Deere 165 Hydro

You're cheating on your Case with another tractor! We want all the dirty details!
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thebuildist United States of America
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Deere 165 Hydro

Post by thebuildist »

I mentioned that my daughter and her family moved north. They've left their lawn tractor behind, which I intend to sell.

Yesterday I fired it up to do a quick mowing, and very quickly found myself absolutely disgusted with it.

The deck: The deck likes to dig in and drag turf away, leaving behind a muddy trench. It's not the blades scalping, it's something about the edge of the deck. Very frustrating, as I've had the deck off of it twice, and I'm relatively confident that it's all installed properly.

As to why I've had the deck off of it twice, the deck has very, very limited vertical movement, so much so that if you drive over a big root or hump, the deck rises up enough to lock the lift handle in the "up" position. So I got clever and kept my left foot pushing down on the lift lever. And at some point I drove over something that pushed the deck up and something under there snagged on the deck blades' belt and instantly cut it in half. So I won't do that again.

So anything nice I said about the deck, I now take back fully.

The steering: It's a little machine with a single travel lever, which behaves a lot like a Case. And the wheels can turn pretty far right or left, so it ought to be nimble and maneuverable. And it would be, but for the fact that for some crazy reason, the front tires would rather be a plough than a wheel. 9 times out of ten, you turn the front wheels and the machine just carries on straight, pushing the front wheels sideways. Even at lower speeds, even if you haven't turned very far. It makes you want to scream in rage. Now that I'm thinking about it, maybe the rear differential is "sticky" and the rear wheels tend to "lock up" relative to each other. Whatever it is, that machine strongly prefers "straight". Turns only happen occasionally and under protest.

Over the years I have driven a few WalMart-special MTD's of whatever "brand", and though they're built very cheaply, they function well enough for the first 5 years or so. I had thought that a Deere, a real one, built by John Deere in Moline, IL would be a quality machine. Not better than a Case, but not a piece of junk.

But now I'm maybe realizing just how spoiled I've been driving my Case/Ingersolls. It seemed handy to have a "spare" machine sitting there, ready to mow at the drop of a hat. But not that little green demon. That thing has to go.

Bob
"Never be afraid to try something new. How hard can it be?"
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DavidBarkey Canada
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Re: Deere 165 Hydro

Post by DavidBarkey »

@thebuildist Bob , my neighbor has the same one and although it does not messure up to the Case it has been a great machine for him for many years and still going .
No like Cases the is not a lot of lift room . But should cut well , and turn well . Here is a few things to look for . Are the tires all around the correct size and pressure is correct and fronts are not worn hard and smooth. 15x 6.00-6 / 18x8.50-8 / 14psi frt 10 psi rear .
The guage wheel are there on the deck and set properly . They should be set 1/2" higher than your cut . So if you are cutting at 3 " set the guage wheel at 2and 1/2" . This is something few poeple get right .
If it doesn't want to turn , properly it most likely is a toe in issue too much toe in and they won't turn . I beleave that that one has a non adjustable , so most likely a bent spindle tab . My experiance is the steer best at about 0 to 1/8" toe in .
Hope this helps
Dave
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thebuildist United States of America
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Re: Deere 165 Hydro

Post by thebuildist »

Thanks Dave. I'm sure you're right that it's not beyond hope. Once my disgust subsides I'll check what you've mentioned.

Bob
"Never be afraid to try something new. How hard can it be?"
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thebuildist United States of America
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Re: Deere 165 Hydro

Post by thebuildist »

DavidBarkey wrote: Sat Sep 03, 2022 7:10 am @thebuildist Bob , my neighbor has the same one and although it does not messure up to the Case it has been a great machine for him for many years and still going .
No like Cases the is not a lot of lift room . But should cut well , and turn well . Here is a few things to look for . Are the tires all around the correct size and pressure is correct and fronts are not worn hard and smooth. 15x 6.00-6 / 18x8.50-8 / 14psi frt 10 psi rear .
The guage wheel are there on the deck and set properly . They should be set 1/2" higher than your cut . So if you are cutting at 3 " set the guage wheel at 2and 1/2" . This is something few poeple get right .
If it doesn't want to turn , properly it most likely is a toe in issue too much toe in and they won't turn . I beleave that that one has a non adjustable , so most likely a bent spindle tab . My experiance is the steer best at about 0 to 1/8" toe in .
Hope this helps
The gauge wheels ride firm on the ground because the height adjustment doesn't stay set on any number. I had the fender pan off and I tried to attach that spring properly. But I don't know, and I clearly didn't get it right.

Bob
"Never be afraid to try something new. How hard can it be?"
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