New member with a new to me 2182

[Shrewcub]

Originally Posted by BLSully

Oh, that's very generous Sam. Thanks! Will send a PM shortly.

Unrelated:

I found the part # for the belt I need for the 54" deck : Cub Cadet 954-3047

Reference:

http://www.partstree.com/parts/cub-c...mower-adapter/

Is there any opinion on the aftermarket vs factory Cub Cadet belts? What's the best option? This is going to be my primary mowing tractor (about 50hrs/year I'd guess) so longevity is paramount.

I ordered the blue Kevlar belts from epay for my 1864. The local TSC does not carry any older cub belt sizes I have over 100 hours on those belts. I even had a stick derail the deck belt one time and smoke came off it for a second until I got the pto shut off. I am probably due for a new set soon , but I will run them till they break. I do need to order the next set to have on standby.

[bugeye]

The plastic will clean up using Meguiar's Plastx and a dual action buffer or by hand and lots of rubbing. Take care of the plastic stuff, it can be expensive. The pealing paint on the foot rests is normal for this series of tractor.

[BLSully]

Originally Posted by bugeye

The plastic will clean up using Meguiar's Plastx and a dual action buffer or by hand and lots of rubbing. Take care of the plastic stuff, it can be expensive. The pealing paint on the foot rests is normal for this series of tractor.

Great tip. I'll give that a shot. My neighbor's father-in-law does tractor repair/restore/paint, so I'm going to give him the deck and foot rests over the winter.

Today I'm trying to just get it back together so I can mow with it a couple times this fall. Which brings me to....

Is the subframe bent aft of the hinge bolts? I can't find any good pictures on google of a subframe, but it sure looks like the longer part of the subframe should be parallel to the short piece and it got tweaked to the right at some point during it's life.

[BLSully]

Originally Posted by Shrewcub

I ordered the blue Kevlar belts from epay for my 1864. The local TSC does not carry any older cub belt sizes I have over 100 hours on those belts. I even had a stick derail the deck belt one time and smoke came off it for a second until I got the pto shut off. I am probably due for a new set soon , but I will run them till they break. I do need to order the next set to have on standby.

I'd found a couple options on eBay that looked promising. I'll give those a shot I think. If they practically speaking last just as long as the more expensive options, no need to overspend

[Sam Mac]

It's bent but that will straighten out easily. Just clamp it in a vise and you can pull it back by hand. BTDT.

[BLSully]

Originally Posted by Sam Mac

It's bent but that will straighten out easily. Just clamp it in a vise and you can pull it back by hand. BTDT.

Haha, you overestimate my puny vise Thankfully my neighbor has a beast. I'll take it down there and pull it out. Thanks for confirming the bend. Must have been a hard hit.

[Sam Mac]

Here is the one I have on my 1641 that I straightened. I'm sure you can fix yours.

[BLSully]

So, it seems like Cub Cadet (MTD?) didn't bother using decent bolts for the power steering which added to the excessive play I had in my system.

Look at the threads at the top of the rusted bolt.... just mashed. This created movement of the ball joint on the bolt itself, never mind the worn out fit of the ball joint itself. This added up to just massive play in the steering when I got the tractor.

I replaced the old bolts with shouldered bolts from Ace Hardware. They didn't have the right length, which doesn't matter much for the front axle end of the power steering, but at the frame, the bolt would interfere with the chassis, so I cut it down to the length of the original. Teflon tape made a good makeshift marker for my cut. After reassembling the power steering with the new bolts, ball joints and tie rods ends, and adjusting the axle "movement" bolts, the entire steering system is MUCH improved. I can almost drive it in a straight line now. The steering pump does need to be rebuilt, but I think I'm comfortable enough to use the tractor for the rest of this season to mow.

[Sam Mac]

Let me know when you are done with this one because it will probably be close to new. Well done!

[Jibber]

Congrats on getting the 2182! I recently acquired one a couple months ago and its amazing. The Kubota gas engine is just awesome. Mine has less than 100 hours on it.