Need Help with 184 BADLY!!! - VIDEO

[AL Farmall Boy]

Hey guys, I've got a 184 lo-boy that I am having major problems with and can't figure out what is wrong. That is why I am turning to you PROFESSIONALS. After doing some adjusting on the deck, the problem still persists; as well as some new added problems with the engine running a little rough. PLEASE WATCH THE VIDEO AND SEE IF YALL CAN HELP ME FIGURE THIS PROBLEM OUT. I can supply any info needed after you see the video and come up with questions. Thanks so much in advance for your help and time.

The video will describe the problem and explain it all; and if it doesn't just post a question here and I'll promptly respond. THANKS!!!

VIDEO:
http://s1026.photobucket.com/albums/y330/bamabugleboy/Cub%20184%20Lo-Boy/?action=view&current=SAM_1081.mp4

[Mike in Louisiana]

I don't know anything about 184 but the mower looks really close to the rear wheel. Can it go forward any to help with the brake problem?
The mower on the regular cubs are supposed to be about 2 inches lower at the front of the mower.
Will it kill the engine when you engage the PTO without the belt on the mower?
Do all the spindles turn freely without the belt?

[Eugene]

Agree with Mike. Looks like the deck should be moved forward several inches. Should be about centered between the front and rear wheels.

Wrong belt? Belt should be loosen when the deck is raised and tighten as the deck is lowered.

Idler pulleys frozen/stuck?

Weak engine or engine fault - lack of power?

[Rick Spivey]

Remove the belt, check the PTO while disengaged to be sure it is free-spinning. Then check all three mower spindles in like fashion. If no problem there, also be sure the rear of deck is higher than front, but the way your engine dies, I fell like you have something binding in the deck drive train....

[Gary Dotson]

For those who have not experienced it, the electric clutch on the 184 is a real slam dunk deal and will kill even a healthy engine. I've found that the engine needs to be warmed up and the mower engaged at near full throttle. Even then, it may stumble and need a little shot of choke to help it recover. Definitely, never ever try to engage it with the mower lowered in the grass. The performance in the video looked very familiar to me!

[Rick Prentice]

I agree with Gary. The first thing I noticed was you were only at half throttle. The engine needs to be running full throttle, even when mowing. It has a governor and is designed to run wide open while mowing. Also make sure the front of the deck is slighly lower than the rear(in down mowing position). You'd be surprised how much power is robbed from a poorly adjusted deck that's lower in the rear(blades are cutting twice).

Rick

Remember, even running at full throttle(about 1800-2000 rpm's) the cub engine can reach rpm's of 3000-4000 rpm's with the governor unhooked or fooled with, so even at wide open throttle for you, it's only running at half speed. Open it up and enjoy the mowing. That's a great mowing machine

[Landreo]

What is the history of the tractor, did it work recently and now stopped, what work was done by the IHC dealer, and what work have you done to it?
Sometimes text and photos are a help for those with a slow internet connection. I did not make it through the whole video but from the looks of the mower, it appears to be in the right place. Both of my woods 59 mowers are only a few inches from the rear wheel. The angle can be set steeper that way. The front has to be a 1/2 inch lower than the back, not the front of the mower but measure the front and back of the blades.

One of my mowers came with short belt guards so hitting the brake is not a problem. the other had no guard so I made some long ones similar to what you have. They also do not hit the brake. Could yours be moved outward slightly, are there extra sets of holes to reposition the guard? The brake pedal should only move 3/4 of an inch or so, yours may be moving too much which may also contribute to the hitting of the belt guard. Either way, if the guards are installed correctly and the mower is installed correctly, the brake will not hit the mower.

Have you removed the rear belt and pulley guard from the tractor to spin the PTO pulley? Should turn the blades with not a lot of effort. I assume this is the mower with one long belt. Is it installed correctly? Are the blades turning in the correct direction? Looking down on the blade pulley, it should turn clockwise. Are the blades on backwards? Are the blades sharp?

I mow at full throttle just for the ground speed but all of my numbered series will mow just fine at 1/2 throttle. Engaging the PTO clutch on a 184 may require full throttle but that seems strange, Ken Updike from C&G may offer some insight on that feature. I could jerk the PTO clutch on my 154, 185 for a quick engage and it will not stall the engine so something may need to be looked at related to the engine itself.

[gitractorman]

I listened to the video a couple of times, and the first thing I noticed was that althouth the tractor started and ran ok, it really sounds like it is missing to me. It's hard to tell from the clip, but I would swear that it sounds like it's missing on 1 cylinder. I know that one of my cubs was running on only 3 cylinders for a long time, and I did not even know it until I did a tune up. I would check to see that each spark plug is firing. It could be as simple as a bad plug wire, or even a wire that is not completely on the plug or distributor cap.

It also looks to me like the mower deck belt is not adjust ed properly, and the mower deck is not mounted properly. It looks like the rear deck mounting is too low, which is why the deck is back so far. If you raise it up into a higher mounting hole, and adjust the pulleys up, you can slide the deck forward, away from the rear wheels, and fix your brake problem. It's hard to tell, but if it is a Woods deck, and has the single belt, you may have it routed the wrong way as well, also pulling the deck back too far. The wrong belt routing could also be the source of drag on the PTO. Since the tractor seems to run relatively good, I would focus on the deck mounting and belt route.

[John in Ct]

Just a few thoughts. I have an IH 154 with mower. I set the back mower arms in the lower holes and set the deck level. Do you have the correct rear brackets? The skids and mower wheels only touch the ground when they encounter a hump in the lawn. There are supose to be bars instead of chains holding the mower in the front. Chains could work but need to be the same length as the bars. The height of the mower in the front is changed by changing the travel of the lift arms by a bolt on the left side. Do you have the correct blades? Is there any grass wrapped around a blade or is there a clump of mowed grass in the blades way. Sometimes a clump of grass will fall in front of a blade when the tractor sits a while and I have to clear it out. Your lawn is nothing for that tractor to cut. It should go through that liked a knife through hot butter.

[outdoors4evr]

The others are right on. There is something way too tight in the mower. Remove the drive belt and make sure that each component turns freely and will freewheel if you spin it. Check each spindle individually and also check the pulleys below the PTO. I would bet that one of the spindles are too tight and soon to seize.
My 184 will spin up the blades at half throttle and even at an idle if not in tall grass.

It looks like you run out to the mowing area in third gear. If your 184 will pull itself along in third @ half throttle then it is running "good enough" to spin up the blades.

On an unrelated note: While sitting with the clutch out, you still have a knocking noise going on which could be worn driveshaft splines in the clutch or a sloppy u-joint. I had both conditions on my tractor.

[BigBill]

Are the rear tires hitting the deck housing when the tractor goes forward? I think the deck is too close to the rear tires. The floatation tires on the rear need wheel spacers on each side so they have more clearance. I think the deck floats/hinges and it might be dragging on the rear tires. The video is working with an advertisement so i can't watch it. I'm just guessing from what i'm seeing in the pic. I know how my deck floats on my 154.

[AL Farmall Boy]

Hey guys, first of all: it does have the wheel spacers, and I turned the outer blade by hand, and it and all of the other blades and pulleys move very easily and smooth. Since I took the video, the tractor has sit in the shed waiting to get repaired. When I had to move it the other day to get another Cub out it ran soooo poorly that it had to run in Full Choke, and wouldn't hardly pull itself in 1st gear. You could forget using the other gears because it didn't have the power to run in them. It is spitting and sputtering VERY BADLY. I just pulled it in the shop and first thing it is getting is a good tune-up. The only thing we've done was check the fuel sediment bowl, and it is clean as new and not stopped up. We also pulled the plugs and the gap was about 32 thousandths with lots of built up burnt motor oil.

So there you have it....so far it is telling on itself. We're also gonna replace the points, condensor, rotor, and plug wires as well; and run a timing light over it to double check.

[cub185]

i just bought a cub 185 and everything had already been replaced and it had the very same problem, we adjusted the valves and it runs and cuts like a new tractor, doesnt bog down or die