed of the tractor is close to what it was when it left the factory and my mowing time was reduced by 25%. Thanks for everyoneÂs help! Armstrr, I hope this gets you back to full speed!

OK, I went out and inspected some more this evening. I found quite a few small new terminal flowerbuds, so I think I'm going to get a flush of blooms soon. These little buds are really getting sucked by aphids (and I saw a few brown beetles or weevils, too), so I sprayed all the shrubs with an Ortho systemic spray. I noticed that on the shrub that flowers well, the blooms come in groups of three to five. On the shrubs that aborted the buds, you can see where a bud used to be, and one or more of the three to five stems in that cluster just kept growing and sort of turned into branch growth rather than a flower stem. This may explain why the good bloomer is shorter -- it's stems turned into flowers instead of morphing into more vegetative growth. At first glance, it might look like just a bunch of blind shoots, but I think these shoots had flowerbuds on them, but the buds withered and then the shoots just kept on growing upward. I don't know if that's possible, but that's what it looks like to me. Anyway, I was going to cut their height back tonight, but when I saw quite a few flowerbuds that weren't falling off, I decided I'd better let this flush bloom and then cut them back. I think what happened is that my spring flush tried to happen, but some deficiency, either in water or nutrients, caused all the flowerbuds to abort, so they just kept producing more vegetative growth. Now they're getting ready for a summer flush and perhaps that mysterious deficiency is not so bad now, and they're going to bloom. They are definitely getting more water now than they did earlier in the spring. I didn't turn on the sprinkler system until late April, and it was a dry spring. But then again, I've had some wet springs in the past six years, and they've never bloomed well even then. I'm betting on some kind of mineral or nutrient deficiency. I think I'll need a more comprehensive soil test than the do-it-yourself one I tried this spring. I can send a sample to the local extension for testing. Anyway, if I can figure out what deficiency is causing weakness in a joint where the the flowerbud attaches to the stem, perhaps I can save the spring flush from fall off next year and I'll get to see these roses in all their intended glory. Well, a guy can think big, right? :-)

I would buy a bowl gasket (item 137, B&S number 806481) and a needle valve (item 105, B&S 807706) My instructions are to be very careful, closely observe what you are doing , make notes, and take plenty of pictures of how everything connects to the carb BEFORE you start loosening any screws, bolts or other stuff. Most folks get into trouble by not marking their teardown trail adequately. When you think you have enough pictures, take some more. After you get the carb removed from the engine, you should disassemble the carb within the confines of a large cookie pan (with sides) or "biscuit pan". This will help keep stuff from getting lost. You will need to buy a can of spray carb cleaner (Carb medic or Gumout brand) to clean up the varnish and sludge. Wear eye protection when spraying the parts and do this in a well ventilated area (outdoors is good). You will use the straw (taped to side of can) to deliver the cleaner into all the passages and holes. Clean the outside of carb before you take the bowl off. Remove the bowl by removing the threaded nut (B&S calls it a plug) in the center bottom of bowl. If your carb has a fuel solenoid instead of a plug, remove the solenoid to get the bowl off. The presence of a fuel solenoid dictates that it must be tested too as a defective fuel solenoid can also cause a "fuel starved condition", so let us know if a solenoid is present (to get details on addressing that). Once you get the bowl off, examine the junk that has accumulated in the bottom of the bowl. If you find anything coarser than talcum powder (just a comparison) collected in the bowl, that same coarse junk might be clogging the jets. Even water has the capability to plug a jet (especially the small pilot jet). Carefully remove the pin (item 104) that holds the float (item 133) in place and lift out the float with the needle attached (darn good time to take some close-up pics). Remove the main jet (item 117) only if it has slots to engage with a large flat screw driver. If it does not have the slots, don't mess with it. The "idle air screw" (item 94) needs to be removed so you can clean out its passages. Before you remove the idle air screw, you need to very gently turn the screw CLOCKWISE, carefully COUNTING THE NUMBER OF TURNS it takes to seat the valve, DO NOT OVERTIGHTEN this screw, just until you feel it get snug when it bottoms out. WRITE down the number of turns and fractions of turns on a piece of paper that you will keep. If you have compressed air available, use it to your benefit to blow out all passages while they are still wet with cleaner. After you have done a few sprays of cleaner followed by compressed air, spray cleaner into all the holes and let it stand. If you have a piece of wire (paper clip or tie wire) probe into the main jet and/or passages to help knock loose any granular solids that could be there. After about 10 minutes, spray some more and let it stand. Do this about 3 or four sprays and after your last spray, blow out all the holes and passages thoroughly. Assemble the carb (refer to your pics) with the new needle valve and gasket. When you install the idle air screw, run it in til it bottoms, then back it out the exact number of turns and fractions that you recorded in the teardown procedure. Put everything back together on the engine exactly as it was before (refer to your pics) with new hoses and a new fuel filter. Let us know about whether a fuel solenoid is present so we can cover you on testing and cleaning it.

after reading all the opinions about this guy, i'm convinced that there are more misinformed fools in this world than i had thought before i just bought an older 12h.p. simplicity tractor that came with the 36" blower, and the 36" mower deck, all for $500.00. it's not that i couldn't afford a nice new j.d. tractor from the local big box store, i'm 70 years old. most people i know, realize that the big box stores sell inferior merchandise. j.d. tractors that are sold from these places are cheap, junk.. this is all because j.d. wants everybody to own their product. they have done the one thing that will damage their good name, forever, all because they are trying to tighten their belts and make even more money..in the end, anybody with a half a brain could figure this out. i'm a believer that the older tractors are built better and they were meant to last and last. the newer ones are meant to be thrown away so you will buy another new one, just as it is with most things..for my money, anybody is better off buying a good used tractor that still will outlast a new big box one, providing that the older one has been taken care of. the guy will probably regret ever buying the piece of junk but, i'm sure he'll enjoy driving his tractor that shines more than the used simplicity. just my three cents worth. jim.