Mower Hydraulic Repair - joshuarothfuss/projects GitHub Wiki

I have used 5 mowers for the lawn care business. My fastest mower started to have hydraulic issues on the right side.

Tools/Skills Used

• Standard Open-End Wrenches
• Standard Crows-Foot Wrenches
• Basic Hand Tools
• Smooth Cut Files
• Closed Loop Hydraulic Testing
• Oil Dry

Troubleshooting

The right-side hydraulic loop had a definite issue. It made had a pulsating output and a mild grinding noise when the control lever was pushed too far. First, both hydro-motors were swapped. The problem persisted on the right side. So the right side variable-output hydraulic pump was confirmed bad.

Repair

A total of 4 hoses and pressure lines were disconnected. Then the control linkage and pulley were removed. A new one was quickly installed so the machine could continue to make money. The old hydro-pump was then disassembled, one of the plungers had gotten stuck in the closed position. It turned out to be a metal bur that had formed. All of the plungers were then removed and any catches were carefully filed down. The mower still works and there is now a spare pump on-hand for when something goes wrong.