So, spring is FINALLY starting to rear it's pollen-filled head up here in New England, and that means it's time to drag out all the lawn equipment to see if it still works! 
Toward the end of last season, my Troy-Bilt LTX-1842 lawn tractor was giving me some trouble. It looks like this:
The last few times I used it, I noticed that it was getting louder and louder. Turns out that the muffler was falling off. And after it completely fell off, it wouldn't start anymore.
Right below the nose, in between the front wheels, there's a little cage with vents. That's where the muffler lives. The engine has an "exhaust manifold" (just a pipe that comes off the exhaust port) that goes into the muffler. The muffler itself looks like this:
Now, here's the thing: the manifold looks like it just fits in the pipe, and it just hangs out there. Is it supposed to be welded together? I'm seeing some that are welded and some that are not. If it is just supposed to be welded, I'll booger weld the thing back together and call it good. What do you guys think?
Also, feel free to post all you lawn equipment weirdness in here! 
Just got my mower out this weekend. Simplicity SunStar 18. 48" cut, 18 horse Briggs, hydrostatic, and power steering (ooh, the luxury!).
Lazy-ass me never unhooked the battery nor ran the gas out after last season. Amazingly, it fired right up.
Changed the oil + filter, greased it and cleaned/ lubricated it.
Mowed for 30 minutes, and discovered a hydraulic leak. And the deck belt broke. Field-expedient fixed the leak, and getting a new belt tonight.
I'd booger weld that muffler and call it a day.
I'd booger it together too.
I forgot to unhook the battery in my Kohler powered Craftsman mower this past winter. It also appears that mice made their way into the engine, again, so I need to pull the engine covers and dispose of the nests. Or just light everything on fire.
I'm not really too excited about mowing. The fact that the mower can't hold itself with brakes and my hillside lawn kind of scare the E36 M3 out of me.
In reply to The0retical :
Try this simple mod:
I am new to the riding mower group with a circa 1994 Ace Special edition 42" cut 16hp Tecumseh powered unit. An Amazon sourced carb got it up and running although the governor link looks like it was designed by Dr. Seuss and it is hard to start and wont take full throttle. I'm sure replacing that rod with one that is less corkscrew shaped would fix most of its running issues.
My question is how much toe in or out should it be running? It seems to bump steer in the direction of whatever a front wheel tends to be driving over and makes mowing the fence line troublesome. it wants to climb the chain link fence I am trying to mow next to.
And I will never go back to pushing the old mower. I need to install a cupholder so I can live out my Hank Hill fantasies with a can of beer whilst doing chores.
D2W
HalfDork
4/23/18 9:37 a.m.
I too thought this was going to be about racing mowers.
Years ago my old boss and his lions club cronies decided to get into lawnmower racing. In typical fashion they completed disregarded the rules and built a monstosity out of an old (as in barely there) rider frame and a 600cc snowmobile engine. I believe everyone should be able to be as stupid as they want as long as they aren't harming others, but that thing was the most dangerous piece of motorized equipment I have ever seen. It weighed all of 300 lbs, and had the drive chain running right below the drivers crotch. Of course when they showed up they weren't even allowed to do an exhibition lap.
In reply to Jumper K Balls :
I've experimented with toe, I prefer a nuetral to ver-slightly toe-out setting, it seems to improve turn-in response. Of course, mowing my yard is more of an auto-cross type event. If your lawn is more long, straight passes, I'd just stick with toe-neutral.
tuna55
MegaDork
4/23/18 10:02 a.m.
just one note.
My son can mow the lawn this year.
I'm currently on the hunt for another new (to me) tractor, a ritual that is slowly becoming an annual tradition since buying my first house almost 2 years ago. First half summer in the house I literally bought the cheapest riding mower I could find advertised as running and mowing, a piece of junk older MTD, just to get me by. Last spring I then ditched the MTD and picked up a Wheel Horse 312-8 that came with a blade and snowblower, which was a much more solid machine but unfortunately just not in very good shape. I fought various issues all season before ultimately deciding it really needed a complete rebuild and that was not a project I was interested in taking on, so I sold it.
Now here I am once again looking for a mower, and hoping to find a more permanent solution this time around. I've got a budget of $1500 max (though less is always better) and have been looking for a well kept, quality brand garden tractor that I won't have to think about replacing for another ten years. I've got a number of prospects lined up, just have to make some time this week to go look at a few.
I just bought the biggest Husqvarna that Lowe's had to offer (26hp Kohler engine, 54" deck) this last summer after we moved into our new house that had 4 acres. The back 2 acres were overgrown with 6'+ tall weeds, the mower took them down like a champ. will be glad this summer i wont be having to mow down another forest.
This is from when i first ventured back through the weeds to clear a trail back to the barn we weren't able to get to before. it has all since been cut down.
i dont really have any good pictures of it cleared now but this one does a pretty reasonable job. the tree in the upper right of this picture is the same tree behind the mower in the first picture. (the water also usually isn't their, we'd had pretty good flooding that caused the ground water to make a small pond for a few days)
In reply to Furious_E :
Post your prospects here. I've owned at least 5 or 6 different brands of tractors in my life, and I and others here can chime in as to weak points in particular models you're looking at.
In reply to volvoclearinghouse :
I would describe my lawn as more of a well worn rallycross course with lots of ruts and dips.
The mower has visible toe out. I might also be expecting too much out of a vehicle with 3/8"-16 all thread for tie rods
Most of your cheap hydrostatic trannies are the weak link plus they do not come with a drain plug. I didn’t know this until I had over 200 hrs of cutting and snow plowing before I removed the tranny and drained it out the factory top fill. I used 0w-50 synthetic oil. I think it has around 650 hrs now but it’s a little slow after acre and a half. I should have put synthetic in sooner or beat on it less snow plowing.
In reply to volvoclearinghouse :
I've got a pretty good idea of what I am looking for, having spent a fair amount of time cutting grass growing up and now having researched mower purchases two consecutive years, but a little extra enabling wouldn't hurt 
I've got the comprehensive list saved on my tablet at home, so I'm going off memory trying to find some them here at work. A sampling:
Deere 245, looks nice, not too far, maybe a bit low on HP?: https://harrisburg.craigslist.org/grd/d/john-deere-245/6541291133.html
I pass this guy on my way to work and he has a couple of Cubs for sale, among other things. Decent prices, condition could maybe be better, but worth stopping by one evening:
https://harrisburg.craigslist.org/grd/d/cub-cadet-riding-mower-with/6564123704.html
https://harrisburg.craigslist.org/grd/d/cub-cadet-riding-lawn-mower/6566069646.html
Here's a 318, which seem to be very well regarded tractors and it's right in town, but it's got some hours on it:
https://chambersburg.craigslist.org/grd/d/john-deere-318/6538165223.html
Just a sampling, I've got probably a dozen total saved at home.
Truthfully, I really don't need the biggest, baddest machine out there and could probably get away with any old lawn tractor, but also wouldn't mind overbuying for the durability and serviceability of a heavier duty machine. My yard is a little under an acre, but pretty hilly, and I may or may not want to plow or blow snow with it in the winter as well. Kinda favoring a Deere this time around, as my dad had an STX38 followed by a 425 when I was growing up and had really good luck with those machines, but not dead set on that by any means.
Mark57
New Reader
4/23/18 8:56 p.m.
Hard to beat a John Deere, if buying used spend the money for tractor series or commercial I am on my fourth one ( second new zero turn) and never regretted spending the additional money for quality.
I owned a 245 (or was it a 265, can't recall) and it was a miserable piece of E36 M3. It had issues with the charging system, the ignition system, and the fuel system. The hydrostatic trans wouldn't stay at one speed (and they're a known weak point in those, too). Even when it worked right, it was only a halfway-decent mower. I'd avoid it.
Edit: it was a 265. Here's a link to a discussion I had a few years back when I got rid of it:
https://grassrootsmotorsports.com/forum/off-topic-discussion/garden-tractor-john-deere-265-vs-simplicity-sunstar-18/111593/page1/
The newer Cubs are garbage. MTD bought Cub and they haven't made a decent machine since. I owned one, and eventually the transmission CRACKED THE berkeley IN HALF while mowing the lawn. Yeah.
That Deere 318 seems like a solid unit. Disclaimer: I've had no experience with this model, but I believe the 3-series and higher Deeres are built to a higher standard than the lesser ones.
My current mower is a Simplicity SunStar 18 (from above link). It's a pretty heavy duty unit, and I like it very much. The ergonomics aren't as polished as a Deere but it cuts very well and seems very sturdy. I paid $1300 for it used a few years ago and have done nothing to it other than normal maintenance and a belt or two.
If you run across an older Wheel Horse, Cub, or John Deere, of the vintage of the WH you used to own, but well-cared for and/or restored, that would be my recommendation. Simple, rugged, and easy to fix. Just don't buy a project, like you had before.
I had a craftsman with a v twin Honda in it and loved it. The tractor wasn’t the greatest quality but the engine made up for all the shortcomings. Bought it for $400 used it three years sold it for $400 after some belts and blades.
In reply to Furious_E :
I have never owned a 318 but my uncle (who worked for a JD dealership his whole life) owns a couple and recommended them to all his siblings and parents, and that's saying something considering he gets the job of fixing them if they have problems. They have tons of attachments available too. He even has one with a front end loader and a sickle bar mower. I was considering one but all I needed was to mow so I bought a zero turn instead.
In reply to volvoclearinghouse :
Hmm, interesting info on the 2xx series, thought I'd heard better things than that about them. Guess that's one to avoid then.
I know the MTD Cubs are generally considered garbage, but I understand there were also some exceptions built along the way. That 2185, or whatever it is, IIRC is supposed to have a pretty good transmission in it. Or so the internets say. My personal experience with the brand is limited.
That diesel Simplicity 9518 you posted is enticingly overkill 
The 318 is probably the first one I'll try to look at. It's close by and the 3xx series Deeres seem to be held in the highest regard. Pretty much the predecessor to the 425 my dad used to have and that thing was a beast.
Out of curiosity since I already mentioned it: Are there any lawn tractors on the market which actually have a real deal braking system that can hold the weight of the tractor when pointed down an incline?
Cub Cadet X2 mentions "automotive style brakes" but that doesn't tell me much.
In reply to The0retical :
Can't say about modern ones, but my Simplicity (1990's vintage) has split brakes you can use to help grab traction &/or wing around tight turns. They'll hold the tractor like nobody's business, too.
Furious_E said:
In reply to volvoclearinghouse :
That diesel Simplicity 9518 you posted is enticingly overkill
Do EET! I guarantee you he'll take 1500.
In reply to volvoclearinghouse :
Going to look at that 318 first tomorrow night, which, as it turns out, is right up the road from me. I've also discovered this morning that DIY loader builds are a thing for those, which is putting all kinds of bad ideas into my head for making use of the hydraulics
While I'm thinking of it, how sketchy is loading a tractor this size into a pickup bed with 2x10 ramps?
