Tools for John Deere lawn tractor?

Hi, I need to help my sister with some stuff after her partner passed away recently. One thing is doing some long overdue maintenance on her John Deere X304 riding mower. She’s out of state and I’m driving up in a few days. I’ll add to my usual in-vehicle toolkit but I’m wondering … are these metric or SAE? Any specialty stuff other than some big pry bars, extensions, a cheater pipe and BFH, as I’m assuming stuff may be corroded (it’s in Oregon)? Specifically she’s having trouble with the mower working erratically which her neighbor thinks is the electric PTO switch but I’m guessing there may be some mechanical binding due to lack of use, corrosion, gummed up with lawn clippings. She did tell me that her partner had R&R’ed the deck recently but he was kind of a hack mechanic in my experience.

I’m a city guy with an 8000 sq ft lot and no lawn, no power equipment experience other than chainsaw and maybe a B&S mower 50 years ago. But I’m an OK mechanic. Thanks in advance.

 

i believe @RustyGreen is one of the local tractor 'experts' around here.

 

Just bring both SAE & metric tools. I've worked on both Deere & Kubota in a day.

I know it can get confusing. My favorite saying is "come here you!" lol.

Remember, just have fun with it

 

and when in doubt...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CwGrC0KicSo

 

It is just a standard lawn tractor so there shouldn't be anything out of the ordinary needed. If it has been stored indoors rusted fasteners *usually* aren't a problem.

Is the problem with the mower running or the deck engaging?

If it is a running problem look at the fuel system - often the air filter is clogged solid.

If the issue is with the deck engaging, the clutch is electric so it is good or bad, if there is an intermittent problem check the wiring near the clutch and inspect the connectors on the switch & relay.

You will want to pull the plastic blower housing on the top of the engine and clean the cooling fins.

Tools:
Standard & Metric socket sets, 1/4" & 3/8" drive, combination wrenches too.
Test light, a volt/ohm meter is better.
Precision pick set
Small brass wire brush for gently cleaning electrical plugs
A leaf blower works great for removing all the accumulated clippings & dirt along with an old paint brush.
Keep us informed about what you find & good luck.

 

I just fix things that break...
The real expert is @koditten

 

Oh, sure. Drag me into this hot mess!

Just kidding.

Nothing wrong with the x304. Just be aware that the only thing really John Deere about them is the color of the paint. They are made by MTD.

These are nice consumer version of a rider mower. They do cut nice as long as the top of the deck is blown clean after every use. The grass accumulates around the spindles and clogs the drain holes. The grass rots, turn acidic and eats away the deck where the spindles mount.

Hopefully this one is a v twin motor. The single cylinder engines do run good, but the compression release in the motor sticks and makes them hard to start. This usually happens after the machine has sat all winter. People think it's a weak battery, but it's really that the starters are weak to begin with. You can often help the motor turn over by wearing a leather glove and help turn the top of the engine while engaging the key. Once it gets running, the compression release works fine for the season. Just be careful and quickly remove your hand. The screen can grab your glove.

The only other tool I'd make sure you have is a multimeter. I'm not for sure but I think these had dual voltage output regulators. DC for charging the battery and AC for feeding the headlights. If you find that the battery is not seeing 13+ volts at full engine speed, there may be a problem with the voltage regulator. If I come across this problem, I delete the headlights and install a DC only regulator. I use a Kohler style VR. They are $17, the dual voltage Briggs and Stratton VR is $75. I don't know anyone that mows at night, so the lights are never missed.

Ad for maintenance, not much else you can do is change the belts. There "may" be grease zerks on the spindles. The blade spindles are sealed. They are disposable and pretty cheap when they bad.

The last thing that could cause issue is the fuel delivery.

The gas tank is higher than the carb and there is no fuel pump.

Because of this design, the needle solinoid in the carb can stick open. This is a 12 volt valve that open when the key is turned on. When it sticks open, the fuel in the tank can continue to trickle into the carb and then stipple into the intake then into the cylinders, then into the crankcase. If you parked the machine for the winter with a full tank, you won't be able start the machine because it's hydro locked. On the plus side, the starters are so weak, you won't be able cause any damage.

I install a $3 gas line shutoff valve along with a $2 fuel filter. This is a very good investment. It also allows you to run the motor until the bowl goes empty and the motor stalls. You don't have to worry about crap gas sitting in the carb over the winter.

Change the oil once a season if it's a big yard, every other year if it's small.

Beyond that, I can't think of anything more you can do to keep it running fine.

 

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

I told you he was the expert.

 

Thanks for the tips. I am 700 miles away (tonight) so I’m just trying to get an idea of what tools to bring from home. I did back metric and SAE up to 19mm and 3/4”. I have my multimeter. And a big hammer. I’ll bring a grease gun. I think the deck was replaced recently … I don’t think maintenance was a big thing for my sister’s partner based on the condition of his cars.

 

I think you got it, buddy. If it's anything, we're here to help, not hinder. Good luck

 

So I’m heading home after a week at my sister’s. The X304 riding mower is back in action. Her neighbor installed a new PTO switch but the electric clutch just wasn’t getting any juice and the harness is so buried it’s hard to troubleshoot. We replaced the diode in the PTO circuit* with a 7.5A fuse like older machines use, no difference. So we jumped the clutch direct to the battery and it worked. So he and I installed a more permanent jumper with its own switch and fuse and all is bueno. I also checked the oil - totally dry dipstick - and cleaned the air filter which looked like it may not have been changed since it was new in 2011. Caked in dry grass. Next time I’ll do a full oil and filters service.

*These Deeres have something I’ve never seen, a diode in a mini-fuse package that plugs in the fuse box to prevent back current (caused by noise in the switching??) from damaging the clutch solenoid. Since the diode is in a bladed fuse form factor it’s not keyed and can be installed backward. Not sure if it’s in series or parallel but that’s why we tested it with a fuse in place as I didn’t have a spare diode. My sister’s neighbor said he’s jumped around a lot of these with direct switching and no problems. In fact he didn’t think he needed to fuse the jumper wire but I don’t want my sister’s tractor to burn up.

Thanks for the moral support. I also got the pressure washer working and the one gas chainsaw, which she gave me. Now I have two Husky Rancher saws, an 18” 61 from the Seventies and this much newer 20” 455.