# 1991 MTD riding mower blades wont disengage



## hunterbondy

Hi, i have a MTD riding mower model 131-662F118 and the deck is always engaged. It has no idlers, just the belt from the crankshaft the 2 spindles. Any suggestions?


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## HarveyW

Hello hunterbondy,

Welcome to the tractor forum.

MTD would never make a mower without a clutch to stop the blades for safety and liability reasons. You must have an electric clutch that is stuck. Either that or there is power applied full time.


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## hunterbondy

There is no electric clutch for the blades. They disengage when you pull the lever into the blades stop position and engage when you put it into a cutting height.


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## HarveyW

You move the control lever into the *blades stop* position and the blades remain engaged. Either the control lever needs adjustment, or there is something broken in the control lever system. 

Regardless, you need to get this fixed immediately. For safety reasons.


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## hunterbondy

How do i adjust the control lever?


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## TecumsehBriggs

Your belt may be too short keeping tension on the pulleys at all times. Check the adjustment as well. Remove the tunnel cover & follow the deck lever to an adjuster. They're in different places on different tractors. When the deck height lever is all the way up, there should be very little tension on the belt. There are also blade brakes that touch against the pulleys when the deck is all the way up. Check those, too. There is one on each side, attached to the underside of the footrests.


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## hunterbondy

Thanks TecumsehBriggs for the information. I checked the belt and it is loose when the deck is disengaged and the pads are not worn on the blade brakes but what i did notice is that only part of the brake is contacting the pulley. Look at the picture for a better explanation but is there a way to make the deck higher so it contact the pads better?


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## TecumsehBriggs

There is a rod that has a threaded end. Pull the hitch pin out, screw it in or out (whichever works best), then reinstall the pin. Pull up a parts diagram & it will show which rod is the adjustment rod.


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## hunterbondy

I tried that and it solved nothing. I also tried adjusting the adjustable deck lift link and that made one side better and one side worse. Is there a way to raise BOTH sides?


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## TecumsehBriggs

Bring it over & I'll take a look at it. Got about 8 or 9 MTDs over here. 

Maybe you have a worn out deck lift arm or something. The round hole(s) may be elongated & not adjusting correctly. Check for wear.


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## hunterbondy

Ok i will check the lift arm tonight. Does anyone else have any suggestions?


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## hunterbondy

Ok, so i realized something while cutting the other day. When the mower is in the disengagement notch the blades spin but when you pull back on the lever more they stop. Is there a way to adjust the controll lever? I know there is a disengagement rod adjustment but that only makes the deck move forward and i need an adjustment that makes it go up


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## country Gent

You need to look at the belt construction. Somebody may have replaced the belt with a fractional HP belt which has a rubber surface for non slippage. You need a OEM style belt that has a cloth wrapping which is designed for disengagement. Also get under there and follow the rod to the raise/lower/engage lever to try and find some sort of adjustment. You may have found that rod. When the deck travels forward/backward, that in theory changes needed belt length.


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## hunterbondy

I have adjusted every adjustment and checked all the linkages but nothing is working.


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