White Outdoors LT 12 Cruisematic with 12.5 horse Briggs and 7 speed tranny

Picked it up a week or so ago. Me and my buddy started talking about moding a mower and one of his friends was about to move and needed this mower gone. It was free and we haven't spent any money on it yet. I'm bringing my camera out tomorrow to take some pics. We are hoping to take it out to the sand/gravel pit behind my house and on my trails. It came stock with carlisle tires which are decent for off roading. Wasn't running, but all it took was jump starting the battery after doing an oil change and putting some fresh gas in it. Only problem with it is with the belts so it will only barely go into 7th gear. I am also working on a 1980 Yamaha MX 100 dirtbike and a 1970 minibike with a 5 horse on it. I own 3 dirtbikes, the minibike, a 1990 Ford Bronco II, and the White mower, but I also take my parents polaris quads, other 3 dirtbikes, dune buggy, and john deere mower on the trails. Planning on lots of modifications!!!
Picture is what it looks like stock

I have one of those - bot it new in '92 - my dad still uses it up north to mow.

Depends what mods you have in store for it - id say the best bet is to ditch the stock drivetrain and locate a manual trans , will be easier to lift , easier to fit bigger tires ( MTD transaxles can only use MTD wheels) .

Those tires arent that great in mud - ive had my stock white stuck in minimal amounts of mud....

Yesterday I pulled the variable speed pulley off along with the belts. The belt from the trans to the pulley was totaly shot with cuts in it and the other belt is not the right size. That wasn't the only problem though. After taking the pulley off, I disassembled it and found that the bearings are shot. So I am planning on buying 2 new belts, new bearings, new muffer for now, and a new battery. Hopefully the belts and bearings will fix the problem since the trans seems fine. Excited to take it out for the first time and might even take a video of my friend driving it. Planning on putting an old go-kart steering wheel on it, front brake calipers, and some kind of push bar on the front. I am also planning on cutting out the battery area for an actual lawn mower battery. I will get pics up soon, but right now it is in my shop lifted up by a cherry picker. To be more specific, the engine is a 12.5 briggs I/C Quiet, and the tractor is a 1993.

I have never tried to change the bearings on the variable speed pulley. I cant see it going too well if it has the needle bearings. getting the old one out would be easy. putting the new one in without smashing the cage could be a challenge. not sure about the whites, but some of the pulleys for the mtds are over $120. some of the newer one are in the $50 range. a good soaking could loosen them up. if the pulleys are rusty where the belt rides, they will wear out the belts real quick. about 45 min with sandpaper will usually fix that. make sure to tape off the slide if you are gonna sandblast it.(make sure you dont get any dust in the bearings) you will still need to sand the sides down if you sandblast it. (smoother the better)

If the pulley needs to be replaced and a new one is out of your budget, you could drop the axle a few inches and make it a single speed. gear it up a little and use a foot throttle to control speed.

Mine has the 12.5HP briggs also - my dad did the battery conversion also -



He used an old computer case for the battery tray, just had to cut the original opening up a little bit- didnt even have to get new battery cables .

Heres what my tractor looks like now :



Id been trying to keep it looking like new - but dad's pretty much beat it up - i did a driveline redo this summer- all new belts, greased everything , repainted the deck ( just had surface rust) - i took the hubcaps with me cause he kept loosing them.

As for the variable pulleys - its best to keep a few on hand - ive collected like 7 spares from parts tractors, ones i picked up cheep and just took apart.

Yeah new variable pulleys run in the $100 range , alot of pieces for the older MTD's arent being carried anymore - we had a hell of a time locating a mandrel for it . I dont think youll be able to find a bering that will fit - needle berings and roller berings arent even close to the same size - last time i bot a set of mandrel berings they were like $20 each .

Youd be better off either ditching the setup or finding a parts MTD.

Did some real pricing and found that new belts cost $12-16 a piece. Also the bearings cost $12 each and the variator shaft costs $8. Really trying to keep it stock for now to make sure it is worth keeping. My dad is a custom machine builder and he takes my projects to his shop all the time as well as working on stuff in our heated barn. The pulleys are rusty, but the area where the belts go looks to be in good shape. My dad thinks he can get the new bearings in without damaging anything. We owned an early 90's Rally tractor that was super dependable and I wish we still had it. Trying to keep the price down because I'm 16 and I don't have a job right now. I have also spent over $2500 in parts on my truck and a few hundred on my project dirtbike. Still planning on getting some pics up soon. I have also been thinking about making a custom bracket for the gear shifter and some smaller rear fenders. Thanks for the info and pics. Any info I can get helps. It's supposed to snow here in Michigan later this week, so some snow might be on the ground for the first off-road drive and video.

Bought all the parts, so it now has all new belts, new bearings, and a new variator shaft. A lot of work has been done to it. I already have a couple videos and tons of pics to post. I also recieved a 2009 craftsman plow for free that I am going to sell to get more parts or modify to plow some trails. Another freebie from the same people is a 20" weed eater push mower with a 148cc Briggs. Planning on getting the battery conversion done later this week. Total of $100 investment so far. Looks like it will need some new front tires soon too. Hoping to get some atv tires. Here are the pics. Let me know what you think.


New Battery

Briggs

Ouside pics after snow adventure


Craftsman Plow

IF YA CANT DODGE IT, RAM IT! lol love the emblem

can you post more pictures of that plow, i just want to see how it is put together, i was thinking of making one

I pulled the emblem off my parents totaled 2005 Dodge Durango. Adds a nice touch to the front end. I have a couple more pics of the plow I will post and can take more close-ups if you need them.

Here are the pics:


Also, here is the weed eater:

I think I'm just gonna sell the plow because it would take a lot of mods to get it hooked up to the White. Maybe I can trade for some ATV Tires.

Check Ebay, craigslist and even flea markets/thift stores - i bot a pair of front ATV tires off my nephews freind for $20 - like brand new - rims i bot off ebay for under $40 - went to a flea market a couple weeks ago and bot two 25x13.00 x9 wooly booger atv tires WITH rims for $25 - one had a lil wear, but both held air - one of my ultimate deals of the year .

Might take a bit, but the deals are there if youre willing to wait and keep searching.

looks good! my brother has the same mower any updates?