OutdoorKing Repair Forum Forums Repairs and Maintenance Questions On Ride On Mowers Questions on Rover Ride On Mower Tighten Gearbox Chain (Rover Ranger)

G'day all.

New member and novice ride-on mechanic.

I have a Rover Ranger (I believe it to be a 52155 XC?), shes a beast, but it cuts the grass. The problem I'm having is that the gearbox chain is slipping, yet I see no way of tensioning it. I've tried to remove a link, however this left the chain too short. I can't see that the gearbox can be moved, nor the idler(?) sprocket.

Has anyone got an experience with this model that could enlighten me on how this can be tightened?

Thanks

The owner manual says you loosen the gearbox strap bolt, then loosen the six retaining bolts that hold the idler sprocket bracket from underneath the chassis, and slide the idler sprocket as required. There should be 5 mm of chain drop mid-span when you've done it. The picture hasn't reproduced well, so I don't feel all that well-informed, but it doesn't sound complicated.

astro,

You need to adjust the rear axle after you follow grumpy's suggestion. This will remove the slack of the chain.

The owners manual is in the parts list and manuals area for more detailed information as well as pictures.

Happy New Year...
First of all thanks for the prompt replies, greatly appreciated.I actually didn't think that was movable. I'll give it a shot and see how we go.

I wasn't able to find the owners manual on the on the rover post in the lawnmower section (https://www.outdoorking-forum.com.au/forum/ubbthreads.php?ubb=postlist&Board=36&page=1). Do I have the right page? If you could point me to the download, it would be appreciated.

Thanks again

If you go here:
https://www.outdoorking-forum.com.au/forum/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=7306#Post7306
then select "Ranger XC Owners manualw.pdf" you will be able to download it. The words are clear, but the diagram is less so.

Thanks Grumpy, missed the subforum.

Any tips on an easy way of accessing these bolts?

Thanks again...

The manual says you should get at them from underneath the frame. I've never seen one of these mowers - Bruce is the man.

Astro,

Go to this page HERE and download Ranger XC owners manual. It will show what I am talking about for adjusting the rear axle.

Thanks for that Bruce, got it done.
Adjusting the rear axle was not a problem. Sliding the idler sprocket back was a bit of a pain. Got away without skinning the knuckles though, so thats always good .

Appreciate the assistance.

Cheers

good to see out got it sorted out

Any chance you have a youtube account? there is a blocke from tas on there astro29 i think....

nah, not me i'm afraid.

Did a quick search for it and it appears the astro29 account was terminated due to Copyright infringement, lol. (http://www.youtube.com/user/Astro29) .

thats cool, was just checking, he has a new account but cant remember what it is....

Hi all,

i have an old rover ride-on (actually 2 off them of similar age but different model)
the gearbox was sticking and so i decided to pull it apart to give it some servicing. all the gears looked ok but the oil/grease was totally unrecognisable. felt like black tar very sticky.
Anyways i've got them cleaned up now but not sure what to fill them up with. Do i fill it up with general purpose grease or gearbox oil i used for my car??? Any infor on this would be really really helpful. Thanks.

S.

szl, in the owners' manual Rover says that gearbox is permanently lubricated and no maintenance is necessary. In other words, they intended and wanted the lubricant to be like black tar and very sticky. You need to put them back just the way they were.

Oops. I think it's a bit late to put it back. I've already cleaned it up and dumped the sticky stuff.
Any idea what I should replace it with?

Also after reading the forum posts I think the problem I was trying to solve is not inside the gearbox. When I start the mower in any gears except reverse it just keeps knocking and appears that it was not locking in the selected gear. But I think it could also be slipping of the chain.

Szl

szl,

This is the stuff you need Super Lube EP-O Grease and it can be located on the online store late next week.

szl, you can find out whether the chain was slipping just by having someone look at it (safely, from a distance) while someone else tries to drive the mower. If it has been that way for long, the effects will also be visible on the sprockets: the tips of the teeth will have become rounded.