[ralph3795]

Fix or Replace? I have a 7 year old craftsman 42" mower with a briggs 20hp. long story but have to replace the motor.. so do i replace it at a cost of $700- $800 installed ? or since its 7 years old and not replaced anything else, belts etc... do i just replace it with a new lawn tractor? if so.. another craftsman? or go to Home depot or lowes and get what? Toro? john Deere? Cub Cadet? if new wanna stay as close to $1500 a possible
thanks, ralph mg:

 

[OldBuzzard]

Not a lot of information there. You say "Craftsman mower", but there are about 87 Billion different "Craftsman mowers". Some are very capable machines, and would be worth replacing the engine. Others are basically just throw aways. Giving the model would be a big help.

In the event you decide to replace it. Avoid places like Home Depot, Lowe's, etc like the plague. Find a local dealer and buy one from them. Setup and adjustments of the deck, etc play an important part of how a tractor is going to work for you and the dealer will do it properly, where as the box store tractor may well be 'assembled' by someone that barely knows one end of a wrench from another, and has no clue as to how to properly setup a deck for proper cutting, proper belt tensions and so on.

If all you are doing is mowing on fairly flat ground,and very light pulling of things like a cart or dethatcher, for Price/Performance, the Cub Cadet LTX 1042 KW (available ONLY through a CC dealer) would be a decent choice.
http://www.cubcadet.com/equipment/cubcadet/lawn-and-garden-tractors/series-1000/ltx-1042-kw

 

[ralph3795]

Sorry, Craftsman 917.276641 42" cut 20hp bought new in april 2006
and thanks for your reply

 

[3v0]

Whats wrong with the engine? I am betting that there are not that many hours on it and it seems wrong to say buy a new one or even an engine without asking.

Do you like the old mower?

 

[ralph3795]

magnet let loose under flywheel which cause lots of damage to alternator and what holds it to base and some other damage. cant really be fixed. i do like mower, but have never replaced anything else and this is my first riding mower, dont know how long things last. belts? pulleys? hydro tranny? bout 250 hours its says on clock.. dont want to replace motor to have everything else start going.. or am i good for a while?

 

[3v0]

Can I have it

A new one will be less fuss it is just one of the time vs money things.

That is really sad to have the flywheel toss the magnets at any amount of hours esp 250. If I understand you right the problem is that you can't mount a new alternator to the motor because the mounts got sheared off. You can live without an alternator and still have electric start. I would just replace the flywheel and make a pigtail on the mower so you can drive it in the garage and hook it to the charger.

I was given a Ariens RM1332 because the owner was tired of having it fixed. The thing looks nearly new but did not charge, had 4 flat tires and a shot battery. I bought a new battery which I charged between uses. Ran it all summer that way. Also had 1 bad pulley on the mower deck, found that on ebay.

By my thinking 250 hours is not that much and I am thinking you kept it inside. You may end up replacing a belt or a pulley on the deck but not a big deal.

 

[OldBuzzard]

With only 250 Hrs. on it, replacing the engine would be the best bet and a sound economic move.

However, if you really WANT a new tractor, the bad engine is a "good excuse" to give to the wife

 

[engine2quarters]

You can't rebuild the 'towers' that hold the pickup for the ring? Might be a little thread left in the motor casting, just drill in abit more, tap, and rebuld the towers. I did that on a Simplicity snowblower, when the magneto let loose and cleaned off the towers. Used it all winter, not a problem.
Rebuild the towers using JBWeld, the good stuff, not the fast acting stuff. You have to get it really clean and use it above 60 degrees or it won't really cure right.
Bet the coil got hit pretty good, too.
Your machine doen't have an electric PTO, so using the battery only for starting and recharging after mowing, isn't that bad of an idea. Mow the lawn in the daylight, no nightime manuvers.

 

[ralph3795]

Spoke to the guy that was gonna fix it and he said his rule of thumb is when the repair is gonna cost 50% or more of the cost of a new one.... its time to look for a new one... not sure, not looking to fix that motor.. he wont guarantee the repair.. so its either new motor at 800 installed or new trator at 1500... im so undecided bout what to do..

 

[no2498]

im with what engine2quarters said run it till its dead

john

 

[3v0]

Agreed. Either rebuild the towers or run it from a battery. Try another repair guy if you don't want to do it your self.

If you want a new one be honest about the old one and you should get a few $100 for it in that everything works but will not charge. How much do they want to just replace the flywheel so it runs ? That is where I would start because unless it runs it is more or less junk.

 

[engine2quarters]

If it moves under its own power, it's saleable.
If it doesn't run, I usually offer junk price, about $50, if everything else looks/works okay. Anything above $50 is a crap shoot. You can't tell if the tranny is any good, etc.
I can see the fix or buy new reasoning, since mower mechanics get between $60 and $70 per hour (or more).
That's why there are alot of non-working mowers being listed locally here. The owners buy new and the dealers don't want the old ones since they have no buyers for them.
I just passed up a pristene Craftsman LT2000 because it needed a new engine (or a re-build). I couldn't get back what I'd have to spend on it, to get it going. And new Craftsmans are kinda cheap right now.