OutdoorKing Repair Forum Forums Repairs and Maintenance Questions On Ride On Mowers Questions On Victa Ride On Mower Frames Identifying a Victa Ride-on Mower

G'day,

My first time on here, so please be patient with me.

I've just been presented with an old Victa ride-on mower. It's got an 11hp B&S engine, is painted green, has a twin disc type cutter deck, would be about 37" or 38" cut, and no identification plates of any kind that I can see apart from a lubrication sticker on the inside of the engine cover. That sticker is where I got the information from that it's a Victa.

Can anyone tell me how I can identify this machine?

Thanks for your trouble,

Regards

Maurie

MaurieM to our forum and I am sure that we will be able to help you.

If you can look under the seat you might find details on the model of the ride on mower otherwise it would be great if you could paste a picture of the machine so that we might be able to identify the ride on model.

If you can tell us the code that is on the motor because it might give us some idea of the year the ride on was made.

Hi MaurieM,we wish you a big warm welcome to the forum.
It's nice to have you onboard. Here's hoping we can help you with any information you may require as we all love to learn new things and tinker here.
... And...... we love to see pics of your projects!!
PS, don't forget to log into chat sometime and say hi, we're often online after 8pm,AEST.
Once again

Just showing Maurie my father in law how to post a pic! Cheers, John G

G'day Gents,

Thanks for your quick replies.

After reading some of the threads found on this forum, I went out to the mower and looked under the seat. Unfortunately someone has repaired a crack in the seat by welding a dirty great plate under it. It's not a bad job, but there is certainly nothing eft with any information on it.

I have a few photos of the machine, which I'll now try and attach to this reply.

Cheers

Maurie

It looks to me like it could be an old victa 11/36E

Without the code off the engine I would be guessing, But I would estimate late 70's to maybe early 80's

G'day again Gents,

Sorry it's taken me a few days to get back to you. I had to remove the muffle to be able to read the engine details, as this machine the exhaust goes right across the front of the motor.

Looks like your guess of the date was a good one Joe. The numbers on the engine are as follows.

Model 252707
Type 0175-01
Code 81050611

If it is as you say an old 11/36E, any idea where I may get a repair manual and parts list for it?

I've downloaded the operator's manual & parts list for the engine, but would not have the faintest idea as to where to start looking for these for the machine itself.

Cheers

Maurie

MaurieM,

You will find it in the parts list and manuals area of the forum here.

G'day Bruce,

Although I've paid the subscription, received email confirmations from both Paypal and yourself, I still can't get access to the parts list & manuals area. I've tried clearing the cache as suggested, but each time I click on the Lawnmower manuals section, I just get fired into the "Please Pay" bit.

What am I doing wrong?

Cheers

Maurie

Hey Maurie, I had a similar issue, followed the instructions and expired the site cookies which also logged me off.

I then closed my browser (Firefox) left it for 5 mins and made a cuppa so the process finished and then opened up Firefox again, logged in and Voila! there it was.

It was a tad hokey but worth the effort and so far the manuals are all spot on compared to stuff Ive bought from Auction sites and the like.

Cheers,

Boffa

G'day All,

Just got the old Victa (?????) going and did a proof of concept cut of our front lawn. This usually takes about an hour with the Rover push mower. Did it in less than 20 minutes. Gotta love that!!

Had trouble getting the starter to work. (Two wiring joints just twisted together. Solder & heat shrink fixed these. Bad earth on the solenoid & bad earth on the earth cable itself where it joins the chassis. She then fired up quite willingly.

After about five minutes, started to run like it was on full choke. Off with the aircleaner. Not guilty. Check the main jet needle adjustment, found half the head broken off and as tight as blazes. Took it out, removed the corrosion from the thread, put all back together, startedit, adjusted, and now runs like a dream. I then did the proof of concept run I mentioned earlier.

Found that the main drive belt needs replacing, and it has no brakes whatsoever. These are the next projects.

Tried your suggestion Boffa, but still can't get access to the manuals section. Thanks anyway. I also use Firefox, so thought it may work, but no luck.

Anyone got any other suggestions? I think I need to get into this area for the next part of the job.

Cheers

Maurie

Continuation of earlier this afternoon. (Had to go out for a while, but got back in time to do some more investigating)

Got the machine jacked up on stands, and climbing underneath, discovered the mower has a tiny disc brake, part of the gearbox/diff assy. Pulled it off, and found that someone had put the actuating cam on backwards. The disk pads (12 x 18 x ?? mm!!) are very worn, but could be adjusted to work, once the brake was assembled properly.

I'm hoping that when I get access to the manuals, I might be able to get some details on what size the main drive belt is supposed to be. The one on there is far too long, and the fact that it drives at all is a tribute to the "V" belt principle.

That's me for today.

Cheers

Maurie

Its great to see you got it running okay, as for the parts and manuals area Bruce is the expert on those sorts of things. He is Currently on holidays but still wandering around the forum a bit.

G'day All,

Next exciting episode!!

Finally got onto the manuals area. My fault for not finding it earlier, was looking in the wrong place.

Anyway, the parts list allowed me to identify the machine as a Victa 11-497, alias an MTD 132-497-612. As you can imagine, this is a HUGE help.

Victa have already informed me that they no longer supply parts for these machines.

Any suggestions as to where parts may be available? I need a drive belt (Transmision, one to blades is fine) and disc pads. Will also need in time some little bits such as parts for the little height adjusters on the outside of the cutter deck, but these I can make myself if I have to.

I would also like to get hold of a manual for the machine. Any suggestions?

Cheers

Maurie

PS I have an owner's manual for a Cox Orion XL2500 I'm happy to upload if anyone needs it.

G'day All,

Got onto the MTD website the other day. I now have an Owner's / Operator's manual for the beast. (Free download) The owner's manual has a parts list with MTD part numbers, which I feel may be a little more helpful than the Victa numbers. I'll let you know after I've tried to buy some of the bits I need.

On the MTD website (and another one I looked at somewhere) they specifically said not to buy belts based on the size given, but only to use the manufacturer's belt. To a certain degree this makes sense, as the belts under a mower get much more of a hiding than some other applications I can think of. Nevertheless, if one buys a quality belt, say a Dayco or a Gates, which they recommend for the job, will they last as long? I have not had a lot of experience with ride on mowers, so would appreciate some advice from any of you folk that may have.

Cheers

Maurie

MaurieM,

MTD are known for selling cheap new equipment but when it comes to buying spare parts they are over the moon with pricing. As to belts gates and dayco are quality belts and at least 1/2 the price of mtd.

Thanks Bruce, I suspected this might be the case. I'll try and find a belt from other sources before going to an MTD dealer. I'll probably have to got to a dealer for disc pads though. I've never seen anything else like these, and I've been involved in mechanics for many a long year.(It seems there may be an agent in Queanbeyan)

Cheers

Maurie

MaurieM,

Try the online store to give you an idea of the price you should be paying.

G'day once again,

Couldn't find much on the online store that I was looking for, but did manage to find a belt of the right size in a repco clearance list at a store in Victoria. The local Repco store in Belconnen (Canberra) got it up for me ($18.00 including freight) and I now have a drivable, useable mower. A very noisy, drivable useable mower!! The muffler is shot, rusted through on the outside, & I suspect on the inside too. The muffler's a rather weird shaped beast that ataches to the LF side of the motor, then curls up and across the front of the engine before exiting the cowling on the right. Please see the attached file for a picture of this. I suspect it's an MTD part only.

The MTD part number is 751-0263.

Anyone got any idea where I might get one of these?

Cheers

Maurie

MaurieM,

I am betting that you will have to buy a genuine MTD muffler and take plenty of cash with you.

If the pipe is good, the muffler casing looks like a fairly simple gas-weld repair job. If the entire pipe is shot, it might take a couple of hours to make one out of a bunch of standard pipe bends. That would be a bit tricky though, because you need to achieve a fairly precise fit to get it to sit in the correct space without hitting anything. So, it depends how much MTD want for a new part, and whether you know a gas-welding enthusiast.

G'day Grumpy,

I think the pipe is fairly solid. Rusty, yes, but feels like there's still some steel underneath it. The pipe out of the muffler has already been replaced with a lump of water pipe welded in, and as for the muffler itself, as well as the case being rusted through, it sound like it has no guts whatsoever.

You could be right however. If MTD want an arm & a leg for a new one (assuming I can even find one) it may be worth getting hold of some exhaust pipe of the right diameter and making a new one.

Thanks for the clue.

Cheers

Maurie

G'day All,

Just a quick note to wish you all a great Christmas, and to thank you for your help.

The muffler still isn't fixed, but I'll be retiring to part time work in January, and this will be one of my first projects. Some disc pads have been ordered, and when they are fitted, I should be able to somewhat reduce the number of times I use a wall or fence for stopping the mower!

My father worked for Victas for many years, and also had his own lawn mower / motorbike repair shop. As I'm also a mechanic myself, working on small engines is far from new to me.

Nevertheless, the information & help this web site provides is invaluable, and I'm much obliged for the way you've helped.

Thanks again, I'll probably be back again, as it seems that many relatives & friends have problems with machines which will keep me out of mischief during my "retirement".

May you all have a blessed Christmas and a great new year!

Cheers

Maurie

i am chasing a repair manual for a 11/30 e can you tell me how to find it on this site please