Yard machine speed help

I have a yard machine mower that hase a vari-drive and idk how to do a pulley swap with a vari-drive

I think there are some threads in the past that talked about the vari-drive setup. If you use the search bar and look for vari-drive you might find something. Some people don't care much for them and they can be kinda touchy as far as throwing belts ect. Not sure if anyone had too much luck with them or not. I had one on a stock grass cutter and it would chew belts up all the time. I might not have had the exact size belt on it though.

Also, welcome to the forum!

Could I take off the vari-drive system and I've looked throught the old threads already.

I think you could but isn't the transmission on those just a forward, neutral, reverse trans? If you had a 5 speed or some other transaxle then you would have different gears at least. I think the frames are not much different than most other tractors so you could swap it around sure. Might need to change the clutch ect to make it work with a different belt setup.

You think so??

Yeah if you feel ambitious you can rig up a clutch and swap a different transaxle into it, it's been done before.

Welcome to the Forum! Fayetteville? Your the closest member to me I know of....


An MTD isn't always the best way to go, but if you want to take a swing at it then go ahead, but definitely get rid of the Varidrive system, they are a PAIN to work with. As for the tranny, just have a spare one around if you're gonna use the FNR. But, if you have a good welder and plenty of drive than you can be like AK above me there and build something awesome!

Ah I see you got a topic. :-)

The vari drive I had was in a craftsman. Not sure if they still call it vari drive but anyway, seemed like if you adjusted it too much, the belt would shred itself. And all I was using it for was to mow grass. In theory, it should work good. It's a similar idea to a torque converter clutch except that you vary the gearing yourself. I would guess if some changes were made to the design it could work better. But, I have no idea why they don't work stock and I don't think anyone wants to bother lol.

whats the best transaxle i can get fo cheap cause im 15 and im new to this stuff

what could i do to the trans axle to make it to where it "heavy duty" and is a fnr axle good for speed cause i was thinkin that it has all the gears "fnr" that ill really need and best bolts to use for front spindles??

FNR are pretty light weight. You can make them go faster with some mods and pulley swap. Making them stronger... lots of bracing?

what you mean bracing and best bolts to use for end of spindle replacment

Bracing of the transaxle would be anything to keep it from snapping in two when you hit a bump fast or hit rough terrain hard.

Quick search I found this in the forum.

Example of transaxle "end" bracing can be seen here:

https://www.atltf.com/t3898p125-my-2003-murray-select-all-terrain-tractor-build

I've even seen some do a sort of brace that goes under the transaxle as well.  Anything to keep the axle straight.

As for best bolts for end of spindle replacement.  Not sure what you are asking here.  Are you making a spindle out of a bolt to mount a tire?  @AllisKidD21 has done that.  I would think any grade 5 or higher bolt would work the diameter of your bearings for your wheel.  Some are 5/8" some are 3/4" and as long as you need for your wheel to fit on.

how can i make the trans axle to where the wheels are held on by nuts not snaprings

if you can weld, or have someone who can, you can weld a bolt to the end of the axle, or you can drill and tap the axle, this is the method i plan to use on a project i'm getting ready to start where i need a little more space between the wheel and transaxle housing

I'm in the process of doing a pully swap on my yard machines/ MTD. Looks easy enough to do both engine and transaxle. To do either one youl need a pully and a belt. My varidrive is working fine so I'm gona try and keep it as long as I can.