New Walker ain't climing well.

[MOW ED]

My Walker 26EFI is nearing 200 hours (purchased June 1 2k) and I am starting to have some problems getting up hills that I was able to get up before. As I ascend a hill the engine has plenty of power but it seems that the hydros aren't staying with it and I stall. I also get the sound of a belt squeal when this happens.
I have checked the idlers and they seem fine and I bought and replaced the ground drive belt at 180 hours. The engine belt was replaced at 120 hours.
The mower will go up but I have to really feather the ground speed up real slow. It is no better in reverse. These are steep grades but as I said the mower used to climb them like a lynx.

I can't afford to take it in just yet as it is crunch time for leaf season and I have about a week and a half to go.

What does it sound like to you?

 

[Mowman]

Ed,
Are you running the same tires on your new Walker that you had on your old one? I'm thinking of putting low profile tires on mine next season. Do you have a larger hopper on this machine than the old one? If so it could be the weight difference. It sounds like you checked out all the other possible things. Good Luck.
Mowman

 

[TLS]

MOW ED,

I think you diagnosed your problem. I know nothing about Walkers (never even seen on in person) but your hydro pump(s) are slipping somehow. If thats not it, its your wheel motors or pumps internal workings. When pumps go bad they get real sloppy. I seriously think its your belts. Maybe your old belts glazed your pulleys. Maybe your new belts are not OEM grade and aren't as "grippy". If you heard belt squeal, this is a sign of a loose belt. Maybe whatever tensions your belt is not tight enough.

Good Luck

 

[JJ Lawn]

MOW ED,

I had a problem a while back doing the same thing you described. Not pulling up a hill. I thought that I was having problems with my Hydro's. As I was checking the fluid I noticed bubbles coming up from the bottom of the reservoir. Also the rubber cup was all distorted out of shape. I thought for sure I have a major problem. But while looking at the cap I noticed that the grove for the vent had a piece of leaf plugging it. Cleaned out the vent put cap back on, and Walker worked fine.

I don't know if this will solve your problem but it fixed mine.

Jim

 

[Cutter1]

I had a problem with my Lasr on hills when I first bought it. The hydro belt was slipping. I had it replaced twice, finally they put on a stronger spring for the tension, now no problems.

 

[thelawnguy]

Every 50 hours or so you need to remove the spring loaded idler (this goes for any brand of machine) and clean up the greasable bushing. Since there is spring tension when you greas it no grease gets behind half the bushing and it eventually gets tight and wont do a good job snugging up the belt.

If I dont do this with my Exmark it will do just as you describe.

 

[landscaper3]

1st thing to do is put the speed up kit on it $17.00 we put it on our Walker mowers including our 2001 26EFI model it helped climbing hills. 2nd check your hydros to make sure there isnt alot or some air trapped in line or hydro units thenselves. If you feel the hydro hoses and in there line it feels soft that may contribute to your problem. Also on your drive pullys you should grease once a week, all grease fitting should be greased once a week.Your pully may be dry and putting too much strain on the dual hydro sytem. Also an area to look at is the fans on hydros to be sure branches and debri isnt restricting fan movement and also check each spring on hydros to make sure they are installed and working properly. Let me know how it goes and if anything here has helped.

 

[Cutter1]

Lawnguy......This happened to mine right off the floor. I did grease it and when I had the spring off I greased it also. FOr some reason my spring could not keep enough tension, now with a stronger spring it runs perfect.

 

[Nathan]

I have the same problem every once in a while. the idler might look like it is pushing hard enough but could very easily be getting stuck at the point of contact and not allowing it to press as hard as it should. Make sure you grease the pivot point regularly, at least once a week. I actually grease all zerks at least once a week sometimes even more often.

 

[gene gls]

I had the same problem and my dealer pulled off the groved belt that ran the hydros and it had small particales of sand imbedded into the belt. New belt, runs great!