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Clay


Location: Wis
Joined: Dec 3, 2008
Points: 111

John Deere 1130 SE
Original Message   Jan 7, 2009 1:07 pm
I did a search and found a few references to this machine but no answers.  Any one have one of these?  15.5 snow max engine, heated hand grips, 30" wide.  I can't find a listing for auger diameter or impeller diameter.  I called John Deere and the guy that was suppose to be the snow thrower expert didn't know either. 

What is the Easy Steer drive system?  The literature says: 

  • Easy Steer® drive system giving continuous power to both wheels and auto speed adjustment
  • Is it similar to the Ariens auto differential? 

    I've heard that the units are built by B&S which translates to Simplicity.  They do have cast iron gear cases like the Simplicity.  The chute control is different than the simplicity and so is the turning method so they are not exactly the same.  I'm trying to compare the Simplicity L1530E to the JD 1130SE.  Any help would be appreciated.

    Rick

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    lanningjw


    Location: MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA
    Joined: Oct 8, 2009
    Points: 29

    Re: John Deere 1130 SE
    Reply #217   Dec 27, 2009 11:27 am
    <<<under the auger housing next to the height adjuster>>> I was ajusting the height by placing the stick under the scrapper.  I like your way better, will try this out and let you know the results, thanks Jim
    ccginmn


    Location: Saint Michael, MN
    Joined: Jan 20, 2009
    Points: 5

    Re: John Deere 1130 SE
    Reply #218   Dec 28, 2009 3:34 pm
    Catt wrote:
    I'm happy to finally report that my 1130SE disc drive is no longer intermittently slipping and I've had plenty of snow to test it many times.  I had to seal items a little more to get it to this point.  If you can keep water off the drive disc the tires will push like crazy.



    This view is inside the transmission box directly below the engine.  When snow gets on the engine it melts, runs down the sides and then underneath the engine and under the engine mounting plate.  After that it runs through the open holes and into the transmission.  I've actually caught it and know for sure these need to be sealed.  I filled most of the holes with silicone but missed two dime size holes.  I didn't think these would be a problem as they weren't open all the way through.  However, I definitely saw water and one of these is directly above the rubber disc drive wheel.  This picture shows one of the dime size holes with no silicone. The hole is covered by the engine mounting plate but it still has enough space for water to get through.







    ... and here it is filled with silicone (top red arrow). Make sure you fill the other dime size hole (lower red arrow) and any other open holes (yellow arrows).  One open hole is a potential problem, but as you can see there are many holes.







    This is just one example of several open areas where water can get under the engine.  You can see a puddle of water to the right of the open gap.







    There are many places where water can get under the engine or engine mounting plate and run into the transmission







    Another large gap.








    In this picture you can see silicone under the engine.  The silicone was applied from under the transmission and is coming up through the hole.








    When water gets on the aluminum drive disc (yellow arrow) the rubber drive wheel slips.  Eventually the spinning aluminum disc slings the water off and the drive no longer slips.  Here you can see the water that was slung from the aluminum disc (red arrows).








    I truly don't know if the next item is required, but I will explain what I did and why.
    This view is of the foam fix used by Deere to supposedly correct the slipping problem.  Unfortunately in my case the foam doesn't fit very tight on the left side of the machine.  Water that gets near the foam can still run under it.







    Here you can see two very small trails of water that made it's way under the foam.  The water then drops directly onto the aluminum drive pulley and gets slung potentially causing a slipping problem.







    I added foam as seen below.  I extended the foam down each side to make sure water can't get on the pulley when the machine is tilted.  The side foam will be covered by the plastic belt cover.







    Here is Deere's foam and the foam that I added.  It seems to be water tight.







    I've had snow all over the snowblower including the engine.  Everything has been working great now.




    Merry Christmas!!!


    Catt,

    This is the best tutorial I've seen to ensure this slipping problem is fixed.  Briggs & Stratton should be paying you to audit their engineering dept.   I'm definately going to add your suggestions to my 1130 this summer.  I just got my blower back from John Deere with both updates.  Randy at Schaber & Sons told me that B & S sent the updates out this past summer.  I personally think it should have been a recall.  Anyways, it worked great on the last snowfall so I'm happy again.  In fact, I have a new appreciation for decent equipment in general (read below).

    Yesterday I tried my Dad's three-year old MTD Yardman 8hp snowblower ($800) out on 12" of snow.  Granted this isn't an apples to apples comparison as my John Deere 1130 is 10.5 hp and costs $400 more.  The MTD's wheels began slipping after about ten minutes.  It progressively got worse until it only worked about half the time.  After violently shaking it and letting it sit for 30 seconds, the wheels would engage for five more minutes before I had to repeat over and over again.  The chute had a tremendous amount of snow that came out of the backside and the adjustment is down by your knees.  Also, it only threw the snow 8 - 12 feet.  I was blowing with a good wind so this meant I started on one side of the driveway and worked my way to the other side.  Everything I threw on the first three passes landed on the other side of the driveway meaning I had to blow the same snow twice.  My little brother just purchased a 5 year-old Simplicity 924 for $600.  He also has twice the blower as compared to the MTD, although he doesn't have the bells and whistles of the 1130.  My point is that it is WAY better to buy a decent used machine than a new piece of junk. 

    Catt


    Location: Minnesota
    Joined: Oct 16, 2009
    Points: 196

    Re: John Deere 1130 SE
    Reply #219   Dec 29, 2009 7:53 pm
    ccginmn,
    Thanks!  I hope everyone is happy with their Deere this year.  Mine is working great now and it's had a good workout with the amount of snow we've gotten. A lot of winter to go too!
    lanningjw


    Location: MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA
    Joined: Oct 8, 2009
    Points: 29

    Re: John Deere 1130 SE
    Reply #220   Dec 30, 2009 8:22 am
    Catt wrote:
    lanningjw, Let us know how yours works after the new clamp and bulb.



    I replaced light and clamp, all works well. About $7.50 for the new light, so it was no big deal. I think one of the screws that hold the starter motor on has also fallen out.....

    Also I think I need to tighten up the cable that engages the drive, If that doesnt work I am taking it back to the JD dealer. Seems only 3rd gear really has any power. Reverse is bad and 1 and 2 dont have any power.

    This message was modified Dec 30, 2009 by lanningjw
    hirschallan


    If it aint broke don't fix it !!


    Location: Northern Hills of NY
    Joined: Aug 25, 2005
    Points: 327

    Re: John Deere 1130 SE
    Reply #221   Dec 30, 2009 1:26 pm
    Hi, I don't have the JD but it sounds like you need to make adjustments as per your manual.This is very typical when gear a selector is off.

    Swoods


    I love all power equipment from lawn mowers to snow blowers. My favorite pieces of equipment are 2 cycle Lawn Boys.

    Location: Elburn, IL
    Joined: Nov 21, 2009
    Points: 65

    Re: John Deere 1130 SE
    Reply #222   Dec 30, 2009 1:57 pm
    I tried adding my weatherstripping underneath the factory strip.  Apparently, mine is too thick and the guard would not sit with both layers of foam.  I can see it working just as effectively with my thicker foam, but only using the 2nd add-on strip that Catt used here and not using the factory foam.  If it is thick enough, it should be good enough to seal it up.  Thanks for the pic, Catt.

    Also, (using Catt's pic again :)  ) The foam I used between the belt guard and the auger housing was too thick.  It pressed the belt guard into the belts and wore some marks into the plastic.  Something to look out for. 


    Mechanically, mine has been working pretty good after the updates.  I do notice that it gets very slow in 1st gear after running for a while.  This could be slippage, but it is hard to tell.  It goes perfect once I put it into 2nd gear.  Another thing I noticed is that it will jump into a higher gear by itself.  I think this is more of a problem with the spring and lever assembly.  I will have to look under the dash to see if I can tighten up whatever holds the gear selector into the notches. 

    I did find some inexpensive LED headlights for $9 including shipping on eBay.  They may hold up better to the extreme vibrations our machines make. http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/SMD-5050-13-LED-894-881-Car-Foglight-Light-Bulb-White_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQhashZitem25560bb97dQQitemZ160357398909QQptZMotorsQ5fCarQ5fTruckQ5fPartsQ5fAccessories


    Sean Woods
    Catt


    Location: Minnesota
    Joined: Oct 16, 2009
    Points: 196

    Re: John Deere 1130 SE
    Reply #223   Dec 30, 2009 3:30 pm
    Another thing I noticed is that it will jump into a higher gear by itself.  I think this is more of a problem with the spring and lever assembly.  I will have to look under the dash to see if I can tighten up whatever holds the gear selector into the notches.

    You are exactly correct.  There is a bolt with a spring that needs tightening on the gear shift lever under the dash.  It will hold it in the proper gear when adjusted correctly.
    Swoods


    I love all power equipment from lawn mowers to snow blowers. My favorite pieces of equipment are 2 cycle Lawn Boys.

    Location: Elburn, IL
    Joined: Nov 21, 2009
    Points: 65

    Re: John Deere 1130 SE
    Reply #224   Dec 30, 2009 3:33 pm
    Update on my transmission changing gears on its own:  Under the gear selector there are 3 13mm nuts that hold the gear selector in place.  I tried just tightening the tension bolt for it (one that has the spring), but that didn't help.  If you loosen the 3 13mm nuts it allow you to move the gear selector into the gear selector notches on the dash tighter.  You have to take the bolt that adjusts the tension on the shoot height adjuster to get to one of the nuts.  If you look under the dash, you will see what I mean.  It works much better now and really holds itself in the proper gear.  Catt: thanks for mentioning those dime-sized holes under the engine.  I didn't know those could leak.  They are all sealed up now.  I also took a hair drier to the belt cover to soften it up a bit and pulled it out so it won't rub the belts.  Hopefully it is enough.  I don't think it was a problem with the thicker weatherstripping as much as it was that the plastic belt cover was a bit bowed-in.

    My headlight has lasted 2 times after putting rubber between the headlight bracket and the machine and is still working.  It may be just a fluke with the other bulbs.  I didn't look at the original one that burned out very closely, but the last one the burned out has a little white spot on the bulb.  Maybe I accidently  touched it and caused it to burn out. 

    Catt: Thanks for posting all of those pics.  I took my belts and pulleys off and forgot where a washer came from.  Luckily you had a picture showing where it went.
    This message was modified Dec 30, 2009 by Swoods


    Sean Woods
    Swoods


    I love all power equipment from lawn mowers to snow blowers. My favorite pieces of equipment are 2 cycle Lawn Boys.

    Location: Elburn, IL
    Joined: Nov 21, 2009
    Points: 65

    Re: John Deere 1130 SE
    Reply #225   Dec 31, 2009 11:33 am
    I think I solved the problem of my headlight burning out.  Today when I was using the snowblower, the headlight wasn't working.  CRAP, NOT AGAIN!  A bit later I noticed that the headed handgrips weren't working either.  I thought there might be an in-line fuse that blew.  When I was done snowblowing, I was looking at the wires and thought I saw in-line fuses by the starter.  They were just connectors that looked like in-line fuses.  I followed the wires around and found one of them was broken.  It is a wire that goes from the starter to under the carb and through the engine.  Luckily it had broken off with just enough room for me to put a heatshrink crimp connector on.  Problem solved.  It must have been broken just enough to keep burning my headlights out, but not broken enough to cause it to quit sending power completely. 

    Sean Woods
    Catt


    Location: Minnesota
    Joined: Oct 16, 2009
    Points: 196

    Re: John Deere 1130 SE
    Reply #226   Dec 31, 2009 7:58 pm

    Good job Swoods!
    If you still have problems with the belt cover you can add a piece of angled sheet metal for strength.  Mine was rubbing slightly and I added the galvanized sheet metal with two stainless steel screws.  It doesn't flex now.  Just make sure the sheet metal isn’t too big or it might interfere with the belts and pulleys.



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