Fastrak 44/18 shredding deck belts

[chris1276]

We have a 2002 fastrak 44" w 18hp Honda. 4 belts have been shredded in 3wks. The kevlar threading comes out and gets wrapped around the spindles along w/ strips of the rubber belt. There are deposits of black rubber powder and the kevlar thread. We dropped it off @ the dealer and it was supposed to be fixed by replacing the spindle closest to the chute. It did the same thing when we got it back. They have had it for over 3wks and havnt heard anything. They gave us a Scag loaner. The controls are too heavy and I dont like the height adjustment controls. Its a freedom Z 48"/19hp Kawi. Off the topic, the gas tanks have holes in them from my parents scraping things. I feel the tanks are too easily damaged bc they stick out too far. A poor design flaw and Im sure you were limited bc of the width of the tires. Overall the Hustler has been a good reliable machine until now. Thanks

[mowerconsultant]

Your belt issue needs to be resolved, the dealer needs to check the tensioner assembly, also all spindles and pulleys for a tight bearing, or you have a alignment problem.
We build a ton of those mowers and I just dotn hear of belt issues.

Pj

[chris1276]

My dad talked to them yesterday and said that the rear pulley was causing the belt to rub on the transmission. He said it was caused from running the mower @ 1", but we don't do that. Also, they ordered a diff size pulley for the rear, which is supposed to correct the belt problem. He did say they there would be no charge for any of the repairs. This is 2nd hand info so it may not be exactly as told from dealer.

[chris1276]

Its been well over a month and the mower is still not fixed. I am very frustrated and doubting another purchase from the same dealer. My dad doesn't care and wants to use the Scag demo as long as he can. I say its poor service and want the Hustler back ASAP. My parents mows 3 acres on their property every week. 2hrs a week is a good estimate. Over 7yrs is not a whole lot of hours. say 36wks out of the yr the mower is used. Thats 72hrs a yr and 504 over 7yrs.
An interesting note: we bought the very first Hustler sold in Baton Rouge. They had just put it together and they did not want to sell it to my dad and wanted to use it as a demo. Its held up well and served its purpose for my parents. I am not sure what to do if they cannot fix the belt problem. It should last many more years. We used to have 3 wheeled Yazoos that lasted at least 10-15yrs. Just wanted to keep someone at Hustler informed on our issues. thank you

[mowerconsultant]

Please email me your information, your unit model and serial #'s and your dealers information and I will have our regional service manager get involved.

Pj

[Thunderhead]

Chris,

If you don't mind me asking, what dealer was it purchased from??

If you keep having issues with that dealer then Definately go see Ricky Aime at SNR Enterprise on South Satsuma Road off of I-12. He is the next exit past the Walker exit headed east on I-12. Its Colyell/Satsuma exit 19. He's about a mile or so south of the interstate, on the right. You can't miss it, and Baton Rouge is not that far away from him at all. Hell, he even sold a mower as far as Lake Charles!!

I just bought a mower from him this past Tuesday. If you would go by there and talk to him, I GUARANTEE he will take care of you. You will see the kind of person he is. A Super, Super feller. If you would want him to work on your mower (and I'm 100% confident you would), he wouldn't sleep until it's fixed!! Trust me.
He's been there about a year and a half and has done sold lots of mowers. As of right now he is 5th in sales for Hustler in Louisiana and Mississippi. If you want his phone number I'll give it to you. Just let me know.

Thunderhead:)

[chris1276]

Thanks for the advice. We will definitely look into a different dealer if its not fixed this time.