Hi Everyone,
I need help with my Snapper 28" riding mower. When I am mowing and engage the blades, it will run for 1-2 minutes and quit on me. It will start right back up and do the same thing. If I do not engage the blades it runs fine and does not quit. I have been able to disengage the blades before it tries to quit on me and then the engine does not quit. Any ideas??
Hey deck99.
If I understand this right, the engine runs fine until you engage the blades for a few minutes. It will drive the mower at any speed just fine until you engage the blades for a few minutes.
+1 tagpopshed.
Seems to me the issue is related to blade engagement.
If the deck switch was bad, there would be no wait time for failure.
If anything engine related was the culprit, then it would not run just fine as long as you did not engage the blades.
While blade engagement and mowing does put the most load on the engine, if all is well for a minute or two there has not been enough time for the engine to overheat.
I am not familiar with the interlock that dragline mentioned. Obviously that is a possibility.
My thinking is that either the idler pulley or the spindle bearings are seizing up.
This does take a little while which explains the delay for failure.
Idler pulleys are easily replaced and I would think yours would be screaming like a banshee if seized so badly as to kill the engine.
The drive belt should be fried as well.
Spindle bearings are a little more work, but if you need to you can buy the whole spindle assembly.
In any event, it's an easy diagnosis to pop off the belt and check the bearings.
I hope this helps,
HDNewf