The is what the owner of the local power equipment store called my yard tractor that I got snookered on my a local old guy. (Damn those old guys!!) Snookered because I paid $500 for it. Grrrrrrrr :eek: According the to underside of the seat it an an MTD 13A4662F129. The body armour on it calls itself a yardman 18HP lawn tractor whereas the engine is a B&S 14.5HP OHV I/C quiet 287707 with a 42 inch "G" deck 13AR608G022. A complete rebuild of everything. This is my third season with it. First season had to replace the fuel line and filter. Had little issues with it that I don't remember what they were. Last year I had to replace all the belts. A fiasco due to being a "rainbow" tractor. The pulley for the drive and the PTO belt literally fell off last year, one of the many issues last year. Anywho, this year I have to replace the flywheel as it is missing a few teeth. I can get it started but I have to manually position the flywheel so that the starter thing can catch. Hey, it works for the moment. Today, after it sitting all winter I did get it started very quickly and other than positioning the flywheel, no problem. Hey I even mowed the lawn! Besides the flywheel other issues carrying over from last year presented. The PTO belt is loose. Per the store (mentioned above) I put on the recommended belts. When mowing, the deck just doesn't seem to have the power it should...duh, the belt is loose. Also between the two blades it mows unevenly. While common sense tells me that I need to make adjustments to the deck, it also tells me that despite manufacturers recommendations the PTO belt is too big. Today with the deck at its highest position the blades sounded strong and powerful. When I lowered the deck to 3" the blades pretty much STOPPED. WTH???? I was on my concrete driveway when this occurred so it was not due to trying to mow high grass. There was nothing to put any strain on the blades. OK so my main question at the moment is regarding the loose belt. There is no doubt that I have it on and around the pulleys correctly. With the engine off if I engage the PTO lever, the belt is obviously loose. Something just ain't right. Would getting a smaller PTO belt be out of the question? I'm thinking of doing the string measure around the pulleys for a measurement??? Am I far off track here?? Thoughts?? Questions?? Opinions (be kind)???? Inspiration!!!???? For this lawn tractor I also have a grass catcher that gets clogged more often than not but I think that is due to the lack of power to the blades because of the apparently lose belt. I lawn sweeper that I got last year but admittedly haven't used it yet and an aerator. Help me out men!! (Oh and I'm still working on the tiller)

I have an early to mid 2000 craftsman rider with Forward and reverse foot pedals on the right side of the mower. When I try to go forward or reverse it has a load whining noise and won't move. After pushing the pedal down several times it will start to move a little and then take off and operate normal. Thanks for your help!