Buying used...what to check? B7500, BX1850...

Yes, the loader is practically new and the hood is new...the rest of the plastic panels have faded a bit, and the front left has some cracks in it. I'm not too concerned about that (as long as the panel isn't falling apart).

I hit the treadle grease zerk with some grease...seems a little better now...but I'm thinking I still might need to add a little tension to the spring. It getting stuck unexpectedly can be a little dangerous, so I'd rather be pretty sure it's gonna center back in neutral.

The brake lock is just a steel rod sticking up out of the floor on the left side of the platform...did this used to have a small pedal on it perhaps? I believe I've been driving it around with the parking brake at least partially engaged...clearly, that's gonna need a little adjustment now too. I'm still not clear on exactly how it's supposed to work...do you step on the brake pedal, then this pedal/rod to lock it? Then push the brake and pull the rod up to unlock it? Or push the brake pedal and step on the brake lock again to unlock it? The brake pedal itself doesn't seem to return...I'll bet the hinge is either corroded, or the spring needs adjustment or is missing.

Cheers,
Dave

Ah, thank you for that page...yeah, I think I see how it's supposed to work, now I know a little better what I'm looking for.

Dave

Another (possibly stupid) question: The 3PH control lever raises/lowers both the 3PH and the belly mower. Right now, I have the 3PH speed valve all the way closed...this seems to keep the 3PH up while still allowing me to lower the MMM. Can I do the opposite to lower the 3PH while not lowering the MMM? Ie, open the 3PH speed control , but use the MMM height adjustment knob to set the MMM to it's max height (which presumably doesn't drop it much or at all)...is that how this is intended to work? (Never had a tractor with a belly mower before. )

Cheers,
Dave

Sat down and read through the manual...so looks like the combination of the MMM height adjustment knob and the 3PH speed knob do allow you to lower one, the other, or both. I'll have to try it next opportunity and see how well it works.

So, I greased the treadle (really well, to push the old dirty grease out) and it seems to spring back to neutral more reliably now. However, it still doesn't take much force to move into forward or reverse, and I think I'd prefer it to be a little stiffer (I think)...I see where the adjustment for the spring tension is, but I don't think I can get to it with the MMM in place. I need to go read that manual for the mower, but it looks like you just pull 3 pins and unhook the mid PTO to remove the MMM.

The transmission fan on mine looks fine, but I did watch a video on how to replace it...dang, that's a lot of work. I'm surprised there's no 3rd party fan made of metal that has a hinge or can be bolted on/around the fan coupler without pulling the driveshaft off (or at least a metal fan that doesn't break so easily). It might be worthwhile to fabricate some sort of guard or skid plate out of expanded metal, or something along those lines.

Anyway, so far so good...

Cheers,
Dave