Project Parts Bin (Craftsman)

My younger brother seemed interested in off road tractors after talking to him about it at a garden tractor pull. I went home and scratched me head a bit, looked around, and thought; Hey I bet I have enough parts laying around to build a complete machine for him!

Pulled this Craftsman (LT1000 I guess? ) from the back yard and took off the transaxle.


The shifter was stuck. I pulled it apart and found rust around the two-ball bearing detent area. I cleaned it up as best I could, but it still shifts hard compared to my machine. I wasn't going to lock it, but I remembered the two things that made my tractor so much fun: speed it up, and lock the rear.



It had grease, and I wanted to try using gear oil, so I made a vent/fill hole. Damn thing leaks. Resealed it twice, but still leaks. Oh well.


It had an 8" pulley (9" overall diameter, but 8" is what the belt rides in) and I put a 6" aluminum pulley on. Had to grind away some material to get the clip on.


This is the trans mounted with a new kevlar belt. Had to go one inch shorter on the belt size to make it work. I used the stock belt keepers. I just bent them in closer to the pulley.


For the front pulley, I had this 5" aluminum left over from previous testing. I used 1" copper pipe as spacers. I also reused the stock belt keeper after bending to fit better.


I wasn't sure how well the stock tensioning system would work as it is designed to slip the belt, but so far, I can pop wheelies in 3rd gear pretty good

Got the engine running good after cleaning the carb, new air filter, changed oil, changed fuel filter. Cleaned under the shrouds and removed some of the shrouds. Left on the red cover and one side cover on the lower cylinder.


Took it for a quick romp and threw the hood off riding over a root, so I used this drawer clasp to hold down the hood.


I bought a couple tether kill switches from ebay awhile back and never used them. Found a clever way to mount it (it was designed for a bike/ATV). Safety first.


Easy to splice in. One end is connected to the black kill wire, and the other end grounded to the engine. I'm going to add a tether to mine as soon as I figure out how to mount it.


This is how she sits. Kept the stock tires on for now. They are more forgiving when cornering.


It's a six speed: nice and slow in first, and as fast as my machine in sixth. If he's still interested after a month of having it, I've got some ATV tires for the rear. For now, this project is complete

Ok not quite done.

Took it out for another shakedown and I managed to pop the belt off. It needs better keepers in the rear, I think? I'll have to ponder this a bit. Are there any threads that show just pictures of pulleys/belt routing/belt keepers? That would be really helpful.

Round stock works good for most applications. In the rear pulley pic, it looks like the keeper it touching the belt?

Heres a good video on a great belt keeper.

Thanks. Good ideas from the vid. Heh, I've been watching the Coney Roaders mud runs that FearlessFront filmed.

Ok, sorted out the belt issue... didn't use any advice from the video Didn't have the welder.

Took the back end off the frame for easier access and bolted an L-bracket on at the rear. Also readjusted the other brackets.


All I had to do was drill one hole. The nut/bolt was already there and the height was close enough.


Now onto the next problem; Engine runs all day at idle, but seems to run out of fuel at full throttle. I can choke it as it dies and it'll come back to life for a little bit, then die again unless I choke it. Time for a carb/pump rebuild?

Yea sounds like your jet is plugged up or the like.

I bet it needs a fuel pump.

Glad I bought a complete carb kit because nearly every gasket ripped as I took it apart. There was junk in the bowl that clogged the main jet. Runs like a top now!

Put another Craftsman seat on (identical) with no rips.

Brought it to my father's house. He has 50 acres of rocky/soily/hilly woods to ride in with logging trails. Pretty good day. I ran out of gas on my rig Forgot to fill up. After we got going again, the front end of this tractor got twisted up a little. I had removed the metal brackets that secure the front mowing deck rods, but I didn't put the bolts back in. Those bolts also hold the axle to the frame. We managed to fix it with a C-clamp, and a crescent wrench out on the trail.

The locker weld also popped again. Grr. Oh well. I'll fix that when all the trans oil leaks out and siezes the transaxle

And the latch I put on there doesn't work well with the hood. It would work if the hood was bolted at the front, but it's the type that is easily removed when you open it up to a certain angle.