I put on a new belt , it did nothing.

Well after doing a Google search, there was no "official recall" on these mowers, that I could find. So I'm going to improvise and fabricate something and see it that works, before I bring it in for repairs.

Contacted Troy Bilt today. That also denied any claim of a recall. So if that is the cause of the problem and we want it fixed, we would have to pay for the repair ourselves.

No luck at Crossville. The one repair fellow out at the flea market has sold out to another fellow who will be in Sat morn. Another shop didn't have a belt, and said they had a 2 week wait for service. I'll try one more shop in Wartburg.

I'm hooked now because I can't figure out how this thing works. I'm determined to understand it, or just take the self-propel parts out and rig the wheels to operate independently.

I've had good luck with Troy Built tillers, it's a shame this piece is so weird.

I think I've got it. I took the Troy Built to my local garage, who also does mowers, and we took it apart. Inside the gearbox is a worm gear that slides sideways when the grip is applied, via the black plastic piece down there. Inside the box, next to the worm gear is a shim, which the mechanic says is worn thin so it doesn't push the worm gear far enough to completely engage the wheels. And so it was when he started it up and depressed the grip, I could see the worm gear did not move sideways far enough. So, I'll know in an hour or so if the solution is to put in another thicker shim.

And... I'm wondering if the shim was too thin to begin with, thus the many mowers experiencing the same problem. In my case the mower was purchased in 2006 and has had normal use for 3 summers. Hard to believe a metal shim could wear that much with only average use.

Success... The mechanic put in two washers which were each thicker than the original one it had, and it works well now. It required taking the entire wheel assembly off the carriage and working on a bench.

He charged me $30 for the repair, I'm keeping my fingers crossed.

Good luck

Charley

I'll give it a shot! The worst that can happen is it won't work or I can't do it myself.

I mowed last night and it works just about like it did originally. Hopefully it will outlive me, because I don't want to have to deal with it again.

After taking off the gearbox cover, and it is stuck tight with sealer, you'll see the shim, it looks like an ordinary washer, about an inch dia, sitting right next to the worm gears. Pull the hand grip and you'll see the black plastic piece push up against the shim, in turn pushing the worm gear to the right and engaging the drive shaft.

How the mechanic got the new shims in I don't know. When I saw it next there were two ordinary looking washers, slightly larger in dia than the old one, and they added about the equivalent thickness of 3 or 4 of my old worn shim.

But, maybe the original shim was too thin to begin with. Mine lasted three seasons, but I still can't imagine steel wearing down so fast.

Replaced the shim with a thick washer. I looks like it should work fine when I manually compress it. Though I noticed the ring gear has a little more wear than I originally had noticed. Not sure if I what to replace the gear before putting it completely together again. I found a few similar assemblies on Ebay, pretty cheap($20 or less).Might buy one just for the gear, but it's a crap shoot. Won't know if the gear is any better.
I'll take a chance on one!

I can't see how my original unit did the job for so long, considering the mechanic put in two washers, each at least 1/16 inch thick, in addition to the original piece. But I mowed again last night and it worked OK. It doesn't seem to be "as good as new", but hopefully it will last a few more seasons.

Makes me wonder if this isn't an example of planned obsolescence. A small part, enclosed in a sealed unit that can be purchased and replaced at the shop without even opening up the old one. Calculated to last until the warranty runs out. No, not my beloved Troy Built...