How to: Make A Riding Lawn Mower FAST!
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- Опубліковано 5 вер 2024
- Here's a video covering the pulley swaps, and custom tensioner pulleys I've built and installed on our off road and mudding tractors. Pulley swaps make you lawn mower faster. You want to increase the size of the front, and/or make the back pulley smaller to increase the speed of your lawn mower or tractor.
Green MTD has a 4" front, stock rear
Craftsman crawler has stock size pulleys
Murray has 4" in the front, and 5" in the rear
My brothers and I learned a valuable lesson the hard way on our first pulley swap. If you make something go fast, you should put some thought into the brakes.
Looks like fun. Nothing wrong with having fun, plus it's cheap. My neighbor and I used to run a couple of old tractors too. We had belt slippage when the belt got muddy and wet. I see you figured out how to fix that problem.
I dont know for sure, but a good start would be 6-7" on the motor, and a 3" on the trans
I appreciated the presentation! I am a fulltime welder,machinist and mechanic and its always good to hear and see what others have done and are doing! Thanks for sharing!
i will depend on how big, or small the pulleys you are going to use are. Bigger on the engine, or smaller on the trans will make it faster.
Could you do a quick video on swapping the engine drive pulley for the old mower deck pulley?
Moving up to the Kentucky hills soon and can't wait to start making these for my kids!!!!!!...Great job man!!!!
@MrDevondoyle you might try and get whats called a 3 jaw puller, you can usually rent them at an auto parts store. it will destroy the pulley when you use it. another option is to take it to a machine shop and have them press it out. they can be pain. The one on the murray never did come off, I had to cut it off then I welded a new pulley to what was left of the old pulley.
yes, a belt tensioner would take up some of the slack, but it may not be enough depending on how aggressive you are with the pulley swap.
Hey fearlessfront can u pulley swap a rear mounted engine
don't worry about reverse you won't use it that much, and the little bit that the belt does touch won't wear it out in the few seconds that it takes to back up
use a harmonic balancer puller. You can usually rent or borrow them at auto parts stores. it's the safest way to remove a stuck pulley.
I just picked up an old MTD mower as a project. I've only had it a month and the double pulley thing has made modifying the engine and rear pulley a nightmare...
haha! YUP!
VGstoof I hear ya i have a double pulley and its a pain in the ass :P i swapped the back pulley but i have to figure out to get a biger engine pulley :P
+FearlessFront (Todd Christopher) hey can u explain to me how to convert the deck drive pulley into the pulley that drives the rear axle
yes it did, we disassembled it, cleaned it really good and welded the spider gears together on that one
your my hero man, back yard, salvaged parts, low low cost. and making something right fun out of it. word thats fucking awesome.
That's pretty sweet I did a pulley swap on my mower and can go 25-30 mph on it and still be getting a bit of speed I just need to get better brakes so I can get it to stop better and made a custom "clutch"/ tensioner for it to help with driving it
@bubbawinchester you might need to make some tensioners. you just have to make sure that the belt doesn't rub the shifter rod. It usually will contact it when you shift. and maybe some little retainers to keep the belt on the pulleys when you push in the clutch
The way you have that adjustable tensioner pulley to twist the handle and make it tighter or looser is amazing.. I really need to do that to mine..
ya, 40 is a little much for an mtd axle. If you want to go that fast I would suggest going with a live axle and bearings. Reviving the double pulley will eliminate your gears, so you will have 1 forward and 1 reverse gear
I have an old Murry that I plan on makeing an off road play toy. TY for the many ideas that you have given me not old on pully swaps but lots of other ideas. I also enjoy doing things my way out of what I can find.
i've got a craftsman 12.5 that i've swung the front axle over and chopped out the rear of the frame so it sits low, ive got a 5 speed tranny, 10 inch pulley up front and a 4 inch on the tranny, that baby goes!
@pivotboy63 yea, the belt would be too small. The reason we didn't swap the rear, is because his shifter throw is too long and would contact the belt. If your shifter setup is different, you might be able to swap out there rear. It would be a little more forgiving as far as belt size goes. either way you go, you'll need a new belt.
Wow, I'm glad I stumbled across your vid. I'm in the process of making a go-kart out of an old poulan lawn mower. I was sure that I needed to make the back pulley bigger, not smaller. After seeing this I realized that would not have worked. I can't imagine how mad I would have been when the damn thing creeped along at 1mph. I probably would have bite a hole in one of the tires. Haha, thanks.
you got it, dont mess with the double pulley, just swap out the front or the rear pulley.... or both if you want
The speed will depend on what size pulley u put on it.
heat up the hub and put a 2x4 on the back side of the rim and hit it with a hammer, give it a spin, and hit it again, repeat... if that doesn't work, then you can use a steering wheel puller, or a harmonic balancer puller.
@WavyGravyTrain1 you would have to drop the trans out the bottom, and take your old pulley off, if it will com off, mine didnt, so I welded a new one to it!
yeah, sure you could.. If you gear it right you could get a good mix of power and speed. Might take some experimenting though
@LaPavoniMac Not sure on the exact ratio, but I usually do my pulley swap, then use a piece of rope as a means of measuring for a new belt. Run the rope around all the pulleys and pull it tight so the clutch spring is keepin a good amount of tention on it (but make sure when you push the clutch, it will slacken, you don't want it to tight.) Then tie it, clamp it, whatever, then measure it, or bring it with you to find a new belt.
the 4.5" on the trans would work well, you should probably get at least a 4-5" on the engine if your looking for a little bit of speed. That combo would leave you with good low gear power as well
yeah,thats the mtd vari-drive. it has a single speed rear axle, and all your gears are controlled through that double pulley
@V8Mike93 Very true! I guess I didn't mention that, there's a lot of stuff I should have mentioned, but didn't... Thanks for the post!
@DosAmigosDnZ If you get it close you should be fine. When you get the pulley mounted, give it a few spins to make sure it doesn't wobble or that it's not warped...
you can separate them. Thats how I have it setup on my black tractor. You'll have to rig up a second pedal for the brake. Or make it a hand brake
I like the black murray off roader the most. I have the most fun on that one.
a 1:1 ratio is usually pretty good. I like 4" and 4", it works good in most situations.
FearlessFront (Todd Christopher) how fast will it go with a 1-1
@HUMMVE100 yeah, but you would need a centrifugal clutch on the motor so you could stop, a chain doesn't slip like a belt does.
the engine pulley comes off with one large bolt in the bottom of the crank shaft, then it slides down. the trans will probably have a c-clip on the top of the pulley where the shaft pokes through the pulley hub. remove that and it should pull straight up.
as for sizes, it's up to you, but I would recomend 4" in the front and a 4" on the rear. that would get you some speed.
This was the first video I ever saw of lawn tractor off roading and I was hooked... I watched every single one of your videos one right after another... U are a huge inspiration and I hope to get a lawn mower and take it romping... Thanks fearless and keep up the good work p.s. can't wait for the next video
A bigger engine will not make it faster, only a pulley swap will speed it up
Just curious how fast would a 12 inch pulley on the motor and 3.5inch on the rear be?
😅😂
@@Mylotheblacknwhitecat my guess would be like 70mph if you could get it to move😂
@@ThatOneGuyIsaac it won't move?
@@Mylotheblacknwhitecat i'm not really to sure but there is a chance i wouldn't but i would probably be best if you did do that to have a twin
@ThatOneGuyIsaac I have a rn 3.5 inch in rear and 5 inch on motor was hoping to make mine faster lol but it's 16hp
yeah, you can swap both, just dont touch the vari-drive... that should be fine the way it is. We swapped a 4 inch on the motor of pauls mower, and it went about twice as fast as it used too.
I was looking for a video on what lawn tractor pulley setup looked like. And yours was good.
My thinking is on how to increase the torque, reduction. So im looking for the opposite of what you've done. But I did learn something. Have fun!
you need some little tab to keep the belt from falling off your new pulley. your old pulleys should have had some on them
@LightsMB you have the mtd setup, you need to get a larger belt so the center double pulley will function.
i've built 7-8 machines so far. I own about 5 right now. And worked on several others
thats a big difference... look around for a shorter belt... maybe you've already got one for a mower deck, or a different mower.. Belts can cost $20+
i just got a newish craftsman and the clutch pully is right next to the front pully any tips
@lizard5109 yes you can, you would have to build a jack shaft setup for the input shaft of the transmission. or else the pullies wont line up/..
Just got a 20 HP Toro. Was trying to figure out how to get more speed. Thanks
@Dillon1791 you would have to add a centrifugal clutch, or else you would start the motor and go!
@bronco2roo Yeah, probably. Not sure exactly, it will depend on your clearance and the size and off set of the tires. Jst put it all together, and then take your measurements. It would suck to get it wrong.
I've got a 4 1/2" front and 3" rear on my Rat mower. My buddy has the same thing with only a 16 horse single cylinder motor (I've got a bored, ported, head shaved 42 oppy Briggs) and he smoked his tires in a third hear clutch dump. Definately gunna roast mine and DEFINATELY needs a strong ass clutch spring
thanks man, they are pretty fun to mess around with. and cheap.
your friend is right, the only way to get real speed is to swap pulleys, but you won't be going 70mph. I would say about 30-40 tops
I would cut the hub off, and try to weld a new pulley to the old hub. I had to do that once on an mtd
My tractor had a 13.5 flat head single with a 1:1 ratio basically and it would go pretty good but i blew it up and swapped to a 18.5 opposed twin with the same pulleys and it’s considerably slower now, im gonna put a 5 in on the engine and I have 3 or 3 1/2 on the rear
haha, yup! they can be a pain, but at least you can still pulley swap it. it's not as bad as a hydrostatic trans
ok man I did a 5 inch in front and rear still have a nice slow first gear but when you hit 3rd it takes off and God for bid you go from 3rd to 5th its a hell of a ride i did it once and rode the front wheels up my whole block, Kinda scary at first , my Duetz allis 612 flips the seat and rear fenders to get to the battery so i was glade i bent the tabs over so it didnt eject me on my wheelie stunt , I think it goes @ 25 mph thanks for the help
@Dillon1791 yeah, and clutching, they belts work because they slip, if it was chain, it would just grab all at once
@yamaharules163 just make sure nothing is gonna rub, that is the biggest issue I have run into swapping pulleys. That and the belt retainers. The older craftsmans, like mine, have the clutch up front right next to the front pulley, so it's a pain in the ass to make it much bigger.
@bubbawinchester yeah, welding bolts on works well. if the belt looks like it'll clear, then that'll be easy then
I use it for a 600-800 lbs hay cart occasionally and do cut grass with it but I also just drive and mud creeks
about how fast will your murry go
@Jonathanpoll I guess youve gotta make your belt keepers a little closer or more of them. if the pullies are balanced, then it must be the belt keepers, or maybe the belt is too long.
no, you need a belt somewhere so you can still function your clutch. it need to be able to slip a little bit
oh, here and there... haha, keep an eye out in the spring when people get new mowers... Sometimes, they will almost give away the old ones!
@mowerfreak100 I dropped the axle down an inch to compensate for the mis-alignment. it gave me a small lift in the rear. just make sure you keep the belt retainers in the right place and you should be fine
i made one with a 20" bicycle rim for a front pulley and a 2" pulley for the back one with a lowered suicide front end it's pretty great
it has deep sides, and doesn't get loose enough to fall off
@bigbeef1196 if it does 30mph, you wont have a ton of pulling power... You'll still have some, just not like you do now.(No heavy loads) I would say swap out to a 4" on the front, and a 3" on the back, that'll be pretty fast, but not insanely fast. you can get them at hardware stores, or check tractor supply co. they have them. The rear pulley is easy, it usually a snap ring on the top of the pulley, look in where the shaft would come through the top.
hell, I'm sure a lot of people would want to see that, myself being one of them!
sometimes, but not usually.... I haven't been that lucky, I always had to custom make them out of those pulleys.
@sailboat910 If you move the belt, then no, the clutch will not work any more, sometimes you can just flip that front pulley and but a bigger belt and be all set.... sometimes it's not that easy
"Off-road lawn mowers" Hahaha! I think that's the original purpose...
Isn't that what Papagallo had in Mad Max?
@johndeere471 yeah, you will. unless you make the back pulley 2" smaller and the front 2" bigger. then you could probably use the original one
@SivertBergene These motors typicality have threads in the bottom of the shaft that you bolt into.
I know a way to swap the back pulley.
Well then... Let's all give a big round of applause to Brandon Gould for sharing that!
Ok...
I know how to write my name on the snow while peeing!
Where's my round of applause????
@@roccitycrew3887 ahaha lmao
I'd like a slightly bigger from pulley, or some bigger tires on the rear.Maybe even some pneumatic tires.In 3rd gear high range it's just the perfect speed to rattle you half to death with the metal cleats I've made on it.If it were just a bit faster it wouldn't be so bad.Plus I can still go to low range if I want to crawl.High speed is about like a brisk walk.Maybe 4-5 MPH?
@CalvinsShop I usually use a piece of rope, pulled really tight around the pulleys, then I pull it off, measure it, and I usually subtract an inch... That'll give you an idea. I donno if theres a math formula for it or not.
Ive noticed you use a lot of older riding mowers, I was wondering if it is possible (not to difficult) to modify the mowers that use a hydrostatic/ automatic shift design? -Thanks Superjeep291
I found a double clutch pulley stock!!! On a Murray 11hp 36 3speed. I had it in the shop and I guess my dad threw it away :/ but oh well. I'm about to go fix my shifter I've moved it to a new spot because it has a different rearend in it.
#1- lawn tractor rear tires, not sure what size
#2- it is a 14.5 briggs over head valve, so im not sure how to answer that :p
#3- as of now im not sure what size my pulleys are, but ill take what you said and try to do the best job with what i have/can find! (ill make a video and put it up when im done! probably wont be for another couple of weeks though)
I got a idea for you fearlessfront, how about you convert your push mower into a riding mower.
@TheInfotwins No prob! I need to get out and do some mudding soon!
I use pipe cutter tool. made looks straight and neat.
@craftsmanmudder welp, youll have to completely rebuild you clutch at a lower level, because youll be dropping the belt to the lower pulley. It would probably be better to build a jack shaft setup.
@TheRUSSELLBOY Small front and/or large rear = slow and torque.. Large front and/or smaller rear make it faster. I wouldn't use a pulley smaller then 4" for mudding, just for friction.
Mine is about 4" on the motor and 5" on the trans. It tops out about 12-14 mph
@NicksGarageDoor I'm 99% sure it;s a 5/8" But it's been a while since I messed with it
it's as effective as it is on any mower. I would do it... but swap the motor pulley first. its a lot easier than the trans pulley
@DSLGKC550 Yup, I've always liked the shift on the fly feature, but get it wet and it's all over! They work good for mowing, thats about it.
@Jonathanpoll that wouldnt be a bad idea, just dont make it impossible to change your belt
just the change pulleys. thats it!
@DSLGKC550 not too fast, it probably goes about twice as fast as it did before. We used the mower deck drive pulley.
Ok I did a pully swap on my white I put a 9inch pully on the motor and a 3inch on the axle and all its doing is smoking the belt I fesized the belt to
+James Richards Too much speed and not enough torque.try 5 inch on axle
@tottos90 Yeah, thats the trick! make sure it's flat as possable, tack weld it, check it, weld it some more, check it again, ect...
@WCPAGEL thanks!
@cmoloney96 I usually do my pulley swap, then use a piece of rope as a means of measuring for a new belt. Run the rope around all the pulleys and pull it tight so the clutch spring is keepin a good amount of tention on it (but make sure when you push the clutch, it will slacken, you don't want it too tight.) Then tie it, clamp it, whatever, then measure it, or bring it with you to find a new belt.
@deerslayer048 yeah, they probably locked the rear-end so it would spin both tires. it won't make it any faster though.
I have a craftsman gt 18 that i use for a snow plow. I would like to get a bit faster without loosing too much power to rear. Going to lock dif but want to do it all at once.
I have a great idea for you for a build, you should get a normal lawn tractor and modify the frame and weld a flat bed on to the frame so it would be a truck. Also if you get a normal lawntractor you can put another transmisson